THE BRITISH BOMBER IS WONDERFUL.

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 219, 20 January 1917, Page 2

THE BRITISH BOMBER IS WONDERFUL.

WHAT HUN WOUNDED IN LONDON THINK OF THE SOMME. Unknown to the general public a considerable number of German wounded from the Somme battle have reached London and been distributed among the various -hospitals. A batch is under treatment at the beautifully situated Richmond Military Hospital, overlooking the splendid park, and another contingent is quartered at Fulham. For some days between fifty and sixty Germans wounded were accommodated in the Hammersmith Orthopaedic Hospital in a block of buildings up to that time vacant for patients, but since they have been transferred to equally comfortable quarters and the Orthopaedic Hospital is using all its space for the treatment in which it. specialises. Many of the German wounded are suffering from extremely grave injuries, but they are described as making good-tempered but rather taciturn patients, probably due to the novelty of their surroundings and to their difficulties with the English language. Those who are inclined to be talkative dilate with horror on their experiences on the Somme, the mere mention of which word seems to make them shudder.

Curiously enough, it is not of the terrible British artillery fire they sneak so much, though it is plain to see what they think of it. but of our

men’s prowess in bombing attacks. “Wonderful” is the term they apply, but to tone down the impression that the British soldier is bettor than their comrades, they hasten to add that it is the remarkable British hand grenades that do the mischief. “Your hand grenades are so much better than ours,” they add plaintively.

Quite frankly they declare the military valour of the British Tommy has come as a great surprise, and one can imagine from that confession the rales about the British Tommy and the long-legged Highlanders with which their superiors must nave stuffo. them.

Without exception they state they are glad to be out “ of that hell,’' meaning the Somme battlefield.

Asked how long they think the war will last, almost unanimously they plump for many months longer. "And who will win?” "We shall win,” they say emphatically. “You will never drive us out of Belgium. However ever lowered the moral of the German soldier may be by the brusque treatment he has received on the Somme, it is only fair to say that as far as the German wounded in London are concerned tiro faith in ultimate victory is still unshuttered. The kind treatment they receive from doctors and nurses alike is an agreeable surprise to them. As one who has been in contact with them explained: ‘•' You may hate the German as much as you like, and you may never forget ho is your bitterest enemy, but when you see him with a leg or an arm blown off, or suffering from a terribly fractured skull, your ordinary humanitarian feelings overcome your other emotions and you are bent only on

securing his recovery. No doubt some of tlic Gormans arc more grateful than others, but letters which they have been permitted to write homo, first having passed through the Censor’s hands, reveal a hitherto unsuspected depth of appreciation in the foe. One very intelligent Gorman patient, writing home to his father, spoke in the harshest terms of the way he had been deceived about the English. “I W as told, ! I he wrote, “that they treat their, prisoners badly; so far from this being the case, nothing could exceed the kindness we have received, and I would wish, you to make this generally known.” Throughout his letter the reference to having been “swindled” as regards the ways of the enemy occurs at regular intervals, showing how strongly the writer felt about the subject. The usual precautions as regards military patrols are taken at the hospitals where the German wounded are confined, and to .spare their feelings strict orders have been issued that no one is to be allowed to interrogate them. As soon as they arc well they are to be removed to an internment camp in the or dinar v way, but judging from them comfortable demeanour they have no great desire to hasten the day of them convalescence. | Occasionally a recovering German pai tient may he seen at the window of his I ward looking curiously and not a little | wistfully at the scene passing under ills 3ve —the arrival and departure ol ambulance wagons, the changing of the patrol, the discharge of stores, etc. To the general public in his hospital clothes he is undistingnishable from the ordinary British patients. Generally speaking, the wounded Hung are noticeable for a seriousness of manner and a settled air of gloom, in striking manner to the manner of the wounded British Tommy,, who, be he over so badly wounded, maintains a high average of cheerfulness and is ready to bo amused at the slightest provocation.

Every week reports as to the progress of tkc German -wounded are sent to the Prisoners of War Intelligence Bureau in Wcllington-stroet where a wonderful index system records the names and addresses of every German prisoner, military or civilian in the Britih Empire. Regular lists are sent to the American Ambassador and by him transmitted to the German Government. It is open to any German frau to direct to this bureau an enquiry a bout her husband, and if he is on the index list she will be sure of a reply. Sometimes the enquiry comes via a British subject in this country. German parents will read that their son is missing; they will remind themselves that in Hornburg or Marienbad in the days before the war they met some English people whose address, with German thoroughness. they have jotted down in thenaddress book, and they will viite to them, via Holland, asking them to be good enough to find out whether the Prisoners of War Intelligence Bureau has anv record of the missing man.