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Show GERMAN LETTERS ySHE spirit of the battlefield C J speaks in the letters and diar-" diar-" ies found in the possession of German prisoners, or on the bodies of those who will never return to their loved ones. The letters from home breathe a spirit of bitterness; the diaries in the trenches a spirit of revolt. re-volt. Here are some pages from the diary of a captured soldier, whose lack of heroism is not so strange when one reads of the bombardment of their own trenches by the Germans. "At last we arrived in the second line. Wo got Into a dugout that offered of-fered little cover two small pieces of a tree trunk and a layer of rails on the top. Scarcely had we got in it was about 6:30 a. m. when a maddening drum-fire was opened by the English and kept up until 7 o'clock. An airman had observed a movement in our trench. Our dugout, thank God, escaped es-caped damage. "The first day passed off quietly, all things considered. At night the artillery artil-lery fire became more intense. The worst of it was that our own artillery persistently fired Bhort. One gun fired into our trench perpetually. It was a disgrace to be compelled to sit within a mile of our artillery fire. "The afternoon of the next day the English began firing mines. Three men promptly went away to the rear. I tried to follow them, but lost my way, although I had helped carry back a wounded man only that forenoon. fore-noon. However, I managed to get out of the mess successfully enough. "During the night I lay with another an-other man in a concrete dugout full of water in order to be out of the way. It was the first time I had ever shirked duty, but it is mere stupidity to be too conscientious in such matters. In fact, one ought to go to the rear or even allow oneself to bo placed under arrest rather than remain in this miserable caldron. "Outside the shells are whistling and crashing, and the dugout shakes perpetually. Many of the company have cleared out or have never come into line at all. Only a sergeant is left in the company. Everybody does his utmost to get out oft he way, and quite right, too. Life is precious. "Tonight I shall have to go forward again as I have left my rifle-belt and kit in the trench. If only I come through this tour without mishap! My rations will last until tomorrow morning. morn-ing. Food and coffee cannot, of course, be warmed up in the midst of all this artillery. When there is nothing noth-ing left to eat I shall go back on my own responsibility that's final." The report of a platoon commander to his commanding officer tells of a man who refused to go into the first trenches, preferring arrest. The report reads: "Schule was present here this morning. morn-ing. I again gave him ample tiine to think over his behavior. When I asked him again in Ihc afternoon what he was going to do he said he was not going into the lino. Thereupon I put him under arrest and sent him to the guardroom." Then there is a letter from a wife who cries out against the horrors of war and those responsible: "I do not think things are going at all well on the western front. If only we could have peace and you soldiers could be treated as human beings again! Haven't those on top poured forth enough human blood yet? When will it end? One on hardly stand it any longer. "Many persons in Germany can say, I consider myself just as necessary to the welfare of the state as WilhelmV The war retards, the progress of the nation, and, further, the government not the people gave its assent and started things. Why should one be compelled to take a more active part than rulers, and why should one stake more than they?" And now a girl pours out her heart to her lover at the front, crying out against this "murdering," and declaring declar-ing that her love for her country has turned to hatred. She tells, too, of the calling of the children to the colors: "Why must I always fear for the dear life of my sweetheart? I owe love to my fatherland, but must tell you that this love has changed into hatred, as we have learned that we are only here to be destroyed. "Our dearest are on the front, sac-' rificed for the profit of the upper ten thousand. And we must still have patriotism! Never will this be the case with me. It will not uphold me in my sorrow. I feel only bitterness toward the land which stole my darling. darl-ing. "There are still people who think we can not sign peace unless we get Belgium. Of what use would Belgium be to me and thousands more like me? I know what you think about it, but I know that you share my opinions. "Will there not soon be enough of this murdering? Must it go on until everything is in ruins and every human hu-man life is destroyed? "And now children are being called out. Is this not a real mockery? Hardy have they left school when they are called to fight for the fatherland. Ernest Belich's brother is to be a soldier. sol-dier. He is 17 years old. "Is not Germany making herself ridiculous? I am disgusted with all this. It was said about another nation na-tion (Russia) that it accepted bondage. bond-age. Can the German people now say they are free? No, we are treated worse than slaves, and for such slavery slav-ery we must cheerfully sacrifice our lives. The man who still risks his life for the love of Germany is perfectly per-fectly insane." San Francisco News Letter. |