Berlin Town (part 2 of 7)

I shall always remember one evening service early in the month. I had been kneeling there, trying to pray, when the music broke out into a beautiful hymn to the Mother of God, beseeching for comfort for all, in this time of grief. I was awakened by it, as if from a long dream, and I looked round, and the scene that I saw struck me to the heart. The altar all ablaze with candles and flowers, the Blessed Sacrament exposed there above, the priest and acolytes, the incense, and the congregation, all wrapt in their devotional hymn; Countess Henckel and her daughters, in nurses' dress, having come straight from their work in the hospital; Princess Lowenstein and all her small children kneeling around her; Countess Larisch with her little daughters; the nuns of all ages and sizes; the wounded soldiers, some with their arms in slings, some with faces bandaged up, some on crutches, having limped straight in from the wards; and many unwounded soldiers in their tattered uniforms, home for a few days' leave and spending it thus. And at the back of the chapel knelt my husband and Prince Lowenstein; my husband in the uniform of the Knights of Malta, with the Red Cross badge on his arm, Prince Lowenstein in the field uniform of the Bavarian army, leaning on their swords, with their eyes fixed on the tabernacle. These two ofificers, and all these soldiers and the congregation, were singing that hymn from the very depths of their hearts. They were absolutely oblivious of the outer world as they knelt there and poured out their supplication to God in this hymn to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

I stopped and asked myself: "Can you hate these people as you think you do, can you not see any good in them, can you not understand how they suffer too, and picture their homes being stricken and what they are enduring as well as your own countrymen?" and as I listened my resentment gave way, and I prayed for these people who were suffering as much as myself, if not more.

It is in times of stress like this that the consolations of religion appeal most strongly to us. How often in the night, when we lie and think about all the bitter suffering in the world, might we not seek in spirit to grope our way through time and space, and by the power of our will make our presence felt by some lonely dying soldier, who might close his eyes in peace could he feel our helpful hands or hear our grateful whisper in his dying ears, "Thanks, dear brother, sleep well." We too might gain some comfort in the knowledge that the last moments of the dead are not spent in anguish and pain, for death is mostly far kinder than life and infinitely more merciful than man, and steeps the tired senses in a dream wherein all else is forgotten but the happy peaceful memories of childhood.

belief that those hours of pain which may have preceded the end will shorten their passage through Purgatory in the next life, and could they let us know, as they sometimes do in dreams and visions, they would most certainly implore us not to grieve so much for them or doubt as to their well-being now, for our tears and pain are probably for them the one alloy to their perfect peace in heaven.

I had been in correspondence with Prince Lowenstein about my brother, who was first reported missing after the battle of Ypres. He was quartered at Comines, near the fighting line of that district, and the trouble and real sympathy he showed me in my anxiety impressed me in a way that few other things have done for a long time. He several times rode out specially to the surrounding district to make inquiries about him, and rode up to the dressing-stations and field-hospitals of the district, and also to the abandoned trenches and graveyards, in the hopes of getting a clue. And sometimes, when passing a wayside cross, he would get down from his horse and copy the name of the fallen officer, and send it to me in the hope it might bring some little consolation to a bereaved relation.

At the beginning of May he came back on leave for a few days, and I went to see his wife and him at their apartment. His real and intense kindness and sympathy touched me very much - the way he tried to give me every detail about the search, and at the same time spare my feelings as to the hopelessness and sadness of the aspect of warfare in that particular part of the country.

Berlin, May 1915. - May 8, 1915, will live vividly in my memory for the shock that we received by the sinking of the Lnsitania. How can I find words to write about it? And yet I cannot pass over the event that caused more sensation throughout the world than the greatest victory or the greatest defeat. "Sinking of the Lusitania by a German submarine'' was the headline in our German paper that morning, without any details of importance. A great loss of life had been the just punishment for that liner that was carrying munitions to the enemy of Germany. Neutral America was providing these munitions (a breach of neutrality, said Germany), and what sacrifice could be too great a punishment for that !

The Germans themselves were amazed - oh yes; but proud - proud of what one little submarine could do, of what power a few men in a little nutshell under the water could wield - what a wonderful method of warfare it was, and how soon England must give in if confronted with this power. At last the world would recognize the awfulness of the German navy, and see that Germany must become mistress of the seas, as she could prevent others from crossing the water in safety whenever she pleased. In one respect the Germans were right. The world does recognize the awfulness of that kind of warfare, but not with admiration!

The Americans here in the hotel, and those of the Embassy staff, had always professed to be neutral. They had been cordial and friendly towards the Germans they met, had gone out together, had played tennis, and so forth. But a sudden change now took place. The Americans openly avoided the Germans, almost cutting their friends of the day before. Friendly intercourse was absolutely out of the question. Their rage and horror at the idea that Americans had been killed knew no bounds, and they gave vent to their views in unguarded terms. One German turned to me and said, *'You and other English ladies here have self-control, but these Am^ican ladies, once they are roused, do not care how or where they express their feelings."

see me. We made an appointment for the next evening, when he told me he had come to thank me on behalf of some of the English prisoners for all I had been doing for them, and that he was the doctor appointed for the officers at Blankenburg, and so saw them nearly every day.

cigarettes; the poor man is overpowered by the number that are sent him, as there is no place to keep them and he can't smoke them all." I replied that I purposely had not sent any, and the only thing I could send him that I knew he would appreciate was the only thing he would not be allowed, and that was the English Times. "No," he said very decidedly, *'that is absolutely against the rules; but," and he looked at a pile of the Times lying on my table, *'of course, if I happened to have some newspapers in my pocket, I might drop them as I went past his door, by accident," and he gave me a knowing look. I at once rolled them up and he stuffed them into his pocket, and as he went towards the door, he said, "My mother was English, but we don't say too much about that at present, do we ?"

To-day I went to tea with the Duchess of Croy. She is one of the many young American wives of the German nobility, and is the daughter of Mr. Leishman, who was at one time Ambassador in Berlin. She told me of an awful journey she had a short time ago when she was in their place in the country. She got a telegram from her husband to say he was being sent from the West to the East, and would be passing Cologne, and could she meet him there. Their place was some miles out of Cologne, and she had not much time to spare. She had to hire an old village taxi, their own motors having all been taken, and had to implore the man to drive as hard as ever he could. Just as they were nearing Cologne a tyre burst. She was in despair, and had to get out and kneel down in the middle of the road, and work her hardest to help the chauffeur to put it right, every minute thinking she was missing her husband. She was only twenty, and her baby was only three weeks old, so altogether she was not very fit for being left in such a plight. However, they got it mended and dashed on. Then, on reaching the station, there were more difficulties in the form of German red tape. They flatly refused to let her on to the station without a pass. As a brilliant idea, she said she had an important telegram for her husband from the War Office, and they then said they must see the telegram. Her patience nearly gave way at that, but she realized all would be lost if she did not carry it through, so she said, "How dare you insult me by asking me to show you a private communication from the War Office; I shall report you for this.'' It acted like magic, and they fell back and let her through, just in time to see her husband's train come in.

A young officer, just home on leave for a few days in Berlin, said to me to-day that he was longing to get back to the front so as to have a little peace and quiet, where, as he said, there is not so much venomous hatred and vindictiveness against the enemy, and no incessant talk of cruelties, reprisals, etc. He added : "Out there we all do our duty, the enemy as well as ourselves; we obey the orders, and do what we are told, and have no time to think or feel all this horrible hatred and revenge."

Some one just returned from Neuve Chapelle says that the battle there was one of the most ghastly of the whole year. The Germans had hidden a machine-gun in practically every window and every door of the cottages, and when the English marched through they were just mown down. Their losses (Germans) during that fight were appalling - 18,000, and the British were 12,000. The English attacked sixty times in three days, throwing all their strength apparently on that one spot for the moment.

Prince Miinster said he witnessed a sad sight the other day. A man in the trenches had to watch his son dying by inches a few hundred yards away from him (between the trenches) and was powerless to help or reach him. He was his only son, and he saw him fall wounded and then die slowly, with many other wounded, lying there in the open ground.

And I have just been told of another sad s^ight from the East Front. The Germans went forward to clear a captured Russian trench, and found in it a fine-looking Russian officer sitting upright, motionless, gazing at a photo of a most beautiful woman and two little children. He was stone dead.

Berlin, June 15, 191 5. - It is now a month since the Lusifania was torpedoed. We have read all the comments in the English and American papers, and I have studied the attitude of the people here towards that horrible deed. Even those who admire it from the scientific point of view seem in their inmost hearts ashamed of it, and do not care to defend it - but rather on the ground that it was politically a mistake. I believe the Kaiser thoroughly disapproved of it, and I have seen a letter written by one of the royal princesses (not of German birth) in which it was condemned as piratical and barbarous.

Berlin, June 10, 191 5. - Amongst the numerous afflictions visited upon us by the war, the "spy-fever" is one of the worst. It has indeed reached such a height that it seems as if every second person at least is on the verge of lunacy, and that this venomous attitude towards your neighbour is a new form of war-pestilence. People are proud of the way in which modern science has coped with infectious ailments, but no science seems able to suppress this newest form of mental disease, to which womankind seems particularly addicted. The seemingly most righteous member of our sex will, without a qualm of conscience, inform on her most innocent neighbour, apparently to satisfy some innate instinct for playing the detective, or for making herself important. I could relate dozens of instances of malicious and misleading informers within my own knowledge. It is impossible that all the people who have been persecuted as such are in reality spies. From what I hear, the "spy" epidemic seems to be international, and weak-minded females in England and France have fallen a prey to the same affliction.

Has the word "spy" lost its ancient disagreeable meaning? It almost seems to be an honourable calling now, or it is at least if you are a member of the secret service, for you not only receive a very high salary in every country, but you are regarded as an upright and honourable gentleman, and a very useful member of society, whilst the private "spy" is looked upon as a criminal only worth shooting.

A conversation with a neutral this afternoon has turned my thoughts this way. We were really discussing the different methods of the German and English secret service, and whilst listening to the details he gave me of the enormous sums which both countries had spent on it, I could not refrain from saying that they had neither of them been very effective, considering the utter ignorance and surprise expressed by both at the outbreak of the w^ar.

He admitted that it was not always easy to distinguish between spies, traitors, and secret service agents. The English officials, he said, were bombarded with anonymous letters from charitable persons who felt bound to lay at least one victim at the feet of justice. This kind of information, which is always offered gratis at the time of any sensational crime, is of little or no value, and is generally the outcome of hysterical imagination. He told me that the much-abused English Intelligence Department had not been quite so fast asleep as the good lady-informers supposed, and that for three years before the war the names of all the German residents in England hid been noted. Their correspondence had been systematically opened and censored during that period, and within twenty-four hours of the declaration of war no less than twenty-five out of twenty-six recognized paid spies had been taken into custody. The twenty-sixth, who escaped through the over-zeal of one of the aforesaid females, was eventually captured, and before three months were over they had unearthed a whole nest of suspicious individuals, and interned them for the duration of the war. On questioning him as to the relative merits of the two countries, he judged the English secret service to be better than the German, as more men who had been touring in Germany, financed by the Government, got back to their own country in time. As to the morality of spying in general, I expressed my doubts about the ethics of men who go round accepting the hospitality of friends, all the time trying to elicit information which is meant to harm their country. He, however, took another view of the case, and expressed his admiration for men who risk their lives and stop at nothing to help their native land, without receiving any kudos. As an example he mentioned Baden-Powell, who, in his book published after his visit to Germany in 1910-11, boasts how he accepted hospitality at the Emperor's table, whilst in between he gained as much useful information as he could, from less exalted personages, by means of bribes.

me in June 19 14. He complained that his whole pleasure in the Kiel regatta week had been spoilt for him by an English friend, whom he was entertaining, trying by every means in his power to gain knowledge of the depths and sounding of the Canal, during casual conversation with him and his friends.

A few days ago Gebhard and I and Gustav (G.'s brother) went to see the English prisoners working on the road near Lichterfelde. No one was supposed to know they were there, and no one was allowed to go and see them. However, Paul Miinster had given me a graphic description of how, when he was out the other day with the other cadets, they suddenly came upon them, and their captain called out to know whether any among them could speak English. Paul Miinster at once came forward and was then told he might say a few words to them.

He said the poor men were so pleased when he asked them about their homes and where they had come from, etc., and when he mentioned several places in England he knew well himself, they at once became most friendly.

This, of course, fired me with the idea to go there. I knew it was impossible without an officer in uniform, and I asked one or two I knew if they would go; but they all said it would not be allowed, and might be misconstrued, and all the usual reasons which were forthcoming when any interest in the English was shown. However, I knew my good-natured brother-in-law would do anything I asked, so we three sallied forth.

It was dinner-time when we arrived, and they were all lying about in the heat of the blazing sun, in a sort of fenced-off waste of sand. They were a most unkempt lot, I must say; but, poor men, it was not their fault. They were laughing and joking among themselves, and one of them was reading out what evidently was a very amusing story, judging by the peals of laughter that it caused. A very nice official came and spoke to us, and while he and my husband talked, I began very cautiously to make my way up to the wire railing, and then I said to them, "How are you; is there anything I can do for you?" I shall never forget the look on those poor men's faces when they heard these few words of genuine English; they all crowded up to the wire fence, each wanting a word said to them. I had to be very careful, as I knew I might be stopped at any minute. They had nearly all been prisoners since last August or September, and seemed so weary of it.

I asked which battles they had been in, and one man said to me, "I was wounded at Less Skates." My brother-in-law, who was standing near, said, *'What does he mean?" I said, ''He says he was wounded at the battle of Le Cateau," and this really was the first time it dawned on me how different the descriptions and names of battles and everything must sound when spoken of in England - ^when I think of Less Skates and Wipers, for example.

I could not tell them I was English, although I longed to, but I knew that would be quite fatal, so I went on making desultory conversation to them, my brother-inlaw joining in at times, but they did not rise much to his conversation. They saw he was a German officer, and spoke broken English, so they were more cautious and suspicious, and kept their eyes fixed on me, with a smile on their faces, as much as to say, "We see you are a friend and that you are English."

I asked if they got parcels from home. Some said sadly, "No," but one told me that he got them regularly every week. I asked what regiment he belonged to, and he replied "Royal Fusiliers," which rejoiced me, because it was the regiment my mother had undertaken

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My husband then came up, and as his English is perfect, and as he was only in the uniform of the Knights of Malta, they opened out to him at once. He asked them if they had any complaints, and whether they had all they wanted. They replied that they had plenty of food; that they heard regularly from home; and that they liked working on the roads as it helped to pass the time.

So my husband said, "Well, that's all right. I am glad you are happy." But they replied, "We want to be in England, that's all we want. It is the only wish we have, to be once more back in good old England." And underlying every word they said one could read downright genuine home-sickness. The poor men said it with such feeling that it made a great impression on me.

Then a sentinel called out in a very loud voice, 'Tt is not allowed to talk to the prisoners." So we drew back instantly, but continued our conversation at each other in a way, I talking to the interpreter so that they could hear, and they talking to each other so that I could hear.

One sentence I remember specially. A very roughlooking young soldier, who was lying in his shirt-sleeves on the sand eating his dinner, said to his neighbour in an audible voice that I could hear: "I wish the dickens she'd get them to send me a pair of boots ; how the deuce I am expected to work in these blessed things I don't know" (these blessed things being a sort of clog sandals). I looked at him and laughed and did my best to send him these boots, but never heard whether he got them or not.

We then moved away, all the men smiling at me as I went. One very young sailor boy struck us so much, he looked so unutterably sad and ill, and he was the only one who stood up to attention and saluted when we left. I have tried since to find out his name, but have never

We then went to a little wayside inn and had our lunch in the garden outside. The prisoners' dinnertime was now over and they were all back at work on the tram-line on the road. It was an historic sight I shall never forget, the surroundings so typically German, and these ultra-English men working in their shirt-sleeves all along the line, and whistling and talking to themselves quite oblivious of the rest of the world. I am glad to say they seemed on most jocose and familiar terms with all the foremen who were working with them. I gazed out on this scene and felt as if I were in some land of dreams.

After our luncheon we went home by tram and had to pass along the line where these men were working. Their delight at recognizing me again in the tram was really most touching; they all looked up and waved their hands and called out * 'Good-bye" to me, and I felt I had left a few more unknown friends behind me, whom I shall probably never see or hear of again.

Many months afterwards I heard from the English chaplain who visited them that they still talked of my visit, and they had managed to find out who I was and all about me, and they told him what a happiness it had been to have a little breath from the Old Country, as my visit had seemed to them.

The Times has published some evidence extracted from Bavarian deserters, who vouched to have witnessed the shooting of English prisoners, whether wounded or not, under supervision of a Bavarian officer. I was in a great state about this and wrote to a friend of mine, a Bavarian officer. His reply is as follows : **I think the whole thing is perfect nonsense. ... I expect the deserters were short of money, and made it by telling sensational stories, the Dutch reporters being most anxious for information of that sort. I know many instances of that kind ... a deserter is never a very trustworthy person."

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He also drew my attention to the fact that in a fight it is very difficult to say when the "action" has come to an end and when captivity begins. Very often a man, I suppose, may be ready enough to surrender and yet must be killed because the man attacking cannot stop to take him prisoner. A man saving a prisoner may be forfeiting his own life by being hit while doing it. So the Frenchman, of whom a friend told me, was killed by a man who would have liked to save him when he heard the words, *'Ayez pitie de moi, j'ai une femme et six enfants.'*

I sent the article out of the Times to Prince Lo wenstein, who was at the Bavarian Headquarters at Comines. He answered that the ''Deserters' story" had been thoroughly investigated, and that no such men existed at all as the two names given as the eye-witnesses, and that he and others with him considered it a Press fabrication from beginning to end. The Bavarian Crown Prince expressed great astonishment that any one should even think they ever killed prisoners. He said, we want prisoners who can talk and tell us something ; there would

How easy it is to talk about atrocities, and how few people pause to weigh the full meaning of their words when adding their quota of horror to the tale. In Berlin, for many months after the beginning of the war, we heard nothing but tales of torture and barbarities inflicted by Belgian women and franc-tireurs on German soldiers. Then came stories of French franc-tireurs and the bad treatment of prisoners in French camps. These were outdone in horror by the wave of feeling against Russia, whose atrocities were said to exceed in cruelty all those perpetrated by the Belgians. Germany punished the Belgians ruthlessly, but dared not adopt such drastic measures with Russia, as too many Germans were in her power on whom she could wreak vengeance.

hatred of England, English measures, English culture, is beyond description. Germany has never been able to record British atrocities that would stand the test of proof, nor even cases of unjust treatment of prisoners; yet I am convinced that if a Belgian, a Frenchman, a Russian, and an Englishman were placed at the mercy of a German, he would kill the Englishman first. Why is it? I think they truly believe that England entered the war from greed of gain.

The hatred has intensified of late. There has been a silly story going about of King George offering f i to any one who would bring him a German. The Bavarian Crown Prince, on reading this, is supposed to have replied, *T think I had better offer the same sum to any one who does not bring me an Englishman." I don't suppose there is a word of truth in this, but it has encouraged the idea strongly that the Bavarians are urged to murder their prisoners, and may be responsible for several stories.

It was reported some time ago in the papers that Prince Max of Hesse had been wounded, and since then I and many others have been trying every possible means to get definite news of him for his mother, who is distracted with grief. He was the Emperor's nephew, aged 1 8, and now appears to have died of his wounds received in October 19 14. He had been living in England, and left friends and relations there to come and fight for his country, and to face these friends as enemies on the field.

His mother, Princess Margaret of Hesse, was for three months without any definite news. The Emperor himself wrote asking the Americans to find out about him, but without avail. At last, through the searching inquiries of the Pope and the King of Spain, the tragic news of his death was announced. He had been carried into a monastery near Mont des Cats that was in the hands of the English that night ; he was a prisoner then, mortally wounded, and was attended to by two doctors,

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Dr. O'Brien Butler spent the night with the Prince, who knew he was dying, and who gave Dr. O'Brien Butler a locket for his mother and his last dying message. Next day Dr. Johnson inquired of Dr. O'Brien Butler about the Prince's last moments. Dr. O'Brien Butler said he had received so sacred a message from the dying Prince for his mother that he felt he could confide it to no one else, but must tell the Princess himself. That day he was killed - so the poor mother, who is broken-hearted, will never know what her boy had meant for her to hear. It is a most tragic story.

A friend has informed me that one of the nursing sisters in Boulogne told him that Prince Max is buried near the monastery, his body having been picked up by an old priest or monk, who intends to keep the burial-place a secret until he is paid for the damage done to his church !

Royal relations are not supposed to correspond with each other in belligerent countries in these sad times, but of course (like all of us) they feel for those in sorrow. Queen Mary sent a graceful message through the Crown Princess of Sweden, expressing her great sympathy with Princess Margaret, and returning the Prince's locket, which had been sent to the King, and which she had tied up with her own hands.

Berlin, June 18, 191 5. - I have been fearfully busy about the Reprisal Question, which is that, as it is said, Winston Churchill has ordered all submarine prisoners to be kept apart in England, and not to be allowed to associate with the other prisoners of war. Germany, on hearing this, needless to say, went in for reprisals, and ordered 39 English officers to be put into solitary confinement at once. They chose 39 out of the Guards Regiments and from among the best-known names among them. Princess Miinster, Princess Pless and I were told that, as we all had relations among the number chosen, we could write to England and state the case, and tell them that these 39 officers would be released when Winston Churchill rescinded his decision. We therefore drew up a statement together, and I being the only one at the moment in Berlin, it was decided that I should beard Mr. Gerard in his den, and get him to send it through to England to our most influential relations.

I wrote it out in the form of a circular, as I knew the answer I should have got if I had asked him to post a letter. I went to the Embassy and asked to see the Ambassador, and was requested to wait a minute. We ladies were by now quite accustomed to being treated like ladies' maids seeking situations when we went to the Embassy to inquire for our missing relations; however, this time I was not kept waiting long, and as I walked into the room I was greeted with the words, '1 can't post any letters for England, if that's what you have come to ask me to do." I felt inclined to reply, **Wait till you are asked"; however, I realized that it would not be a good beginning if I intended to get this document posted, so I only replied, "That is not what I want in the least" (being exactly the thing I had come for), but calling it a circular I knew would change the nature of the request; so I showed him the list of names and the circular, and said that if he could see his way to sending them to my mother, she would do the rest. He was tremendously interested as he read it, but of course dared not say so in so many words, as it might have been misconstrued into "an unneutral act on the part of an ambassador." He simply said, "What is your mother's address?" I gave it and withdrew, without asking any more questions.

Of course we have never had the satisfaction of knowing whether we did shorten the time of solitary confinement for these officers or not, but we certainly managed to improve their treatment during their time there, as very shortly after I had a letter from my cousin, saying that they were now being allowed certain privileges, that they were aflowed to be together all day, and that the commander was quite a nice man, who tried to improve their position as far as he was permitted to do.

Within ten days Princess Miinster had received an answer through a third person from one of the Cabinet Ministers, and I had received one from my mother saying she had sent the matter to the fountain-head; and also we heard that the American Consul in Cologne had been dispatched to report on and improve the condition of these officers.

KissiNGEN, June 22, 1915. - -We spent a night in Dresden on our way to Kissingen, and met there several Austrian relations who were staying in the same hotel (Continental).

Prince and Princess Lobkowitz came from Bohemia for one night on purpose to see us. They have their three sons out and in daily danger. Their views on all the usual subjects were varied. They considered the sinking of the Lusifania a ruthless and somewhat inhuman event, but dare not air their views on this subject. They (unlike most Austrians) criticized their own General Staff, and were loud in praise of German organization and generalship.

Staying with us also was Prince Lobkowitz^s widowed sister (Gebhard^s cousin) Princess Ratibor and her son Ernest, who is a young naval officer aged 23, and who is now on three days' leave from his submarine. Princess Ratibor has already lost her youngest son in the Carpathians, and at this moment is in very deep grief about him ; she has also another son in an exposed position on the East front, and her eldest son is lost in Canada; at least he was there when war broke out, and she had heard nothing about him since.

Another interesting visitor at this hotel is von Miigge - of Emden fame; he is just on his way home after all his adventures, and is treated like a hero wherever he goes. There is a crowd outside the hotel always to watch him go in and out, and he is followed everywhere in the streets, and has continual bouquets of flowers presented to him. M. Hoy OS and C. Lobkowitz and I have just been watching his departure for the station.

He seems a smart, simple, good-looking youth, and is most bashful at the excitement he creates. He was quite overpowered by the admiring crowd that followed him to the station just now, and which inundated him with magnificent flowers and much cheering; but certainly, if he was embarrassed by it, his poor old mother who was with him fully appreciated it all, as I have never seen such an expression of perfect happiness and pride as I did on that poor woman's face as she walked with him and helped him to carry the numerous bouquets of flowers with which he was laden. He is indeed a hero, and I know he is looked upon as such by people of all countries.

He was conducting a landing party of about 60 men on to one of the Pacific islands, when the Emden and its captain and the rest of the crew were captured by the English. So von Miigge and his 60 men were left stranded. They eventually succeeded in capturing a sailing vessel, put some of their quick-firing guns from the Emden on it, and sailed across the Indian Ocean to Bombay, and there, it is said, they held up a British steamer. They later on landed in a Red Sea port south of Aden, worked their way across the Arabian desert, and had to fight several tribes, during which they lost some of their men, and eventually reached Damascus, where they took train for Constantinople, from whence they eventually

But to return to the Ratibors, with whom we spent our time whilst at Dresden. Ernest, the naval lieutenant, told me much interesting news about his life in a submarine. Of course, I asked him whether he was the one who had wrecked the Liisitania. He said he was not, though he knew who had done it, but no one is allowed to say.

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He began to tell me all sorts of wonderful things he had seen in the English illustrated papers, London News, Graphic, etc., so I asked him, ''How do you come to be so well informed as to the pictures in English newspapers?" and he replied, "Oh, English fishermen give them to us sometimes when we have to capture their boats."

He told me of some quite amusing conversations he had had with some old fishermen. On one occasion, when they had ordered these men to clear off everything and take away anything they liked off their fishing trawler before they sank it, the men were all so frightened that they said - no, they wanted nothing, they would come away just as they were; but when they were in their boat and got into conversation with these young submarine officers, and saw that they were not so alarming as they had at first thought, one old sailor came up to Ernest and said, *'May I just go back for one thing?" and on being given permission they all waited for him, and wondered what this one treasure was going to be that the poor old man could not leave behind. In a few minutes he reappeared carrying a bottle of whisky under his arm, and as he passed Prince Ratibor he said, "It did seem a pity to leave that behind !"

I continued to draw this youth out on the subject of his submarine experiences all the time we were together, because it interested me more than anything else, as his life all these last months had consisted in prowling round Scotland under water.

He, to tease me, said on our morning of departure: "Aren't you jealous of me? I go to Scotland every week. I will pick you a flower there, and if you like to give me a letter for your sister, I will pin it on a Scotch cHff next time I touch it." I replied, laughing, "Don't you boast quite so much. You will touch Scotland once too often, if you don't take care !"

half measures about our fate as about others. We either go to the bottom Hke a stone and are drowned instantly, or else we come back victorious." I saw such a sad look come over his mother's face as the laughing boy said this, and as he was leaving that day to rejoin his submarine, I tried to answer in a more hopeful tone than I really felt, and said, "No; I feel you are just the sort who would bob up like a cork when every one else is drowning.'*

How little I knew that within a month of my making that remark the very thing would have happened. In the beginning of August his mother received an official notice from the Admiralty that the U27 had been sunk off the coast of Scotland, and that Prince Ernest Ratibor and three others were all that had been saved of the crew of 45. We heard afterwards he was picked up out of the water just as he was sinking and in an utter state of exhaustion. He was taken to Edinburgh Castle, where he was a prisoner for some days, and where he was very miserable and ill ; he was then moved to Duffried Castle, North Wales, where he is happy and very well cared for, and where my family have now undertaken to look after him and provide him with all the comforts that are permitted.

KissiNGEN, June 26, 191 5. - We arrived at Kissingen on June 20. It is a beautifully peaceful spot, but as there is no peace to be had anywhere, what difference does it really make whether the surroundings are pretty or not? In a place like this one misses the foreigner more than anywhere else, and the shopkeepers make no secret of how they loved and miss the English. The Russians, perhaps, were not so much loved, but were equally indispensable to the finances of the place. Five thousand Russians left last year when war was declared; one, when bidding adieu to his car-driver, who was bemoaning the parting, replied tactfully and consolingly: "Ah yes, you will see us again. This time next year we shall be back again in Kissingen playing football with the Germans' heads in the streets!"

There were not many people we knew doing the cure there.^ A few days after I arrived Countess Henckel and her sister Princess Lowenstein came, and I spent most of my time with them; but we did a very half-hearted cure, and agreed that in times like these cures begin and end in the post office.

drive and walk together every day. She told me of a mirage she had seen which interested me enormously. It was in the beginning of July 19 14, when she and a number of friends were on a private yacht on their way to Kiel for the regatta week. One evening the captain called them all to the side of the ship and pointed out a mirage, and she said they all stood transfixed with the beauty of it. In the distance, all along the water, they saw all sorts of beautiful hazy scenes and coloured mists of every describable hue and shape floating along the top of the water and gradually up into the sky, where they disappeared. "A m.irage is always the sign there is a great war coming," said the captain, "and those coloured shapeless mists are said to be the souls of the fallen going up to heaven." They were struck with the beauty of the idea, but laughed at the suggestion of war. They then went on to Kiel, where they began to enter into all the gaiety of the Kiel week, when the telegram arrived announcing the murder of the Archduke and his wife. So perhaps the mirage had its meaning after all.

This is by no means the only portent which has come to my ears. A lady who has been staying in Westphalia told me that she had made acquaintance with one of the villagers, a sickly delicate man, who had spent his life in studying Nature, and had made a fine collection of all the different kinds of birds to be found in that part of the world. He had shown her proudly all these specimens prepared by his own hands, the last of which was a small bird which she had never seen before.

"You won't know this bird, lady, for I never saw it before in my life, but the spring of last year, before the war, suddenly whole flocks of strange birds appeared here. I managed to catch this one, and looking in my books I found out what it was, and that these birds hardly ever appear in Germany. They come from the north, and only in great flocks, before a war."

birds, and he too had noticed the Silk-tails or Chatterers here for the first time. He said there had always been an old tradition existing amongst the people that the Silk-tails were a foreboding of war.

Berlin, July 12, 19 15. - I left Kissingen on the 9th without much regret, except for saying good-bye to the Henckels, who had been true and good friends to me there. The day before I left I went on a pilgrimage of discovery, to see the Way of the Cross that I was told was on one of the mountains. It began at the bottom of one of the lower mountains, and the stone stations lay about 100 yards apart all the way up the winding mountain path. It was so picturesque.

As I wended my way upwards I now and again came upon a little cross hidden in the grass, and on reading it found that they were graves of soldiers who had fallen there in the year '66 during the battle of Kissingen. "Here lie two brave Bavarians and three Prussian soldiers," etc., etc. These were enemies then; and now, not long after, are fighting as friends.

On reaching the summit of the hill I sat down on a little rustic seat below the Calvary, and hidden in the grass by my side was another little solitary grave and wooden cross with the inscription *'Here lies a brave but unknown hero, who died fighting," and then vividly before my eyes came the picture of that other battlefield in Flanders, and what that will be like in years to come ; how many such crosses of unknown heroes will lie there hidden in the grass, and what strangers will pass them by, and what impression it will make on them !

Berlin, August i, 191 5. - Another month has passed away, and we seem no nearer Peace than we were at the beginning, except that in the papers to-day they say that England now realizes that Russia is useless for offensive purposes, and that the Pope has written an Address to all the belligerent Powers appealing to their chivalry; and as up till now he has always said he would not make a move until the right moment presented itself, this gives some little hope that behind the scenes some one has made a move.

The American Note crisis is still the great subject of discussion, and in yesterday's paper the heading was "Renewal of Submarine Warfare,'' which seems to mean that Germany is snapping her fingers at America.

A new light was put to me on the subject yesterday by a German officer, who told me that really it was England's interest to keep America from going to war with Germany, as directly she did so she would probably have to fight Japan, and therefore would have to keep all her ammunition, supplies, ships, etc., for herself, and could no longer assist England to the extent she had been doing.

We had a very interesting talk with a Lieut. Pauley, a wounded German officer here, who came to dine with us. He was one of the exchanged prisoners returned from England, so I pumped him with questions, and he spoke most enthusiastically of the kind treatment he had received whilst in hospital in England.

WiLDBAD, Thursday, August 5, 191 5. - It is said that the outer forts near Warsaw have been taken and that at one spot the Russian army is nearly surrounded.

The Russians have been obliged to send reinforcements from their Southern army, thus leaving a weak spot for the Austrians to try to break through.

On the West there is silence, except it is said the English took a few houses and a trench near Hooge, but these are believed to have been retaken, and many dead were found in the trench, and some prisoners taken.

At three o'clock suddenly all the bells in the town began to ring, the band struck up the usual refrain of *'Deutschland," the hall porter appeared on the roof to put up the Wiirtemburg flag, and all the people suddenly burst forth singing the national anthem ; so I very soon realized that something unexpected had happened, and am told that Warsaw has fallen. It is great news, as it was not expected to fall for another ten days.

I try to enter into the rejoicings, but inwardly my heart is heavy, and my thoughts flew quickly and selfishly, I suppose, to the question. How will it affect England? I realize only too quickly that it means that thousands of German troops will soon be released to go to the Western Front, and will swell the forces trying to break their way through to Calais.

Dresden, September i, 191 5. - More German victories in Russia. Can there be any more forts tO' fall, any more Russians left to be captured, and more big guns and ammunition to be taken? Judging by the figures in the papers there cannot be many. But a few millions more or less in the Russian army does not seem to make the slightest impression on it. I read to-day some of the official statistics from a Russian source, in which it says that the losses in the Russian army since the beginning have been five and a half millions. In the same paragraph they add that they have just raised a new army of a milHon men, and although they admit their present reverses they seem in no way discouraged by them.

A few days ago I went to the Opera with the Landgraf of Hesse and Baron and Baroness Schenk and her sister. The Landgraf, who is Wind, is connected by marriage with the Emperor, and with the Queen of Greece and Princess Margaret of Hesse. He feels the war and the estrangement with England and his English relations terribly, as he had been accustomed to spend six months every year in England, part of the time in London and part at Eastbourne, where the Queen of Greece and her sister also were. They were actually there when war broke out, and had to hurry off home, like so many other Royalties.

Glasersdorf, September 11, 191 5. - From Dresden we came on to Glasersdorf, Count Ballestrem's castle in Silesia, a beautiful place, so quiet and peaceful, except that one is reminded of the war at every turn by the absence of men servants, of the master of the house, of motor-cars, and by the family being in mourning for the brother who was killed in June.

As I sit at my window I can watch the prisoners working on the farm. They have twenty-four Frenchmen and one Russian as farm labourers. The Frenchmen look so funny working away in their bright red trousers ; it seems cruel to have sent them to the front in such a conspicuous get-up.

News has come this evening that the German army are now only 100 miles from Petersburg. It is wonderful certainly, as they still maintain they do not intend to go there. What then is their object in this speedy advance?

Lord Kitchener in his opening speech in the House, which is reprinted in the German papers to-day, sounds confident and hopeful. As to the Russian retreat he takes the line that the German advance into Russia is not really so fine or rapid as people think, that they are now only advancing two miles a day instead of five miles, as they did at first. Of course, those who read this speech here say, "Sour grapes ! Doesn't he wish he could advance two yards on German territory !'*

EcKERSDORF, September 191 5. - We are still on the move, and are now staying for a few days with Count and Countess Magnis, and a whole housefull of children. There are 18 in all, including the visiting cousins.

The chief subject of discussion is the feeling between Austria and Germany. Princess Starhemberg, who is here, is Austrian, and is always ready with her bristles out in defence of everything Austrian; and on the other hand the Germans of the party take credit for all the victories without admitting that they had any assistance whatever from Austria. One cannot help being slightly amused to notice how the point of the whole war is forgotten in the greater interest of internal jealousies. I asked Princess Starhemberg one day whether there was much hatred against England in Austria. "Well, when we have time to, yes,' we do hate them ; but we are so busy hating Italy and criticizing Germany that we don't think of much else at present.*'

EcKERSDORF, September 24, 19 15. - We went to lunch with Prince and Princess Radolin in Breslau, and there indeed we found a different spirit and different views from any we had met for a long time in Germany. Nothing but dovniright hate and abuse of Germany and the German authorities, and, being people with a grievance, their bitterness was all the greater. It is, of course, difficult to form an opinion, but one could not help feeling pity for them in their treatment.

Prince Radolin had been Ambassador at Paris, had been one of the favourites at the Court in Berlin, and was also on intimate terms with the late Empress Frederick and with Queen Victoria; but since then, evidently owing to Court jealousies and intrigues, his and his wife's reputation had been gradually nibbled at and undermined. Besides the discourteous way in which he had been turned out of his post as Ambassador, he and she had both, at various times, received small insults from various Royalties and officially from the German Court. Therefore they were ready to air their grievances on the smallest provocation.

A German regiment and staff were billeted on them, the head of which was General Bernhardi, now a wellknown General. He was one day abusing the French to a quite unnecessary degree. Princess Radolin burst out into defence of them. He turned to her and said, "Madame, you seem to have some French sympathies" ; at which she, most indiscreetly, flew into a passion and said, *'Well, of course I have French sympathies. My mother was French, and as I was ambassadress in Paris for so many years I have many good friends there." He did not say much in reply, but reported her to headquarters, and from that moment all sorts of petty tyrannies and underhand watching began. One day they found the telephone room in their own castle, where they were then living, locked, and when she asked the reason, a young officer answered her in a most insulting manner, telling her that she had been suspected of tampering with the telephone, and of having given warning to some Poles. Imagine her indignation !

Her letters were also being privately opened, and in consequence of an indiscreet reference to military matters she was put under police supervision. She was not allowed to receive or write a single letter, even to her husband, without its being read, nor was she allowed to leave Breslau without special permission ; and she was even asked to return all her orders and decorations received during the term of her husband's office. This is such an unprecedented insult or disgrace that no German would ever get over it. (The decorations have since been returned to her.)'

Prince Radolin up to then had tried to keep a dignified silence, but at this last insult to his wife he turned, as only a deeply wounded man can turn, and became even more bitter than his wife. It seems so sad for an old man of 70, who has spent his life working for his country, to think that the last few years should be spent thus !

EcKERSDORF, September 28, 191 5. - There is a feeling of depression about every one to-day, and of wonder at the silence from the Western Front. Has there been an offensive? Could there have been a reverse? A sudden silence like this generally means that something is not going as it was expected to.

Many things have made us begin to wonder. First, in the official telegram of yesterday it was said that the Germans had been obliged to evacuate two front trenches after hard fighting against the English, and that there were fearful losses on both sides. To admit this in an official telegram means that there must have been a decided reverse, as small defeats are unmentioned and ignored.

To add to this, several men in the village, who had returned on short leave, were hastily summoned back to the West immediately. Then a letter from a doctor to a friend in the village says that things are not going at all well in the West, and finally a telegram has just been received from Count Franz Magnis, brother to our host, saying, *'Safe and well." As he never telegraphs, and as he and his regiment have not been near the fighting line for ten months, this causes much consternation, as they know it means that his regiment has suddenly been called into action.

EcKERSDORF, October 2, 191 5. - Our presentiment was right then ; there was a great battle going on on the 28th, and the Allies were nearer breaking through in the West than they have ever yet been, and are now occupying the third row of German trenches.

Eckersdorf, October 1915 77

whole way along the line. There was incessant drum firing (120 a minute) for 60 hours continuously from the French and English lines, and the noise alone sent many out of their minds. Then they used poisonous gases, which the Germans were not prepared for, and had therefore not got their masks ready, and the losses in consequence from this alone were enormous.

The Germans really were taken by surprise this time. I think they had for so long looked upon the English and French talk of a big offensive as nothing more than a threat, that they had begun to think it would never really come off. But it did, and on so gigantic a scale as to surprise even the Germans.

It is said the French had 25 army corps, the English 23, and Germany 23 engaged at the front. It is also said here that the Commander of the 8th German Army Corps made some mistake which occasioned a terrible loss of life, and he has been removed from his command in consequence, and that there had been a fearful row between him and Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria, who had sent hastily for reinforcements, but there were none ready to send him.

One colonel, who has just returned here since, says his regiment alone lost 70 per cent in a few hours, and the few stragglers returning wounded, caked with blood and mud, were a most pitiable sight to see. The losses on the German side were 20,000 prisoners and 40,000 dead and wounded. The names are only just beginning to come out, and the suspense in consequence is terrible to witness. Germany is still confident of success, but their anxiety everywhere is beginning to be felt, although they will not put it into words.

In a quiet way the shortness of supplies is beginning to show. The price of milk was increased on October i, and it is said that soon very little butter will be allowed to be used. It seems a funny thing to have run short, before bread, for instance, but it is said that milk will be

Another thing that they are getting anxious about, although they would not own it if you asked them, is material for making ammunition. A circular has been sent round to every house in Silesia and in Austria, and I think here, ordering an inventory to be made of all copper, brass, etc., that they have in chandeliers and on roofs and everywhere. It is pathetic to see the householders making lists of their household gods, wondering sadly when the moment will come when they receive the order to tear them down and have them melted into ammunition.

Berlin, October 191 5. - At dinner last night we met a Mexican minister who had been to Paris, Brussels, and other places, and who told us that he did not at all think the Balkan question at an end; that England would leave no stone unturned to get Greece and Roumania, and that he did not consider the neutrality of Greece by any means so safely settled as the Germans do.

He did not agree with the German view either, that the war will be decided with the Balkan campaign. He said that England and France were so strong in the West, and had made such tremendous preparations, that they meant to sit there till doomsday rather than give in, whatever Germany might do elsewhere.

He then talked of the terrible verdict that had been passed on the three spies in Brussels. He told me that Brussels was like a smouldering furnace, and that this act of cruelty has excited people almost as much as the Lusitama.

A few days ago I went to tea with the wife of Prince Christian of Hesse, whose mother had just got back from America. She, Mrs. Rogers, had remained some hours at Kirkwall on the way, where the ship was held up by the British. So she had much to tell us of all the examination of papers and questions they had to undergo before they were allowed to continue their passage.

Her daughter also showed us a very interesting snapshot photo her husband (a naval lieutenant) had taken at Zeebrugge, of a Zeppelin being fired at by three English Dreadnoughts, and the photo showed it just falling into the sea, broken and ruined. He himself had an appointment on the coast there, and he said that particular spot was bombarded by English ships aknost daily, and they do much harm.

As to the actual war news, it is difficult to say anything the last few days. All the talk is now whether Greece is going to be drawn in, and also Roumania.

Bulgaria has evidently quite decided to throw in her lot with Germany and Austria, and this seems to cut the Allies off from using Roumania, even if she did decide to go with them, unless Greece is persuaded to change her intention of keeping firmly neutral. For the last few days she seems quite bent on keeping out of it. Wise country !

Berlin, October 11, 1915. - There is once more one of the usual rumours of peace by Christmas; but this time, they say, with more reason. I wonder whether one can allow oneself to begin to have a gleam of hope. It is based on the fact that the English are withdrawing their troops from the Dardanelles, and had attempted a landing at Salonika. But as, so far, the Greeks have shown most decidedly that they do not intend allowing that, it looks as if there is nothing left for the English to do. If they cannot get to Nisch, as the railway has been destroyed there, they are cut off.

Perhaps they will bring all their troops to the West Front, and what appalling loss of life there will once more be there if they do. I believe, if they and the French

One knows that when the Peace negotiations begin, one scratch of the pen will settle those few yards of territory more decidedly, and with much less suffering, than all this fighting can do. So why not do it that way now? The heart for victory is taken out of every one on all sides.

The losses the last ten days at Loos must have been stupendous on both sides, and bits of information about it begin to come in. An officer told us last night that one regiment had had every single officer in it killed during the one day's fight, and that the regiment in front of them had been absolutely wiped out, and their dead bodies had filled a trench, so that the incoming regiment had to fight standing on these dead bodies the whole of one day.

Dr. Ohnesorg, the American Embassy doctor, said he had yesterday visited some wounded at Bayreuth. Among them were three wounded Englishmen, one belonging to the Black Watch, one to the East Surrey, and one to the Royal Engineers, and the description they gave of these days' fighting at Loos was appalling. One of them said his regiment had had to follow a Kent regiment, which had been completely mown down, not one single man of it left standing. Another of them said he had lain for three nights and days outside a trench, where he fell when wounded. Shortly after he had received his wound, a German doctor had crawled out to him and bandaged him up, and from that moment he had lain under incessant artillery fire, and the English troops and Germans had swayed backwards and forwards over near where he lay, the ground changing hands four times during those three days as the waves of victory varied. He had a haunted, anxious look in his eyes, they said, which made one sad to see; but otherwise he was comfortable and well cared for, and was in a large ward with French and coloured wounded prisoners, all from those recent fights.

Berlin, October 1915 81

Berlin, October 14, 19 15. - I must note down two interesting stories I have been told to-day, of two German officer prisoners of war just returned. The one officer arrived a day or two ago with the latest batch of wounded, who have been passed by the doctors as no longer any use for military service, having proved to be deaf, dumb, and blind from shock. On arriving here he very soon began to talk, and said that he had faked being deaf, dumb, and blind for seven months continuously, and that no one had detected he was shamming.

The other story was of a naval officer, also' just arrived back, who had been one of those who jumped overboard from the Dr&sden when she was sunk by the British. He had been picked up by a Swedish vessel, where he passed himself off as an English sailor, and was taken by them to Sweden and then on to England, where he passed himself off as a Swede, and was employed as a common dockyard hand in the London docks for four months. He then returned to Sweden, and from there got back to Germany, and is now once more established in his position as a German naval lieutenant.

Berlin, October 23, 191 5. - At the beginning of the week we dined at Excellency Solf's (the Colonial Minister), where we, as usual, met a great many interesting people. Baron Jagow, the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, took me in to dinner, and as he is personally acquainted with many well-known Englishmen, we soon found that we had mutual acquaintances.

He said that he had heard a rumour of the resignation of Sir Edward Grey, and then went on to tell me that in his opinion Sir Edward is innocent of much that he is accused of. He considers that the "villain of the piece" is Sir Arthur Nicholson, but that he is cute enough to keep behind the scenes. Suddenly, in the middle of the dinner, he turned to me, remarking: "But is there nobody who will shoot Lord Northcliffe ? He is his own country's worst enemy, as well as ours. And He is more

After dinner my husband had an interesting conversation with Helfferich, the Finance Minister, who was the hero of the evening, as all were complimenting him on the success of the second war-loan. He told my husband that he could not help being amused at seeing himself caricatured in the English papers as *'Helfferich the pickpocket,'* and of having been accused of docking the salaries of the poor.

At first sight this may seem to have been the case, and probably refers to the different Sparkassen that contributed their deposits to the war-loan. It is Germany's system to use money that she must pay back to herself, so to say. Of course the poor people get 5 per cent for the war-loan money, whereas "Sparkasse" deposits only pay 3 per cent, and the Government is naturally security enough from their point of view.

But the chief topic of conversation throughout the evening was the diplomatic success over the Balkan question, and every one was congratulating Herr v. Jagow on the clever way he and his colleagues had ^'pulled it off." And even I personally could not help feeling pleased that they were coming in for a little praise at last, as the poor Foreign Office has really had nothing but "kicks" for such a long time past.

But even whilst listening to all the laudatory remarks, I could not help thinking of a conversation I had heard only that afternoon in a military circle: "Yes, we can let the Foreign Office enjoy this triumph for once, but we know nothing succeeds like success, and that it is in reality our great military achievements that have influenced Bulgaria's choice, and (maybe) will influence still more important countries before we have done !"

After dinner, conversation was about the copper collection. One lady said she had sent all the copper she had, and was sorry to have to part with her lovely copper

Berlin, October 19 15 83

I ventured to suggest that the scarcity of copper might bring about an earlier end to the war. Cries of indignation arose. Germany's organization required this collection of copper, just as the so-called ''Brotkarten" (bread tickets) were issued to control the amount of bread consumed. They only wanted to see how much copper they could lay hands on, and had so much already from kettles, pots, pans, etc., that the supply would last them three years. Even the telephone wires have been reckoned on if it should be necessary!

My heart whispered that this must be ''bluff." It is an interesting sight, though, to see cartloads of old pots and kettles and candlesticks, door-handles, chandeliers, etc., being driven along the street, and a poor woman or schoolboy carrying a copper kettle or brass lamp to the collecting offices to be weighed and paid for. For the Government pay well, and many people are tempted to be quick about getting rid of old copper for a good price. I heard a man the other day say that if he could get 100 tons of copper to sell, he would be a rich man for life!

Then we talked of the terrors of submarine warfare. One officer present described how his submarine had been caught in one of the English net traps. There he and the crew had to remain for hours under water, like rats in a trap ; no possibility of escape and a death of starvation. They eventually managed to break through, but many don't. He said they could live for seven hours below the sea before dying of suffocation, and shuddered, poor man, even then as he spoke, at his recollections.

there being hotels as luxurious as the "Esplanade/* with music every evening, and that it is only outside the town that one realizes what the Russians have done. They have killed all the animals and removed everything out of the houses, even down to the brass handles on the doors; everything that might be of any possible use to the Germans. On my asking him, *'How about the inhabitants - can you go about in the streets without being met with a look of loathing and hatred, every time they pass you?" "No," he answered quaintly in his broken English, "it is not as bad as that; they are as one might say, 'civil, but not enthusiastic

A few days after that I went to the American Embassy. Princess Braganza (American, with an Austrian husband) and another American lady with a German husband were there. So, with my English self, we were rather a mixed party, and war conversation on these occasions is supposed to be avoided. Nevertheless the question of the American Note cropped up as usual, and the Ambassadress said that if ever she heard the words "American Note" or "Ammunition" mentioned after the war, she would probably "shriek" !

Then the other American lady joined in with, "Yes, what a dreadful time we have had all this summer, and just as we were beginning to feel a little 'cosy' on the subject of the Liisitania, those old Germans must go and sink another whole boat-load of Americans."

I could not help smiling at her husband at this very pointed remark, which was such a proof of the saying that "Americans step in where angels fear to tread."

Berlin, October 191 5. - I have not so far ventured to utter my views about Miss Cavell, for the simple reason that if I once began I should say too much, and should probably be too candid on the subject. I think it one of the most dastardly deeds of the whole war, and I am not by any means alone in this opinion even in this city itself. It is extraordinary that the German Government (i.e. the mihtary authorities) should continue to ruin their cause by making repeated diplomatic mistakes like this. They argue that she was guilty, that she was a spy, that she had been smugghng dynamite to blow up bridges, that she had been signalHng to the English troops where to land, that she had a regular code of signals with fliers; but, I ask you, can one woman do all those marvellous things, especially in a town like Brussels? I know what it is like even here; if one sneezes out of tune one is accused of signalling to the enemy; how, therefore, could it be done in an occupied town like Brussels, where every second man is a detective ?

Maybe she was guilty, but of what exactly? Of helping wounded soldiers of any nationality to hide, to get into a place of safety, perhaps to get across the frontier back to their own country. What woman with a woman's heart would not do this ? Would we have any woman of our acquaintance act otherwise? Even if it were the act of a spy, will the Germans never learn the lesson of **Mercy to season Justice" ?

And then, why was it done in such a hurry? And why were all the others forgiven, and only she executed ? Was it, as it is hinted here, due to private and personal malice because she was English? All those who were forgiven were of another nationality. Well, it is a blot; in fact, another blot, to be quite exact ; and as a German officer said sadly to me to-day, when the war is over, and in the years to come, however distant, these blots are the things that will be remembered and go down to history, and all the brave deeds and wonderful feats that our troops and armies in the field have done, and all the many individual acts of heroism will be forgotten, and only such episodes as these will stand out.

The Emperor is as usual getting the entire blame for the crime in all the neutral and other papers, but it is probably true, as they say, that he was really in ignorance of it until it was too late. It is declared emphatically, that on hearing of the sentence he wired ordering a postponement for further inquiry. It is also said that the Empress received a telegram the evening before from the King of Spain, begging her to use her influence, and only replied that if women behave as men they must be punished as men. I can hardly believe it, but it is a fact that it is the Empress who dislikes England and the English, rather than the Emperor, whose English "interest," as they call it, has aroused jealousy here ever since the beginning of the war.

There are so many rumours current as to who really is to blame for the sentence of death being carried out on Miss Cavell, that I hardly know whom to beheve. Until now, I always thought it was Bissing who had insisted on it; but I have heard from officers who were there at the time, that it was not so, that both Bissing and the Kaiser were against it, and that the latter even made use of his prerogative for mercy, and sent a pardon at the last hour, but the messenger arrived half an hour too late.

It seems she had boasted too much, at her trial of having helped EngHsh and Belgian soldiers over the frontier. Baron Lancken, who wished to acquit her, tried to make her speak in her own defence, which she refused to do, and thus she sealed her own fate. Major Sauberzweig, who confirmed the judgment as head of the court-martial, is accused of having hurried on the execution, in spite of the fact of Baron Bissing pleading for her acquittal in Berlin at the same time, so the onus of her death must fall on him.

Berlin, October 29, 1915. - The most interesting conversation I have had to-day was with Prince Miinster, who told us that the hopes of peace were all shattered once more. He related that an Englishman had arrived in Hamburg, having got through with an American pass, and went to see Ballin (the Hamburg-American Line manager), who has so many EngHsh friends. In an unofficial way he volunteered the remark that Grey and Asquith sent their greetings to Ballin and wished to know his views as to the prospects of peace. If, for instance, Germany would enter into negotiations on the basis of giving up Belgium, England, he suggested, would be ready to do the same.

Berlin, October 191 5. - I have got some more news about Roger Casement. He came here to-day from Munich for a week, and I saw him for a moment. People here have very mixed opinions about him. Some think he is an English spy and only pretending to be a rebel, whereas others laugh at him as at a man who has failed.

He tried, as usual, to talk me round about Ireland. I told him Ireland to me was like a little terrier biting at the heels of two great mastiffs. "Why," I said, "if he loved Ireland so, had he come to Germany?" He wanted to stop the recruiting, was his reply. But that, I told him, could have been done more effectively by having remained in Ireland or having gone to America. "Why stop it?" I asked him. "The Irish had proved such splendid soldiers and had even won an entire battle by themselves."

Then his pride in the Irish soldier showed itself, proving that in reality he does not know what he wants. But when he begins airing his opinions in too self-satisfied a manner, it makes me want to repeat to him the words I had heard lately from the lips of a German lady about him. "If you ask me," she said, "what I think of Roger Casement, I think him a blot on the earth !"

doctor of chemistry too, and they used to work together. When the war came, and she saw what use was being made of her inventions, she committed suicide. Her husband, though, is proud of the valuable service he is doing for the Fatherland, and says he is even proud that he was called upon to sacrifice his wife to the cause. How different human beings are!

Berlin, October 29, 191 5. - Prince Alfred Salm dined at the "Esplanade" the other evening. He was interesting to talk to about Poland, whence he is just back. He is the head of the Warsaw Nurses' Association, and organizes everything there. I asked him whether he associated with the Poles at all. He said the Polish ladies were most amiable, and invite the Germans to smart dinners, and are very charming to them. Then after dinner they begin to touch on politics and think the Germans won't see through it. They have only one wish, and that is to know who is going to be king of Poland!

Old Count Metternich was there too, much flattered at the rumour that he was going to be made Ambassador at Constantinople. He had retired from public service after leaving London, and every one looked upon him rather as having been put on the shelf, and too old, and so on, so that he was pleased at having suddenly been tmearthed.

He has since really been appointed. He was telling me about his journey with Solf to The Hague. He met ever so many old acquaintances from England there, and was deeply hurt at being cut by them all.

Berlin, October 191 5. - So English submarines are busy in the Baltic, and ships are bombarding the Bulgarian coast. Is the navy coming out at last? I can't deny that I have been rather disappointed in the English navy, and the Germans are as much astonished at the little the navy has done as they are at the unexpected size, ability, and bravery of the English army.

Berlin, October 19 15 89

tion of ammunition. It makes my hopes for peace rise to think of it. As Prince Miinster says : "If you want to see Countess Bliicher smile, tell her the Germans are running short of ammunition!"

A scare has broken out again among the Americans. The feeling to-day and yesterday has been almost as bad as after the Luskania. The German attaches are not to be given a safe escort home, which is a thing unprecedented in history, it appears, and the Germans are furious about it. These attaches are supposed to have instigated others to blow up ammunition factories, but the Americans cannot lay their fingers on an actual proof.

Anyway, the attaches are to return, and no guarantee for safety! There were 150 dining here yesterday, and each single person took a different view.

Ten days later. - It is amusing to read all these discussions and at the same time be sitting with the heroes of it at the same table. Herr von Papen, from Washington, is here now at the ''Esplanade" and was introduced to us last night. He says all the stories were much exaggerated. It is true that his cheque-book was taken away from him; but most of the letters were pure invention.

I was interested too at meeting Mr. and Mme. Dumba on their return from America. (Dumba, it will be remembered, had given his letters about the German ammunition factory workers to Archibald to take to Austria, and as it came out, America asked for bim to be removed.)

They dined here at the ''Esplanade." Dumba seemed to feel things rather; but it was quite evident that Mme. Dumba was delighted at finding herself so notorious on her return.

I overheard an interesting remark to-day. They were speaking of the taking of Warsaw. "What is there to celebrate?" said a young officer. "We had to ride over the bodies of our comrades to enter the town.'*

I beheve this young officer was one of the first to enter; but I remember at the time of the fall, each young man we met from that part had been THE FIRST, and it amused us to keep account of these firsts. We got to very near lOo!

in England for many years, told me that though he knew nothing of soldiering, when war was declared he had had to leave his office-desk in London, and come straight out to join his regiment. He and his regiment (cavalry) were sent straight to Belgium, and for the first three weeks of the war they just rode about scouting. One night, after a 36 hours' continuous ride, just as they were lying down to a most welcome sleep, they were roused and ordered out to take a village. They set out wearily and very reluctantly, and rode into this village, clearing it and driving all before them. Months after, they were told that they had taken part in the now famous battle of Mons.

Berlin, November 15, 1915. - This morning the English papers are full of the butter riots in Berlin. The accounts are, of course, exaggerated. There is absolutely no question of "200 people dead"; one or two slightly hurt is all that can be faithfully reported. Absolute silence on the subject is imposed here, and not a word is allowed to slip into the daily papers. I suppose they think this is the best way to suppress further disturbance.

Berlin, November 1915 91

Frieden" (peace), and at once 150 mounted police appeared on the scene with drawn swords to disperse the crowd. This they soon succeeded in doing, though they are supposed to have said themselves that they hated such drastic measures towards women, and a common soldier on leave said that if the infantry at the front were to hear that their wives were being treated thus in their absence, whether they demanded butter or anything else, they would refuse to continue fighting.

Anyway, on the day of the Reichskanzler's speech the town was prepared for a regular riot. They had closed the gates of the Linden, and taken all precautions, but, strangely enough, hardly anything occurred. I have since heard that the crowds were immediately met by mounted and other police at the gates, and so many of the foremost women were taken prisoners that the others dispersed. The women have been sentenced to a fortnight to three weeks' imprisonment.

The disappointment at the Reichskanzler's speech is very great - every one expected something tremendous from him, something that would alter the aspect of things. And he has said nothing. So people shrug their shoulders, and general depression is in the air. I, personally, do not see what he could have said, unless he had openly declared that Germany will give up Belgium. Every German now says, "Of course, we are ready to give up Belgium"; and the English say, "We'll make peace if Germany will give up Belgium." So there they are facing one another, but no one will take an actual step towards opening negotiations.

Berlin, November 191 5. - ^A friend just returned from England tells me that the Zeppelin raids have aroused England's anger tremendously. The English will never show fear of any kind, but their faith in the impossibility of any enemy reaching London has been shaken, and a certain tradition has been broken and every Englishman is roused.

At the same time there is a lighter side to the raids. In the fashionable shops you can see nightdresses and dressing-gowns advertised as "Zepp nighties," **Robes for Raids," etc.

This to the German mind appears the zenith of superficiality, frivolity, and English arrogance (arrogance in their belief that nothing can touch them). They are much too ignorant of the English character to realize that an Enghshman (or woman) might feel a pang of fear, but with his last breath he would say, "I don't care."

The pathetic tales one hears wherever one goes make the heart bleed. A poor woman in the train the other day was holding up her hand and counting the fingers on it slowly - one, two, three, four, five - over and over again. The passengers gradually began to smile at her, until at last the man sitting next to her looked up and said simply, *'Don't laugh at my wife, ladies and gentlemen. I am taking her to the asylum. Her wits are gone. She has lost her five sons - all killed in action."

Another tragic story is that of a boy who felt like a wild beast caught in a trap when forced into active service. He went to the front, almost lost his wits, and wrote distracted letters home. His parents, beyond themselves with despair, left no stone unturned to get him sent home. At last their petition was granted ; they knew their boy could come, and on that very day came a wire from the front : *'Your son has committed suicide."

Stories of this kind are not few and far between, and my heart cries out that it is natural, for those who are truly civilized cannot lightly set out to kill their fellowcreatures.

What happens when they do, shows how war brings out the brute in man. Men in Flanders are sent into the houses to get firewood; furniture is taken, boards from the flooring. "Why, then, of course, let us smash up the whole show," they say. They pass their bayonets through the pictures, and destroy whatever is useless. Crockery is taken along to be used first; after meals, when the cups and plates are dirty, it is easier to throw them out of the window than to go in search of water to wash them. There are plenty more cups and plates for to-morrow in another house )

No German soldiers may force the inhabitants to give them food without a receipt that is to be as good as cash after the war. So out they come, the poor Flemish women and Polish men. They offer milk, poultry, cheese, and the soldiers willingly give them bits of paper with a few words which they treasure up as carefully as if they were worth their weight in gold. The words on the paper are usually the following : "A thrashing to this old woman for her excellent cheese" ; "Three blows to the bringer of this paper for his fine eggs," and so on.

They do not mean to be brutal, these German common soldiers : it is their idea of a good practical joke. "Who," they say, "is to pay all this after the war? We shall not. Their own Government will not. It is all a farce ; let us do it in style !"

Berlin, November 191 5. - Germany will be a very difficult country to live in after the war, as, whether she wins or loses, the Socialists are going to revolt - I feel quite sure of that. It is the German custom to nip everything in the bud, and to use such drastic measures that whatever goes on in the soul of a man or party never rises to the surface, but is left fermenting in suppressed silence.

It seems now, though, that the war is going to alter this state of affairs. The tremendous enthusiasm at the beginning for a struggle that each German felt was not of his desiring, but imposed on him, and which called forth all the loyalty as well as all the military instincts of the race, left no room for discontent or contradiction.

As the German army passed from victory to victory the people were Hfted off their feet with surprise at their own strength, and all party discussion seemed drowned in one great unity. What was said by the English Press about the revolt of the Socialists was absolutely wrong - Germany was united as perhaps never before.

But now the war has been going on for a year and a half, and it has not been possible to suppress the losses, the suffering, the horrors. The long lists of casualties have developed into great thick volumes ; more and more men are being called up; women are realizing the enormous burden imposed upon them. They have to do the men's work as well as their own, and when they have earned their pay it all goes into the pockets of others who sell them food at enormous prices. Naturally they begin more than ever to say : "Why should we work, starve, send our men out to fight ? What is it all going to bring us? More work, more poverty, our men cripples, our homes ruined. What is it all for? What do we care whether we have a bit more land added on to our big Germany? We had enough land. We'd rather fight for a more just division of the goods of this earth. For whether we obtain land or money for the 'Fatherland' after this war, we shall not see any change in our lives ; the wealth will not come our way. The State which called upon us to fight cannot even give us decent food, does not treat our men as human beings, but as so many screws in the great machine of the German army. If one screw drops out or gets bent, there are plenty more; we cannot stop to pick up the lost ones, or straighten the crooked."

A young officer returning from a fight in which he had had to watch his men being literally mown down by machine-guns, went up to Headquarters to report. There he found the highest staff authorities sitting at a banquet and discussing the war in a flippant way. "I could have killed them all," was his remark. And men going out to the front after recovering from their wounds have been heard to say: "We've been hurt once and are half cripples; they think it better to send us back as 'cannon fodder'; we can get killed off and no loss to the State."

How must a mother feel whose only son is in daily danger, when, going into some hotel like the "Esplanade," she sees people feasting in splendour, smartly dressed, talking and laughing, and in every way living in the lap of luxury? Will she feel anything but hatred for these thoughtless, indifferent creatures? Will she not say: "Is this what we are sacrificing everything for? Is this the great country, the culture that is to redeem the world?"

What about the way the officers live, when not in action? Pheasant served on slices of pine-apple, with champagne, is a mere item in a long menu, whilst others are starving. The bread they get is so hard that they cannot bite it, and often there is not even that. The injustice of all this is bound to make them cry out for equality and fairness, not that they should be sent out to fight other men, called enemies, who are just in the same plight as themselves.

The authorities act the whole time. They keep up appearances, revel in victories, praise their organization, and never a word is breathed amongst them about the sadness of the losses, the sufferings of friend and foe alike. - ----"