sesses not an
atom. Take, for instance, the modern novels of Suderman, of Rudolph
Herzog, of Rudolph Stratz, of Bernard Kellerman, of Paul Heyse, and
you will find intense seriousness, tragedy, pathos, masterly drawing
of character, and absolutely no fun from cover to cover. As for the
"Fliegende Blaetter," the German "Punch," it is the sickliest imitation
of humour possible to conceive. Foremost in science, the German is yet
a neophyte in the graces and arts of life. What cooking! what clothes!

_September 22nd._--If we may believe such good news we are to be
released from this irksome life, and set at liberty next Saturday. Our
joy is much damped, however, by hearing that none of the men are to be
allowed to leave, and, of course, their wives stay with them. Mr. Ives
has made a special journey to Berlin on behalf of our poor men, but
the authorities are obdurate.

People say that the loss of life in this terrible war is beyond belief
as far as the Germans are concerned. To hide this the Emperor requests
that no one shall wear mourning for the dead until the war is over.
Also, no complete catalogues of casualties are issued, only lists for
each kingdom, or duchy, so that the bulk of the people have no idea of
the waste of life. The wounded being so numerous, the doctors now have
little time to attend to them on the spot, and therefore they are put
into trains and sent off to "Lazaretts" sometimes before even their
wounds are washed. A Belgian lady who had a special police permit to
go to Frankfort, returned this afternoon in a train full of wounded
soldiers. One of these was put into her carriage. He had been badly
shot in the arm; his sleeve was soaked with blood, and that had
coagulated; his wound had never been washed, and French earth was
still on his boots, and yet he had been sent in this condition from
Rheims to Giessen!

_September 23rd._--Terrible news! A telegram was posted up in the town
this morning, saying that three English "Panzerkreuzers" had been sunk
by one German submarine. Of course the church bells pealed, and the
flags came out, and the children sang "Nun danket alle Gott," because
950 brave Englishmen had gone under. We are much depressed, and our
depression is aggravated by the want of occupation here. We dare not
sketch for fear of being "verhaftet" (arrested). It is no good writing
because every scrap of paper will be taken from us on the frontier;
nobody I know plays bridge, and so I read