tion. He did
not live in Cologne but in a pretty and quiet little residential village
overlooking the Rhine some three miles out.

Taking pity upon me they insisted that I should at once proceed to their
home, but before this could be done certain formalities demanded
attention. My "pass" was only applicable to the city of Cologne and did
not embrace the outlying places. We had to return to the police
headquarters, corresponding to our Scotland Yard, for this purpose. Here
my papers were turned out and subjected to the usual severe scrutiny,
while I myself was riddled with questions. At last, through the good
offices of K----, who was well-known to the officials, I received
permission to proceed to his residence. This necessitated our being
accompanied to his home by two detectives who furthermore were to see
that I received the necessary local "pass" for the villa in question.

Notwithstanding the depressing company of the detectives I thoroughly
enjoyed that ride along the banks of the Rhine. It was a glorious
morning and the countryside was at the height of its alluring autumnal
beauty. Reaching the village I was taken before the Burgermeister, a
pompous individual, to undergo another searching cross-questioning, but
ultimately the "pass" was granted. At the same time my "pass" for
Cologne was withdrawn. I had either to live, move, and have my being in
one place or the other--not both--and was not to be permitted to travel
between the two places.

I must digress a moment to explain one feature of German administration
and the much vaunted Teuton organisation, which is nothing more nor less
than a huge joke, although it is unfortunately quite devoid of humour
for the luckless victim. In times of war, Germany is subdivided into
districts, each of which receives the specific number of an Army Corps.
Thus there is Army Corps No. 1, Army Corps No. 2, and so on. It is just
as if, under similar exigencies, the names of the counties in Great
Britain were abandoned for the time being in favour of a military
designation, Middlesex thus becoming Army Corps No. 1, Surrey No. 2, and
so on, the counties being numbered consecutively.

Each Army Corps has its commanding officer and he has absolute control
over the territory assigned to him, the movement of its inhabitants,
strangers and visitors. But the strange and humorous fact about the
whole system is that each commanding officer is a little autocrat and
extremely jealous of