er would come out to us and in passing frequently
manage to slip us something. On one long-to-be-remembered occasion, a
man of the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, managed to "square"
the guard, a pleasant-faced young German, in some manner we could
never fathom, so that the latter actually brought to us two spoons and
a wash basin full of boiled barley, which we ate in the latrine. That
was the most humane act experienced from German hands during my
fifteen months' sojourn in Germany.

On the eleventh day we were marched out to what would be the Germans'
orderly room. A Canadian who had picked up a smattering of German
acted as interpreter. He did what he could for us, which was little
enough.

Asked why we had tried to escape, we feared to tell the truth, that we
had been forced to it by ill-treatment; so merely stated that we were
tired of Germany and wanted to go home. The presiding officer said:
"Well, you fellows have been a lot of trouble to us. I've been told to
tell you that if you give us any more; we'll have a little shooting
bee." We were sentenced to thirty days' dark cells. That was our
court-martial.

One lucky thing happened to us here: When they took our map away it
fell in two, as a result of having been folded in our pockets. The
officer crumpled one piece up, made a handful of it and tossed it
away, at the same time shoving the other half at me, which I eagerly
clutched. That piece showed the portion of Germany adjoining the
Holland border.

Our thirty days' dark cells were spent in the military prison at
Oldenburg. As before, they were four-by-eight feet in size, but with a
high ceiling which gave me room to stand on my hands for exercise.
Each of us was confined alone. The walls and floor of the cells were
of stone; the shutters, of steel which were always closed. There was
no furniture other than the three boards which served as the mockery
of a bed and which were chained up to the wall every morning. A small
shelf which held the water pitcher was the only other furnishing. No
ray of light was permitted to enter the place. The month was February
but there were no blankets, and the place was unheated. The rations
consisted of half a pound of black bread and a pitcher of water, which
were thrust in to us every morning, so that except for the guard who
unchained the boards at night we had no visitation in the twenty-four
long, long hours.

I cannot remember that I brooded much. Rather, I l