of: "Pack up your
troubles in your old kit bag, and smile, smile, smile." This impromptu
concert delighted the French, who joined in as best they could. Soon
we had quite a little audience of solitary Huns, who peeped through
the open door and listened to the "Mad English," open-mouthed. At
last the express steamed in from the south-east and in quite an
exhausted condition we were graciously shown in to second-class
compartments in a way which clearly said "Second class is much too
good for you."

After a tedious journey, during which we received something to eat, we
arrived at Cologne about eleven o'clock the next morning. The station
contained almost every variety of Hun. These people represented the
cowards who in 1914 had flung stones at and otherwise insulted those
brave men of our old regular army, who stopped at this station, packed
in cattle trucks like animals, mostly wounded and dying. Nearly two
years of war have passed since then, bringing with them suffering and
a certain refining influence which had not altogether been without its
effect. Now, though most of them stared rudely, few showed signs of
open hostility. Following our officer down some steps and winding
subways, we were approaching a large restaurant, when a rather senior
Hun officer ran after us, cursing us in German for not saluting him
when we had passed him on the platform! One of the British replied,
"_Nix verstand_" (_No compris_). Whereupon he went away thoroughly
disgusted.

One of our party, a major of the 9th Zouaves, who spoke German very
well, asked if we might have some refreshments, to which the officer
acquiesced. We entered a large and almost unoccupied room separated
from the main dining-hall by a glass screen, and took up our positions
at a table by the window. Immediately outside towered the famous
cathedral, shutting out most of the sky, the spires and countless
pinnacles showing up to great advantage in the sunshine. Soon a waiter
appeared with a menu containing a list of weird dishes, the most
popular of which was a very thin slice of sausage reposing on a very
large slice of black bread. This cost one mark (but perhaps they saw
us coming!). Great excitement was caused when some one found it was
possible to obtain goose, but as our very limited supply of money was
almost exhausted this had to be ruled out. The fish salad when it
arrived was _peculiarly_ nasty. It was almost raw and had an
overpowering flavour of mud! Beer