"Near the large hospital I visited was a graveyard where there were
scores of neatly marked fresh graves, each bearing a cross or tablet
with the name of the soldier and his regiment, division and corps marked
on it. In some cases comrades had added a word or two of scripture. The
deaths are too numerous for an imposing ceremony at each burial, but for
every one an army chaplain reads scripture and offers a short prayer,
while a few comrades stand by with bared heads.
"The identity of each soldier is easily determined from the name plate
which he wears in a little leather purse suspended from around the neck.
After a battle these plates are gathered from the dead and from these
the death lists are made out. [It was said that after the battle of
the Marne no fewer than 68,000 of these name plates or tags were found
collected in one place.--Ed.]
"After a battle where the deaths mount into the thousands some field
will be shut off for a cemetery and there the bodies are buried, each
grave receiving some kind of a cross wherever it is possible, but here
no names can be attached. There will be many homes in which there will
be vacant places and where it will not even be known where the absent
ones are buried.
KAISER INSISTS ON ENTERING
"While here I heard a touching story about a lieutenant who was dying in
the hospital, while the Kaiser was inspecting it. The Kaiser came to the
room where the officer lay and the attendants asked him not to enter, as
a man was dying. The Kaiser immediately pushed his way in, went up to
the lieutenant, put his hand on the officer's shoulder, and said in
German: 'Hello, here I am!'
"The lieutenant began murmuring with his eyes closed.
"'I have been dreaming and I dreamed that my Kaiser came to me, put his
hand on my shoulder and spoke to me.'
"'Open your eyes,' said the Kaiser.
"The lieutenant obeyed, smiled a smile of recognition, and then closed
his eyes in the final sleep.
SURGEONS WIN IRON CROSSES
"So far, according to official announcement, there have been between
50,000 and 60,000 wounded and immediately after a great battle the
sanitary corps has been unable to cope quickly enough with the work,
but under ordinary circumstances the provision made has been ample. The
number of the sanitary corps was determined upon the experience in the
Russo-Japanese war, in which the losses were by no means so heavy as
they have been in this war, but where in a few cases numbers have been
lacking the surgeons and their assistants have put forth herculean
efforts. Many surgeons are now wearing the iron cross for bravery,
winning the insignia by dragging out wounded from the rain of bullets.
TREATMENT OF PRISONERS OF WAR
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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