German Atrocities: An Official InvestigationMorgan, J. H. (John Hartman)
History
German Atrocities: An Official Investigation
Morgan, J. H. (John Hartman)
World War, 1914-1918 -- Atrocities
Lieut. A---- ordered me to collect stragglers from Pekin Trench.
(2) I went 400-500 yards along Pekin Trench and found about twenty
wounded men of various regiments, all Scottish, whose names I did not
know.
I left these men sitting down and went about 100 yards further on and
found about twenty men of the ---- Highlanders, about ten of whom were
wounded.
(3) It was now 5.15 p.m., and I could see that the Germans had cut me
and all these men off from our own troops. I took the men of the ----
Highlanders back to where the others were. I now had about forty men
with me. For the sake of the wounded men we decided to surrender.
(4) We all took off our rifles and equipment and put them on top of the
parapet.
I stood on top of the parapet and held up my hands.
A large party of Germans then advanced both in the open and by the
trenches towards us.
When they drew near I said, “We surrender.” One German, speaking
English, said, “All right. Come along this way, every one.” We all
followed him up Pekin Trench towards the north, helping the wounded
along, and leaving our rifles and equipment behind. It now began to
pour in torrents of rain.
(5) The German who spoke English was dressed in dark khaki and wearing
a cape down to his thighs. He had khaki trousers with a thin red stripe
and long black boots. He wore a helmet with a dark khaki cover on it.
He had no badges showing. His cape blew open and I saw a figure 6 in
red on his shoulder and, I think but am not sure, a figure 2 in part of
it, making 26.
All these Germans were big men and were dressed alike, quite clean and
fresh as though they had only just come into the trenches. I did not
notice anyone in command of them.
Their manner was not threatening.
(6) About thirty of these Germans led us into a circular traverse in
Pekin Trench, and the English-speaking German said, “Pack in there and
stay.” All the Germans then went out of sight. The wounded men sat on
the fire-step and the unwounded remained standing. It was now about
5.30 p.m.
(7) After we had been there about two minutes a bomb was thrown into
the traverse where we were, one bomb from one side and one from the
other.
I shouted to the men to clear out if possible. Only one man and myself
jumped over the parapet. I seized an English rifle lying on the parapet
and fired down the trench. I then jumped into a shell hole about 15
yards from the traverse. It was almost full of water, in which I stood
up to my neck. The other man was shot.
I heard the Germans bombing this circular traverse continuously for
about fifteen minutes. At first the men I left were crying out, but
after about ten minutes this ceased.
(8) I was over an hour in the shell hole, and left it after dark.
2nd Lieut. G. T. G----, of D Co., 8th ---- Highlanders, was the first
person to whom I told my experiences. This was at about 7.45 p.m.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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