The Better Germany in War Time: Being Some Facts Towards FellowshipPicton, Harold W. (Harold Williams)
History
The Better Germany in War Time: Being Some Facts Towards Fellowship
Picton, Harold W. (Harold Williams)
World War, 1914-1918 -- Hospitals, charities, etc.; World War, 1914-1918 -- Prisoners and prisons, German
The situation of the camp is good ... on very dry, sandy soil,
surrounded at a few kilometres by pine forests. The buildings
are good. Though there were the customary complaints about the
food, more than half the men I spoke with expressed themselves
as satisfied.... The men looked healthy, and they all stated
that the general health of the camp was excellent.... There are
shower baths with hot and cold water.... The men said they were
well treated by the Commandants and the German soldiers and
N.C.O.’s in charge of them.
The camps at Sennelager are large ones, and include more than two
thousand British prisoners. Games, concerts, and theatrical performances
help to pass the time. A play given by French prisoners was entitled:
_Avant et après la guerre._
MAINZ.
Of the officers’ camp at Mainz, Dr. Ohnesorg reports that “The quality
and quantity of the food was good and varied.... One and all the British
officers spoke in the highest terms of their commanding officer, his
kindness and courtesy, and said that they received every privilege which
could be afforded them, considering their position.” There were about
700 officers, of whom 25 were British. “If anything,” says the American
Consul at Wiesbaden in a later report on Mainz, “I should think the
British officers would ... receive almost greater courtesy at the hands
of their keepers than those of the other nations.”
GENERAL REMARKS OF DR. OHNESORG.
Dr. Ohnesorg appends some general remarks on the camps he visited. In
the following quotations I have omitted nothing which is in the nature
of adverse criticism:
“On the whole the treatment accorded them is good, but frequent protests
were made to me concerning the food—not so much because of its quality,
as because of the insufficient quantity and the monotony of the diet.
The prisoners, however, appeared to be in good physical condition and
well nourished. Appended are various weekly dietary slips. I had an
opportunity in various camps to sample either the mid-day or the evening
meal. I found them palatable and, I should say, nourishing. Considering
the fact that the men have practically no hard work to do, it appears to
be sufficient in quantity, each man getting a liberal allowance—probably
a litre and a half of food per meal.
“The treatment accorded the sick and wounded prisoners is excellent.
They are given every advantage of medicines and treatment, and special
food when necessary. A dietary slip of the latter is appended. The same
routine, the same food, etc., as in use in German military hospitals,
apply for these various hospitals in prison camps.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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