Germany in War Time: What an American Girl Saw and Heard

The Project Gutenberg eBook, Germany in War Time, by Mary Ethel McAuley
Germany's Youngest Reserve.
WHAT AN AMERICAN GIRL SAW AND HEARD
MARY ETHEL McAULEY
CHICAGO THE OPEN COURT PUBLISHING COMPANY 1917
COPYRIGHT BY THE OPEN COURT PUBLISHING COMPANY 1917
DEDICATION TO MY MOTHER WHO SHARED THE TRIALS OF TWO YEARS IN GERMANY WITH ME
This book is the product of two years spent in Germany during the great war. It portrays what has been seen and heard by an American girl whose primary interest was in art. She has tried to write without fear or favor the simple truth as it appeared to her.
Now that America and Germany are at war, it is not possible for an American to enter the German Empire. Americans can leave the country if they wish, but once they are out they cannot go back in again.
Since the first year of the war there has been only one way of getting into Germany through Denmark, and that is by way of Warnemünde. After leaving Copenhagen you ride a long way on the train, and then the train boards a ferry which takes you to a little island. At the end of this island is the Danish frontier, where you are thoroughly searched to see how much food you are trying to take into Germany. After this frontier is passed you ride for a few hours on a boat which carries you right up to Warnemünde, the German landing-place and the military customs of Germany.
When I went to Germany in October, 1915, the regulations were not very strict, travelers had only to show that they had a good reason for going into the country, and they were searched—that was all. But during the two years I was in Germany all this was changed. Now it is very hard for even a neutral to enter Germany. Neutrals must first have a visé from the German consul in Denmark. It takes four days to get this visé, and you must have your picture taken in six different poses. Also, you must have a legitimate reason for wanting to go into the country, and if there is anything the least suspicious about you, you are not granted a permit to enter.