“Have any of the prisoners got money?”
Of course no one answered. We were ordered to undress, and every garment was closely searched for money, cameras and especially letters and papers. I came third, and was allowed to keep my shirt on.
“Have you got any money?”
“No.”
The sergeant-major passed his hands all over my body. Suddenly something chinked in the left-hand pocket of my shirt.
“What is this?”
“I don’t know.”
He now plunged his paw right in, and what did he extract? A beautiful twenty-dollar piece of the best American gold, and also a small mother-of-pearl button, which had betrayed me by knocking against the coin. This comes of being too tidy! Had I thrown it away two days before, instead of hoarding it carefully, this would not have happened. The English soldier rejoiced, for such finds did not occur every day. But now he examined me more thoroughly. And to my distress he extracted from my other breast-pocket, as well as from each of the two trouser-pockets, a lovely golden piece and my small Browning revolver, which had been my faithful companion all these months.
When I had been completely despoiled I was allowed to dress again and to rejoin my comrades in misfortune in the prison yard. After that we took possession of our quarters. About fifty German civilian prisoners greeted us uproariously. They had been in captivity ever since the beginning of the war, and seemed to have recovered their sense of humour. Our new friends invited us at once to share their meal. We threw ourselves like savages on the bread pudding which they had prepared for themselves.
Then we started on our work.