“Well, you see, we have not been brought up that way,” was my reply to this question.
Of course I was had up before the commandant for impertinent replies, but on explaining that I had only been defending myself against an attack by Harbe on the amount and quality of foodstuffs sent from home the commandant dismissed me, and I rather think it was Harbe who got told off. He once said that a prisoner of war was a man in disgrace, who had no rights, and who should not be allowed to amuse himself in any way. He said he ought to be made to feel the shame of his position!
CHAPTER VII
IN HOSPITAL AT DRESDEN
In March a Canadian doctor recently taken prisoner joined us at Bischofswerda, and although the Hague Convention does not allow doctors to be detained prisoners for any length of time, this Canadian was still there when I left in October, some seven months later. However, as far as we were concerned he was a great comfort, since we got some first-hand news as to recent events, and also some valuable medical attention and advice. His diagnosis of my case turned out to be absolutely correct, viz. that my trouble was caused by splinters of the ribs lodged in the right lung; also, owing to the long period it had been left unattended to, then a matter of a year and a half, a chronic pleurotic state had set in. The Canadian doctor had an interview with the German doctor over my case, but the German refused to find anything wrong, though he said that, should the Swiss Commission come, he would put me up for examination before them.
During the last week of May 1916 we were notified that a visit from the Swiss Commission was shortly expected, in order to collect certain officers for transfer to Switzerland. A list of those whose wounds were bad enough to allow of inspection by the commission was taken, although all officers suffering from other complaints were actually inspected by the Swiss Commission on its arrival. Great excitement reigned on the day appointed for the visit, which was fated in the end to bring very little consolation. With the exception of one officer, who had been hit in the hand, which he had more or less lost the use of, no other officer was placed on the possible list except myself.
At first the Swiss seemed desirous of taking me, but the German doctors would not hear of it. The outcome of the discussion between them was a compromise, the Swiss insisting that I should undergo a proper examination with Röntgen rays, in order to decide if it was a splinter or something else that caused the trouble. The German doctors said it was quite unnecessary, that I was quite sound, but that, if after examination any sort of operation were necessary, it would have to take place in Germany. The Canadian doctor already mentioned gleaned from a private chat with the Swiss that the reason the Germans refused to let me go was that they were afraid of the questions which would be inevitably asked in Switzerland as to why they had left my lung unattended for the period of a year and a half, without even troubling to have a proper diagnosis made.
So ended the first visit of the Swiss Commission. Very nearly three weeks elapsed before my orders came for the medical examination, which took place at a town called Bautzen, about twenty-eight miles from Bischofswerda. It is a very large military depot, and contains a number of hospitals. To one of them myself and a Canadian officer who came with me were conducted. For some time we sat in the exercise-ground of the hospital, where a number of German wounded soldiers were sitting or walking about. We apparently caused a great deal of interest, but no insult or objectionable looks were given us—in fact, rather the opposite. It is a curious psychological fact that, with regard to those Boches who have actually fought in the front line, they seem to look upon their enemies with far greater respect, which I suppose, after all, is natural, since they have actually seen and felt the magnificent fighting qualities of our troops, and are therefore sceptically inclined towards the articles in their newspapers which continually belittle the strength of our arms. On the other hand, those who are on lines of communication, etc., believe the newspapers, having had no practical experience of their own to balance their reasoning; and, as typical of the Boche character all round, when they feel themselves to be winning or up against a weaker force than their own, they are bullies of the worst possible character.
With regard to the events which took place at the hospital at Bautzen, after seeing the specialists, immediate arrangements were made for an X-ray examination. The result of this showed our Canadian doctor to be correct. The German specialist then asked me why this had not been attended to before, and why no operation had been made. He said, “In my opinion it must be done at once; at the same time I must warn you that, owing to the length of time which has been allowed to elapse, a considerable growth has naturally taken place over the affected area.” He further said that the operation now would be a very dangerous one, and that even were it successful he could not guarantee that I would be any better, and that he would have to ask me to decide there and then if I would undergo it or not. On inquiring as to the probable result if I should not feel inclined to take the risk, he replied, “You may not get any worse, but I shall be surprised if you don’t, and I consider that tuberculosis will probably set in, if it hasn’t done so already.”
This opinion decided things for me, so I made a statement in writing that the operation was done by my own wish and at my own risk, since otherwise they would do nothing.
After a further examination my friend and I returned by train to Bischofswerda. About a week later the doctor called me down and explained that the operation was a very dangerous one, and that there would be still time for me to cry off; the commandant did the same a few days later; but the specialist’s threat of tuberculosis decided me absolutely, as there was no possible alternative. If I had the disease, I was done for; if it came through lack of an operation, I was done for; so the only thing to do was to trust to luck. Nearly another month passed before my final orders to go to hospital at Königstein came through, and on the day they arrived I was told to be prepared to go off in three days’ time, according to instructions from Berlin.