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[Page 21]
shavings and sawdust partly covered with a filthy sheet, and two, thin, torn blankets for warmth. These are enclosed in a linen case which conceals filth, that I think is the virtue of the case. No doubt the Huns consider the beds to be clean and fit for occupation. My bed is under a window facing the court yard and out-houses. By struggling on to my right elbow, I am able to get a clear view of things happening below. During the afternoon, I was lying quietly thinking of the time I would be enjoying in "Blighty", had I escaped the Huns, when my attention was suddenly attracted by the yelps, and barks of dogs in the yard. I peered through the window, and to my utmost surprise, I saw dogs being butchered and taken into the cook hours; in addition to these were several small pigs. Ough! The mere thought of eating dog flesh caused a sickly feeling to run through my body. I explained the cause of my astonishment to several older prisoners, they merely expressed surprise at my ignorance of the food shortage, and explained some of their experiences in Reprisal camps, where dog and horse flesh were considered rare luxuries. They said Hun posterns often shot dogs and cats for their own personal use; beef and mutton are unheard of. Two ounces per week is an exceptionally good issue of that meat, consequently, one can imagine how seldom beef and mutton are seen. This statement has been corroborated and is precisely authentic.
18TH. 10 A.M. I was carried into the operating theatre for dressing (the first dressing since my capture). The room is quite a small compartment, containing three operating tables, and various stands for surgical instruments. Three Hun Doctors, two nurses, and four Russian orderlies in attendance, and crowds of wounded waiting outside. While the Doctors were operating on a man near me, I waited half an hour. I am accustomed to wounds and roughness, despite those experiences I almost fainted through the oppressive heat and foul air and chloroform. I was compelled to stick it; whilst I lay waiting, a Hun nurse amused herself by thrusting knives and instruments near my face and sprinkling cold water on my bare stomach. This inhuman wench with another in con-