Diary of Annie's War (2 page)

We left the carriage at the hotel and went into Mass. It upset me very much. Nearly everyone was crying, for so many men had been called up. Wives were crying because their husbands had gone. And the little ones were crying because they saw their mothers cry. I often thought of that morning when I was in church afterwards. So many men who were going away went to communion.

It was a perfect August day.

When we got to the hotel after Mass Arthur went to give his instructions over his horse ‘Moor' and I heard ‘The Bellman' in the road. After his announcement the people hissed at me and I felt afraid. Just at that moment the wife of the innkeeper came out and said we had better wait a while as there were many horses coming along with recruits from Bad Gandersheim. They were on their way to Hannover for the war and it was better to let them get past for they also had wagons.

It was very sad to see them. There were one hundred and seventy-eight wagons. Each wagon with two horses in the front and many with two horses fastened behind. They were driven by recruits from the same town and a couple of soldiers on horseback rode up and down by their sides to direct. Several of the drivers were young teachers and you could see that they had never driven before. The others were young farmers. The people were upset at seeing this procession for it meant that the farmers were without horses, wagons and men and it was harvest month. It was to be a very good harvest this year. They knew when the larger towns and villages had been called upon, and then it was their turn. No wonder they felt very angry with us. For some unexplained reason England was blamed for Russia and France going to war. France, they told us, never declared war but at England's advice commenced to drop bombs on Germany.

As we drove home we met the same angry crowd at the barriers but not a word was spoken. Afterwards we heard that it was the intention of some of them to stone us as we passed. In fact the report was spread that it had actually happened.

When we got to the house Emily met us with alarming news. She had packed her boxes and wanted to be off. Mrs. Steinoff had been talking to her in the garden and had told her how very angry people had become on hearing war had been declared with England. We were the only foreigners in that district and of course we were the object of all their spite. They said that if England joined France and Russia they were done. All their threats were for England. Mrs. Steinoff said the people were more angry with me than Herr Dröege. It was because he said he would like to live there all winter, and I had said I never would do so. So it showed all my thoughts were for England etc. etc.

Emily had been in the kitchen and the cook had told her that she had heard so much of what the people had said in the village. George the coachman had been there and told her what they said. She was afraid of staying at nights and was sure they meant to attack us or set fire to the place. She also said that early that morning she had been getting some apples in the garden near the road and two men passing had made the remark, ‘This house looks fine now, but I don't think tomorrow will see it so fine looking'.

She refused to stay all night and went home to sleep. We decided it was perhaps better that the children and Emily went away. So we continued with the packing. But on enquiries after dinner we found it impossible to send them away as all the trains were stopped. In fact we were two weeks and had no trains at all.

After a long talk together Arthur decided to go and see the man who occupies the position of ‘mayor' to the village. I went into the kitchen with Emily to write some letters. The children were a little afraid for they had heard of the ‘chat' in the village.

Louise, the cook, was very upset when I got into the kitchen and at once implored me to get away. She said she was sure harm was intended for us and if we only knew the talk in the village we should go at once. I did not take much notice of her because she was very much upset on her own account over the war. Her lover and her brother had been called up three days before and I thought a great deal of her crying was because she was in so much trouble. I told her I was not afraid and that I had a very much higher opinion of the German people than she evidently had. I reminded her we had never had any unpleasantness from the villagers. She replied that the war made the men mad for they all knew they must go and fight. She ended by remarking that she did not consider it safe for herself and should not sleep in the house at night. But Johanna Matties, the other servant, said she was not afraid. There the matter ended for the kitchen.

I went into the garden, meeting on my way the postman with a letter from James Walmsley saying he was still in Hamburg and that he had been on the ship since Monday. It was now Tuesday evening and they were afraid they would not get away.

As I was reading it Mrs. Steinoff came out and told me a lot of the news she had given Emily. I said I was surprised at it and did not expect it of our people. She said all people are bad in war times and she felt a little afraid. On Steinoff coming along and hearing our talk I noticed she did not express herself as afraid. Steinoff himself laughed at us but said the people were very angry at England who had caused Russia and France to go to war with them (the Germans).

Half an hour later Arthur came in and I could see he was upset. I went into his room and he told me of a very remarkable thing. He said he was sitting talking to Herr Scharfer (the mayor) when a man came in and Arthur got up to leave the room. The man said: ‘What I have to say you can hear. I will say it to your face'.

Then he made a statement demanding that our house was searched from top to bottom. He believed we were spies and had bombs concealed. He also said he had heard that Arthur had remarked: ‘If we had any annoyance he would throw a bomb in the village'.

This remark was supposed to have been made when Arthur had found an apple tree stripped of its fruit. Arthur immediately asked the mayor to come to our place and search. He remarked that the doors had been open to all since early morning and that, as far as we knew, there had been no apple tree robbed of its fruit, nor had there been. It was a tale ready made up. Of course the mayor refused to do what was asked.

Arthur came home and we talked the matter over. I suggested we telephoned for the police officer at Lamspringe to come at once and hear the details of the case. I felt afraid when I knew we were taken for spies. Among such people, and in war time, it was not a very nice position. Also we must remember that the nearest police station was four-and-a-half miles away and the house stands alone.

The principal thing was that these people who had made the accusation were workers at the Kali mines and were in a position to get explosives. I told Arthur there was nothing to prevent them getting what they wanted and then putting the articles in our house. It would be serious if they were found.

Arthur telephoned the police and a very smart officer was with us in half an hour. He was so very thoughtful and kind. He remarked that it was his duty to protect us and we could rely on him doing his best, but he had a deal to do. He had heard we had many Socialists in our village and at once put it down to them - which proved true.

He got at the man who had spoken to Arthur and it appeared the same man had been called up that morning to his military and that had not pleased him. The officer went into various pubs in the village and said if we had any annoyance he would make the parties pay for it. I do not think it made any impression. At six o'clock Louise the cook went home to sleep, but Johanna decided to sleep in her own room. We were not a very happy household that night.

We were up very early for Arthur had to take ‘Moor' to Alfeld and he was to take George with him. I might say I was not pleased at the prospect of being alone in the place without a man. We had heard the previous evening that the people had said they would stone us the first time they met us in the streets.

I also remembered that the people knew that Arthur was going to Alfeld, for several others from the village had to go also. I did not feel any better when Arthur came into the room and remarked: ‘They have cut the telephone wire in the night and we cannot telephone'.

That showed, I thought, that they were not going to be afraid of the police. We scarcely knew what to do. Arthur and George had to go away early. Emily, I and the children would have felt a little more secure knowing we could telephone to the police. However, Steinoff came in from the fields before Arthur went away and he went up to the public house in the village. He telephoned from there to the general post of in Lamspringe and told them of what had happened.

It proved to be a great blessing in disguise. In about half an hour an official from the post office came and he raved and stormed all over the place. I heard that in the village he had quite frightened the people by telling them what lay in wait for the people who had done it. After him came the police officer. He went to the mayor and written notices were issued asking the people to give all information. The telephone was not ‘Herr Dröege's' but it was ‘The Kaiser's' and the man who had cut it was an enemy of the government. The telephone official had remarked in the village that the man who had done it would be shot at once. No one told us who it was. The police officer remarked that now that had happened he would have to come each night and walk for so long round the house.

Arthur came home about half past five and all was in order. He had had a talk with the magistrate in Alfeld and he said he should send a notice to six villages around Woltershausen warning the people not to molest us as we were peaceful. We were told that the telephone would be on night and day for us and we felt a little more secure. George also went into the village in the evening and said the talk had stopped.

Many of the men went away. Among them the man Rutt who had charged us with having bombs.

We got a postcard from James Walmsley saying they had not got away. In fact the boat that had set out on the Saturday before war was declared on the Tuesday had been turned back and they were still in Hamburg.

The succeeding days brought us no peace as everything in the papers was against the English, and the talk was awful. We had to keep the children in the garden and did not often go out ourselves. George offered himself for the war, he had the age to go in October, and there was not much work for him with the horse gone.

We were very glad of news. We only saw one paper and it did not give us consolation.

On the following Sunday we walked to church and found that Pastor Gatsemire had returned. He was on holiday when the war broke out. He was in Spain when the news reached him. A ship at once set out for Hamburg and he said if they had been four hours later it would have been too late to get away. They passed a ship that had struck a mine that same morning - the first sea loss we read of. They had to have a special pilot who knew where the mines were laid. He had a very exciting twenty-four hours on the sea and we were very glad to have him back.

After a week or so we got a train, put on early in the morning, but the service was dreadful. The telephone and telegraph also were held up so many hours a day. Each day we got a postcard from James telling us of how he was fixed. We mentioned his case to the police official but he said not to send for him to stay at Woltershausen. Arthur telephoned to Hildesheim and told the head waiter at Weiner Hof that he had advised James to come there. The head waiter replied that it was not safe as they had a deal of trouble with two Americans who were there. The people were suspicious and the police had been to see them. He strongly advised James to stay in a large town. Arthur wrote to that effect.

It was a difficult matter writing to James for we did not want to tell him too much of our unpleasantness. At last he wrote us he had got decent lodgings and he was staying in Hamburg. At this time James' postcards were all we lived on for we had no other news. Each day brought us anxiety and so we went on for a couple of weeks.

James' postcards to his father and to Fr. Blundell were returned. He had sent them on Sunday the 2
^nd
. I received also a letter back sent to Mrs. Hopkins also posted on the 2
^nd
. The one written to father and one to Mrs. Ralphs never returned. I often wonder if they got them.

We were very glad during those days that we had the children and Emily though we spent all our time in the garden having no trains to go anywhere and the horse gone away. We had to walk to Mass each Sunday for we could not borrow an animal. All had gone to the war with the exception of very old working horses.

We got a letter from Herr Steffen in Limburg to say there was no business doing and that if he could get a train he should come to stay with us and so fulfil a long promised visit. It was almost two weeks before he could travel. We had several letters and telegrams announcing his arrival and then - ‘No Trains Tomorrow'.

Arthur went to Hildesheim for a train went through our station in the morning. He scarcely knew when he would return but he said: ‘Surely before dark'. We went down the road at eight o'clock and waited almost an hour. Then we returned home. Emily and I were very nervous but still hoped that nothing had happened. Arthur came home a little after twelve o'clock and he had to cycle from Hildesheim. I resolved to go with him next time. The journey was better than the anxiety at home.

The cook left us. Emily and I were kept busy in the kitchen for some weeks after this. George the coachman had gone into the army on the 26
^th
of August so we were a little less in the house. Johanna was a great help and we could get a woman from the village when necessary. We managed very well. I think Emily and I were pleased to have something to do. We had less time to worry.