A V.A.D.'S TRAVELS

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 38, 8 November 1919, Page 7

A V.A.D.'S TRAVELS

Last'evening Atiss Louise Alack, a lady journalist, w'ho served abroad with the V.A.D. in the war-time, ami also acted as a war correspondent, lectured to an audience in the Concert Chamber of the Town Hall.

Miss Mack began by describing the rush of Belgian.civilians into Antwerp in the earlv days of the conflict. She'had seen the meat fortified city awaiting the German onslaught. There was, she said, an air of gaiety about the place contrasting with the forecast one might have made of tho scene. . The place was like Mellxmrne on a Cup day—for all within believed that they ivere safe, The scene was tlilferent later, when all was over. Miss Mack described at some length the ravages one. the sacrilegious acts wrought: bv tho Germans in Aerschot. The Germans had left bottles everywhere, bottles in unbelievable numbers. "If, any of vou," said the lecturer, "doubt the stories of the atrocities committed in the beginning of the war, you .would not do.so if vou could have seen the thousands of empty bottles lying about. An army that drank to that extent was capable of anv atrocity."

The' stories Miss Mack bad heard in Antweru concerning the occupied city of Brussels made her anxious to visit the place. She started off to get there by a circuitous route. A great part of thu journey was maoe in a "trap"—a "Victoria"—in the company of "an optimistic young man" and an oid professor. The end of the journey disclosed (lie fact— surprising to the leduro.r—Hint in Hie vehicle, concealed within a cushion, had lain a whole mass of Belgian correspondence addressed to the big city. In .Brussels Miss Mack mot the heroic Miss. Cavoll. and spent two unforgettable hours in the company of that lady and her nurses. "How amazing ano how beautiful is that memory to-day." said Miss Mack. "Those nurses' were all bright apparently, but at the back of thei" eves tlure was a look of tragedy, of disinav. of wonder; but nothing of that came out in their conversation. They said. ;YVo nursed the Germans—did everything we, could for them.' The first remark I remember heaving Miss Cavell make w,i.s:'l don't believe these stories of (lie. German atrocities—do you?' She did not. believe them because she hart been nursing the Germans, seeing them play the rai'f of lambs. She could not believe tliev could bo brutes, hut she was to learn that, ton... . . Her face had that holv light winch comes only in the eves and the face of one whose inner thoughts are in communion with the beautiful and Hie good She had a wit Of her own. a merry humour that, matin us all laugh." Miss Mack related a little slorv of Miss Cavell. The nurses one night began to sing, in a practically cmplv waid. a verso of the British National An!hem. A lone German in a corner bed chimed in a=> he lay there mion his back. Miss Cavell went over In him, ami, propping him up with a pillow, observed: "No, you don't: you don't sing 'God Save tin; King' lying down." Turning to discuss the essence of "War, Miss Mack observed that what our returned men were likely to lack most unnn re-entering peace conditions was the wonderful spirit of camaraderie that they had found "in the heart of the war." An interesting "obiter dictum" of thu lecfipe was a plea for the wider study of foreign languages. '.'|l was our appalling ignorance of oilier languages." snio Mi-* Mack, "that made things so prufouiiilly ililHeiiil for Ms" Unl fur llial h licap, she rcuiHidi'd. wc miglil generally have been familiar ivilh the writings of men like Treit-chke, who had foreshadowed wlial Germany was lo bring "l><>" Hie world ' • ■

\t Ihe conclusion of her lpclure AHss Mack i-xhiliilcd some pictures 1111111 l I III! SOIOC'II.

'I'u-iii-'lit Louise V.»,-k will 101 l "Whiil I Saw W'illiin tin' O'l'iiiiin Lines." "Live Dav* ~ Prisoner." "How I Lscaned," "A Million I'copic I'luiij: Themselves, into Holland, jiml AVhal: Did Hollnnd Do:" iintt many other pha-'cs of the war.