THE ESCAPING CLUB.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16573, 4 November 1921, Page 11

THE ESCAPING CLUB.

!M A GERMAN PRISON CAMP. INGENIOUS PRISONERS. Many people in. this country during! the war (bays “ John o’ London’* Y eeklv”) oppressed by tlie. stories of the ill -treatment of British prisoners in Germany. would have derived a little consolation had they known of the existence and of the doings of th© Escaping Olub at Fort 9. Ingoldstadt, where the Germans imprisoned all th* most troublesome of the Allied officer prison- < ‘ r ® men who had made escapes from other camps, and were determined to make further attempt© to gain freedom. "RAGS ’ IN A GERMAN PRISON, One of the officers who made repeated attempts to get out of Germany, and eventually succeeded, was Mr A. J. Evans, late of the Royal Air Force, tno Hampshire and England cricketer, wh<* ho© written an absorbing storv of Ms experiences. “ Th© Escaping’ Club.” The prisoners were openly contempfcu-. ous of their guards, and were continually bringing off amazing '* rags ” which, were absolutely maddening to th© Germans. The commandant— a hopeless incompetent—behaved like b maniac, and he and his men went in mortal fftar of their lives. Mr Evans says that this was the reason why the order to fire was never given. If the order had been given, he says, <f the first thing w© should do would he to kill the commandant and Feldwehel. and they knew it very well.” There were forty armed Germans, mostly oldish men, and. including the orderlies, nearlv two hundred extremely active prisoners. There was always a long waiting list for th© punishment cells, so that this form of reprisal was no deterrent. THE STRAFE. The following story illustrate* tb* state of things in this prison ; “ General Peters was the 0.0. of all the camps of Ingoldstadt, and appeared one morning with some special 1 strafe, or reprisal, to read out to us. If I remember right, it had something to do with alleged ill-treatment of German officers in France. The genera t was not popular, and even more noise was made than usual. Just before the cordon was drawn before the door, a French captain walked down the whole fixxnt line, carrying a chair, and sat down throughout the appell (roll call), Tv hen the feldwebel (sergeant) stood forward to read his document, he was greeted with tlie usual cries of 4 Assassin!’ and 4 Parle pas Bosche!’ and finished in a storm of howls, which completely drowned his voice. The interpreter then proceeded to read a French translation, which wa<» listened to with attention, the reading being merely punctuated by cheers and laughter and hoots at tho interesting points. After the Russian shooting affair (a sentry deliberately fired without cause at two Russian officers) on© Russian always used to turn up with a large Red Cross on a pole. When things began to get really exciting. T own I used to edge away from the flag, as T felt sure the Germans would fire their first volley into the group round it.” THE BOX TRICK. But perhaps the most amazing exploit of the Escaping Club was the theft of a large iron bound box iu which was kept all the forbidden property taken from [ the prisoners and locked in tbe commandant’s room:— 44 Just before midday a party rr Frenchmen, T believe, went into the bureau nnd had a violent row with th© commandant—not a.n unusual occurrence, as I have already explained. As the row became more and more heated, other Frenchmen and Russians crowded into the bureau. A fearful scrimmag. and a great deal of shouting ensued, in tho midst of which a party specially detailed for the purpose carried the box unobserved out of the bureau and int© our 4 reading room.’ which was only a few doors away. MIRACULOUS DISAPPEARANCE. 44 There were men waiting with hammers and other instruments. The lid was wrenched open and the contents turned out on to the floor. Some then fell on the box and broke and tore it into small pieces, which others carried to th© different rooms and burnt immediately in the stoves. Others, again, distributed to their owners or hid in previously prepared places the contents of the box, so that within five minutes tho box itself had utterly disappeared, and all, its incriminating contents were in safe hiding places. Hie row, which had been gradually dying down, dow dissolved, and very soon afterwards the Germans discovered their loss. The bells went, and we were all ordered to our rooms. Then amid shouts of lauehter from ever'* room, two rather sullen and shamefaced Germans searched vaiulv for an enormous box which had only been stolen five minutes he fore. and for which there was no poss ble hiding place in any of the rooms.” ESCAPE EXPERTS. And all the tini© were being hatched elaborate' schemes for escaping : 44 There were in the camp some or the most ingenious men I have ever come across. Men who could make keys that would unlock any door; men who could tom per and jag the edge of any old table knife so that it would cut iron bars; expert photographers (though cameras were forbidden) who used to copy maps of the frontier route; engineering experts who would give ad vice on any tunnel which was being dug ; men who spoke German perfectly ; men who shammed insanity perfectly, and many, like myself, who were ready to risk a bit to get out, but had no parlour tricks. 44 One escaped from his prison camp dressed as a German officer. Another escaped in a dirty clothes basket—this man had a mania for basket escaping, and was always trying it—and another was wheeled out of camp hidden in a muck tub. Another sportsman painted his face green to look lik© a water lily, and swam the moat round the fort in daylight under the sentry s nose.” MAPS IN CAKES. Mr Evans made altogether eight attempts, and the last one was successful. Ho received, from his home valuable articles that helped him- Maps came, baited in'tho middle of cakes; s compa&S cam© in a glass bottle o; pruqcs; another compass in a jar oi anchovy past©--—the Germans were extraordinarily inefficient in endeavouring to detect these smuggled thyigs. The varied experiences ot the prisoners in Germany before they were recaptured were exhaustively debated. so that they were primed with all the latest devices in the art of escaping—what to beware of. and what to risk. Mr Evans eventually escaped in company with his friend, Mr Buckley. b 3 jumping from a. railway train while the attention of the sentry in their compartment was distracted by their comrades. They had eighteen night* of arduous tramping, and then when utterly exhausted succeeded in croisma the frontier into Switzerland. Bub this waa not the end of Mf Evans’s adventures. He was captured bv the Arabs in'Palestine, and made his escape, and nearly reached the sea and tlie British lines, but unluckily wa« without a compass, and walked unwittingly bhek in t4re direction of his vaptoia.