SUNDAY, NOV. 11, 1917
THE ASHEVILLE TIMES.
PACE FTO
LIFE AT HOT SPRINGS
INTERNMENT STATION
FOR GERMAN SAILORS
1,565 Seamen Are Located In
Relations Between Officers and Men No Evidence
of Extravagance and Waste
By STAFF COnRFSPON'DEXT.
When General Wade Hampton
shortly after the war- between
the states built Hampton cottage at
Hot Springs, N. C, he doubtless did
not imagine in his most fanciful
dreams that some 50 years later his
summer home would become a hospi
tal for German sailors. But this is
what happened in the summer of 1917
after the United States declared war
against Germany and several thou
sand seamen of the German merchant
marine were interned in the United
States. A new hospital, however, has
now been built.
Fifteen hundred and sixty-five sail
ors, including 631 ofBcers. are living
at Hot Springs internment station as
contentedly as men can when de
prived of their liberty; more comfort
ably than many men who have today
lost their liberty through the fortunes
of war, yet in little of the luxury that
is sometimes attributed to the sur
roundings at Hot Springs. Under the
administration of .Thomas V. Kirk, a
Tar Heel and a native of Stanly coun
ty, the establishment is running like
a well-oiled piece of machinery.
When a TIMES representative got
off a train at Hot Springs one after
noon recently he saw men who might
have made world names for them
selves as commanders of sea raiders
like the Emden or the Moewe playing
tennis on the level grounds inside the
limits set by Uncle Sam as the boun
daries of their freedom; others were
striding up and down in the Novem
ber sunshine with the firm swinging
stride that spoke ot the fine physical
development that might be expected
of those who had Teuton military
training in their youth and who are
.now potentially auxiliaries of the Im
perial German navy At one end of
the wide valley included in the do
main of the camp teams could be seen
pitted against each other in a kind of
One Way
S 5. A.
It ! ill
IW4 AS
These are unhappy days for
fllmdoml No more late break
fasts on the "set"; no more sump
tuous banquets before a camera.
Saddest of all, there is an end to
those flour-barrel flirtations where
the chief fun-maker's plunge has
the terrible after-effect of making
him cough up biscuits for a week.
You guessed it. The picture
folk have been politely requested
by Mr. Hoover to do their bit in
conserving food by giving up
honest-to-goodness "grub" in their
eating scenes. He wants them to
substitute papier-mache victuals
and colored-water beverages, Just
to show the patriotic, vein whieu
is expected of every man these
days.' If the patriots who have
been complaining (quietly, of
course) because chops and juicy
steaks are forbidden delicacies,
will travel to any of tho motion
picture studios In Southern Cali
fornia, they will find a dojectton
of spirit that will make their own
grouch seem like a happy dream
"Hang It," said one Triangle
Apollo the other day, "you can't
drink pink water with a cham
pagne expression. It's too much
to ask of any actor."
"Your whole art consists of pre
tending that which you do not
feel, and here is a new world of
acting," rejoined a consoling com
panion. New world, bah!" he snorted.
"Any person who can chew
through two layers of cotton stuff
ed with brown paper and pretend
it's a ham sandwich that's saving
him from starvation, and that he
likes it woll, '.19 ought to choke'"
Judging from the expression
(and the pistol) with which Louise
Glaum is guarding her kegs In the
upper left corner, the government
ban on further manufacture of
whiskey has placed a premium on
the "property" stock assigned to
her In a recent Triangle photo-play.
It takes more than pink water to
start some of those western
dance-hall scraps.
The high cost of living doesn't
seem to bother pretty Alma Rue
bens (center) when she is on a
"location" near an orange grove.
Out west they have revised the
old adage .to read, "An orange a
day keeps the doctor away," and
the best part of It la that the price
of a dozen city orange will buy
a month's supply In the Hollywood
district
But economy and food conser
vation are secondary considera
tions with a lot of. actresses who,
off the films, are dieting to keep
their own figures in such condition
that the figures on their contracts
will not be diminished. The
camera man caught Clair Ander
son, the Triangle-Keystone beauty
in the upper right hand corner.
Just as she was tipping the scales
i
. Hi
T H
Mountain Park Hotel and
football, which Is not football to an
American, that the Germans play. On
me vrranaa wnere J. IS. Rumbough
used to entertain his summer guests
at Mountain Park hotel were still oth
ers playing cards, chess, or reading
newspapers and magazines. Every
body seemed to be smoking. It was
hard to realize that one had not come
to Mountain park in the midst of the
Indian summer season. But as the
reporter strolled toward one entrance
he was halted by one of the 64 guards
stationed at the camp and a few min
utes later Inspector Kirk was looking
over his letter from the United States
marshal. -
Xo Extravagance 1 i.unil.
The supper hour was not far off
when with Mr. Kirk as guide a tour
of the station was begun.. Many sto
ries current of extravagant and un
Hoover feeding and waste at the in
ternment station gave additional in
terest to an inspection of kitchens,
dining rooms and bakeries. The prin
cipal dish that night for the otllcers,
who occupy the hotel, appeared to be
rice and curry- There were also
apples stewed and baked, rye and
wheat bread, button, tea and coffee.
The mess hall and kitchens were clean
from much scrubbing. - In the bakery
of the hotel quarters were stacks of
the rye bread, or black bread, famous
in Germany, as well as the whiter
loaf that is more familiar in this part
of the world.
Mr. Kirk explained that the entire
camp is being provided with food at
approximately (liit month) 45 cents
a day for each man. The reporter
noticed that the loaves of bread were
placed on the table to be cut as need
ed and he wondered as he pondered
over that 45 cents how there could be
the waste of food that people from
time to time report as something
shameful to permit in these meatless
and wheatless days. Thero were no
signs of waste? and the reporter's im
pressions in this respect were con
-4 6 Reduce
Food Administrator Prescribes
Mock Eatables, Seasoned With
F-'-'nation, for Movies.
ill .,'IHIIWW 1,
semwtiiwsawf"". ;
ft AtlA A ft AAn M full WAlirh,,' of
vlvaciousness even with one foot
off the platform "I just curl up
and die every time I see a banquet
scene slated," cam cne of her sis
ter actresses in the big colony at
Culver City. "After a week's diet
of carrots and lemon juice, I man
age to torture off about four
pounds, then along Comes a pic
ture where every other scene has
eats in it. And the director won't
stand for mincing, either. When
I finish tho picture, I've put on
eight pounds."
The men have their troubles, tos.
There seems to be something sus
picious about the egg "Bill" Des
mond has just ipened In his
breakfast scene above, and Charlie
Gunn doesn't seem overly anxious
to partake of the plaster-pat is
"bread" and chalk and water
"milk" with wh'oh little Thelma
Salter is trying to tempt him. Ver
ily, these are hard times for the
hungry actor!
Olive Thomas (In the circle)
claims that Mr. Hoover is a wise
man. She says the eating olieshad
to do in Triangle pictures has al
most spoiled her Indigestion and
besides, it's making her just a tiny
shade stout. Just the same It looks
as if the little chick's luck might
prove fatal.
The little Betsy Ross nestling
down in the corner is Ruth Store
house one hundred pounds of
patriotism that isn't complaining
a bit, even though she does admit
that she has liked other edicts bet
ter After a recent Triangle picture,
in which a real blackberry pie fig
ured largely In an appetizing kitch
en "set," Miss Stonehouse was heard
m .uhiuh. inr mimes, k -m 8"
1 lUzhA M
i-Jj ,; ?,t HW
firmed by a conversation that night
with one of. the citizens of Hot
Springs, a man who has had some op
portunities of knowing how affairs
are managed inside the Internment
station. 1
The officers alone are quartered at
the hotel, three to five in a room. The
crews of men who cook and serve
the meals are also in the officers'
camp. The majority of the seamen
are in the second division of the camp,
housed in long barrack rooms with
double-deck bunks. There are seven
of these barrack buildings, the lust
one about completed.
Going through the barracks one
finds the same cleanliness that marks
the entire camp. These quarters are
heated by stoves while tire hotel is
steam-heated. There appears to be
some difference in the food served to
officers and men, but the difference is
slight.. . . ..:
A German Village.
Leaving the hotel. Inspector Kirk
led the way through the "German
village." Coming up the walk from
his cottage was a tall, powerfully
built num. Captain Pollack, former
commander of the Kronprtncessen
Cecilie, one of the finest merchant
ships afloat. ..-Captain Pollack is the
tallest man in the camp, and he cer
tainly looks as if he would be more
at home on the bridge of a liner or a
warship than in the small cottage he
has built as part ot the make-believe
German village. 1 '.
But these villages (the seamen have
started one also) are well worth a
trip to the station. Constructed most
ly out of scraps of lumber, driftwood,
or limbs of trees, they are monuments
to the ingenuity and skill of the Ger
man as a workman. They are built
for places to rest, drink coffee, or to
smoke and play games.' They are
heated by little brick stoves or fur
naces built by the Germans them
selves and thoy are finished with the
utmost care in carpentry and decorar
tion, with an eye to attractive effects
with simple materials for their at
tainment. In the center of the village
stands a little church. There are also
many plots for next summer's flower
beds.,.
The cottages are mostly of only one
small room. They are really little
club houses. Needless to say, no beer
is enjoyed in the village, though the
odor of coffee is there often.
The old ballroom of the hotel is also
a reading room and a place for gen
eral meeting and , entertainment, as
is the pool room which was part of
the hotel leased to the government
by Mr. Rumbough. At one end of
the ballroom is a stage where ama
teur theatricals are given occasional
ly. In addition to the piano rented
from Mr. Rumbough With the build
ing the Germans have an excellent
orchestra..
At the end of this pleasant village
Food Bills
4 47
ta remark, "I suppose from now
on I'll get cardboard pies. Do
you know, I don't believe I'll relish
make-believe pie at all."
The Hoover edict will be hardest,
perhaps, on the directora Realty
has become a fetish with many of
the craft, and it will pain their
temperament to substitute artifi
cial for real food. No mat'er
where or whom the rulirg hits, no
one is questioning the wisdom ot
the move. It will make a differ
ence In pictures in many ways, but
scenario writers and directors are
going to rack their brains for
"Just as good" Imitations of actual
eating. One and all. they are will
ing to "do their bit."
5V
v ass .v
Ax
i I
the visitors found Captain Schlimbach.
he architect who drew the plans for
the village. Here also the reporter
met Captain Nisse, chairman of the
general committee to which all tha in
terns report any complaints vhich
they may have, -eal or imagined. This
committee passes tn complaints and
requests from ofTWrs or men, and
those that the committee cannot settle
are turned over to Inspector Kirk and
his assistants.
: Men and Oflicew.
There have been reports going the
rounds to the effrct that the seamen
have rebelled against the authority of
their otticers, but that is not exactly
what is taking plare for the very good
reason that the officers now have no
authority over the men. As has been
stated, the officers and ordinary
seamen have separate camps and thev
do not come in contact with each
other In the old relations which ob
tained on board the ships which thev
no longer man. Officer and man arc
both for the time being in custody of
the United States government; the
men are responsible only to the gov
ernment officers in charge of the
camp. This latter "-fact undoubtedly
has had its effect; nnd added to that
may be noted the psychologic Influ
ence of living from day to day in an
environment very different, of course,
from that in Germany either now or
before the war.
Perhaps the men have noticed the
relations of the American representa
tives and their subordinates at the
camp; perhaps more freedom is in
the very air than In any they have
ever breathed before. At any rate,
the results are evident. The iron dis
cipline possible on board ship is out
of question now; the men are not unr
der the necessity of punctilious re
spect or even obsequiousness that, per
haps they may have been obliged to
practice in former days. From all
that is seen and heard one doubts
that even Commodore Ruser, former
commander of the V'aterland, now re
ceives from the interned seamen the
respect due to a superior officer ac
cording to German custom. It s prob
ably true that most of the officers,
when opportunity offers, are over
bearing to the men, judged by Amer
ican standards, and the men natural
ly welcome their present chance to
escape such treatment.
When the war is. over, the lessons
the interned Germans' in the United
States have learned may furnish an
interesting contribution to the read
justments that are bound to come in
Germany, no matter how the final Is
sue of the war may be decided.
Autocracy's wings are clipped at the
Hot Springs interment station.
It would be strange if the seamen,
relieved of the grip of naval routine
and discipline, should not feel free of
their superiors and should not show
their feelings. Occasionally a seaman
refers to the officers as "that kid glove
crowd," according to Btories heard in
the town outside the camp.
Perhaps this opportunity to be free
also accounts for the. fact that a small
number, both among officers and men,
are known to express friendly senti
ments toward the United States. But
such sentiments toward Uncle Sam do
not necessarily mean disloyalty to the
kaiser; and where one man is out of
sympathy with the German govern
ment, and rumor ,says that some are,
there are ten who still' believe as they
were taught from early days to believe
of their ruler and his system of gov
ernment. It would be a marvel if
most- of these men were not loyal to
Germany- in the war, and so far as
known most of them are.
If the interned Germans take deep
interest in the War they discuss it
seldom except" '-.'among: themselves.
They read the news of the day; what
they think is largely unknown. In
the hospital one man was seen pour
ing over a war map; another was
reading his Bible. One or two staunch
supporters of tho kaiser are said to
have expressed the vehement opinion
that the. U-boat campaign is by no
means over and that before all the
American troops are across the At
lantic the 'United States will learn to
her sorrow that the. present lull in
submarine warfare is ominous tf
preparations for relentless activity
against the boys en route to France.
Cakes and Coffee.
The canteen nt Hot Springs Intern
ment station does a thriving business.
Here the men, who receive small pen
sions from the steamship companies
for which they sailed the seas, buv
cakes. Jam, honey, tobacco and other
luxuries. In tho cottages of the vil
lages thoy have built one can see little
parties eating cakes and drinking cof
fee, of which drink they consume vast
quantities. The sweets they also car
ry to the dining halls to add the addi
tional supply that their sweet tooth
calls for.
A Y. M. C. A. building is now in
process of predion for the sailors.
This work the men are doing without
pay, tho government furnishing the
lumber and other materials. For
their work on the barracks the 'men
are paid.
One of the buildings recently com
pleted is a hospital which is well fit
ted up and in charge of a competent
physician who is one of tho interned
otllcers.
On the day that the reporter visited
tho camp tin intern named Friodunk,
formerly a purser on a German vessel,
received good news from Inspector
Kirk: he is to be discharged from the
station. He is now 74 years old; his
Bon in Illinois is ablo and anxious to
take care of his father and the old
man will bo allowed to say good-bye
to the detention camp.
A more delightful location for a ho
tel, or an Internment station, could
hardly" be found even in the moun
tains of this region. The steep moun
tain ridges which hem in the French
Broad river most of the way from
Asheville to Hot Springs there open
in sort of an amphitheater. On the
mountain sides, which seem to be al
most solid rock, are thick growths of
pine and spruce as well as the oak
and other hardwoods which are more
abundant around Asheville than in
the sectii'ii near Hot Springs. The
town and the camp are protected from
the fiercer winds by these encircling
hills and the sunshine seems to be
radiated into the valley by the enor
mous masses of rock thnt are piled in
some places perpendicularly high
above the river. . But, unfortunately,
they may think, the German interned
sailors do not have the pleasure of
mountain climbing while they are un
willing but not unhappy guests of
Uncle Sam.
Ho Got Mad.
Lysander, a farm hand that Every
boy's tells about, was recounting his
troubles to a neighbor. Among other
things ho said that the wife of the
farmer who employed him was "too
close for any use."
"This very morning," said he, "she
asked me, 'Lysander, do you know
how' many pancakes you have et this
mornin'?'
"I said, 'No, ma'am, I ain't had no
occasion to count 'em.'
"Well, says she, 'the last one was
the twenty-sixth.' And it made me so
mad I jest got up from the table and
went to work, without any breakfast!"
I - I I I srjr
I' '. . '. : ' : - .- '. .' . . ". . ; .
II 4sw . m A"- l " XT M
CMIP SEVIER BOYS
TO HAVE LIBRARY
Actual Construction of the
Building Will Begin In
Few Days Pittsburgh
Man Will Be Librarian
By C'LAl'DF ItAMSKY.
Camp Sevier, Greenville, S. C Nov.
10. Tho war -service .committee of
the American . Library association
lias completed' arransrements for the
construction of the PBmp Sevier free
library nt this camp and luts sent
Ralph 1'. Hmcrsnn of Pittsburgh.
Fa., to act as librarian anil to take
charge of the establishment of the
free public library system. H is ex
pected that the actual construction
of the building will begin within the
next week or so.
Sub-stations, tc further accommo
date the soldiers, will be established
in different parts of tho camp, in
tho Y. If. C. A. buildings. Knights
of Columbus headquarters and the
many other places where the men
gather.
Every soldier in camp is a mem
ber of the library without any for
mality or registration or without
paying any dues that is so common
among many organizations.' - All he
will have to do when taking out a
book will In to. sign . u slit), giving
his name and location, of ramp All
that is asked of the soldiers is f t take
good caro of the books so that as
We buy old furniture. We exchange new furniture
for old. We rent storage space, either by month or
year. Will be glad to have you call on us.
JTETWEEN friends the pift that con
S veys the most personal thoughtful'
ness pour Photograph.
Already, gift-seekers for the Christmas
tide are making appointments.
This year there will he an additional de
mand, for the Soldier Boy will expect
Photographs of those "back home."
It takes time to make Photographs of the
Iliggason quality and it will he to our mu
tual advantage to have you call early.
STUDIO
601. Patton Ave.
Opposite P. 0.
many men as possible may use them.
Five thousand books are expected
to arrive in camp in the next day
or so, the gift of the citizens otf
Pittsburgh,' l'a., to the soldicrboys
of Car p Sevier, S. C. A majority
of the bool.s are well-known novels
of tho day. There are detective and
mystery stories by Conan Doyle,
Mary Robert Khinhardt and Fan
ning; stories of adventure by Jack
London, Joseph Conrad and Ralph
Conner; books by Winston Churchill,
Gene Stratum Porter, Arnold Ben
nett. Robert Louis ' Stevenson and
many other favorites.
Magazine with good stories, both
Motion and non-fiction,, will be dis
tributed among tho men, without
any obligation that they be returned.
The camp librarian, Ralph P. Em
erson, comes direct from Pittsburgh
where he was executive secretary to
;N- d'ro.lxi' of the Carnegie library.
He has j.lso been connected with the
New York public library and or
ganized the public library at Lancas
ter, N. Y. Mr. Kmerson is a grad
uate of the New York State Library
school, class of lfllti. anil of Wil
liams college, class of 1HU7.
PRESS GALLERY FOR TIE
L SUPREME COURT
Washington, 'Nov. 10 The Supreme
court may soon have a. press gallery,
just like baseball parks, race tracks,
or congress. The court plans to make
its dear friends, the reporters, not
only able to do their work better, but
more comfortable.
Acoustics of the Supreme court
chamber the old senate hull of Web
ster, Calhoun and , Randolph mnae
the - arrangement somewhat difficult.
Kmployes and representatives of the
CAROLINA
Furniture Exchange
31 Biltmbre Ave.
congressional press galleries are at
work confidently, however.
When the first suggestion was made
a quarter of a century ago that mere
reporter persons should be aided and
encouraged in getting news of de
cisions promptly to the mere public,
some austere judges thought revolu
tion and chaos were near. But time
works wonders and now the reporter
stands a good chance of having real
comfy working quarters in the Su
preme court of the United States.
REV. F. W. STOUTON WILL ,
SPEAK TO MEN TODAY
Rev. K. W. Stanton, pastor of the
First. Methodist Episcopal church, will
speak at the men's meeting to be held
at the Young Men's Christian associa-.
tion this afternoon at 4 o'clock. He
will take as his subject "The Iloly
Spirit."
The musical program will consist of
a vocal solo by Arch D. Monteath and
duet, bv Mrs. Milton Hraun and Seth
J. Perkinson. with Mrs. J. H. Walker
as accompanist.
Robber Disappointed.
New York, Nov. 10. Somewhere In
New York tonight a bold robber is
cursing his fate. He knocked down
Walter Eomas. bank messenger, beat
him and escaped with his money sat
chel. It contained 458,000 in can
celled checks.
Slip Was Kxeiiseil.
New Ycrk, Nov. 10. Sarah Reman
vitch, 15, was excused from attending
sehool today because she is five feet
;ix inches tall. She said she towered
above her classmates. , Magistrato
Doyle said the excuse was good.
mftlr irtrturthii ir
.w .Vv-wu...''