PRISONERS AND CAPTIVES. [To THE EDITOR OP THE SPECTATOR."] Sin,—The
generous response made by your readers to my previous appeal on behalf of my Fund for Eng ish prisoners of war—Lady Burghclero's Prisoners' Fund—encourages me to address to you once more a letter which is both an account of my stewardship and also, I must admit, a petition for further help. Throughout this long winter the Fund has constantly maintained twelve hundred prisoners drawn from some twenty regiments. Further, on the cap:tulat:on of Kut we were able to cable out a considerable sum for the immediate relief of the prisoners. And during the late insurrection in Dublin three hundred and fifty loyal Irishmen, imprisoned at Limburg and else where, who would otherwise have been on very short commons while all communications with Ireland were suspended, received the:r food supplies at two days' notice from the Fund. In addition to the parcels of tinned meat, margarine and biscuits and tea despatched fortnightly, thanks to specific grants for these purposes, we have also furnished many men with blankets and supplemented the clothing of hundreds of prisoners. A letter addressed to me by a prisoner on our list, an N.C.O. recently escaped from Friedrichsfeld, throws considerable light on the state of affairs in the camps. Even when comparative plenty reigned in Germany our prisoners' rations were as shamefully inadequate as they were unpalatable and unwholesome. Now the men are compelled to depend almost entirely on the parcels from England " They are living on the foodstuffs from home," my in- formant tells me. He adds what it may not be amiss to quote in a letter which is of the nature of a report, and a grateful report, that the Fund parcels give entire satisfaction. " Believe me," he writes, " they are perfect and thoroughly enjoyed by all." At Christmas, the feast of goodwill, I took the opportunity to explain to the N.C.O.'s in charge something of the effort being made for them and theirs throughout the British world, and in particular by the readers of the Spectator. If the latter could read the expressions of gratitude this communication evoked, I think, Sir, they would feel rewarded. A sergeant-major wrote
Madam, you cannot realise how we boys here (who have done our beat, but are now out of action) are proud of our countrymen and women for all they have done and are doing for us, and all the boys join in with me in wishing you and all who have even thought kindly of us the very best health and good wishes for 1916 and ever a day."
A few weeks ago a soldier in a postcard to me contrived to c:nvey that all he and his comrades got from the Germans was " plenty of fresh air " (it was bitterly cold at that moment) and " plenty of hard work." But in the evening, he said, the English prisoners comforted them- selves " with a good old sing-song and the knowledge of what the end must be." Men who can retain so gallant a spirit after eighteen months captivity in a German camp are surely worth saving for the country's sake as well as for their own. But we can only hope to get them home in comparatively fair health and strength by a steady persistence in the despatch of food. The old Latin saw, Bit dat qui cite dat, holds especially true of work for our prisoners. A few months ago we were privileged to assist one of the most admirably managed Regimental Funds by temporarily taking over three hundred prisoners suddenly cast on their hands. Sudden emergencies such as this are bound to occur in the next " push," victorious though its issue should be. And I should like to point out that a bank balance, however carefully ad- ministered, must come to an end unless replenished. May I therefore, Sir, plead once more the cause of our prisoners ? Every penny sub- scribed goes straight to the men, without any deduction for secretarial or postal expenses ; and I never act except in conjunction with the regimental authorities, so that any danger of overlapping is avoided. All donations marked " Prisoners' Fund " and addressed to me— Lady Burghclere, 48 Charles Street, W., London—will be promptly and gratefully acknowledged.—I am, Sir, &c.,
WOILFRED BIIROHCLERE.
[Most sincerely do we hope that the generosity of our readers will enable Lady Burghclere to maintain and continue the splendid work begun and half accomplished by her. We are proud to think that so great a part of her Fund was supplied by Spectator readers in all parts of the world. May we say of the Fund as her sons say of Eton, " Floreat, florebit 1" —ED. Spectator.]
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