_Sunday_.--Great news! The plan suggested by the Anglo-German Alliance
Committee is at last to be carried out. There is to be an exchange of
garrisons, that is to say, certain English towns are to be garrisoned
by German regiments, while certain German towns are to have
English garrisons. Our own town, though a small one, is to have
the distinguished honour of being the first to give this mark of
friendship to the world. All the arrangements have been made, and
to-morrow the 901st Prussian regiment of infantry is to march in.
It will be a great day for Dartlebury, and we shall all do our best,
though the public notice has been short, to give our gallant visitors
a warm and truly British reception.
_Monday_.--Our German friends have arrived. At 11 o'clock this morning
it was announced that they were approaching, headed by their band. The
Mayor, Alderman Farthingale, and the whole Corporation, including the
three Labour members recently elected, immediately proceeded to the
old city wall to meet them. They were accompanied by the municipal
band in full uniform, playing "_Die Wacht am Rhein_," which they had
been assiduously practising. Unfortunately this led to what might have
been a somewhat painful contretemps. On meeting the municipal band the
Prussian commander, Colonel von Brausebrum, halted his soldiers and in
a loud voice declared that our men were playing out of tune. Perhaps
this was true, but the offence was involuntary and in any case it
was hardly serious enough to call for the arrest of the whole band.
Arrested, however, they were, and it was a melancholy sight to see
them marched off by a corporal's guard. Mr. Zundnadel, the chief of
the band, is himself of German origin, and his feelings can be better
imagined than described. The Mayor saved the situation by making an
extremely cordial speech, in which he spoke of the English and the
Germans as ancient brothers-in-arms. The Colonel in his reply said his
mission was a glorious one, and everything would depend on the way
we conducted ourselves. What can he have meant? The march was then
resumed, but another halt was made in the High Street to remove the
French flag which Mucklow, the linen-draper, had very tactlessly stuck
up over his shop. He too was arrested, with wife and family, and was
lodged in jail. Luckily no further incident disturbed the harmony of
the proceedings.
_Tuesday_.--This morning Lieutenant von Schornstein, while walking in
Brewer's Alley, trod on a piece of banana-skin and fell heavily on
the pavement. As he rose he observed that two small boys were, so he
alleged, laughing at him. He immediately ran after the two urchins,
and was proceeding to put them to the sword when the Brewery men
interfered and disarmed him. He pleaded that his uniform had been
insulted and that it was necessary for him to punish them. "_Ich
muss sie durch den Leib rennen_" were his words. The men, however,
were not inclined to admit the force of this plea, especially as
they understood no German, and they sent him back to barracks in a
taxi-cab. The Mayor at once wired his apologies to the Colonel, and it
is hoped that nothing further will be heard of the incident. I ought
to add that the boys deny that they laughed, but the lieutenant is
certain that they wore a smiling expression.
The "Friendship Banquet" was held this evening in the Town Hall,
with the Mayor in the chair. No very great enthusiasm was shown, and
when the Mayor, in proposing the health of our visitors, alluded to
the friendly rivalry of the two nations in commerce and the arts of
peace, the Colonel pulled him back into his seat and begged him not
to proceed. "_Maul halten_," he said. The three Labour members of the
Council were afterwards arrested for not having joined with sufficient
heartiness in the singing of "_Deutschland über Alles_."
_Wednesday_.--A state of siege has been declared in Dartlebury, and
we are all living under martial law. Lord Gruffen was arrested for
having knocked up against a soldier. The magistrates, on leaving the
police-court, were handcuffed and removed to barracks. A crisis is
evidently approaching.
_Thursday_.--An insurrection started this morning. A huge crowd
attacked the barracks and overpowered all resistance. Blood flowed
like water, but in an hour all was over. There is a strong feeling
that the experiment of the Alliance Committee was a rash one, though
no doubt it was well meant. We live and learn.
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