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376 WITH THE GERMAN ARMIES IN THE WEST
" And what are you ?
"
" Metal worker at Siemens and Halske’s."
" And you ?
"
" Village schoolmaster."
" And you ?
"
" Navvy."
" And you ?
"
" Professor of zoology."
" There you see the levelling effects of war. No trace of
class distinction. They all lie side by side in the trenches,
eat the same food and are comrades through thick and thin,
and the professor is no better treated than the navvy."
" How many of you are keeping diaries of your war ex-
perience ? " I asked.
" I don’t write a line," said one, standing with his hands in
his pockets in front of the circle.
" Why not ?
"
" There are plenty of them who do as it is."
" Nonsense, you are a lazy beggar," says the pastor.
" All who keep diaries, put up their hands," said I, and a
perfect forest of hands rose into the air.
" Perhaps it will be simpler if those who don’t keep diaries
put up their hands."
They did so, and there were ten out of fully 150. What a
monument of memories and impressions, of wild adventures
and heroic deeds told in simple and honest words must they
not represent, these diaries, written from day to day between
the fights, in the trenches and by the light of the bivouac fires !
To conclude, I asked in a loud voice—although it was a
stupid thing to do and I ought to have known better
—
infan-
dum jubes renovare dolorem :
" How many of you are social
democrats ?
"
At this there was a shout of laughter, almost of derision,
and I suddenly felt exceedingly awkward and wished I were
back at Metz again. Even the pastor laughed and shook his
head. At last a burly-looking soldier answered for himself and
the others
:
" There are no social democrats any more. There are
nothing hut German soldiers."
I made a desperate attempt to cover my retreat by saying :
" Of course, of course, I know ; but are there any among you
who have been social democrats ?
"
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