The camp was visited in 1916 by the American Consul from Alexandria, and also by the American charge d’affaires from Athens.

Accommodation.—­The civilians interned in the camp of Ras-el-Tin are placed in tents.  These circular tents, set up either on the sand or on a cement base, each contain three men.  Those of the Ottoman prisoners form one sectional group of 24 tents.  In the centre of each tent is a wire-work cupboard to contain personal belongings.  The space inside the tent is ample for the three beds.  Some prisoners are provided with matting and small rugs.

In the stone buildings surrounding the court a certain number of rooms are reserved which open upon a veranda.  Each contains three beds.  These comfortably fitted-up chambers are assigned to elderly prisoners or to those in weak health.  The rest of the camp buildings are occupied by the administrative quarters, the kitchens, refectories, canteens, etc.  The English guard is lodged under canvas in a special section.  The camp is lighted by electricity.

Bedding.—­The bedsteads are iron provided with a wire-spring mattress, a squab of vegetable fibre and a sufficient number of blankets.  All the bedding is kept scrupulously clean.

Food.—­The commissariat is supplied by a private contractor.  A committee presided over by the camp commandant, and composed of delegates from among the prisoners, arrange the menus for each week.  The kitchen is very clean, and the prisoners do not provide the personnel.

Here is the menu for Friday, January 5, 1917,
the day of our visit: 
  Breakfast:  Porridge; milk; chocolate; butter; bread.
  Lunch:  Haricot soup; ragout of beef and potatoes.
  Dinner:  Rice soup; hashed meat (moussaka), with vegetables;
  eggs; tea.

The prisoners’ menu is extended on Thursdays and Sundays by an extra dish and cake of some sort.  We examined the day’s provision in the kitchen, and found it wholesome and appetising.  When pork is included in the menu, which happens rarely, this item is replaced, in the case of the Turkish prisoners, by a dish of eggs and vegetables.

A second kitchen staff, installed in a separate room, prepares a special menu which the prisoners can have by paying for it.  The commandant himself authorised the reservation of this kitchen to provide for such prisoners as possess ample means.

Here is the extra menu for January 5, 1917: 
  Lunch:  Italian dumplings; roast veal; salad and gherkins.
  Dinner:  Soup “parmentier”; fish croquettes; braised beef with cabbage.

The meals are served at: 
  Breakfast, half-past seven. 
  Lunch, one o’clock. 
  Dinner, half-past five.