In the morning we had a nice surprise.  We arrived at Muenster, and found breakfast awaiting us.  The Red Cross ladies of that town kindly provide meals for all prisoners and wounded soldiers passing through.  They seemed very surprised when all we English people turned up, but they were very kind in waiting on us, and after breakfast we got what was better than anything in the shape of a good wash.  We had a long wait at Muenster so there was no hurry, and we all got our turn under the stand-pipe and tap that stood in the station.  Then on and on and on, and it seemed that we had always been in the train, till at last, late one evening, we arrived at Hamburg.

We were ordered out of the train here for a meal, and this was by far the most unpleasant time we had.  Evidently the news of our arrival had preceded us, and a whole crowd of Hamburgers were at the station waiting to see us emerge from the train.

They were not allowed on to the platform, but lined the outside of the railing all the way down, laughing at us, spitting, hissing, jeering, and making insulting remarks.  And though we were English we had to take it lying down.  At the first indiscreet word from any of us they would have certainly taken off the men of our party to prison, though they would have probably done nothing more to us women than to delay our journey.  There were about fifteen doctors and dressers with us, and we were naturally much more afraid for their safety than for our own.  I think I shall never forget walking down that platform at Hamburg.  We were hurried into a waiting-room, the door of which was guarded by two soldiers, and a meal of bread and cold meat ordered for us.  The German waiters evidently much resented being asked to serve us, for they nearly threw the food at us.

Then something happened that made up for everything.  A young German officer came up and asked in very good English if there was anything he could do for us in any way.

“I beg your pardon for speaking to you,” he said, “but I received so much kindness from every one when I was in England, that it would be the greatest pleasure I could have if I could help you at all.”  And he started by giving the waiter the biggest blowing-up he had ever had in his life, for which I could have hugged him.  He then went off and came back in a few minutes with fruit and chocolate and everything he could find for us to take with us.  He was a very bright and shining star in a dark place.  Then along the platform past that horrible, jeering crowd and into the train once more.

It was night, and most of us were asleep when the train stopped with a jerk, the doors of the train were thrown open, and the fresh, salty smell of the sea met our nostrils.  Some of the party, hardly awake, thought they had to get out, and began to descend, but such volumes of wrath met their attempt that they hastily got in again.  Every window in the train was shut, every blind pulled down and curtains closed, and a soldier with loaded rifle stood at each window.  We were crossing the Kiel Canal.  There were a great many people in England who would have given anything to have been in our shoes just then.  But we saw absolutely nothing.