w; they were
conducted into a long room at the far end of which sat the General and
two interpreters. Along each side of the room was a line of Prussian
Guards. The officer who had charge of the boys could speak English
fairly well, and instead of taking them to where the General was, he
sat down with them at a small table just inside the door. He appeared
very friendly, and offered them cigars, cigarettes, and wine. The boys
were cute enough to know why they were offered wine, and they "declined
with thanks" but they took the smokes. The officer asked them
questions about Canada and appeared very much interested in our
country, he talked for half an hour and never mentioned war; then he
asked them to go up to where the General was sitting. On the table in
front of the General was a map of the front line trenches, and through
the interpreter the General proceeded to pump the boys for information.
This is a sample of the questions he asked them:

Interpreter: "Show me, on the map, the position your machine gun was
holding on the Ypres salient."

Boy: "I am sorry, Sir, but I can't read a map."

He asked him several more questions of a similar nature and received
unsatisfactory replies. Then he said, "Now, give me an idea of how
many guns were holding the Ypres salient." The lad thought for a
minute and then said, "Sir, as near as I could guess, it was about a
million and a half." The General let a roar out of him like a mad
lion, and two of the Prussian Guards grabbed the boys and, dragging
them to the end of the room, threw them out of the door and down the
short flight of steps at the entrance. I saw them pass the door of the
room where I was sitting, and said, "Hully gee! what the Sam Hill are
they doing with those chaps?" Sandy said, "Evidently they are not
wanted in there." But the boys didn't seem to be at all displeased
over the treatment they received, for they landed laughing, and as we
went in I heard one say, "We slipped one over them that time, eh?"

A young Scotchman and myself were the next ones called, and we
represented the sappers. The same officer brought us in and treated us
as he did the first two; we helped ourselves to the cigars and
cigarettes, but did not think it wise to touch the wine (Scotty said
afterwards that it was the only time in his life he ever refused a
drink). After having a smoke, we were taken up before the General.
Scotty was a comical chap, very ready-witted, and