Page 4: A Prisoner of War Remembers
At Tobruk, prior to capture |
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We spent approximately five months in the semi-darkness of the byre and loft. With such close confinement, and under the prevailing conditions, we were bound to get on one another's nerves. I am pretty sure that, had there been a choice in the matter of companions, none of us would have chosen the other two. We talked a lot at first, but, with the fresh recounting of some episode in his past life, perhaps already twice told with minor differences, the narrator would be accused of lying and there would be silence. I am pleased to say that we never came anywhere near to blows. In most cases the escapees appear to have travelled in parties of three which, sub-consciously, must have appeared to be a safe number when narrowly confined. I do know that two chaps, who had escaped together and whose experiences were akin to ours, got to detest one another so wholeheartedly that they voluntarily gave themselves up to the Germans. In some of the frequent silent periods I composed anagrams (in my head, as writing material was practically unavailable.) It was then that I discovered that there were anagrams of the word smite beginning with each of its letters: mites, items, times and emits. But that the word pears is more prolific, yielding: pares, parse, reaps, rapes, spear, spare, apers, (and répas and après if French is allowed.) The whole district was in a ferment when SS troops (Hitler's Nazis) were billeted below, as no mercy was shown by them. We saw several of these black-uniformed "warriors" strut by but beat a hasty retreat to our hide-out as soon as espied. A general sigh of relief was heaved on their departure, or return, to the Cassino front, some thirty miles away, where it was hoped that they would meet with the fate they so richly deserved. Here, I would like to say that, during our stay with Domenico, we never heard of a single case of brutal behaviour , or retaliation, perpetrated by the Wehrmacht (the standard German army) apart from the ordained action against those Italians found harbouring prisoners. Possibly there were such cases. But, indeed, Domenico informed us that a party of young German soldiers had drunk too much of the hospitable wine, then available, at a neighbour's place we could see through our spy-holes in the door, and that one of them had taken the peasant's daughter outside and raped her. Hearing her screams from the bushes, her father rushed out and attacked the raper with a knife and killed him. No doubt sobered by the death of their comrade, his mates arrested the peasant and took him to their HQ below, together with the corpse. After an enquiry, and when the full facts were elicited, the peasant was freed and allowed to return home. The word "peasant" to some people may suggest a clod-hopper, serf, or a somewhat stupid person, but, in this narrative, I negate such interpretations and use it in the Concise Oxford Dictionary's meaning of "a countryman, rustic, worker on the land". This description applied to many of the charitable people who befriended us before we reached Domenico's. Apart from those animals already mentioned, Domenico had, on our arrival, some twelve or fifteen rabbits, two cows, a pig, a dog and a cat. When things below began to get tougher for the German troops, their commisariat commenced to comandeer livestock from the peasants, paying for their "purchases" with German-printed Italian lire. (I was told that these were actually printed on a portable press.) Such lire were not recognised by the Allied Military Authorities later on, or indeed valued by the recipients, as, in any case, there was nothing available to purchase with them. Domenico decided it was time to kill the pig, as he so humorously put it, in order to "save its life." He duly did so, hanging it for safety in our nearby abandoned grotto. Later, when he went to cut it up, he found that some animal had vicariously attacked it and placed either the dog or the cat as the delinquent. However, he had discovered the culprit. I asked him how he had found out. By the simple expedient of cutting off two further pieces and tossing one to each of the suspects. The cat looked at his piece and stalked off, while the dog wolfed down the unexpected titbit. I doubt if many people, under similar circumstances, would have conceived such a simple mode of detection. Another example of this amazing man's intelligence. Considering the state of affairs Domenico fed us wonderfully well, giving us the best of whatever he had to offer. However, it was only on the Sabbath, and a few rare occasions, that there was any meat. For several weeks the meat was obviously rabbit but one Sunday there appeared to be several differences in the meat, in spite of which, it was devoured with gusto. In retrospect I am positive that we had helped devour the miscreant cat, referred to above, for we never saw it again. While on the subject of food I must mention that, at our first two meals in the barn kitchen, we were waited upon "hand and foot" by Angelina and Elvira who ate only when we males had finished and what we left on the table. On the second occasion we explained that "in our country" men and women ate together. Next evening the seven of us (don't forget Vincenzo, that cheerful youth and "chip off the old block") sat down to eat at the same time, to the shy embarrassment (but I think, delight) of Angelina and Elvira, and, I am certain, with the full approbation of Domenico. This may possibly have been an early step, in those parts, towards "woman's lib." Domenico wisely decided to surrender voluntarily his two cows to the German commisariat for 20,000 lire apiece. As he said, they would have been commandeered in any case at the same price. I do not recall that these two cream-coloured beasts ever yielded any milk but I do remember Domenico telling us that they drew his (single-furrow) plough, so their loss must have been a great blow to him. |
