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32 WITH THE GERMAN ARMIES IN THE WEST
entertained good hopes of his recovery, and by two sisters of
mercy, one of whom spoke French. But I hasten to add that
Lieutenant Verrier, on my asking whether he was satisfied
with the treatment he received in Germany, at once answered
" yes " with warmth and conviction, and I suppose that
wherever his fate will direct his steps he will always remember
with gratitude the time he spent over Wilham I.’s apartments
in Ems, where the doctor did all in his power to save his leg
and the sisters all they could to alleviate his suffering and dispel
in a measure his loneliness and homesickness. I am sure that
he will be the first to acknowledge that I am right.
I went up to his room and was at once admitted. He lay
in a large bed with clean white sheets. His face was little less
pale than these, but he looked very handsome with his hair
brushed from his forehead, his finely shaped nose and well-kept
moustache over a firm mouth, and his black French eyes
bespoke a joie de vivre and a bright intelligence. He told me
that he had come home from New Guinea in June and that he
was just about to be married when the w^ar came and took him
away from his bride and parents. He received his wound in
the scrap at Rossignol in Belgium. It was a terrible day,
spent in the midst of bursting shells and fire from rifles and
machine guns. His bullet had struck him obliquely through
the knee and calf. He fell and remained lying all night on the
field of battle. The following morning he was picked up and
taken to a German Field Hospital and subsequently by easy
stages to Ems. At the end of August Emperor William
visited the town and when he heard that there was a wounded
Frenchman there he went to see him. Lieutenant Verrier
told me that the Emperor had enquired in excellent French
about his adventures in the war and how he felt. I said that
I should in all probability soon be meeting the Emperor,
and would then tell his Majesty of the impression the gracious
visit had made on the invalid. When later I carried out my
self-imposed task, the Emperor remembered the French
lieutenant very well and was gratified to hear of the hopes
entertained for his recovery.
In conclusion I asked Lieutenant Verrier whether there was
anything I could do for him within the limits permitted by
the German regulations. He seemed almost to have longed
for this question, for he had the answer quite ready. Day and
night he had been tormented by one single thought : "How are
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