Text + Transcription © F.Coakley , 2021
This report is extracted from a longer report on visits to many places of Internment in the British Isles made by Mr Jackson during January and February 1915.
At Lancaster, which I visited on February 12, there were about 1800 men and 200 boys, many of whom had been taken from fishing boats at the beginning of the war, or who had belonged to bands of music. I understand that the boys under seventeen are to be concentrated at this camp, with a view to their repatriation. Here there were considerable number of Poles and Hungarians — more than I had seen in any other camp, and there were also several men over 55.
The buildings used were an old wagon works which had been empty for about seven years. The floors are bad, but some of them are being made of concrete — as money becomes available.
The Commandant seemed energetic, interested in his work and anxious to improve conditions as much as possible. He has had a boxing ring arranged for the prisoners and has had gymnastic apparatus ordered. He has also arranged for school work for the boys and for other voluntary instruction — in electricity, the English language, and other branches.
The camp 'major' is a merchant captain who has the confidence of the Commandant and has been permitted to have a comfortable room by himself. (This captain spoke bitterly of the manner of his arrest and of the fact that he had been put in irons before being turned over to the military authorites.)
In the general part of the camp the beds are raised and some of them are tented, as protection from the leaky roof. The better class prisoners occupy a separate building, where they have been able to arrange things with considerable comfort.
The heating was satisfactory but the lighting was poor. The washing facilities were satisfactory, but there were only few baths. There were no water closets, the pail system being used, but here there were two sets of pails which were regularly disinfected — something of which I had seen no evidence in other camps At night, however, the out door latrines are not accessible and the pails are put in the sleeping quarters of the prisoners.
There were a number of small kitchens,one for each mess, which seemed to give general satisfaction as the men were able to have the food prepared in accordance with their individual tastes. Cantine facilities were adequate and there were few complaints made to me during my talk with the prisoners, except in regard to matters of historical interest having nothing to do with the actual conditions of their internment. The hospital well arranged. It was quite full, there being a number of African patients (one case of "black water" fever and several of malaria). There had however, not been more than two deaths in the camp since it was opened. Men with venereal diseases or the itch, were kept in a separate enclosure.
TNA FO 383/106 - contains reports on many camps based on visits in the early part of 1915
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Editor Text + Transcription © F.Coakley , 2021 |
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