Robbed Heroes Of Their Motherland

Tor Kiefer's letter of November 6, 1916 from Galicia at the Eastern Front tells his family of a walk he takes in the fields while waiting for his dugout to be built. "There's always something beautiful to see here in Galicia", Tor writes. But then he happens on the bodies of several dead Russians, who have been left for so long that they have started to decay. As a doctor, Tor recognizes the need for the men to be cleared away and arranges for their burial. However, he also wishes to show the respect deserved by these men whom he calls "robbed and poorly shrouded heroes of their motherland".

I have turned Tor's German letter into a short poem in English below.


Robbed Heroes Of Their Motherland

Tor in the rubble at the Front, 1918

Yesterday, to our left,
A great battle was fought.
Through gaps and breaks I observed
The faint artillery fire.
The Turks had stormed, they said.
While we basked in profound peace.

Yesterday, in the fields,
I chanced on several dozen dead Russians.
Close to decay, with white teeth
Standing out so conspicuously
Against the black color
Of their Asian faces.

Yesterday, the sky still
Illuminated their rotting features,
Robbed and poorly shrouded
Heroes of their motherland;
For reasons of hygiene alone
I arranged for their appropriate burial.

Tor's letter, November 6, 1916

"Dabei war gestern links von uns das grösste Gefecht. In der Schere sah ich schwaches Artilleriefeuer. Die Türken sollen da gestürmt haben. Bei uns war tiefste Friede. Ich pendle den ganzen Tag mit meinem Spazierprügel in der Gegend herum. Teils weil mein Unterstand noch nicht fertig ist (ich habe Handwerker im Haus) teils weil es in diesem landschaftlich schönen Galizien immer was zu sehen gibt. Gestern fand ich einige zehn tote Russen im Gelände. Schon beinahe verwest mit weissen Zähnen, durch die schwarze Farbe des Gesichts besonders auffallend. Die asiatischen Gesichte gegen den Himmel, ausgeraubt und schlecht bedeckte Helden ihres Vaterlands; ich habe schon aus hygienischen Gründen veranlasst, dass sie begraben werden".