Stranded - The English in Exhile.

At the outbreak of war in August 1914 many British tourists were ‘stranded’ in foreign counties.

This article from the Times on 24th August 1914, Mr. Lunn of Lunn’s Tours gives the readers an up to date account of the current state of affairs.


ENGLISH IN EXILE

Tourists Stranded In Switzerland

“Mr. Edward Lunn, of George Lunn’s Tours (Limited), who has recently from Switzerland, has given an interesting account of the measures that are being taken to relieve and repatriate British tourists and others stranded in that country.

He left London on August 6 and on reaching Berne on the 12th he found that some 8,000 to 10,000 British subjects were held up in Switzerland, while in Lucerne it was estimated that the American visitors numbered from 20,000 to 25,000. Mr. Grant-Duff, the British Minister, had advised the people not to attempt to leave unless they were prepared to take every risk. Owing to the difficulty in obtaining money from the banks genuine distress existed among the travellers, although the hotels, which were themselves short of financial supplies, did their best to meet the situation by remaining open as long as possible and even making small advances on I.O.U.’s.

Neither, Messrs. Thomas Cook, nor Lunn’s, nor the Polytechnic were able to communicate authoritatively with the Minister as to their tourists and no reliable news could be obtained from any of the officials. Mr. Grant-Duff appointed Mr. G.P. Skipworth, the manager pf the Paris Westinghouse Company in Berne, to organize repatriation committees in Lucerne, Lugarno, Montreux, Lausanne and Grindelwald and as soon as the mobilization was completed on the 17th, endeavoured to arrange with the Government to run so-called “diplomatic” trains into France, which would have a sort of official cachet. When Mr. Lunn left Neufchatel on Sunday last about 100 persons were returning daily from Pontarliers and Geneva respectively in trains conveying parties of 50 and it is probable that that number is now doubled and that unless there is any fresh disorganisation of the French railway system the exodus will increase proportionately day by day. The Consuls are supplied with funds forwarded by the British Foreign Office.”