Explanatory notes: Every other big city in Germany had been bombed and burned ferociously. Dresden had not suffered so much as a,cracked windowpane, Sirens went off every: day, screamed like hell, and people went down into cellars and listened to’ radios there. 5 The planes were always bound. for someplace else—Leiprig, Chemnitz, Plauen, places like that. So it goes: Steam radiators still whistled cheerily in Dresden. Streetcars clanged. Telephones rang and were answered. Lights went on and off when switches were clicked. There were theaters and '# restaurants. There was.a 200. The principal enterprises of the city were medicine and.food-processing and the making of cigarettes, People were going home from work now in the late afternoon: They were tired. 15 Bight Dresdeners crossed the steel spaghetti of the railroad yard, They were wearing new uniforms. They had been sworn into the army the day before. They were boys and men past middle age, and two veterans who had’been shot to pieces in Russia, ‘Their assignment was to guard one hundred American prisoners we of war, who would work as contract labor. A grandfather and his grandson were in the squad. The grandfather was an architect. ‘The eight were grimas they approached the boxcars containing their wards. They knew what sick and foolish soldiers they themselves appeared to be. One of them actually had an artificial leg, and carried not only a loaded rifle but a cane. Still—they were expected to earn obedience and respect from tall, cocky, murderous American infantrymen who had just come from all the killing at the front. And then they saw bearded Billy Pilgrim in his blue toga and silver shoes, with his hands in a muff. He looked at least sixty yeats old. Next to Billy was'little Paul Lazzaro with 2 broken arm. He was fizzing with rabies. Next to Lazzaro was the poor old high school teacher, Edgar Derby, mournfully pregnant with patriotism and middle age and imaginary wisdom, And so on 35 The eight ridiculous Dresdeners ascertained that these hundred ridiculous creatures really were American fighting men fresh from the front. They smiled, and then they laughed. Theit terror evaporated. There was nothing to be afraid of. Here were a more crippled human beings, more fools like themselves. Here fa was light opera. 1) Leipzig, Chemnitz, Plauen (lines 5 and 6): German cities 2) Robies (line 32): deadly virus spread from the saliva of infected animals 3) Light opera (line 40):< form of humorous musical entertainment performed on stage