Chapter XV: A Last Word (1)

I

SYNOPSIS OF THE WAR

Last night, when the half moon was golden and the white stars
very high, I saw the souls of the killed passing. They came
riding through the dark, some on gray horses, some on black;
they came marching, white-faced; hundreds, thousands, tens of
thousands.

The night smelled sweet, the breeze rustled, the stream
murmured; and past me on the air the souls of the killed came
marching. They seemed of one great company, no longer enemies.

_John Galsworthy._

We were in America when the war broke out. It was as unexpected to me as an earthquake, notwithstanding the warning I had when we were in Brussels. Not knowing the situation then--that war was bound to come--I remember my interest in the excitement of several diplomats who dined with us one evening. They knew that trouble was brewing among the European nations. They could see the spark from the fuse of the bomb that was to throw all Europe into war. The bomb at last exploded, but not until June 28, 1914. The Servians in revenge for Austrian oppression killed the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian throne, when he and his wife were in Sarajevo, Servia, on an official visit.

Two of the principal events leading up to this situation were the assassination of King Alexander of Servia, son of King Milan and Queen Draga, in June, 1903, and the occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Austria in 1908.

Under King Peter, Alexander's successor, Russian dominance over Servian affairs grew stronger.

When the heir to the Austrian throne was murdered the German Emperor sent a telegram to the Czar which read:--

"The unscrupulous agitation which has gone on for years in
Servia has led to the revolting crime of which Archduke Francis
Ferdinand was the victim. Undoubtedly you will agree with me
that we two, you and I, as well as all sovereigns, have a
common interest in insisting that all those morally responsible
for this terrible murder shall suffer deserved punishment."

The Servian and Austrian governments could not come to an understanding, and Austria declared war on Servia.

In answer to the Kaiser's telegram the Czar replied:--

"A disgraceful war has been declared on a weak nation. The
indignation at this, which I fully share, is immense in Russia.
I foresee that soon I cannot withstand the pressure that is
being brought to bear upon me, and that I shall be forced to
adopt measures which will lead to war."

So it developed that Russia backed up Servia, and Germany backed up Austria.[10]

[10] The best authorities, of course, on the causes of
the war are:
The English White Paper
The German White Book
The Belgian Gray Book
The Russian Yellow Book
The Austrian Red Book
The French Yellow Book

Germany needed to expand her territory and commerce and was thoroughly prepared for war. At that time Germany, Austria and Italy were in a Triple Alliance; Russia, France and England a Triple Entente; Italy refused to aid Germany and Austria, however, because she was not bound by her treaty to do so in an offensive war. She was humorously classed with Greece and Roumania in "the triple attendre," but on May 22, 1915, she joined the Allies, declaring war on Austria.

One of Germany's excuses in entering upon the war was to keep the "barbarian Russians" out of Europe, but curiously, at this time King Albert received an ultimatum from the Kaiser demanding that the German army should be given the right of way through Belgium. The King replied that the Kaiser must respect the independence and neutrality of Belgium, and refused to let the Germans pass through the country. A second ultimatum was delivered, which demanded that a reply be given within seven hours. If within this time no answer was returned, or an answer unfavourable to Germany, war would be declared.

On August 2d the Germans entered the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. On the 3d they entered Belgium.

The statement made by the Imperial Chancellor von Bethman-Hollweg in the Reichstag on August 4th acknowledges the violation of Belgium:[11]

[11] From the German White Book.

"We were compelled to over-ride the just protests of the Luxembourg and Belgian governments. Our troops have occupied Luxembourg and perhaps are already on Belgian soil. Gentlemen, that is a breach of international law. It is true that the French Government has declared at Brussels that France is willing to respect the neutrality of Belgium so long as her opponent respects it. France could wait, but we could not. The wrong--I speak frankly--that we are committing we will endeavour to make good as soon as our military goal has been reached."

The Germans motored into Belgium by three different roads. Fifteen hundred picked soldiers came in advance in one hundred and fifty automobiles. The army followed at such speed that their commissariat could not keep up with them, and they did not even wait for their heavy siege guns. They expected to live on the country, and so some straggling parties of German soldiers were captured by peasants with an offer of food.

The charming little border town of Visé was the first to be destroyed by the Germans. "This district contains a large population of gun-makers familiar with the use of firearms and unfamiliar with the ways of warfare, and it seems proven that several citizens of Visé did take part in the hostilities and that they fired at the enemy. The Germans retaliated with ruthless severity."[12]

[12] From "How Belgium Saved Europe," by Dr. Charles
Sarolea--as is much of the following.

Among the weaknesses in the defense of Liège were the lack of sufficient soldiers to man the forts, and the long distances between the different fortresses, as well as the lack of support by rifle entrenchments. The fortresses did not prove impregnable because they were built to withstand a horizontal fire, while the German howitzers dropped shells from above. The three German army corps under General von Emmich made attack after attack. On the third day they lost twenty-five thousand men, some of the crack regiments from Berlin suffering heavily. The forts held out long after the town was occupied by the Germans for the reason that they were built to defend the river approaches rather than the town, and until August 5th the Germans were unable to cross the Meuse.

It was difficult for the Germans to get the proper range for their big guns, and the story is told that a German soldier with a white flag of truce walked towards a fort in order to get the correct distance. His white flag was respected until he arrived at a spot where he signaled back to his comrades. It is needless to say that he was then killed. From the moment when the Germans were able to get the proper range with their heavy siege artillery, the fate of Liège was sealed. Toward the end of August, all the forts were occupied by the Germans.

"The resistance of Liège is not only one of the most magnificent achievements in military annals;--it is also one of the decisive events in the world's history."

It has already been the inspiration of much poetry and prose. The following extract is taken from the poem called,

"HOW LIÈGE HELD THE ROAD"[13]

We were pounding at the anvils when they pounded at our gate;
"Open," cried the German squadrons; "let us pass, or meet your fate!
We are millions; dare deny us and Liège is but a name."
But we chose to die in honour than to buy our lives in shame.
So we banked our eager fires, and we laid aside the sledge,
Recking only that our sires had endowed us with the pledge
To maintain an ally's honour, to uphold the Belgian code,
And we answered with our cannon, THAT LIÈGE WOULD HOLD THE ROAD!

[13] From the volume of poems entitled "The Song of
the Guns," by Herbert Kaufman.

Here are a few of Verhaeren's remarks on the fall of Liège:

"It is true that for the moment our factories are silenced and seemingly dead, but as soon as the war is over they will awake again like sleeping monsters. We were a little too sure of the tomorrow. War in our eyes was other people's business. It has come to us, formidable and terrible, at a moment when we did not look for it; like a mountain whose crumbling rocks are falling upon us to crush us William's army has come upon us. Our numbers were small and we stood alone. We were attacked with disloyalty and betrayal. We hastily raised our forces at Liège in old forts. All that was done in a day, in an hour, in a moment, and at once we became the marvel of the world. The fate of the Spartans was like that of the Liègeois. Today, as then, a handful of men saved the world. We should have only room in our hearts for pride. Tears dishonour us."

Namur, another great stronghold of Belgium, was bombarded on August 21st, and thirty-six hours later the Germans entered the town. When the forts were destroyed only twelve thousand out of the twenty-six thousand Belgian soldiers were left. Ammunition was so scarce in this region that the Civic Guard had to give up their weapons to the remaining Belgian troops. The French and the British as well suffered a terrible defeat at Charleroi August 22d, and were obliged to retire. Fighting all the way, they made their masterly retreat through Mons into France by way of St. Quentin.

Between the fifth and twentieth of August the poor wounded and dying soldiers were brought into Brussels. When the crowd in the streets shrieked and howled "Vive la Belgique!" the wounded tried to wave their arms (those who had them), and show some sign of appreciation. Houses were opened and prepared by the Red Cross Society to receive them. The refugees as well, from Charleroi and Liège, and from the districts where the fighting was going on, rushed to Brussels for protection, but the Germans were close behind and entered the city on August 20th without firing a shot.

At the beginning of the war hardly any food was to be had in Brussels and other Belgian towns, and what could be bought went up to very high prices. Flour cost fifty cents a pound, and bread one franc for two pounds. Salt was not obtainable.

Adolphe Max, the Burgomaster of Brussels, was forced to take charge of all supplies. The city fed the Germans for eight days without pay. After this period the Mayor refused to furnish food longer without compensation. Then field kitchens were established in several prominent squares--in the Grande Place, before the Palais de Justice, and in front of the King's palace--where the beautiful trees of the park were cut down for firewood. The museums and hotels were turned into sleeping places for officers and men. The Palais de Justice was made not only a kitchen but also a bath house. The railway stations, too, were used for this purpose.

No carriages or bicycles were allowed to leave Brussels. The people lived in constant terror from German aëroplanes that were flying overhead. After the Germans occupied the city no one dared to speak English.

The Germans thought that Belgian weapons were hidden in the ponds, and so they drained them, and carted away the fish to be eaten by themselves. Fish and bread could not be bought by the people, even if they offered to pay for them.

Every day fresh troops and aëroplanes and ammunition passed through or over Brussels. Cartloads and trainloads of dead Germans were brought night and day to the Gare du Luxembourg to be shipped on to the Fatherland. The moaning of the wounded and the dying was pitiful.

Non-combatants of all nations fighting the Germans were taken prisoners and sent to Germany. All women between the ages of fifteen and forty were kept under German guard; those over forty were told to report every few days to the German authorities.

Villages like Hofstade and Sempst were taken and retaken again and again. Dinant and Termonde fell within a week after the occupation of Brussels. The bombardment of Malines lasted three weeks. Termonde changed hands twice, Malines three times.

The siege of Antwerp began the 26th and lasted several days. The Zeppelin raid before the bombardment was most terrible, but the Germans did not accomplish their purpose of striking the palace and killing the royal family. After this, the Queen went to England for a time with her children, returning later, but the King remained in Antwerp and led the defense.

The small Belgian force had at least kept the Germans out of Antwerp until the valuable oil tanks had been destroyed, as well as the ships in the harbour and the precious stores of rubber from the Congo. The English marines appeared toward the last, and gave some assistance, but the city was finally captured by the Germans, before whom, on September 5th, the Belgian army retired to La Panne. Ostend was occupied by the Germans the 16th of October. Severe fighting took place at Nieuport the 23d, and Westende and Middelkerke were destroyed. Dixmude fell November 11th. Between the 12th and the 15th, 100,000 Germans were killed, and the Yser Canal flowed with human blood.

November 18th, Flanders, as in days of old, was flooded from the sea-coast almost to Ypres, drowning out the enemy. In December, activities were renewed along the Yser, but the trenches about Ypres, "the key to the coast campaign," were only captured February 15th. Ypres at last fell in May, after repeated attacks.

The exodus of a bleeding race was one of the saddest sights in history. The Belgians literally swarmed into Holland, where they are cared for in camps even today. The reason of this exodus to England and Holland is found in the treatment of the Belgians by the invaders. I will not go into the subject of atrocities, but simply give an extract from the report of the Commission of Inquiry on the Violation of the Rules of International Law, and the Laws and Customs of War.

"From the total mass of evidence received by us we are able to deduct and prove absolutely true the following conclusions....

"I. The first was the barbarous device of compelling bodies of citizens, old and young, male and female, to march in front of German troops in order to shield them from the fire of the Allies.

"II. The second was the imprisonment, either under the title of 'Hostages,' or on other pretexts, of individuals, families, or groups of people, who were arrested at hazard and for no good reason, shut up without air, without sanitary precautions, and without food, in churches, barns and stables, and carried off to Germany, where they were kept under conditions which made hygiene and decency impossible.

"III. The third series of acts consists of wholesale murders of civilians and of the sack and burning of dwelling houses; concerning these incidents the light of evidence grows daily stronger."

These men were in command when the atrocities were perpetrated: The Governor-General of Belgium was Field Marshal Baron von der Goltz; von Buelow was in command of Namur and Liège; von Boehn was in command at Termonde. Others in this list were von Emmich, von Nieker, von Luetwitz, and Major Dieckmann.

But the Belgians are a brave people and they are used to misfortune, so we may believe that though seemingly conquered, they will finally be triumphant. Long live the Belgians! Long live their King!

II

LETTERS FROM THE FRONT

I insert a few extracts from letters written by reliable people about Belgium, or by Belgians during the war, in order to show the true state of affairs. Most of them were written in French and have been translated. With the exception of the Cardinal's letter,[14] none of them have been published.

[14] Note:--I have heard the spreading of the
Cardinal's letter by Mme. Carton de Wiart was one of the
reasons of her arrest, trial and imprisonment.

Extract from a letter from Brussels in August, 1914.

"We are living in suspense now, as the Germans are getting very strict and angry. Boys and young men leave daily to join the army, and the different ways of crossing the frontier are very amusing. The Germans have forbidden the letter by the Cardinal of Malines to be read in the churches, but needless to say, we all have it."

* * * * *

Extract from the Pastoral Letter of His Eminence, Cardinal Mercier, Archbishop of Malines, Belgium:

"My very dear brethren:

"It was in Rome itself that I received the tidings--stroke
after stroke--of the partial destruction of the Cathedral
Church of Louvain, next of the burning of the library and of
the scientific installations of our great university, and of
the devastation of the city, and next of the wholesale shooting
of the citizens and of tortures inflicted upon women and
children and upon unarmed and undefended men.

"And, while I was still under the shock of these calamities,
the telegraph brought us news of the bombardment of our
beautiful metropolitan church, of the church of Notre Dame au
delà Dyle, of the episcopal palace, and of a great part of our
dear city of Malines....

"I craved courage and light, and sought them in such thoughts
as these; a disaster has visited the world, and our beloved
little Belgium, a nation so faithful in the great mass of
her population to God, so upright in her patriotism, so noble
in her King and Government, is the first sufferer. She bleeds;
her sons are stricken down within her fortresses and upon her
fields, in defense of her rights and her territory.

"Soon there will not be one Belgian family not in mourning. Why
all this sorrow, my God? Lord, Lord, hast Thou forsaken us?...

"When, immediately upon my return from Rome, I went to Havre to
greet our Belgian, French and English wounded; when, later, at
Malines, at Louvain, at Antwerp, it was given to me to take the
hand of those brave fellows who carried a bullet in their
flesh, a wound on their forehead, because they had marched to
the attack of the enemy or borne the shock of this onslaught,
it was a word of gratitude that rose to my lips. 'O valiant
friends,' I said, 'it was for us, it was for each one of us, it
was for me, that you risked your lives and are now in pain. I
am moved to tell you of my respect, of my thankfulness, to
assure you that the whole nation knows how much she is in debt
to you.'

"For, in truth, our soldiers are all saviours. A first time, at
Liège, they saved France; a second time, in Flanders, they
arrested the advance of the enemy upon Calais. France and
England know it, and Belgium stands before the entire world a
nation of heroes.

"Never before in my life did I feel so proud to be a Belgian as
when, on the platform of French stations, and halting awhile in
Paris, and visiting London, I witnessed the enthusiastic
admiration our Allies feel for the heroism of our army....

"I have traversed the greater part of the districts most
terribly devastated in my diocese, and the ruins I beheld and
the ashes, were more dreadful than I, prepared by the saddest
of forebodings, could have imagined.

"Other parts of my diocese, which I have not had time to visit,
have in a like manner, been laid waste. Churches, schools,
asylums, hospitals, convents in great numbers are in ruins.
Entire villages have all but disappeared. At Werchter
Wackerzeel, for instance, out of three hundred and eighty homes
one hundred and thirty remain. At Tremeloo, two-thirds of the
village is overthrown. At Beuken, out of one hundred houses
twenty are standing. At Schaffen, one hundred and eighty-nine
houses out of two hundred are destroyed; eleven still stand. At
Louvain, a third of the buildings are down, one thousand and
seventy-four dwellings have disappeared. On the town land and
in the suburbs, one thousand six hundred and twenty-three
houses have been burned.

"In this dear city of Louvain, perpetually in my thoughts, the
magnificent church of St. Peter will never recover its former
splendour. The ancient college of St. Ives, the art schools,
the consular and commercial schools of the University, the old
markets, our rich library with its collections, its unique and
unpublished manuscripts, its archives, its gallery of great
portraits of illustrious rectors, chancellors, professors,
dating from the time of its foundation, which preserved for its
masters and students alike a noble tradition, and was an
incitement to their studies--all this accumulation of
intellectual, of historic and artistic riches, the fruit of the
labour of five centuries--all is in the dust....

"Thousands of Belgian citizens have been deported to the
prisons of Germany, to Munsterlagen, to Celle, to Magdeburg. At
Munsterlagen alone, three thousand one hundred civil prisoners
were numbered. History will tell of the physical and mental
torments of their long martyrdom.

"Hundreds of innocent men were shot. I possess no complete
necrology; but I know there were ninety-one shot at Aerschot
and that there, under pain of death, their fellow citizens
were compelled to dig their graves. In the Louvain group of
communes one hundred and seventy-six persons, men and women,
old men and sucklings, rich and poor, in health and sickness,
were shot or burned....

"We can neither number our dead nor compute the measure of our
ruins. And what would it be if we turned our sad steps toward
Liège, Namur, Audennes, Dinant, Tamines, Charleroi, and
elsewhere? Families hitherto living at ease, now in bitter
want; all commerce at an end, all careers ruined, industry at a
standstill; thousands upon thousands of working men without
employment; working men, shop girls, humble servants, without
means of earning their bread, and poor souls forlorn on the bed
of sickness and fever, crying, 'O Lord, how long, how long?'

"Thirteen ecclesiastics have been shot in the diocese of
Malines. There were, to my own actual personal knowledge, more
than thirty in the diocese of Namur, Tournai, and Liège....

"On the 19th of April, 1839, a treaty was signed in London by
King Leopold, in the name of Belgium, on the one part, and by
the Emperor of Austria, the King of France, the Queen of
England, the King of Prussia, and the Emperor of Russia on the
other; and its seventh article decreed that Belgium should
form a separate and perpetually neutral state, and should be
held to the observance of this neutrality in regard to all
other states. The co-signers promised, for themselves and their
successors, upon their oath, to fulfil and observe that treaty
in every point and every article without contravention or
tolerance of contravention. Belgium was thus bound in honour to
defend her own independence. She kept her oath. The other
Powers were bound to respect and to protect her neutrality.
Germany violated her oath, England kept hers....

"Accept, my dearest brethren, my wishes and prayers for you and
for the happiness of your families, and receive, I pray you, my
paternal benediction.

"_D. J. Cardinal Mercier_,

"_Archbishop of Malines_."

Here is a letter from a soldier at the front to his parents:

"TIRELEMONT, 8 August, 1914.

"My dear Parents:

"Here I am at Tirlemont, where we are occupied in reforming our
scattered regiment! Many are killed and injured, some are
taken, others lost. It is a terrible mix-up, and it will take
a long time to get it straightened out, and I am profiting by
this moment to write you and let you know what has happened in
the last few days.

"We had been fighting all day Wednesday, and when evening came
on we were told to dislodge a troop that occupied the space
between the two forts. They gave us the message very simply:
'It is death, but it must be done.' Nothing more. We were under
fire all night. We kill without seeing any one. The bullets
whistle, a shrapnel explodes five meters from us, we have
several killed, and we stay under this rain of bullets and it
is awful.

"I could not tell you my impressions. I recited about one
hundred vows; I wondered what it felt like to be in heaven,
because I was certain that every moment would be my last.

"The Germans advanced more and more, and we retreated,
surrounded on all sides, and at four in the morning out of one
hundred and sixty in our company only seventeen remained; all
are not dead; there are injured and prisoners. We shall return
under fire if this keeps up. I will take my part in it; I am
ready and prepared, and know that if I die I shall do so with
confidence. Do not think that it is with despair that I shall
die; it is with the utmost resignation. Do not cry or be sad.
I resign myself to my fate, and I ask you to take things in
this way also. Adieu, with all my heart. It is perhaps only for
a short while, and I shall wait for you above. Much love to the
family. I am in good health but very tired. Thousands of
affectionate kisses. I have had my photograph taken and they
will send you the proof. For my part, I take care to keep your
photographs on me, and every day, after looking at them, it
gives me fresh courage. Adieu."

I give next a letter from the Mother Superior of a convent at Liège, written the night after Liège had been attacked:

"In the morning the sound of cannon again shook the chapel.

"The sisters were told to go and get their bundles, and in five
minutes to be at the gate, where they would each receive five
francs and their papers, and then they were told to run to the
station. They did, through the rain, and to the accompaniment
of the whistle and whine of German bullets. The Germans were on
the heights, and were approaching every minute. The younger
sisters helped those who were ill or old. Arriving near the
station two sick ones were obliged to go to bed in another
convent, and the others installed themselves in the cellars
and small hallways. An immense explosion occurred--it was only
a bridge they were blowing up, but the garden was filled with
broken pieces of iron and steel. Eighteen sisters got into a
train filled with wounded and arrived at Brussels at midnight,
nearly dead from fright.

"They went up the Boulevard Botanique, where they found an
ambulance wagon, which took them to the Mother's house. The
General Superior came to open the door for them, with her white
apron and her arm band of the Red Cross. They slept in beds
prepared for the wounded, and the next day they were sent to
different institutions.

"People knew nothing but false news, given out by the Germans.
We had no news for three weeks, so I didn't even know a new
Pope had been elected."[15]

[15] The young English lady who took this letter to
Roehampton was made a prisoner, from nine in the morning until
four in the afternoon. Although she had to show the letter, the
German officials let her go, as it was unimportant, but her
husband was taken prisoner. They asked him his age, and told
him that they needed soldiers, and that he might be of use to
them.

This letter is from a Belgian nun:

August.

"My sister Catherine, not being able to get away from Brieux,
was obliged to stay there thirteen days, and it was the priest
that brought her back to Bosel in tram and cart. He will go
back there and show the soldiers the retreat. The Reverend
Father von Volkson stayed in Malines till the last, and quietly
kept on reciting his mass while they were bombarding the city.
He was in civilian dress: but we don't know where he is now.
Have you heard that the Reverend Mother of Tournai had her arm
lacerated by a bullet, which then went and hit Mother de B----,
who was standing behind her, in the region of the heart, and
both of them died, hit by the same bullet? They were going into
the loft to see from which direction the Germans were advancing
to take possession of the city.

"It is a just war, for God and country. It is this that gives
the King and our soldiers superhuman strength. As soon as it
was known that Germany was going to insult Belgium, thousands
of men offered themselves to fight, and the priests accompanied
these brave men to give them spiritual help and encouragement."

"OSTEND--end of October.

"During the week of the 31st of October the Belgians resisted
the attacks of the enemy, and the King had the dangerous honour
of commanding the Allies' left wing while they put up a
terrific fight to defend Calais, which was the principal prize
of this terrific struggle. For six days our Belgians stood the
fire of 250,000 Germans, who were afterwards reinforced by
100,000 others. With these forces the enemy had to pass the
Yser, which was filled with bodies. Although the fight seemed
ended, 'the Belgians'--to quote Cæsar--'continued to dispute
the mastery of the last parcel of their territory. With a rage
bordering on grief they thought they would have to capitulate
immediately.' The Belgians lost 10,000 men. They attacked
again, and the enemy was forced to repass the Yser red with
blood, and they were chased ten miles towards the north.

"But still, though we have lost so many, we have not lost
courage. In the midst of our ruined cities and our burnt and
ruined crops, higher than our burnt towers, higher than the
cruel deeds, stands our hope, and higher than the ignominy our
proud independence, our love for the King and our land. Not for
one instant has the Belgian spirit regretted the call of honour
that has caused us such calamities, and tomorrow she would
still refuse, even at the same price and at the cost of the
same martyrdom!

"Sir Edward Grey saluted the Comte de Lalaing (Minister
Plenipotentiary at London) with the title of Ambassador, of
which Belgium is worthy.

"If you could only hear our injured and wounded speak of the
King. When an officer fell the King took his place, crying out,
'Come, my children, shoot now, like this, all together.' And
you should see how they killed their enemies! Today is the
fête-day of our poor little Queen; what an anniversary! At the
Palace Hotel they give the wounded wine in her honour, and they
sing the 'Brabançonne,' and 'Vers l'Avenir.'"

I give two verses of the "Brabançonne":--

"Fled the years of servile shame,
Belgium, 'tis thine hour at last,
Wear again thy ancient name,
Spread thy banner on the blast.
Sovereign people, in thy might
Steadfast yet and valiant be,
On thy ancient standard write--
Land and Law and Liberty!

"Belgium, Mother, hear us vow,
Never will our love abate,
Thou our hope, our refuge thou,
Hearts and blood are consecrate.
Grave, we pray, upon thy shield
This device eternally,
Weal or woe, at home, a-field,
Land and law and liberty."

From Countess ----:

"BRUSSELS--October.

"Food is easy to get if not plentiful and the bread eatable in
Brussels. V. got out of Belgium this time without being caught.
We are full of hope. We are well and busy. Every one is trying
to help those in need. There is much to do. Those who still
remain here see each other often. We meet at each other's
houses for tea and bring information. A. was wounded in the
head and has been taken prisoner. Mr. Whitlock's untiring
devotion to his work is more than appreciated by every class.
He is just the man for the place. The Spanish Minister is a
great help. We have had no letter since August. I knit madly to
keep calm. I hope the day may come when I may say all that is
in my heart. It is a suffocating feeling to have a foreign
occupation. We have such a time getting the papers. One sheet
appears a day, and all we want to know is carefully left out by
the Germans."

In October there comes a moan from Luxembourg.

"LUXEMBOURG.

"We are crying for flour. Nothing sent from America can reach
Luxembourg. The railways are destroyed by dynamite, _toutes les
routes ravagées_; not one way of communication at present. The
rich as well as the poor are dying of hunger and cold. All the
horrors of our enemies are, alas! quite true. We are ruined,
our money gone, the villa burnt. Tears are dropping on the
letter as I write. This letter which may never reach you."

"October.

"My good Mother,

"I have thought of you very often since it has pleased God to
visit upon us the horrors of war. What damages have been caused
by the Germans in our country! At Dinant Mr. Wassege has been
shot with his two sons because he did not want to open the safe
of the bank or give the combination. Seventy-five other
civilians had the same fate, also hundreds of little children.
The horrors the Germans have committed here are fit for Turks
or savages; I could state hundreds of cases. In Antwerp two
beautiful estates, which were situated near the forts,
belonging to well-known German society people, were found to
have underground passages leading to the fortresses. By chance,
barrels were found containing German uniforms for those we have
received with so much kindness, to put on when the German
soldiers occupy the city, as was seen in Verviers. In several
houses in Antwerp wireless plants were discovered. In Antwerp
hundreds of spies were found, who dressed in all manner of
clothing, as nuns, priests, and nurses.

"They are taking the civilians away to serve as soldiers in the
German army, or to gather their crops. In Namur they have
started to write down the births, deaths, and marriages, and
the people must take German names, or be shot.

"Eight thousand people fleeing from Louvain were forced to
march a great distance by the Germans, eight in a line, and
they had to keep their hands in the air all the time. They had
to fasten Helen P----'s baby on her back--she is the niece of
Mother V. E---- so that she could walk in this way. Our
soldiers often have Communion, and are full of courage and
confidence. They love the King, who shows himself full of
courage. He marches at the head of his troops, and after a
battle shakes hands with the soldiers; we can be proud of him.

"A magistrate on his way back to Brussels was given a letter to
deliver. He told a friend on the train he had the letter on his
person, but did not know where to hide it. His friend said he
was doing a very dangerous thing, for if the letter was found
on him he would be shot. He also said: 'You must read it, then
tear it up, and transmit the news orally.' This he did. Later
the train was surrounded by Germans, who announced that no one
was to descend, and that it was forbidden to carry letters, and
in consequence every one was going to be searched. Terrible
fright! Of the people carrying letters, one managed to eat his,
when he found that it could not be hidden and he was not able
to throw it away.... The magistrate presented himself at
six-thirty at the proper place, and recited the contents of the
letter and told the story of his trip."

"LONDON--November.

"As for the Belgian refugees, it is getting to be a great
problem what to do with them. There are thousands and thousands
like droves of frightened sheep, not a particle of clothing but
what they stand up in, and not a penny in the world. You just
cannot realize it unless you see them. Ladies and gentlemen of
fine position and peasants all together, and all helpless and
homeless.

* * * * *

"It seems so horrible to think that our only thought is to
kill, and that we rejoice when the enemy has lost men. I hardly
dare think of it. It seems as though we had all gone mad.

"The King Albert Hospital is working well, and three more
Belgian hospitals have had to be opened. They now all work
under military authority, and so they do not need our
assistance any more, I mean, in the way of our being there
daily.

"Mrs. B---- and I have now put our hearts and energies into a
Maternity Home for Belgians, that is, we have two, one for
ladies and one for working women. They are both such sweet,
pretty homes, that it really must help them to forget the
cruelties of being far from their husbands and homes. They
nearly all call their sons Albert, and the daughters either
Elizabeth or Alberta.

"The streets and shops are filled with Belgians, one hears
French in busses, everywhere in fact. One often hears Flemish
too. I was surprised when I first heard it, for it sounded so
like German. _L'Echo Belge_, a Flemish paper published in
London, has on the first page: '_Voor God en
Vaderland_'--'_Pour Dieu et Patrie_.' A great many papers are
published here for the Belgians and French. There are
innumerable appeals, many for Belgium, such as: Belgian Relief
Fund, the Belgian Soldiers Fund, and so forth.

"Limericks are very common among the soldiers and are very
good. Here is one about a Belgian girl. Please remember that
Ypres is called Wipers by Tommy Atkins.

"There was a young lady of Ypres,
Who was hit in the cheek by two snipers,
The tunes that she played
Through the holes that they made,
Beat the Argyle and Sutherland pipers."

"The shop windows are full of war games, such as: 'Storming the
Citadel'--'Kill Kiel'--and the 'Dreadnaught game.'

"Tommy gives the bombs such amusing names, 'Black Marias,'
'Aunt Sally's Nephews,' and 'Eagle Eggs.' The German trench
motor is called 'The Undertaker.' The anti-aircraft gun is
nicknamed 'Archibald' and the German howitzer which emits a
thick white smoke is called 'The Woolly Bear.' He calls these
picturesque names 'Slanguage.'"

"BRUSSELS--November.

"We are passing horrible hours. You cannot imagine what it has
been the last three months. Everywhere misery, crêpe and ruin.
To add to the horror of the situation, famine has arrived. Most
of our friends have had their châteaux pillaged. The buildings
even are often destroyed. Our friends arrive in the night on
foot, with all that they own on their backs and their children
following them. They often walk miles before finding a roof to
shelter them, for many villages are burnt to the ground,
deserted, and many of the people shot. _C'est affreux!_

"Henri has won two _galons_ for his bravery in battle. The last
news we have of him is good. _Dieu merci._ Jean has been
slightly wounded. What a relief to have him safe for the moment
in a hospital. George de Ligne, Henri d'Oultremont, _tués_, Guy
Reynteins _blessé_. Two of the Cornet Counts have been taken
from their château, which was burned, and no one knows what has
become of them. Every day the Germans are more brutal and more
hateful. They are worse than they are depicted.

"We are indeed grateful to the American Minister. He is
intelligent, active and kind, as well as a charming man.

"It is difficult to get the food distributed in the villages,
for there are no means of conveyance, except motors run by
twenty-four young Americans. They are doing fine work and are a
great help. The d'Assches, de Mérodes, Beeckmans and de
Beughems are here."

A letter from Switzerland reads:

"November.

"I have been at a camp of French and Belgian soldiers in
Germany, nearly fifteen thousand of them, all without blankets.
They dig holes in the ground and get into them, and then spread
their coats over the top in order to sleep and keep warm."

A letter from a cousin at a hospital in France says,

"Today seventy French soldiers were brought in, all with their
right hands gone."

"BRUSSELS--end of December.

"The weather is awful, the fighting in the North has been again
very violent. We have little wool to knit with. We need flannel
too for the soldiers. It is freezing. We are trying to get warm
clothes to the soldiers. We are having a snowstorm such as has
not been seen for twenty years, in fact one might be in
America. The snow has lasted five days. Everything is all
frozen and one slips and the trams are all crowded. Hospital
things are particularly necessary.

"My husband asked a German, an old friend of his, if it was
possible for me to take clothes to the English prisoners here.
He was refused. No one has been able to help the poor English,
and God only knows how they are being treated by these brutes.
We have been able to help the French prisoners."

"February.

"I saw at Ostend an old woman of ninety, who had walked from
Waterloo. I do not like to write much, as it is safer not to do
so. The money that was sent will go at once to a woman with
five children, whose husband was wounded. I have been taking
care of him at the hospital. He is well again and leaves today
for the front. The wounded try to get well as quickly as
possible, as they want to return to the front.

"My villa _à Duinbergen près de Heyst sur mer_ is occupied by
the Germans. My maid was left in charge. The Germans ordered
her to give them our clothes. I hear my house is a house _de
debauche et d'orgie. La femme de chambre a été molestée par un
soldat ivre._ When the old gardener and his wife tried to
interfere, the soldiers said if they did, they would shoot
them. Oh, when will this cease and the world know the truth?
_Cette abominable race!_ My heart is broken."

"THE HAGUE, Feb. 22, 1915.

"My uncle and aunt are in Anjoux. Think of the life they lead,
constantly struggling against all sorts of plunder, the worst
elements of the population now having free play. Anarchy is
uppermost in many places.... They have no respect for anything.
What ruin on all sides, and to think that our poor little
country was always so hospitable to those Germans!

"As to the Royal family: I know the Queen never leaves La Panne
(the last Belgian village). Every day she is with the wounded
and goes very near the trenches. She is admirable in her
courage and strength, and I know she suffers terribly from the
conduct of her compatriots (she is Bavarian), but in justice I
must say that the Bavarians have everywhere behaved better than
the others. The Prussians have been terrible. The old Princesse
de Ligne, widow of Prince Edward, who is the Mother of the
Councillor of our Legation here in The Hague, arrived here in
October. She stayed one month and a half at the Château de la
Neuville, near Liège, and under German dominion. Although
speaking German perfectly, as she is Austrian by birth, she had
a great deal to suffer. A German colonel with his revolver in
his hand followed her all over the house and made her show him
everything. (The same thing happened to the Comtesse de Mérode
at the Château de Waterloo; everything was opened, searched,
and in part plundered.) The Princesse de Ligne replied to one
officer that a certain old salver of repoussé silver was not
for sale, when he wished to buy it. The next day that and other
pieces of silver were gone. At Conjoux they passed days of
anguish during the burning of Dinant. There was a battle in the
wood back of the little house where we had so often had tea.

"The plundering of Dinant was most terrible, and what has been
told of the horrors of that time is not at all exaggerated. Up
to the present time they have exhumed 981 bodies of civilians,
of which one hundred are children between three months and ten
years. All this is official. There have, of course, been
exaggerations, but how many horrors are still unknown!

"There were just such massacres at Audennes, Visé, Louvain,
Aerschot and Termonde, not to speak of the smaller villages,
and J. told me when he passed through here to join the army
that in going through Dinant between Aisny and Philippeville
there was not one village that had not been completely
destroyed. At Liegnon (the station where one leaves the train
in going to Conjoux) they imprisoned 900 peasants in a church
for seventeen days. No one was allowed to go in. Two women were
confined and were unable to have a doctor. The curé of
Lorinnes, near Conjoux, had his lungs pulled out on each side
with the hooks that are used for the tires of motor cars. I
could go on telling you of just such incidents for pages and
pages.

"The Château of Ardenne, which had become the property of the
State through the gift of Leopold II, has been completely
emptied. There is not one piece of furniture left, nor a frame,
nor a picture; everything is gone, and this is the case in many
châteaux.

"At Ghent my family have suffered a great deal from the
presence of the enemy in their homes. I have already told you
of their installing the passport office in our grandfather's
drawing room; you remember the one where the picture hung and
the chests that belonged to Marie Antoinette. You may imagine
the filth, and they insisted on putting in gas, saying it was
so dark they could not see. It is true it was dark, but they
had no right to ruin everything. It is curious that our
grandfather still has papers giving an account of the Cossacks'
sojourn in 1814. In the very same house, a Russian colonel was
lodger. According to these papers, there were far fewer
injuries and complaints than in 1914 against the Germans. At
Laeken, in the royal château, the Germans held a veritable orgy
and ruined everything; such dirt; and horrors so ignoble that I
dare not describe it further. The fact is that everything in
that beautiful château is in a deplorable condition.

"The Germans hope to demoralize us by circulating false
reports. Every day despatches from the Kaiser announcing their
victories are posted on the walls of the towns; this also to
encourage their troops. The soldiers arriving in Ghent think
they are within a few miles of London. The people have
naturally taken a mischievous delight in undeceiving them and
telling them they were by no means near London, but near the
Yser. They actually wept, for the Yser is their nightmare, and
with reason. That is easily understood. They do not advance;
quite the contrary.

CROWN PRINCE LEOPOLD, DUC DE BRABANT.

"The King and Queen are still at La Panne. Little Prince
Leopold, thirteen years old, is with them now. The other day
all three on horseback reviewed the new recruits on the beach;
all the time the German aeroplanes were throwing bombs.

"We have a new army of 200,000 men, and it increases every day.
The spirit of the troops is excellent. The other day the Queen
went with little Prince Leopold as far as the second line of
trenches to see the soldiers. It was near Nieuport. She sat
down amongst them, and after she left the soldiers made a
little sanctuary of the spot where she had sat. Our sovereigns
are adored by their troops, and they well deserve it. Nothing
matters to them--neither suffering, fatigue, danger nor money,
for they are wonderfully generous. Nearly all the Relief
Societies for Refugees in Belgium, here in Holland, in England,
and in France have had gifts from them, and in some cases they
have been considerable. It is thought now that the barbarity of
the Germans and their cruelty has ceased since they have been
stopped at the Yser, but this is not so. Naturally massacres
are less systematic than during the first three months of the
war, but there are constantly peasants and civilians shot and
priests sent to Germany. At Cortemarch (near Roulers) they
sent the curé and the vicar to Germany because they accused the
village of having had a spy. This they posted themselves in all
the Flemish towns. The number of people who have had to pay
ransom for one or another _soi-disant_ reason is countless. Our
cousin, living at Wielt, has been imprisoned and forced to pay
one thousand marks fine for daring to lift his voice feebly
against the requisitions, without even payment by note, that
were levied on the farmers.

"The Germans have now forbidden disinterment of the bodies, as
the proof of their cruelty was too obvious. At the time of the
flight of our poor population here the little children, seeing
the Dutch soldiers dressed in gray, took them for Germans, and
lifted up their little arms as these latter had obliged them to
do. There are still in Holland 250,000 poor refugees. They are
nearly all settled in camps of wood which in the beginning were
very bad, but are improving now every day. After the taking of
Antwerp there were one million here for one or two months.

"My brothers are well, thank God.--Pray.--Let us pray together
if you will, for all. God will hear us and will give us the joy
of acclaiming our King in Brussels when he reënters at the
head of his army. It is the goal and dream of all the Belgians.
It will be a day of wild and mad delirium. It gives me the
shivers even to dream of it."

From the son of Dr. Depage to his mother while she was lecturing in America:--

"April.

"La Panne[16] has changed a great deal these last few weeks.
The tourist that would come here would think himself in an
exhibition, just before opening day.

[16] The Belgian army retired from Antwerp to La
Panne.

"On all sides one sees tents that spring from the ground. The floors would make fine skating rinks when the war is over.

"Truly the medical career is full of surprises, and I sometimes ask myself if my father, who as a youngster poached in the Forêt de Soignes, ever thought or even dreamed that he would one day be not only a great doctor, but a superior officer in the Belgian army.

"Life is a strange thing, Mother dearie, but I think that it can be very beautiful, if one understands it,--and also very sad.

"As to the war, the wounded are taking the illusion from us that we are having a vacation at the seaside.

"The weather has been so beautiful since the first day of spring that one is sometimes surprised not to see parasols of flaming colours, and the silhouettes of pretty women walking on the beach, or to see happy children building forts, which the incoming tide soon destroys. Alas! are we not all big children, we Belgians, that resist the incoming tide, and our forts no better or stronger? But I think the tide is high now, and soon it will go down.

"As to Y. P---- I think that we must give up all hope of seeing him again. We thought for a while he was a prisoner, but though we tried to find him we could not. And then, he would have let his mother have news from him, don't you think?--since the 22d of October.

"We must not think of him now, we must remain courageous and keep on hoping.

"After the war, it will be time to count the spaces in our ranks, and I fear there will be many. My comrade was killed in our first bayonet charge. (You know we fight as much as possible in pairs.) I was about to kill a German when the man begged so pleadingly for his life, saying he had a wife and children, that I faltered for a moment--in that moment he half turned and quickly killed my comrade."

"BRUSSELS--end of April.