Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-11-02
FIENDISH CRUELTY
Awful Deeds of French Officers in
the Soudan.
RECRUITING An ARMY OF NATIVES
Truth About the VouIet-Chanoine
Massacre of Col. kIobb.
A S PRED TO BE KIN G S
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence of The Evening Star
PARIS, October II, 1900.
1t is almost amusing to hear what the
Europeans say about our methods in the
Philippines and then to compare with these
practices the practices of the French, Ger
man and even the English officers who
have to do with the unhappy Africans of
the Soudan. Until the last moment the
friends of the French army held out against
the story of the massacre of the Klobb de-
taChment that shocked the conscience of
the world month and more ago. That
two young French captains, one the son of
a former minister of war and both social
favorites in the most exclusive military
circles, should outlaw themselves forever
by such an act of seventeenth century
piracy was declared impossible. Now that
the official report, countersigned al every
station from Bandiagra to Saint Louis,
leaves no doubt that Captains Noulet and
Chanoine tsince reported as assassinated in
their turn had become bandit chiefs in the
Soudan, commanding large force of dis
cIplined native troops seduced from their
French allegiance by license to slave trade
ana p!liage, new French army scandal
has arisen.
The recruiting of native troops by Euro
peans is shown to be nothing less than
slave trading; the administration of the
French SOuuan is filed with cruel abuse;
French officers have caught the mysterious
The story of the excuses and cruelties
that le, to the investigation of Colonel
klobb throws a cynical light on the value
of an education and social training deemed
faultlcss in the flower of Saint-Cyr
Lieutenant MERCER. of the famous
general, is about to be tried for the assas-
sination of his negro servant in the Gou-.
rounsi. For this act the English officers of
the neighboring gold coast station sent
young MERCER to coventry.
Incredible Cruelty.
On January 3, 1879, a foraging party re-
turned to the VouletChanoine camp with
80 steers, 800 sheep, Is horses and 50 pris-
oners ITO make an example" Captain
Noulet had twenty women, mothers with
babies at their breasts, killed with lances.
One of his own men who had shot away
12i cartridges in a skrmish was stabbed
to death by Captain Noulet for his waste
fuiness. "A court-martial would have ac-
quilted the fellow remarked Foulet to
DR.. Henric, which would be bad for dis
cipline. 1t will teach the others" On
January 10 the mission burned Sausanne
Haoussa, a town of 10000 inhabitants and
a commercial center. From this moment
the practice Of cutting off the right hand of
negro cOrpses was begun, with view to
keeping tab the native allies, sup
posed to be rewarded a so much head
or hand. If we were to take their word"
said Captain Chanoine, they would pre-
tend they had killed all the inhabitants.
Lieutenant Peteau tells how they brought
the bleeding members platters to the
officers at dinner. On January "a Captain
Chanoine, surprised by the reyengefuI
tives ,ost six of his allies. For this he cut
off the heads of twenty prisoners and plant
ed them on stakes. 1t was the practice of
the mission to cut off the heads of all
porters who fell by the wayside under their
loads. Often it happened that Sergeant Ma
jor Laury "mercifully' blew out their
brains instead.
A few months ago all Paris ran to see the
native troops accompanying the BRAY.
Marchand." Few of the applauding thou
sands dreamed how these same SONS of
France by adoption were recruited.
"Recruiting.v
Whenever the native forces need to be
renewed order is given the military COM
mandants to recruit a determined num-
Der of subjects" in their districts Imme-
diately the voluntary engagement" regis
tiers are opened That is to say, the slave
trading caravans admitted to present
their merchandise to the commandant. I'm
mediately, a so, the traffic is no longer call
ed by its real name, and sale" becomes
an "act of liberation" The slave is no
longer a slave, but volunteer, an enlisted
man, a French subject.
The wretches arrive nude, with the
wounds received on their capture fresh on
them, broken with long understanding
tramp across the sun-baked land. The gum
ivory and kola once transported, they are
no longer useful, and are sold cheap
Nevertheless it is impossible to have a
voluntary engagement for less than SEQ
which accounts for some of the extraor-
binary expenses Of the French family in
the Soudan. 1t is only right to add that
the Germans, and even the English, recruit
their native troops in the same way, par
ticularly around Sierra Leone and the Gam
bia. The tales that now are being repeated
in the literature of this ugly subject are Of
character to silence any Critic-French,
German or English-who may happen to
find his conscience troubled by the mag
mary stories told by fools of the conduct
of the Americans in the Philippines. Such
malicious criticisms have ANNOYED Ameri-
cans in Europe for some months and it is
real pleasure to find pertinent reply to
make to them.
Working n Transformations