New Ulm review., 1913-12-17
CUSTOMS or WAR.
Rules That Contending Armies
Are Expected TO Obey.
A GRIM CODE OF ETIQUETTE.

The Enemy May ee Starved to Death
Or into Yieid;ns BY Stopping His
Supplies, but His Food Must Not &c
Poisonsd-Prisoners Of War.
War-that is. warfare between civt-
lized hatiOns-has Its code of etiquette
known as the customs OF war. some Of
which are written. others tucitIy agreed
to. and these rules and regulations con-
tending armies are supposed to regard
as sacred and to obey them rfgidly.
Obvious examples Of lighting et-
quette are the rules which protect the
Red Cross dag OF the ambulance and
forbid the use Of explosive or. within
limits. expanding bullets.
Nominaiiy a general may nse any
means IN his power to bring his foe to
subjecttoD. nut there is 9 we'll defined
boundary line. leader may cut OF
hts eilemy's food aud water supplies.
he may subject hin to all the horrors
Of famine and thirst. but he must not
poison his food or water.
Suppose place is besfeged and that
outside the walls are wells which the
besi.gess c:,nuor effectively hold and
which the besleged can reach under
cover Of night. The besieger would be
justified in sending parties to nll up the
wells with earth and stones or to de-
strOy them with dynamite. On the
other hand. to pollute the wells With
poison or to throw dead animals into
them would be an fnfamy.
A prisoner Of war" has his rights.
He may be asked to give bis parole
1. e.. to promise not to escape-but he
must not be forced to give his parole
and IL not to be punished for refusing
to do 40. A prisoner Oh parole who 1t.
tempts to escape is table to be shot.
either when escaping or il retaken
alive.
An nDparoied prisoner may also be
shot while in the act Of escaping. but
III recaptnred it would be murder to
shoot him. and he should not be pun
tshed for his attempt. though he may
be placed In more rigorous confne-
ment.
A prisoner may he compelled to earn
his keep" by working at his trade. il
he has one. or by doing work for bis
captors not OF a purely military nature
Thus he may ne ordered to assist in
draining the camp in which be is a
prisoner, but 1t would not be fair to
put him to building Notifications.
The customs Of war justify the en-
plUy ment OF spies. bnt under certain
rules. II a soldier voluntarily turns
traitor the other side is entitled to
make use of him. but it is not honor
able to tempt soldier to betray his
own side. "a
Ii thus tempted a man may pretend
to turn traitor and deceive the enemy
with false information. On the other
hand, voluntarily to 60 over to the
enemy. pretending to be a traitor or
deserter. would be dishonorabIe con.
duct-that is. If the pretended traitor
is an officer or soldier.
A spy. Of course, comprehends the
hazardous nature of the mission he
undertakes and is painfully aware
of the fact that be carries his life in
bis hands. so to speak. Courageous
and daring though he may be. the spy
has no rights and is at all times liable
to be- shot or hanged at sight Now.
adays. though. ne is usually given the
benefit Of trial by court martial.
An officer or soldier. however. caught
in the eDemy's camp must not be treat
ed as spy. but as prisoner Of war.
provided he is not disguised.
IL a commander takes part IN a
charge or persistently exposes himself
TO f1re be must take bis chance Of be-
ing shot, but in big affairs 1t is not the
game to detail marksmen to try to |
pick OF your opponents general, though |
every effort may be made to capture
him.
When a city or town is bombarded
pubic bnildings-unless used for de-
fensive purposes-should be spared as |
far rs possible. When place Is cap
tured the victorious foe IS entitled to4
seize art treasures. and % on. and to |
hold them to ransom. To injure or de- |
stroy. them would be the act of
vandal.
When a country is invaded the in.
vader can compel the Inhabitants to
supply him with food and other sup
plies and to act as guides. workmen
and drivers.
A person who. not belonging to any
military force, takes up
arms against an invader is liable to be
shot like IA dog when captured. Re
is sanctioned by the customs
Of war. It IS military vengeance and
takes place when an outrage commit
ted on one side is avenged by the com.
mission Of a similar act on the other.
Thus an unjust execution Of prison.
ere BY the enemy may be followed by
the execution of an equal number of
prisoners held by the opponents. and
this act of retaliation has been fre-
quently enforced. even 10 recent years.
London Answers.