New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-09-18
Germany's Weakness in Face OF the
Atrocity Charges.

Atroc1ty OnarSeS'
- ..,o, h,under of the Kaiser and his war
marty in tearing up "a scrap Of paper ana III
vadipp Belgium required any further PROOF OF uen''
nsrat,on the case of the atrocity charges gives all
chat couh he required The military aspect may De
left to one side, though in the story OF the great
war vet to be written the delay at Lege small ana
brief as t was in comparison WITH later Gays u
destruction. will loom large as determining iacVOl'
We pont now to tn" influence which that Initial
hsrbarity and breach Of faith have had IN forming
,muartial opinion the world round.
We are bound to say that in itself the evidence
=. cormon atrocities against individuals produced
nv the Belgian commi sion is fur from convincing
There is too much generalization and not enough
snac,he accusation. Terrible as are the specific
cases cited we must even go far as to say that
accounting them as true they are scarcely more than
the list Of outrages which are unavoidable IN ne
wake Of great army overrunning hostile coun-
try There are hideously vicious individuals in an
army as IN community, and war gives their bar
barous instincts full swing. Were the German ON
cal record clear Of foul play there could scarcely
he question of American hope and belief in the
general uprightness Of the German soldier.
Hut the Kaiser from the start did his best to
preiudiee civilized opinion agains. his nation 5
armies went into Belgium not in honest quarrel
with her people, but in violati n Of pledged woro
without pretence Of justification. However history
may read the causes Of the greater struggle there
can be no question Of the criminal outrage wrought
against innocent Belgium. Sent ment hared up IN
This country as the news arrived, and the founda
t,on for believing i'll of the German invaders was
quickly laid.
There .ollowed two unforgettaDle incidents-the
zeppelin attack upon Antwerp and the burning d
Louvain. Both were gross violations of the rules
Of civilized warfare and both exhibited a disre-
gard of human life and property impossible to rec
oncile with modern standards. Both episodes are
conceded fact, the burning of Louvain being adj
mitted by the Kaiser in his message to President
Wilson. More the Kaiser defended the burning OF
Touyain on military grounds, while processing to
lament the destruction Of its artistic treasures.
Here then, was the invasion of peaceful and
innocent nation, backed up by official acts Of nm
speakable barbarity and brutality. Small wonder
that American indignation was strong and that re-
ports Of further atrocities by individual German
soldiers were caught up and elieved If the mill
tarv leaders of Germany could direct such crimes
against civilization, was anything unbelievable CT
their subordnates
I'VE concede the superficial responsiveness Of such
logic. but we think the American people must make
a distinction between the German rulers and the
German soldiers and reserve decision in the case
OF the latter There can be no defence of the Ger
man invasion or the German crime 1T Antwerp and
Iouvain. There can be defence, and there is on
the evidence thus ia presented likely to be strong
defence Of the German sold.els from the charge of
individual atrocities President wilson's words are
strongly J., the point here. The case is one that
cannot be decided on onesided evidence in the heat
OF battle II is essentially charge which must be
left to the calmer days Of peace for nal judgment
The ruined walls Of Louvain are silent accusa-
tion Of German militarism which no words can ever
refute. The chg ges of atroctg against the German
rank and dle are no more = N a" ictment which
it will be the hope of every fair-mirded American
maturer evidence will disprove
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