Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-09-16
SACK OF LOUYAIN
BELGTANS' FAULT
TOURIST ASSERTS
Residents Sniping Enrages
Germans and Frenzy of
Destruction Ensues-War
Forced on Kaiser by Cen
eral Staff.

! NEW YORK, Sept. Responsibility
/ in large degree for the destruction Of
Bouvain was placed upon the Belgians
by =. w. Weinholt, who was a surgeon
Of the Belgian Red Cross when the Ger
mans made the attack on Biege and was
later made a member Of the Red Corps.
Mr. Weinholt arrived here on the Rot
terdam.
Just after the capture OF Licge was
forced to serve with the German Red
Cross" said Mr.. Weinholt "and with
them proceeded to the French frontier.
There was a little resistance on the way
with here and there some desultory skir-
mishng.
when we reached Louvain the citizens,
enraged because the Germans wantonly
shot six Of the burgomasters, began to
snipe the invader from aeroplanes and
windows of the houses. The snping
brought about n sackng and razing OF
Louvain. The German troops became
frenzied and fired the houses in shors
order.
From there to the frontier the Ger
mans were resisted by about $4,000 French
in the majority, the defenders fell back
gradually before the advance l witt
messed a day and a half battle near
the frontier. The German tactics were
wonderful First the infantry attacked,
and then came a volley from the artillery.
I saw the Germans fire their 30-ton siege
gun. The concussion was terrific. One
Of the shells had dug a hole 30 feet
deep"
Henry Tictze. superintendent Of parks,
in Gonkcrs, n Y, brought back an ac-
count Of narrowing experiences
II was at Saarlos, in Lorraine. when
the battle Of Lorraine was fought" said
Mr.. TietZc. For four days the battle
ragged around that little city. Once I saw
q French aeroplane drop like a plummet
from the sky after the pilot had been
killed by German bullets 1t was a fas-
cinating sight.
Several times I saw the French infan-
try on the heights melt into a mass of
dead men under the deadly fire of the
German artillery. l witnessed a battle
between the German and the Turcos in
the French army. The sight of the Afri-
cans drove the Germans mad and disre-
garding all instructions from their off,
GERS, they dashed in among the black
troops and cut them to bits with their
bayOnets.'
l.llIOh l.. Lewis, New York lawyer,
said the head Of the German General
STAFF had told him that the Kaiser al
most had to be forced into the war by
the STAFF. The Kaiser would not believe
war was necessary and fought against
declaring il.
The General STAFF went to the Kaiser. -
sad Mr.. Lewis, land told him unless he
declared war they would not be RESPONSE
Die for the consequences. as the Russians
We're mObiiZing, and that some of tho
-ossacks already were over the frontier
The Kaiser, according to my information,
asked for an hour to think matters over,
Is ne was loath 10 plunge Europe into
var. The Kaiser shut himself up and
when the STAFF saw him again he still
vas averse to declaring war He did
% only when the staff forced upon him
ne Knowledge that Russia really was
making warlike demonstrations"
Professor Morris Jastrow, of the ITni-
ersity OF Pennsylvania, said that tho
iermau Emperor was entirely nIsunder-
TODD IN this country and that it would
al to America to mediate the war. In
Iermany, he stated. there is not the
opularly supposed bravado. but every
ne understands the seriousness of the
tuation.