The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1914-10-02
(By Herbert Corey.)


war. It may be added that both sides
seem to- have been lying in all good
faith. Each has really believed all
it has said of the other. Here are the
indictments each has found:
The English have said that:
The Germans have mutilated women
and outraged girls.
Have shot down little children.
Have hamstrung wounded men and
cut the tendons of their wrists.
Have poisoned wells, provisions and
forage.
Have battered down wounded men
with the butts of their guns.
Have fired upon their own wounded
men, as in the case alleged after the
fight in Helgoland Blight, when Ger
mans were struggling in the water.
Have fired houses in which men and
women and children were penned.
Have tortured men and women to
eXCOTC money OI I'LL VI IudIlOu.
Same Charges by Germans.
Nothing has been printed here Of
the charges brought by the Germans.
But from an American recently re-
turned from Germany I learn that
equally sweeping charges Of devilish
inhumanity have been brough by the
Germans against the English and the
French. There, it has been alleged,
md is believed by a large part of the
German populace, that the allies have
done all the things charged against
The Germans by the English, and in
addition have mutilated the corpses of
German dead upon the field of battle.
1t is charged that the French, while in
Alsace, waged war of determination
against the German settlers there.
Neither age nor sex was spared.
No Proof of Outrages.
The English seem to have had
rather better groundwork for belief
than the Germans. There is no room
for doubt that the German has violat-
I'd international law. Granting that
in isolated cases he had been guilty of
iendish cruelty, as charged, there is
10 proof that this humanity toward
individuals has ben part Of the Ger
nan policy. It is obviously true
that the Germans have been utterly
ruthless in their treatment Of the in
habitants of the country they have
'avaged. Misunderstanding thou
sands-of Belgian and French nom
combatants have been shot.
But There's Difference.
But there is long cry between that
an dconduct which would disgrace a
Crow s4uaw. No proof has been I'd
duced of the outrages with which they
have been charged, any more than of
the wanton savagery they have alleged
against the English and French--tcr
mere allegation is not proof.
After making what inquiry is pos
sible here l have come to the conclu-
sion that these tales have, in large
part, arisen in the hysteria of indiv:d-
uals-an entirely natural and compre-
hensible hysteria-and have been for
warded by the war Offices of both
countries for. their own purposes. I
talked with correspondent who inter-
1iewed officers and men who had been
engaged in the fight at Helgoland.
Heard No Such Story.
"The war Office" said, "in it's Off
cial statement has charged that Ger
man officers on unchanged ships were
seen firing at the Germans struggling
IN the water after the sinking of their
ships"
II heard no such story" he said. 81
did hear that one German cruiser fired
on British destroyer which before the
conclusion of the action had lowered
boats to pick up German wounded"
The action of the Britons was in the
highest degree praiseworthy. It is
comprehensive that in the excitement
of a losing fight the Germans may
have continued their fire on the Eng
fish boats, either in the belief that the
English boats were being lowered be.
ause the English destroyer had been
damaged or in the savage rage of the
moment.
Thought They Would Be Shot.
Here is another incident of the same
fight. The German prisoners had beer
taken on board the destroyed Druid
They turned and shook hands with
each other. Two ro+hers-kissed
each other. Then they saluted the
British commander:
"We are ready" they said.
"For what" he asked.
''To be shot," they said.
They believed the English had cap
tured them only to put them to death
They fully believed that the English
slaughtered their prisoners as fas a.
they were captured.
Had Heard Murder Tales.
1--WE were told your officers killet
the prisoners with their revolvers,'
said they, ''by shooting them through
the head"
When they learned the truth the.
begged permission to shake hands wit
the commander of the Druid.