The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-12-27
ECONOMIC PRESSURE WILL NOT BE ENOUGH ID DEFEAT GERMANY Belgian General Says Dura- ton of War Depends on
 the World
NIEUPORT IS ONLY
 A MASS OF RUINS
Two Small Children Divide Their Food, Apples, With Cure and War spondent-Arins of Wind
 mill Are Used for Signaling
By COUNT DE BuEronr

WY 'oiNT DE BtEFoRT In Belgium. December ee.-fSpecial. "A Belgian general who for many years has watched and studied the progress of the German arnly-ss far as such is possible to foreign offieer-diseussed with me recently the present situation. To one of my favor1te questions, How hong do yon think the war win iast?' he an- swered: - My friend, the duration of the war depends entirely on tho forces which the whole world win be able to bring to
 bear against Germany Let IFS not lose sight Of the fact that it has taken all our combined efforts. all our powers. to
 hold the enemy in check and today the Germans arc still on foreign soil. One l mistake on our parts would have the most fatal results. We need men and men. hundreds Of thousands Of theun
 to conquer Germany. because, remem- Der we'll that they realize that this war will mean the end of their mediaeval system They will never surrender, but 1 fight to the last man
 l Do not lot us be deceived by reports that Germany will lose this war on eco homie grounds, because such reports are beside the facts. She has prepared for this war for the last 30 years I have information that there are enough food stuffs In Germany today to feed an army of 2,0D,000 men for five years. We also know that the Krupp stores of amn1uni- ton have not as yet been touched, but that they manufacture from day 10 day what they use.'
 l Newport has again been bomharded, and the little town Is practically hi ruins. lOf the old church, which is several hun dred years old. only the four walls arc standing; the roof has been shot away. I the old clock lies fin the center Of the ruins, and not piece of glass three
 inches square has been left unhroken.
 Priest and Children Share Food l After having given my horse in charge
 of a Belgian soldier, proceeded through
 tho streets on foot Soon l was joined l by dear old cure, who insisted | should share his luncheon, two sandwiches of soldiers bread. with him.
 | "I am much greved monsieur" he ! explained to me, to be unable to offer you the hospitality of my house but.
 alas it has shared the fate of most others"
 1 On the west entrance of the church the cure drew my attention to quito a 1 remarkable picture. Above tho doors had been a pedestal with a largo statue of the Virgin. The pedestal was shot
 away, but the statue, about Two feet high, had remained intact, and it al- most seemed as if lt hung there in the air without any support. Only few
 inches of cement held 1t against the wall.
 As we left the church and crossed the market place two little tots, I am | sure not over or years old. boy and girl, came out of n side street At sight of their cure both began to run towards us as fast as their little legs could carry them. They shook hands | with the priest and the girl offered him her apple. She answered few uues-
 tions the cure asked her and then l In my pauvre toi, tn mas pas un pommo7 Att tendez une minute.' And pulling her lt- tie brother along with her, she ran back into the side street. and after A very
 short time returned with an apple for mo.
 ated would have been worthy of the mas ter hand of painter.
 1t seemed such an incongruou5 scene. | so sad, the two little children with their apples in that devastated place. alone and { unprotected. the ruined streets, and in tho near distance tho rumble of the can mons and the reports and buzzing of the mitrallleuses.
 Proceedi gtoward Iombeatzyde we met small detachment of Belgian sol dlers escorting three German prisoners. The officer in charge told me they had
 been found In cellar at I.ombeartzydc, happy to get out alive. This village has
 been bombarded in turn by the Germans, then the French and Belgiens, then ags,n by the Germans. Three Begians, and
 three Germans found the same cellar, and established a temporary truce agree ing that whoever came to their release should decide their fate. The Belgian of- ficer discovered them peacefully together.
 their rifles neatly placed In triangle
 and the men sharing their provisions.
 About mile from Pervyse ono of the officers noticed in the distance, about two miles to the south of us. in n farm | which had practically peen razec intermittent light. We all stopped anl for sometime watched the signals, which appeared to be given in Morse code. "Saprsti,' exclaimed one or the lieu tenants, there is something wrong there"
 | Our cavalcade of six was divided in two patrols, a number of Belgian infan- try soldiers were communicated to ae- | company us. and soon we were on our way to surround the house. It was pitcn dark, and the country around here Is not exactly suited for cavalry patrols. We had to wade or jump ditch almost every hundred yards The signals at the house meanwhile had ceased. When within about half a mile of the house we thought it better to proceed on foot. ! so we left the horses in charge or one of the soldiers. How disappointed and disgusted he was to have to give mp the | hunt. Please. mon lieutenant, he begged, ''l can tie the horses so that they will be perfectly safe alone. Please ie' me come along" But German spies have proved very willy, it was deemed safer to have a sentinel guard our horses
 We had not gone very far when We heard the rifle reports in quick success sion, and then saw number of our othe party race across the field towards tn, farm. WhM we got there man IL peasants clothes was lying on his back
 dead. Beside him a powerful electric
 torch. Papers maps and other documents ir his pockets. marking the position ot
 q certain French and Belgian battery,
 were sufficient evidence that no lnjus-
 tice had been done. The other party had arrived before us; the spy. under
 cover of darkness. tried to escape. but I: well aimed shot from our sharpshooters
 had caught him.
 Il A few days ago it was discovered that
 the wings or are they called "arms') of the windmills are being used for signal
 ing An order has, therefore, heen Issued that every mill. unless working, must
 have it's four arms in an exactly horizon
 tai and vertical position.
 Spies in every imaginable disguise are
 simply overrunning this country. I was shown this morning at Coxyds
 the heavy cement platforms for the large
 German siege guns. It was discovered
 underneath villa. An officer of the Bel
 gian engineers told me that it took him almost whole day to dynamite the neavy foundations From this particular point Duniirk could have been bonAp