Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1914-10-07
BY EDWARD PRICE BELL.

correspondent of the Chicago News.
London stories of the ruin
and agony of war in central Belgium
have been told me by F. A. Mckenzie,
editor of the London Weekly Times,
best known for his work as cor
respondent in the Japanese war and
the Russian revolution. Obviously Nc
Kenzie spoke honestly in every word
he uttered and like every other ex-
perienced war correspondent from Bel
GUM and France l have interviewed
he was unable to describe what he wit
messed without an occasional REDEEM
ing of the eyes and faltering of the
voice.
Il have seen savage war in many
lands,' said Mr.. Mckenzie, but never
before anything like that which Bel
GUM shows was done there. Oriental
armies in the hour of victory or Rus
sian troops when relentlessly sup
pressing internal rebellion were mild
and merciful compared with the treat
ment given to this people.
1.-THE German plan of terrorism was
carefully calculated and Germany
does not deny this. It's aim is not
alone to prevent people from attempt
ing to break the lines of communica-
ton in Belgium, but even more so
to alarm the neighboring Dutch peas
antry that Holland would not join
the allies.
Burning of Belgian Towns.
THE German excuse is that the
burning of Belgian towns and villages
was done only as punishment for
attacks by civilians. Yet in case aft
er case entire districts were burned
out apparently because of the stub
born resistance offered by the Belgian
army. Take, for example, Belle, a
place four miles from Client. Here
little force of 500 Belgian volunteers
with two cannon successfully held up
several thousand Germans for two
hours and made them pay heavily in
life before the defenders retired
when the Germans entered the
town there was no resistance by the
villagers, who knew too we'll what
their fate would be. The troops went
into the houses and Toasted off the lit
tie stores of provisions. Officers occu-
pied the largest buildings in the vii
lage, the home of lawyer, a COM
Portable three story building. me
lawyers wife anxiously gave them her
best. but when the dinner was over
the house was burned with so other
small houses.
Graves in Front Of Kitchens.
81 stood in the village street after
the Germans had gone as 1t was
marked by the burning ruins. | no
ticed that the graves of the victims
had been dug sometimes in front or
their own kitchen doors. had to ask
myself. whether the whole thing was
not a fevered dream. The only crime
of these people was that their village
had been the scene of battle IN
which several German officers had
been shot.
II entered the ruins of farmhouse
where the eldest son, lad OF nine
teen, had been shot before his mother
and fathers eyes, because the Ger
mans thought he was old enough 10
he a soldier. The house was burned
so thoroughly that not dish, not
scrap of wood and not an article worth
five cents remained. A child had
been killed close by, possibly by &C
cident. With home gone, crops ruined
and the eldest son dead, the family
was so stupefied with grief that they
scarcely could reply to my questions.
Down the roadway could see
mothers coming back, gazing distract
edly at the ruins of their old homes,
seeking for husbands and sons, rear
ing to ask for their daughters ana III
some cases looking for their babes
and finding them in the ashes OF
death.
While Termonde Burned.
mot long afterward / stood in one
of the few houses left in Termonoe.
German officers also made this thelr
Headquarters during the sack OF the
town. and they had marked on the lln-
tel-the writing still remained-dlrec-
tions that the house was to be spared.
While Termonde was burning they
made holiday here. They found
gramophone and plenty of champagne.
They seated themselves in the garden
PLAYED tunes, sang and drank to the
cracking chorus of 1900 burning
homes. A woman who witnessed the
feast said to me: These Germans are
vertically without hearts
when the officers had gone the
camp followers, who acted as order-
lies and hangers-on around the army
hurst open the door and rayaged the
house. Every window was broken al
most every bit of glass shattered, the
furniture smashed, drawers pulled Out
and emptied, desks ransacked and cup
boards laid bare. In the day nursery
a cbildren's toy dresser was forced
open and rummaged. The playthings
were thrown all around the nursery
and books were torn and hurled to oil
ferent parts of the room. Every
where In the house the Germans
,.,xh+ havoc evidently for the sheer