The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-09-06
Agree to Cease Battling

Agree to Cease Battling
 "A few days after the entry of the German troops the German military au- thorities agreed to cease lodging theil men in private houses upon the payment of 100000 francs (s2o0O0 daily. In som, of the houses between 40 and 50 mer had been stopping.
 @rhe beautiful rooms in the town hall where civil marriages take place, were used as stables for the cavalry horses.
 On Sunday, August 2s, influential peo- pie were aroused from their beds. We were informed an order had been given for 250 mattresses 200 pounds of coffee, 250 loaves of bread and 800 eggs and that | they must be at the market place with | in an hour. On turning out we found the burgomaster standing in the market place and crowds of citizens, half naked or in their night clothes, carrying every thing they could lay hands on to the market place that harm might befall their burgomaster. After this had been done the German officer in command told us that his orders had been misinter- preted-that he had only wanted mat tresses.
 \ All houses in the fashionable parts of the town and on the boulevard had to be lighted through the night by order of the German authorities. The doors of houses had to be left open
 'On Tuesday, August 25, many troops had left town. We had few soldiers in our house. At o'clock in the even- ing, when everything was ready for din- ner alarm signals were sounded and the soldiers rushed to the streets. Shots whistled through the air and cries and groans arose on all sides.
 We did not dare to leave our houses and took refuge in the cellars, where we stayed through the long and fearful hours Our shelters were lighted by the reflections of burning houses. Firing con tinued unceasingly and we feared at any moment our houses would be burned over our heads.
 Raging Sea of Fire
 At break of day I crawled from the cellar to the street door and saw noth- ing but a raging sea of fire. At g o'clock the shooting had diminished We re- solved to make a dash to the station, abandoning our home and all our belong ings except what we could carry.
 We rushed out What we saw on the way to the station is hardly describ- able. Everything was burning, the streets were covered with bodies of victims who had been shot, some of them half burned.
 Everywhere proclamations had been posted surnmoning every man to assist in extinguishing1 the flames and ordering women and children to ctay inside the houses. The station was crowded with fugitives. Soldiers separated me from my wife and children. All protests were use- less. A lot of Ms were marched off to ! big shed in the freight yards, from where we could see the finest buildings of the city and beautiful historical monuments being burned.
 "Shortly afterwards German soldiers drove before them 300 men and lads to |. street corner and they were shot. The sight filled us with horror.
 ''Ihe -burgomaster. two magistrates, the rector of the university and all tho police officials already had been shot.
 with our hands hound behind our backs we then were marched off by sol diers without having seen our wives and full view of the burning town. The church of St. Pierre was in flames. while the troops necessarily sent shot after shot into the unfortunate town.
 We came through the village of Herent -one single heap of ruins-wherc another group of prisoners, Including half dozen priests. joined us
 Suddenly about 10 o'clock evidently as result of some false alarm we were ordered to kneel and soldiers stood be- hind us. with their rifles ready to fire, using us as q shield. Fortunately for us, nothing happened. After delay of half an hour. our march was continued No conversation was allowed and the sol diers continually maltreated us One sol dier struck me with the butt of his rifle. could hardly walk any further, but had to.
 Choked With Thirst
 we were choked with thirst. but the Germans wasted their drinking water without offering us a drop At ' o'clocs that night we arrived at Camperhout on the way to Malines. We saw the hall burned bodiee of men. women and chil-