New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-10-10
Innocent Belgium's Sufferlnss TIC
Great Crime of the Eu-
ropean War.

r,xalr,es ont Of which the war grew. lA'ue pei
.,,,, rrooncerped in the antagonisms between the
,rr,ple Alliance and the Triple Entente and guarah
TODD IN her independence and neutrality by the
movers Of both groups has been dragged py Ger
,orv had faith into the focus of the conflict anu
heen made TO bear so far the brunt or us ra'"se'
History can offer no more garing instance OF 'he
,o,,oro ~ an innocent neutral nation sacrinced 10
usdr ond tho ambitious military policy OF
more powerful neighbor.
Tho fun weight of Germany's military opera
,ons in the western theatre OF war leh oh De'
r;rro The first onset was directed against Aieee
and Namur. Both were besiesed ana pai''a'''
,.o, ord Dinant soon shared their fate Lou
at, noe burned and Malnes was wrecked by IT.
- ,or,hordments Brussels was penallzed d!
oXcossive levies of money ana loou'
non, he;nc demolished by the fire or the Uis N4uPP
,,rs and by bombs dropped from the Yep
,,,,odrods Of thousands Of Belgian CIVIL
ions have been driven from their holneS' ''D
,,dorors in their own country, some nave
-. ., Holland and some to England. old men,
ord children have naturally suffered 'he
moot from the devastation of the country Inv
~. 4, Rolcirm has been far more widespread
-, ,.o. IN the PARTS Of Northeastern France
.,,,o, tho Germans have occupied. The open anu
a,o,rod enemy has been treated with CERTAIN
-. -, consideration. while the friend and pro
- u,urose If any offence and converted INTO
on enomv only by Germany's own aroi'iai' anu
MING, action has been dealt with as IL 'no IL
.sors ,rore irving to collect to the last penny
,.,,r accumulated debt of national hatred
If Antwerp falls and the Belgian government
i obliged TO establish itself on foreign BULL '''
.u,,,r,rb over a weak and unprepared
- will no pretty nearly complete. But the
- e &c the deeper will be the stain on
cermanv's honor All the protestation Id Tue
-, .o,,. Tho imperious military necessity OF
,nr po,cian territory as a base Of operations
=. r,ronca will never palate the cynical oao
toitb or Germanys violation or Belgian SoNei
o;o,ntv. The Kaisers government deilOeI"'ei'
.,ro international treaties in attacking Lege
ut, ,ros ono Of the European powers which
s;yned the treaty creating Belgium neu'rai S'''7
-, .,o.optoeinr her independence and territorial
MT. Under the terms of that treaty Belgium
r,odcad herself to Prussia to resist efforts on Tic
mart Of any other nation to Violate her heu'i"'
n,otrs She was bound in honor to PRUSSIA aS
or &c % the other European powers to repel
-, ,o,ond Of the Berlin government for free pas
SAGE Of German troops across her soil.
Gan Il he that because she stood 1a'Ihiul u
oonoract with Prussia, which the Kaiser as NiDs
-, prrse;a was anxious to repudlate' she mas pee"
..o, tho severities Of war in a special de
oo, Ia Gcrmany's harshness the case Vi I"
a.o,once hardening itself against the VIC
:. hoe cruelly wronged? The Kaiser also
socond international treaty-that signed
., The Hague in 1907-when he sought 10 coinpei
po,,,um to allow his troops TO invade France by
nav If the Meuse Valley. That treaty says: BEL
,,coronts arc forbidden to move troops or conveys
n, either munitions of war or supplies across the
territory Of q neutral power" 1t also requires
montreal power TO prevent such a movement OF
,roons or conveys. Belgium lived up to the treaty
which she signed in company with Germany But
cermanv had as little respect for The Hague com
mac, ~ 1907 ms she had for the earlier joint cor
yention creating Belgium a permanently neutral
uatOn.
In 1870, when Germany was at war with France,
Prince bismarck gave Belgium an assurance in
writing that Belgian neutrality would not be VIC
lated But he added that lin view of the treaties
in force" such an assurance was quite super
auous" Bismarck has unfortunately been dis
placed in Germany by publicists of the school Of
Won Bernhardi and Won Behmann-llOllweg. I'VE
arc violating treaties and the law of nations said
the latter discussing the invasion OF Belgium, but
will repair the injustice afterward' The injus-
tice is getting so monumental that it can hardly
be repaired in Bethmann Hollweg's lifetime. Every
Belgian soldier killed or wounded every woman
child and civilian sacrificed, every Bit Of Belgian
property destroyed and every refugee driven out
Of the country adds To the immensely Of the score