Evening star., 1914-10-08
Shows That by Treaty of 1899
Powers Were Bound to Re-
spect Its Neutrality.
GERMANY IS FIRST
TO INVADE COUNTRY
Kaiser's Government Had Heard
However, That France Had Con-
templated Such a Step.

The Belgian legation has compiled tht
following statement of the Belgian cas'
In the present European war. to an
swer the many inquiries that have beer
received on the subject:
by the treaty of April 10, 1889
Prussia, France, England, Austria ant
Russia declared themselves guarantor:
of the treaty concluded on the same
day between the King Of the Belgian:
and the King of the Netherlands. This
treaty provided:
Belgium forms an independent
state of perpetual neutrality
That is to say, Belgium was forbid
den, in case of war. to take the part OF
any of the belligerents.
"Since then Belgium has fulfilled all
her neutrality obligations; she has act
ed in spirit of meticulous lmpartiai-
ity. She has left nothing undone to
maintain and make respected her neu-
trality. Germany's obligation to re-
spect Belgian neutrality was even
more emphatically affirmed by one OF
Germany's greatest men. by the crea.
tor of the empire: Prince. then Soun.
Bismarck, wrote in a letter to Baron
Nothomb, Belgian minister in Berlin,
the 22d of July, 1870, as follows:
".In confirmation of my verbal as
SllranceS. i
writing a declaration which. in view
of the treaties in force, is quite super
huous, that the confederation OF the
north and it's allies will respect the
standing. of course. that it is respected
Ds Us tsiSneG % aVoN BISMARCK
Gives Promise of Neutrality.
august last in the course of the
day, the German minister in Brussels,
NJ De Below Saleske, gave an inter-
view to the reporters of the newspaper
lie Soir, and declared to them that Bel
gium had nothing to fear from Ger
many He went so far as to employ
this expression: You Will see. per. per.
haps. your neighbor's house on fire, but
your house will remain intact The
same day, at o'clock in the evening,
he communicated the following note to
the Belgian government:
THE German government has re-
ceived unimpeachable news to the ef-
feet that the French forces have the
intention of marching on the Meuse by
Givet and Namur. This news leaves no
doubt as to the intention of France to
March upon Germany from Belgian ter
rito1y !. aTSa ,mn.ri., government Of Ger
many cannot help fearing that Bel
gium, in spite of the best intentions.
will not be in a position to repulse
without help an incursion by the
French of such great magnitude. In
this case it is sufficiently certain that
Germany is seriously threatened. 1t is
the urgent business of Germany to
forestall this attack on the part of the
enemy. The German government would
be filled with lively regret if Belgium
were toregard as an act of hostility
against her the fact that her precau-
tionary measures oblige her to violate
on her side Belgian territory
I'm order to avoid the possibility of
misunderstanding, the German gov
ernment made the following comment:
First. Germany contemplates no
act of hostility toward Belgium. If
Belgium consents to assume in the war
which is about to commence the atti-
tude of friendly neutrality toward Ger
many, the German government, on its
side, engages, when peace is restored,