The Ronan pioneer. [volume] (Ronan, Mont.) 1910-1970, 1914-12-25
BELC|ANS, DUMB
BEREFT OF HOPE;
All In a Moment Wars Blast
Scattered Happy People.
Death Alone Rules.
BY SAMUEL G. BLYTHE.

BY SAMUEL G. BLYTHE.
This story of the sad plight Of the Bel.
gians was sent by Mr.. Blythe to the Rec
Cross for use in bringing home to Amer.
leans the urgent need for Belgian relief.
A MAN sat on the deck OF the
"A steamer Amsterdam holding
| ~ tightly to his chest bundle
made up of three umbrellas
and two walking sticks tied around
with cotton string. We were com
ing from Antwerp to England.
He was a thin man. and pale man.
and dirty man, and a tired man. His
scanty whiskers were matted. His
eyes were shot with blood. He seem
ed in constant terror. He started ap
prehenSivey from time to time. looked
around. and then sank back detected
ly. But all the time he Rugged his
three umbrellas and his two walking
sticks.
There was 4 priest on board-a tall
grave man, who had been professor
in some school In Brussels. had been
talking with him. and he had asked
me to walk along the deck with him
and see the wrett he'd crowd that filled
every open space on the boat The
priest could talk i'm Flemish. and we
stopped here and there while he spoke
a few cheerful words to some woman
or some particularly disconsolate man
ASK him why he hugs those UNI
brellas," said to the priest as we
came to the Belgian with the bundle
clasped to him.
When Invaders Came.
We paused. and the priest talked n
few moments with the refugee. "rhose
are all he has" the priest told me
"Those are all he saved when the Ger
mans came. He lived in a village neal
Termonde. One morning the invaders
arrived. They burned the village. He
escaped. He was frightened. He is
frightened yet. He took these pathet
lc belongings and he has carried them
with him ever since. They are all he
has left-all. Everything else is gone
He wandered about until he came to
Antwerp, and they put him OH this
ship to send him to England. He can
not fight. He is lame. He gibbers
when he tells Of his terrors of the past
two weeks. His wife is lost. His chill
dren are scattered. Perhaps they are
dead. All he has left in this world are
his umbrellas and his walking sticks.
There are thousands like him."
Did you ever look into the eyes Of a
frightened dog or see terror in the eyes
Of a, horse? If you have you know
the expression in the eyes of those
Beleians who were being taken to
England. If YOU have you know what
dumb horror means. There were al
most 600 refugees on that ship, and
there had been thousands before them
and We're thousands after them.
They all had the same story. They
all told it stolid'y, Internationally. with
dull precision all except the children,
who hung close to their mothers, equal
Iy horror stricken, equally tired and
travel stained. but not knowing what
had happened. Nor. indeed. did many
OF these women or the men know what
had happened. They We're living their
usual lives In their villages and on
their farms. Suddenly strange men ap.
peared. There was shooting. Soldiers
rushed back and forth through their
streets. Houses crumblcd before ar.
til'ery fire and burned. Neighbors were
killed. They We're told to hurry away
They took what they could of their
poor belongings. tied them in towels or
In sheets and went. They walked and
walked. They slept in the hedgerows
and in the fields. They We're drenched
by rain They had little food. Final
". tired and hungry, they reached 9th,
err men in uniforms who were kind to
them. and now they were on this boat,
going somewhere. They didn't know
where They didn't know why. They
knew nothing. save that sudden
flame Of death and destruction had
swept over their homes, and that. aft.
er much suffering and much pain. they
were herdeu on tie deck of a ship on
their way to foreign land.
what have | dole?" Il woman ask
ed. woman with five children. one
but few months old She sat OH n
bundle tied III sheet. She was thin
and pale. but she was as Unconditional
as If she had beer a wooden woman.
what Have Done?"
What have done?" she 1noaned
What have done?"