The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1914-09-24

oOiulCIs VI oil hTHlCS, bOn6llnueS Bct
out Of hand and do things which we
would never tolerate II we knew It.
At Louvain, for example, sentenced
two soldiers to IL years' penal servi-
tude apiece for assaulting a woman"
LouValn Library Incident.
"AprOpos of Louvain," l remarked,
"why did you destroy the library7 II
was one Of the literary storehouses OF
the world"
I'VE regretted that as much as any
one else" answered the general. "It
caught fire from burning houses and
we could not save It."
But why did YOU burn LOuvain at
all?" I asked.
Because the townspeople fired on
our troops. We actually found ma.
chine guns in some Of the houses"
And smashing his fist down on the
table, he continued: Whenever civil.
ians fire upon our troops we will
teach them lasting lesson. II women
and children insist on getting in the
way of bullets, so much the worse for
the women and children"
How do you explain the lombard
ment of Antwerp by Zeppelins" /
queried.
Explains Zeppelin 5ombs-
'Zeppelins have orders to.drop their
bombs only on fortihcations and sol
diers," he answered.
"As a matter of fact" l remarked,
they only destroyed private houses
and civilians, several of them women.
If one of those bombs had dropped 200
yards nearer my hotel l wouldn't be
smoking one of your excellent cigars
today"
This is a calamity which 1 thank
God didn't happen"
IF you feel for my safety as deeply
as that, general" I said earnestly,
you can make quite sure Of my COM
ing to no harm by sending no rnore
Zeppelins."
Well" he said, laughing, 1--WE will
think about it." He continued grave
ly:
Il trust you will tell the American
people through your paper what
have told you today. Let them bear
our side of this atrocity business 1t
is, only justice that they should be
made familiar with both sides Of the
question"
have quoted my conversation with
the general as nearly verbatim as
can remember it. have no comments
to make. l will leave 1t to my readers
to decide for themselves just how con-
vincing are the answers of the Ger
man general staff to the Belgian so-
cusations.
Photographs German Army.
Before we began our conversation l
asked the general if Mr.. Thompson
might be permitted to take photo
graphs of the great army passing.
Five minutes later Thompson was
whirled away in military motor car
ciceroned by an army officer who had
attended the army school at Fort
Riley. 1t seems they stopped the car
beside the road in a place where the
light was good, and when Thompson
saw approaching a regiment or bat
terry of which he wished a picture he
would tell the officer, whereupon the
officer would blow his whistle, and
the whole column would halt
"Just wait few minutes until the
dust Settles" Thompson would re-
mark, nonchalantly lighting a cigar
cite, and the Ninth imperial army,
whose columns stretched over the
countryside as far as the eye could see
would stand in it's tracks until the air
was sufficiently clear to get picture.
Thus far the only one who has sue
ceeded in halting the German army Is
this little photographer from Kansas
Show Thompson Gunnery.
AS field battery of the Imperial
guard rumbled past, Thompson maGA
some remark about the accuracy Of
the American gunners at Vera Cruz.
Let us show you what our gunners
can do" said the officer, and gave an
order. There were more orders, per-
feet volley of them, bugle shrilled
harshly, the eight horses strained
against their collars, the drivers
cracked their whips, and the gun left
the road, bounded across a ditch, and
swung into position in an adjacent
field.
On a knoll three miles away an
ancient windmill was beating the air
with it's huge wings. The shell hit the
windmill fair and square and tore it
into splinters.
Good work" Thompson observed
critically; IF those fellows of yOrs
keep on they'll be able to get a job
in the American navy after the war"
In all the annals of modern war
do not believe there is a parallel to
this American war photographer halt.
ing with an upraised, peremptory hand
the advancing army, leisurely photog.
raphing regiment after regiment, and
then having field gun of the Impe-
rial guard go into action solely to
crafty his curiosity.
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