The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-09-17
BEHAVIOR OF GERMANS
FOUND MOST EXEMPLARY

continued OH Sixth PaEc.)
wantonly murdered lie lived in one
of the typical small Belgian country
side houses which combine the comforts
Of home with the lure of n small pub
lie bar. This house was ut the north
end of NcrbcS lie Chateau. town
through which a large part of the Ger
man army passed on the road to Maui
b"uSe. y son Of the murdered man,
whose name was Arthur Nicobem
showed me blood clots ON the floor
Irarliinr the place where Nicobem fell,
his throat cut by a saw edged German
sabre
1T WAS said by some inhabitants that
tho murdered man showed Il pair Of
binoculars. but - more probable OK
PLANTATION WAS that English outposts
had concealed themselves in the houses.
from which they poured a rain of fire
upon the first German invaders. The
infcrncc that the shooting was done by
Bclgian civilians may have innamcd the
Germans 10 rcprisals. In that neigh
borhood four houses had been burned.
and one WAS ablazc as passed August
26.
INIIAHITAN ADMIT
SHOOrINE FROM HOUSES
This town Of Mcrhcs lc Chateau.
which had been the scene OF AN uu-
important SkiriuiSh between In" Ger
mans and English on the previous sun
small number of windows intact showed
that the Germans had made Il DELHI
crate aSSa ut upon the residents OF the
town. I;ut the inhabitants themselves"
admitted that all of the shooting had
been done by a comparatively small
number of Germans and that the firing
had not been begun until English sol
dicrS who had concealed themselves in
the houses had first fired upon the
Germans.
II have emphasized the one fatality
of the noncombatant because the news
of il Travelled up and down tic Sam
brc and across the lIantcs- Wibcric and
Solorc- sur Sambrc. multiplying as il
went and developing CHASTITY and in
human details until it seemed an un-
answerablc rcproach TO the whole Ger.
man empire. With this one possible
exception, l did not encounter in any OF
the other towns I visited Il single in
stance of m!streatmcnt OF any sort by
German officers or soldiers
neutrality-suspicious. the lower
part of tho city-virtuallv had been
destroyed by a cross-iire from French
and German artillery. Tops OF brew
cries had been hurled to the ground
and walls had either disappeared or
become dislodgcd. The whole city law
III mokinv ruins. With only its draw
bridge across the Sambrc and "a few
marble stands and lighthouses showing
tboNf INC bc'lIlS. lut Incrc. TWO DAYS
after the battle. women and childrcn
were moving comfortably about the
city, and not a single complaint was
uttered against German conduct.
There are, of course. reported out =
RACES beyond investigation, either ON
account OF their va2ucncss or because
II is impossible to weigh the provocu :
tons. 1t is known for instance that
IL natives were killed in l"nouchamp.
not Ear from Ardcnncs: German soldiers
say thai they wcr" killed because they
fired upon them from the roofs and
windows Of the houses.
GERMANS GIVE VERSION
OF LOUNAIN'S DESTRlC TION
Tho history OF the absolute dcstruc-
ton of l.uuVain with its cathedral and
rs university is by this time well
that the Inhabitants. under the dircc-
ton Of the burGomastcr. established
themselves in The church where they
Installed machine gun. They pro-
c"cdcd Ia greet the Germans with Il
deadly fire.
The Heleans say that par, OF the
German army, mistakimg on OF their
own retiring divisions for the enemy.
opened fire upon them. whcrcupon. de :
lud"d into thinking AN assault by Bel
gan civilians. the Germans RACED the
whole city.
Il have not been able to acquire any
direct evidence IN regard TO III" last
TWO instances but the explanation gem
orally credited by disintcrcstcd persons
IS that the l;clSians who had laid down
their arms according TO the burgo-
masters proclamation on the entrance
of the enemy. took them up, again
when il looked as If the Germans were
rctrcatinS from the town and opened
IRE from their windows upon II retiring
German train.
The most authoritative German de-
NAL of German offences comes from
Major General Thaddcus Won Jarotzsky.
military governor Of brussels. who in
formed me that In numerous cases
he had been received with a prctens.
OF fricndlincss by Belgian civilians
WHO later fired upon the German sol
dicrs from windows and from between
the, roof tiles. This was done after a
declaration Of surrender by the burgo-
master ana u proclamation warming the
citizens against any show OF resist =
ancc.
In such violations~of the rules Of
war. the general said, he punished the
Offenders by burning the houses from
which the shots We're fired.
In every ease of reported outrage
or rcprisnl which was susceptible OF
inNcstieation, have found either that
The outrage was a flgmcnt OF the Bel
gan mind or that il WAS more than
halt excused by circumstances
The prevalence OF the Belgian prac-
ice Of suiping from the houses was
perhaps Indicated 10y the warning OF
the German officer vino acted as guard