The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1914-08-27
Cirque de Paris Is Sheltering
$500 Belgian Refugees.
Floors Covered With Detected
and Homeless People.
Bread, Coffee and Water Their
Means Of Existence.
German Soldier Insulted the
Daughter Of Old Man.

Paris, Aug. N-The Cirque de Paris.
where the crowd of Belgian refugees
has grown to $500 has taken on the
aspect Of a human stable. The floors
Of wide fOyers are all covered with
straw, which has become wet, and the
homeless and poverty stricken people
may be seen lying about many in at,
nurses of the Red Cross. priests. sol
diers and doctors are constantly NOV
ing among the crowd, ministering to
their wants.
At the entrance to the hall a large
cask containing beer was placed and q
soldier was soon apportioning the bev-
erage to a waiting line of men and
boys.
Inside the amphitheater were chill
dren of all ages, sizes and descriptions.
The scarcity of baggage was noticeable,
everyone apparently having taken only
the few things that could be easily car
ried in their hasty flight. The evening
meal consisted Of q huge slice Of bread
with piece of beef on top and after
wards black coffee was served.
An old man, sitting in a corner on a
sack of straw, told the following story:
People call me Jean BeaujOn. I
have a little wine shop across the river
from Liege in the town of Grivenee.
When tie mobilization order was an
nounced my two sons, both fine fellows,
WCAl O1A " JUL I1lClE regiment my
daughters. I have two. this one here
and another. remained with their old
father"
German Struck Her.
The girl -.e motioned to was a bright
eyed girl of about 16 but only her eyes
were visible as the rest OF her face was
swathed in bandages. He continued:
You see her poor dear face? well.
a German was the cause Of that. When
they came they demanded wine which
1 gave them and one man tried to in
suit her. When she resented this he
counter and broke her Jaw
The old man then told of their flight
and the hardships they endured.
my other daughter becoming very
tired after a time" he went on, ''she
sat down by the roadside while this
girl and went on ahead to try to find
some means Of conveyance. A little
further on we came upon q riderless
horse and after great difficulty we
both succeeded in mounting and went
| back to find my daughter. We had
not been gone more than half an hour
but when we returned she was no
longer there.
where she went I don't know. We
spent the rest Ct the night looking for
! her, but found no sign or trace Of her.
The rest of the time until we got on
the train that brought us here, was
cared for by the Red Cross. don't
know Wnere they round me or any
thing else except that I have prayed
every night anC morning since that my
missing girl be returned to me-
Another refugee, Nine. Agnes
Bourssault Of Walkenraedt, in telling
her story Of the flight from Belgium,
said:
Horrible Sights.
please don't ask me to tell the hor-
rible things saw while coming here.
have lost my husband and brother,
who died in the noble cause, and now
you see me alone with my five chill
dren. The greatest suffering under
went was from hunger. We could get
hardly anything to eat for three days
except q little stale bread.
1.-The thing that hurt me most was
my inability to satisfy the wants Of my
little ones"
George S Just, q restaurant keeper
Of Chenee, told this story:
when we heard the Germans ap-
preaching my wife and I fled across
the river into Liege. 1t seems now
much like q dream. Just before they
entered there we left along with many
others.
Never shall forget the sights we
saw along the roadside where mutt
strewed our pathway"
Many other refugees continued to
arrive during the night. The govern
ment is doing everything possible to
aid them.