The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-09-29

| Csssioh OF the DisInneritedI Stupefed
| Rather Than Terrified"
In the Outlook Albert r. Williams
writes wildly of his experiences in
| Belgium after the German invasion.
He tells among his experiences the fol-
| lowing:
| 1--WE We're up on the little hill back
of Mesch just as the sun was sinking,
and for the first time war, in all it's
terrible spectacular splendor, smote
me hard From the hill at my feet
there stretched a great plain filled
| with a dense mass of soldiery. One
| could scarce believe that they were
soldiers SO well did their gray green
coats blend with the landscape One
might believe that they were indeed a
| part of it could he not feel the atmos-
| phere fairly vibrant with the mass
personality of the myriad warriors
tramping down the crops of the peas
ants
Those great hosts on the plains be-
| meath had furnished the picture with
red, luminous background made Of
| the blazing towns of Mouland and
Wise. The fire was set as a warning
to the inhabitants round about. They
were taking the warning and coming
by the thousands across the border into
Limbourg. their only haven of safety.
When we drove down from the hill
into Eysden we We're In the midst of
these peasants fleeing before the red
wrath rolling up into the sky. They
came shambling in with Il few posses
sions that they had hurriedly laid their
hands on, singly or in families. Il pitt
full procession of the disinherfted.
Some of the men were moaning as
they marched along. but most of them
were taking it with the tragic resigna-
ton of the peasant. not understanding,
stupefed rather than terrified
Wit and Candy His Best Passport.
I'm the morning l climbed to the
lookout on the hill. The Germans had
all gone. | walked over to where the
great Netherlands flag proclaimed neu-
trail soil. l showed my pass from
Maastricht. and with one step | was
over the border into Belgium, now I'M
der German jurisdiction. The helmet
ed soldiers across the way looked
neither fierce nor fiery. In fact. they
greeted me with smile. | explained
that l was to go through to Liege.
Was it possible? They shrugged their
shoulders. Was it dangerous? Not in
the least. The Germans We're right.
1t was not dangerous-that is, for the
Germans. By proclaiming the ever
lasting friendship of Germany and
America and passing out some choco-
lates l made good friends on the home
base
"A half mile and | came for the first
time actually face tc face with the
waste of war. There was what once
was Mouland, the little village | had
seen burning the night before. Here
and there a house had escaped the
torch. In the smashed window of one
house bright geranium bossomed. 1t
seemed to cry for water, but | dared
not turn aside In the last house as l /
left the village a rocking horse with
its head stuck through the open door
smiled its wooden smile. as though it
at least could keep good cheer though
the roofs might fall.
"One Belgian had sought for his own
benefit to conciliate the Germans, and
as the kaiS2r's troops Mt the turn of
the road came upon his house there
was the kaser's emblem raised to
greet them. The man had nailed it
high up in an apple tree that they
might not mistake his attitude of true
ulent dislotalty to his own country,
hoping so to save his home. But let
it be said TO the credit of the Ger
mans that they had shown their con-
tempt for this treachery by razing this
house to the ground, and the poor fell |
low had lost his soul along with his
earthly treasures.
A Woman's Way of Counting Favor.
Il saw now few houses with signs
of life and a little below Argenteau
came upon several buckets of water in
front of a house, with peasant wo-
man standing by them. l inquired
what these were for She had no time
to explain. for a column of soldiers at
that very moment came plodding SLOW
ly along.
"As soon as she saw the soldiers there
was a smile on her face which i'll con-
cealed her anxiety. She pointed to her
pals. At the sight of the water a
thirsty soldier here and there would
break from the ranks, rush to the pals.
take the proffered cup. and hastily
swallow down the cooling draft. and
always with smile or with word of
gratitude hand the cup to the woman
and rush back again to his place in the
ranks.
i followed the road now leading down
through the long street of Jupilles. SO
| arrived on the outskirts of Liege,
and expected to see battered city. aft
IA all the bombardments it had under |
gone. but 1t seemed to have suffered |
really but little. considering it had been
the centaI arnl1nd r,-hinE IL. -+or... |