New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-11-15

were chosen by chance one because he
was found in the sous prefecture OF
police. another because he happened 70
be standing on his doorstep NJ. Odent
was, OF course, the first. They we're all
taken to Claimant. where the German
General staff was quartcrcd.
And here, on the report of the major
/ that the Germans had been fired upon
by civilians, the fate of Senlis was de-
cided upon. The old able was the first
/ TO learn Of il.
"A colonel was billcted on mo-" he
/ says. "and my servant gave him ali
/ that he asked for. He seemed salts,
/ fed, and at first he did not seem very
bad sort. When | returned 20 my house
/ | found him in the salon and he said
TO me:
My father. | am sorry for you
Why" ] asked.
Because tomorrow YOU will have
no more country.
How is that, monsieur?
Tomorrow there will be nothing
/ left Of your village II will be burned
destroyed. We intend TO make Of
Senlis & new Louvain. IL will be our
French Louvain.'
protested, despairlngly.
But IL is not possible, monsieur. II
would be a monstrous injustice
"'All the villages where we are fred
on will meet the same fate
81 supplicated him. implored him.
1T does not depend on me, my
father the colonel replied sadly.
"'Then.' | said. do me one favor.
Take me before your General staff and
I lot nj . Z
lage and convince your general Of its
innocence
"My father said the colonel. have
you reflected that you will be held as
hostage
$50 be it, monsieur said. DO
not occupy yourself with me-
Perpetual Prayers Promised.
Seek his permission for me and
will remain all day tomorrow in my
house so that you can find me with
out trouble. You will have my prayers
always if you will do this for me-
The next day I waited as had
agreed, but no one came for me, and
| learned in the evening that the Ger
man General staff had decided 10 be
content with a partial destruction"
The brave old able told his story
with all simplicity and modesty and
had 10 be constantly urged to continue
by young priest who stood beside
him
But, my father" NJ. de Lezeau said
TO him. "in Offering yourself as hos
tage YOU went to almost certain death"
ooh, monsieur" replied the able, ait
was o'clock, and had taken COM
munion in the morning"
Some parts of Senlis were spared
but the Germans destroyed from top
10 bottom the Street of the Republic.
1t remains no more than a succession
Of calcined stones under piles Of
wreckage. with here and there a house
hold utensil or piece of cloth show
ing.
II was not the German shells which
destroyed these houses, but incendiary
bombs thrown by hand into the houses.
When a door was found closed the
Germans forced it open just far enough
TO place their bomb inside. The Palais
de Justice and the little sous-prefect-
ure of police, which dated from
the eighteenth century and which was
so pretty that many a souS-prefect had
refused promotion rather than leave
il. were both left without one stone
SNdAQlIk vi dHOkltl. Ut lllAlt ldlA-
road station. where the travellers who
collected there all knew each other by
name and were never too pressed for
time 10 say good morning. was likewise
left heap Of smoking ruins.
."Ah, monsieur said one villager.
II saw them at their work. They went
about it so seriously, with such order
without hurry or crowding. One would
have said that they were working in
their Offices. Nothing was forgotten"
yes" corrected another. "but the
third day they brayed like asses. They
were drunk then. Oh. drunk. Not
drunk as one is at fete or at the
marriage Of relative, but drunk like
savages, like brutes. Do you know
how many bottles of champagne they
drank at the Chateau of CLAIMANT?
1t was a famous champagne, and they
drank two hundred bottles of it. OF
course, that was for the officers. The
men drank the wine in the barrels"
at was at Claimant" the first took
UP the story again. that they MUIR
dered NJ. Odent in a field. They put
a revolver TO each side of his head
and shot him. Poor NJ Odent! There
was nothing left of his head And
then they buried him with his feet
in the air. The cure found him there
some days later.
"And the wretches," continued an
other. when they left made some of
our citizens march before them. Among
them was a little girl five years old,
and the poor little child was wounded
in the thigh by a rife shot. Was IT
not a pity? They took along also
those Of the first hostages who had not
been killed. Would you like to sec
one Of them"
every much"
There he goes now, crossing the
street, NJ. Barbour, the pharmacist
NJ. Barbour was little man OF sixty
years, with gray mustache and bright
eyes shaded by thick gray brows. he
spoke with great precision and IN
spired you with confdence-m you
feel that here was druggist who
would never make mistake in pre-
scription. He had been taken as a
hostage because he had had the i'm
prudence TO stand in his door and
watch the Germans as they took pos
session Of the town. They took him to
Claimant with the other hostages, and
six or seven of them were shot at once
ooh. YES, monsieur" said NJ. Bar
doux. chose were sad hours. One
never knew what ones fate would be.
MANY Of the Germans would stop at
nothing. but as they were only march
ing through our village we did not
have the same commandant very long
al a time. There would be one who
would want TO destroy everything and
would talk all the time of having you
hot as if he had a mania for shoot