Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-11-14

! chinery that can bc used in Germany
/ has been stolen long since.
i 1t is easy tt say. Go to work, but
7 IL is another thing to have work to do
. which IS not Of direct benefit to the
German military authorities. In Char
! lcroi there were about nifty locomotives
! which had been damaged more or less.
The Germans offered the work OF re-
pair with ;air pay to the Belgian work
men. but they absolutely refused. rs
the locomotives could be used III send :
nc supplies and troops TO the front. 1t
was nearly Il month later when. after
failing 10 persuade the BelgianS to
work. the Germans We're compelled to
bring worlmen from their shops III
Germany.
Il have given 20" some idea of the
general relations between rhc Ger
mans and the Eclsians. AS for per
sonal relations. there arc none.
During the week before left Brus-
sells, was u spectator Of an incident
which perhaps shows the distance be-
tween the two better than | can OK
plain. / was standing ON tho platform
OF u tram coming up from town. 1t
was crowded with both Germans and
Bcicians. y German &ub-otlicer took
n cigarette from his ease, and, having
no match, asked tho man standing he
side HIM For light. The Belgian
had nothing to do hut offer the German
=
man went /" return tho cigarette. Ihs
Belgian very politely informed tho Ger
man that he did not care 10 smoke
any more The German could do
nothing. although he felt the tusjnua
ton lie left the tram Immediately
For our real news have had to
depend upon tho Dutch papers. and.
above all, the London and Paris jour
mails. which were smucclcd in from
time to time The German authorities
have done all they could to stop these
papers coming III. even making /: cN-
trcmely punishable. but as Gas. as
,hcy would stop up one charnei ~ the
supply another would II" toun l. Ve
We're never without an English paper
for more than two weeks since the
first of September Of last year.
"on account Of the numerous secret
police who have been trying to detect
those selling and buying these papers.
/ have never been able 20 ind out the
different ways in which these papers
y ere brought in. but have no doubt
shat they passed through As many as
ten or fifteen hands before they reached
Brussels As a result OF this secrecy.
little reading clubs have been created
all over Belgium, together with recu
lar routes OF delivery. y certain mum
her Of people band together. "a the
price wnica is usually about so cents
a copy. is too dear for any one but a
then. after every ono in
the club has read ii, IL is translated
into French and sometimes Flemish.
typcwrittcn sheets being distributed.
sometimes free, OF for Il few centimcs.
THE Commission for Relief of Bel
:, ium has. no doubt. saved a nat ion from
starvation. and under tho difficult cir
has don" a wonderful work.
Tho Ecl-inns know and really aprrc-
catc the n"lp. even II the Germans
have tried tn claim the credit by pub
fishing pictures Of the commission
work and labelling them AS some of tho
fine work Germany has done In Fol
:;ium.
Another report that they liked to
spread among tho liclEiars was that
Tia" Americans were making fortune.
out IF relief work"