The Washington herald., 1915-05-30

into the town shells containing a pow
siegcd fairly to sneeze their heads of !:
but until the present war nothing of
| the kind has been attempted in mod
crn times at least.
If the air may be poisoned. perhaps
the ancient rule against poisoning the
water may he disregarded. For CEN
turtles this latter practice has been
scorned in honorable warfare as not
only cowardly but as imperilling the
lives of noncombatants.
Still there is a fine distinction made
between poisoning the water and fill
ing the water sources with dead ami
mails. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston did
this in Mississippi to retard Sher-
mans pursuit of him, and a textbook
of the American army holds it to be
a justifiable measure. This is because
the infection is not concealed and
the enemy is warned by the presence
Of the carcasses in the stream or pond.
1t is only equivalent. therefore. to cut
tiHs oil water supply cHtlEcly,
which is a recognized measure of war
fare. The British are reported to have
filled with stones the desert wells
along the caravan trail between Egypt
and Syria, a thing that the Turks did
in their attempt to check Napoleon's
advance along the same trail in 1899.
Points Of Honor.
Rules of this kind are dictated
rather more by a sense of honor than
by a sentiment of humanity. While
deception and surprise are among the
essential elements of warfare, there
must be no betrayal of confidence or
downright treachery. Although 1t is
the business of war to kill, assassina-
tion is reprobated. and the Confeder-
ate government at least did not in
dorse the offer of $4,000 which the
State of South Carolina is said to
have made for the assassination of
Gen. Benjamin F. Butler.
If civilization has been unable to
soften warfare generally. 1t has work.
ed great and salutary change in
the treatment of captives. Until three
or four centuries ago. they were put
to death or condemned to slavery.
With the progress of the world, eau
casian slavery disappeared. and the
vanquished foe now commands far
more chivalrous consideration than he
received in the misnamed age of chiv-
airy.
Many Of the Spanish soldiers and
sailors in the war of 1898 were con-
WINGED that the Yankees killed their
captives. Gen. Shafter thought it we'll
to assure the defenders of Santiago
and sending them back to their COM
rades as proof that surrender did not
mean death.
While in nearly every war there are
exceptional instances when no quar-
ter is given. the white nag and the
upthrown hands are almost univer-
sally held to be inviolable. and the
surrendered become the wards. rather
than the prey. of the victor Even
their personal belongings are guar
anteed to them.
Another great gain that civiliIa-
ton has won in the struggle to
shackle warfare is in the respect that
has been established for private prop
erty. In the beginning. pillage was
the soldiers only reward. Even q
century ago Napoleon went into some
Of his campaigns virtually without .
commissary. and left his troops to
steal their food as they marched.
Al the world grew in wealth. how
ever. commanders and governments
insistsd upon taking the plumber for
themselves. but they have been
shamed out Of their rapacity. Besides