The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1915-01-21
A Baby Belgian Refugee That
Couldn't Forget Wars Horrors

ing to him or telling stories, hopin
thus to escape the afternoon slumbe
j hour, full of nightmares and childis
: bogeys.
Read" said l. "You are not oil
7 enough to read. What can you read !?
He grasped the newspaper in wrin
killed. fists, settling his face into mimic
seriousness.
i II think-I think it says, The sol
diers can't hear any music, and CAM
run any more without music" said
our Otto.
The dreaded subject he voluntarily
had opened up. Try as we would it
seemed impossible to displace the war
story in his mind We refrained from
talking about it before him, but some
how he heard the gist Of big events
either from the play of children or
on the street.
Tagged and labeled, watched over
by kind people on ship board, Otto had
come to us out of the midst of actual
fighting. His father was at the front.
His American mother was nursing the
wounded.
"Tante, read to Otto" said the
child, relapsing now and then into
his fathers tongue.
"Read about the horses that ran
an ran until them had no breath,
when them sat down to rest and
wicked ones Gas he always
called the enemy snot the poor, poor
horses"
SIS there anything to read like
hat, Tante like the tired horses?
See, Otto will show you; he saw
hem"
Excitedly he ran to the nursery,
bringing back an armful of wooden
oldiers and three shaggy horses on
wheels. He lined up the horses, nose
o nose.
"Look, tante! The wicked ones
ided here (placing wooden soldiers t
ehind chair legs). Now the horses q
e down, cause they're ruined too
ar, Tante. The wicked ones bang!
n the poor horses kick up high. Then b
m fall down, shooted dead Can't S
an any more; can't eat Gone dead. Q
ito saw EN-" C
Could any game, any pleasure, dis Il
lace such picture, which the little h
rehearsed day in and day
1T? Diversions were only momen- e,
n.y. He always came back to the 81
,rses "gone dead" So
"Come, little man; gather your
rises. We will march to the nur- O
ry-one, two, three"
But march" was meaningful de
ord to 5-year-old Otto. he
"Get a gun, Tante," he commanded ay
he swung the fire shovel stiffiy to Of
shoulder; threw his little BABY wi
in up; put out his foot to catch the III
'p. all
We marched to the nursery in tb
lex time-he with the fire shovel,
With the tongs-to the accompani- m,
mt of Otto's rhythmic Bum! Buml in,
/, BIN, Bm" emphasized with as an
IVY a thud on polished floors as sb,
t, shaky 5-year-old legs could
Ike. be,
:, l;++Io ,,,b;ta ,;rb+oo1,,,, he ,oI,,Y,,, -
n httle "hiee nigh'gowh ne pump Tn
himself down in the middle of his fol
!, looking me straight in the face tho
Go to sleep now, little man. At bn,
ward there will be surprise for +bo
. any
Is Water sleeping in bed, Tante? r
Ike Otto's?" began the baby. as hali
Freddie Jones said some SOL Eve
s sleeped on dirt. Tante, Water FOO
sleeping on dirt, is he? Is it q
dirt? Freddie Jones said it was nov
dirt?" e
Shall l tell you fairy story while II
go to sleep?" l said, trying to s;nt
ace the "cold dirt" picture. q
IN, yes" He clapped his hands. hove
'ell about the wicked ones what %,
It have but one eye, an the big +b;s,
er said wicked ones mustn't have g,
eyes, an he shooted the other % =
&c
here did our boy hear this "a 81
D of some atrocity tale. &c,
, sat up straight again on the ~
white bed, his eyes shining with
ement. Sleep? 1t only comes to unS
Otto when he is exhausted. no,e
r.dd;a Ionasn ha Esnod mEroa hole,
ones, he said Mutter was bleeded Il
e her tied up broken legs. Her up
all bleeded, is her, Tante? 1 by
I'd like to write her a letter soien
an say, 'Dont get bleeded.' Does ping
rt to put rags on broken legs deep
%" as
hurts little, Otto-there, lie to m,
now" l supposed he meant "B
urt to the broken leg being ban got
!, but no him
sobbed. Tears rolled down fast. mine,