The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1915-08-08
AMERICA is LIKE UNTO
HEAVEN TO THEM
Little Ones of Belgium Rescued From Ruin and Desoiation
and Hunger Are Restored to Loving Parents Arms In
leland of the Free and Home of the Brave"

o'clock tomorrow aAtsthVo.' -.
a certain train rolls into De'ron 49,
~houf raised that was ever nearo u"
the state of Michigan
rren,iwh fathers and mothers VINO
Il Ne, Eeiw4uu before the war starred
ana who went to Detroit ana S1hsi
town. nearby to become good Amer
icau citizens, will md their cnIus
on that train--chtldren LETT oentnd "a
FLANDERS because of the necessary oa
making A home fer them IN the
FOR a YEAR these fathers and
mothers had had no news or their
rabies. did not know for certain
whether they were dead or awe ara
could only foar the worst. They nsa
read of the ruin OF the very villages
IN the devastated district from Nieu-
mort. OF the North Sea. TO Hpres' ana
All along the User Canal. in which
their children had been left with
relatives, but as to whether OF not
these children had been killed by
shell fire or starved in the general
misery Of the land they could not tell.
Brings Them to Glad Parents Arms
Therefore. when the Rev Father
H. Syoen. OF the Church of Our Lady
of Sorrows, q Flemish congregation.
who has been hard at work since last
March In locating and removing from
the Flanders war zone the little peo-
ple left behind by their parents when
Belgium was happy land, steps
from thu train tomorrow afternoon at
sh~ head OF his company of pink and
piump-cheeked, yeiiow-hatred, bright
faced children, there is sure 10 be
mighty happy celebration. Father
syoen took them from Ellis Island this
y afternoon AT O'Clock aboard the i'm
migra tion department steamer Thomas
c. Willard and placed them on the
p. NJ. train of the Lehigh Valley Rail-
road leaving Jersey City. He brought
them to this country yesterday on the
Holland-Ameriean liner Ryndam,
eighty children and twenty-eight
grown-ups.
A Merry Party.
1t was a pretty miserable day
around Ellis Island, so far as the
weather went, this afternoon. 1t was
rainy and damp. but nothing could de-
tract from the merriment of Father
Syoen's westward bound party. Con-
slider that these Belgian babies tthe
greater part of them are four, five or
six years old) had never been any
where before they undertook the von-
derfni adventure which brought them
10 = .nericd under the care of the good
priest. Their eyes were too small to
take In all of the sights, and much
Of what they saw will remain mys-
teries until they learn enough Eng
iish to ask all of the sights, and much
teries until they learn enough English
TO ask all OF the questions that we're
ginning in their eyes.
IL was not difficult for Father Syoen
TO arrange the removal of his flock
from detention at Ellis Island. All
that Uncle Sam wanted to be sure of
WAS that none OF the children would
have 10 De taken care of by charity
Tells of Search For Children.
II was not possible to exaggerate
the wonderful change that has taken
place in the lives of these children.
Father Syoen expressed 1t simply:
Last March," he said, many of
my partshioners. Flemish. who have
settled In Detroit, labsrers most OF
them. but all independent and MAX
ing their way. appealed TO me to gs>
to Belgium and rescue. their children.
They were not even sure where the
children could be found, All they
could say was where they had been
left I made up list of about $50
that was to try and locate and bring
back here When ! reached the Ger.
man lines In Northern France my
troubles began. ] was referred first
to one oficial and then another until
finally at Cobientz my errand was
simpiified and l was permitted to go
into Belgium and search where I
pleased.
Most OF the addresses / had were
in the Flanders war zone, between
Newport and Ypres. / visited villas &c
after village. Some had been utterly
destroyed, and all of the inha bita nj s
had been driven northward or east
ward But in most cases ] was able
to trace the refugees and find them
where they had taken refuge with
relatives or with charitable persons.
Some of these children--that little girl
there and her brother removed
from cellar where they had been
living for months with lombard m eats
going on almost necessarily. But they
were too yeang TO understand the ffop-
ror of II all,
No Complaint Against Germans.
II must say, too. that | have no
complaint to make as regards my
treatment by the Germans They did
what they could TO facilitate my work,
Eventually. / gathered my children to-
gether. along with such adults as the
Germans would permit to leave the
country, and got them all 10 Rotter
dam and aboard the Ryndam. The
rest has been easy although fear
have gained a few gray hairs from
watching so many little folk.
Conditions in Belgium are much
better than they werei ! can say that
thanks to the American relief work
there is now no starvation In Belgium
The Germans are honestly distributing
the food and supplies received from
America. They are aiso paying for
what they themselves use. Most
Belgium, farmers are again tiiling their
fields and their crop has been a go I'd
one. IAborers in the towns and cities
are not so well off, but so long as
america continues 10 send them food
vthey will get along somehow / fear
the winter will be a harder trial than
last winter was All Beigians are
thrifty and gave their money. Thous-
ands have been living on these saw
w4ngs which they put, not In a bank.
but in some private hiding place.
These savings have been exhe listed
md the coming winter will find thous.
ands penniless who had some money
last winter. I
MY own people have ben ru'Led by
sknA war. ] came from little VII
EiAge within short walk of D'xmEde.
and there ] saw a sister with four
srhiidren clinging to a ruined home.
she would not leave. I have n bro, aer
with ten children who lives In viz