The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-02-20

w As | do about the Tragedy
Of Errors. The young Eng
.iehwoman who traAied nurses in Bel
gum and who herself solicitously
cared for wounded soldiers ,Germans
too. ii is said) succeeded In smuggling
Belgian and English soldiers over the
border of the country occupied by us,
thus increasing the number of men
fighting Germany.
A crime bora Of patriotism such as
klest and .Arndt. Schill and Ior'k
would have eulogized IA crime which ~
neither as unclean nor ns repletc with
dangers az spying. but which must he
avenged by equally hard punishment.
The Hague stipulation that the avcnger
o. outraged neutrality never acts IL
legally cannot excuse such doinTs.
that fence crumbles under the hands
Of our foes.
Miss Cavell fearlesely confessed her
deed; a court-maStial in Brussels
sentenced her to death. Perhaps this
martial intended, through he
severity Of that sentence, to deter Other
smugglcrs in men: perhaps, too. 1t re-
sarded as a~ggravating the crime or
the accused the fact that she had mis-
used the trust symbo.ized by hcr
nurses garb. l think this feeling Is
- - ,r,.,. --.r,a,s
are immune from the weapon of the
.."' c.. Vs.. .,nia, 600 -
nr W,ss Cell s,ood IN tho soryice
NJ s,cred humanity and her alterna-
,ive UNA onenly IN renounce tina, SER
vic. and discard rhe consecrat GC in
sigma cr to for.ro secret, trick,
fur,herance OF patriotic interests.
Tho diploma,ir representatives ~
,v, neutral nations asked mercy for
,he convicted woman In spite of this
rho sen,ence WAS carried out. A. a
resul, a howl Of fury went through the
world which crowned eyeyyrh sg that
had been heard after the sinking Of
the Lusitanis. The Governor Of Eel
GUM and the Kaiser were vilified N
word and picture: and the final verdict
WAS. here and abroad. "Al. Germany
is guilty Of this woinan's murder. foI
not a voice is raised against it N the
empire
Most Of those who thus heapcd
vituperation upon ais knew perfectly
well that the Governor OF Brns-"tS Wa~
absent and "A nothing 70 40 WIN 'h'
case; theS kne" t"' 'htl 'Le Na's'i
had p~ardoned Miss 'aNe'', me NV"
or the couFt-nlaT'iaI VII" ".' NV Wv"
or TINS ihtenuon, Huete" wv 'N'".
tion heiore the Nais.s paiuon "u
arrived from seherai "e""i""
The officer kept strictly withih the
province Of his executive rights. Even
the sincerest intentions cannot IN tihhe
OF war AVOID such CASTS vi
Any n who has preserved common
sense must admit that the Kaiser acted
humanely and u 'hat
prudence alone. II nothing else. coun-
selleSl the Germans 10 desire a inherent
outcome of this case.
Do you suppose that the NATION 81
Kant and f'euerhach, of Goethe and
/. Schopenhauer-that this nation Is
tickled with JOY by the picture "t a
woman dragged in from, ot twelve rI''.
muzzles' II so you should AZ 'eas'
consider IL sober enough FOR IN" COO
!, weighing of quickly vanishing Iust Tor
revcng. and long lasting damaging et-
, feet. Barely have attempts n deter
: ring examples borne prohtahIe fruits
: III our zone.
Was the process OF the execution al
I least described truthfu!ly? Thcy say
Miss tavtll stepped braN"ly out "i h'i
cell, proudly told the f.ng!ish priest
who escorted her now JoNtu!N sh'
would die for her fatherland. then sht
. tainted. Whereupon, the story says
4 ne German officer Who coninaild"d tht
i1ring squad stepped forward ana sho'
p h.r load with MS revolver,
3 If this IS SO Il am unable To ycrify
i the story), then | must praise the ,our-
: age and the sympathetic heart of the
' officer ,whom the French call a
P miserable monoclcd .luukcr and com
5 mon murdercr'). On the other hand
Il he timidly observed the letter Of his
order he would have mad the con
demned woman Drought back To con-
seriousness ana forced her 1" Suif'r the
D., agony of the death hour "A second time
, lie could not order his men 10 hrt
upon II woman lying unconscious on
, bitter burden Of the execution, then h.
, was merciful. not cruel, q sNmpathctl,
man, not a brutal cNccutloucr.
ON the whole every one concerned
,,,,,d 40 his ,onsrirnr, hid him act
=. and IN Germany there ar, mon "A hum.
,lrcl uersons ,o.day who de- nor sin.