New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-07-22

AS early as 1911, he" rohehS ui'ei a.
sace-Lorraine was transferred and delivered
without the consent of the governed to
use the words of President Wilson, persecu-
ton commenced. At The inauguration OF the
new courthouse at Strasburg the Imperial
Procureur, Popp, thus ended his dedication
speech: "Clemency in Alsace would be a mis-
take and moderation a danger" Improving
on this, the Imperial Chancellor, Won Caprivi,
the successor of Bismarck, said in the Relchs-
tag on juno 10, lS90 ave must dig deeper
and wider the abyss to separate France from
Alsace." few month"; later the present
Kaiser told the Alsatian recruits assembled
on the Place Kl6ber, at Strasburg: You are
Germans and you will remain Germans"
There never was, properly speaking, con-
stitution for Alsace Lorraine, except that RI
diculous instrument granted in 1911 which
gave the two provinces an imitation of local
government directed by the Bundesrath in
Berlin, creation of Prussian feudalism.
Even that is to-day thing of the past. An
archy rules supreme. drunken policeman
can have you sentenced for life at hard labor;
his testimony alone counts, while the as
eused Alsatian is there in court helpless and
stunned neighbor with whom you may
have had an insignificant quarrel at one time
or another may denounce you as being pro-
French, and you are arrested and sentenced
as traitor" Your protests do not count,
sour past honorable record is not taken into
consideration; you are a traitor simply be-
cause you have been denounced as such. In
Alsace- Lorraine hundreds of executions have
taken place and are taking place now.
Military Murder
A most nhuman tragedy, reported to me by
the son of the victim, who holds position
in department store in Manhattan, occurred
in Upper Alsace.
In the little town of V there lived a
farmer whose cattle and horses were, requi-
sitioned by the colonel of Bavarian regi-
ment. The law legalizes such acquisitions.
providing that the owner be given receipt
for everything that has been taken from him.
The farmer asked for his receipt which
was refused on the ground that several of his
relatives were fighting in the French army.
His protest against such conduct being of
no avail, he. forgot himself to the point of
calling the colonel thief (Rauber). No
sooner had the farmer pronounced that fatal
word than he was arrested and led TO the
Town Hall, used as a Jail. On arriving there
he found eight of his co-citizens, among them
the old Catholic priest, handcutfed to one
another He passed them by and was led to
room and locked up. During the night he
heard an unusual noise; he went to the win
dow overlooking a small courtyard and from
there he saw three of the men whom he had
passed lined up against the wall; few mo-
"a aftar,uard eouad ~ upiform ed
sassns had shot them dead
Attempted Suicide
The old farmer could not stand that. He
walked back to his seat, took out his pocket
knife, opened it and commenced to cut the
arteries of his wrist. At that moment a
Prussian sentry opened the door and seeing
that the old man was attempting to commit
suicide, rushed to the wounded man, took
his knife and exclaimed: "Du schwein, jetzt
wssen wir du Elm Verraeter bist" ("You
pig. now we know that you are traitor")
The wrist was quickly bandaged by an ambu-
lance orderly, and an order was sent to a
nephew who lived on the old mans farm to
repair at once to the farmers potato field and
there to dig hole to bury zone of the requi-
sitioned horses which had died" The young
man obeyed the order, and so reported at the
colonePs headquarters. A few moments after
that the farmer and the Catholic priest, their
arms tied behind their backs, were hoisted on
wagon and the procession slowly moved
toward the potato field. On arriving there
they were greeted by a young officer and
twelve men. The farmer was informed that
he was to be executed then and there, and
that he would better set his conscience right
by confessing to the priest.
IL have nothing to confess" replied the
farmer firmly. II have committed no crime
and il you shoot me you shoot an innocent
man. The young lieutenant, unmoved. or
dered ''Feuerl" and the old man fell in a
heap in the grave dug by his nephew.
This is one of the many, many executions
that take place at this hour in Alsace. A
business man in Mulhouse, the former manu-
featuring town, was caught the other day
having In his possession q letter, q simple