The Washington herald., 1917-04-22
Tells TALE OF TERROR
CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE.


ganizing the relief work, the ComIte Ma
donal proposed an arrangement by which
the Belgian government should paw to
It's own employees left in Belgium I'D
other unemployed men besides, the wages
they had been accustomed 70 receive. The
Belg1ans wished TO do this, both for hu-
manitarian and patriotic purposes: they
wished to provide the unemployed with
the means OF livelihood and at the same
time prevent their working for the Ger
mans.
Idle Received Dole.
The policy was adopted and has been
continued in practice, and on the rolls of
the Comite National have been borne the
names OF. hundreds OF thousands-some
( 'OeWO, 1 believe-of idle men receiving
this dole distributed through the com
munes
The presence Of these unemployed
however, was a constant temptation TO
German cupidity. Many times they
sought to obtain the lists OF the chomeurs
put they were always foIled by the
claim that under the guarantees cover
ing the relief work the records OF the
Comite National and its various or
sanizations were immune
Rather than risk any interruption Of
the ravitallement, for which. while loath
to own any obligation to America the
Germans have always been grateful,
SINCE 1t has had the effect Of keeping the
population calm. the authorities never
pressed the point other than with the
Burgomasters Of the Communes. Final
ly' however, the military party. always
| brutal. and with an astonishing ignorance
| OF public opinion and OF moral sentiment.
determined to put these idle men to
work"
Mr. Whitlock then tells OF Won Bissing.
the military governor, rebelling against
the policy Of Won Hindenburg.
Protests to Berlin.
Won Bissing went to Berlin to pro
test the report continues, threatened
to resign, but did not He returned and
German official here said that Belgium
would now be subjected to a more ter
| rible regime, would learn what war was
That prophesy has been indicated
| THE deportations began in October in
sthe Etape, at Ghent and at Bruges. The
policy spread; the rich Industrial dis
tricts of Hainaut. the mines and steel
| works about Charleroi were next at
tackled: now they are seizing men IN
| Brabant. even in Brussels, despite some
indications and even predictions Of the
civil authorities that the policy was about
to be abandoned.
! During the last fortnight men have
been impressed here in Brussels, but their
! seizures here are made evidently with
much greater care than in the provinces
with more regard for the Appearances
There was no public announcement Of
| the intention to deport, but suddenly
about ten days ago certain men in towns
whose names are on the list Of "Cho-
meurs received summons notifying them
| to report at one of the railway stations
on a given day. Penalties were fixed for
failure to respond.
ION the first day, out OF about l,5O0 men
orderd to present themselves at the Care
du Midi, about $50 responded. These
were examined by German PHYSICIANS
and about 800 taken. The commission for
relief in Belgium had secured permis-
sion to give to each deported man q loaf
| Of bread, and some OF the communes
provided warm clothing for those who
| had none and In addition a small finan-
| cial allowance.
As by one Of the ironies OF life. the
winter has been more excessively cold
! than Belgium has ever known IL, and
selves were adequately protected against
| the cold, many OF them were without
| overcoats. The men, shivering from cold
! and fear. the parting from weeping wives
| and children, the barriers OF brutal
Uhlans, all this made the scene q pitiable
and distressing one.
The rage, the terror and despair ex-
cited by this measure all over Belgium
were beyond anything We had witnessed
since the day the Germans poured into
| Brussels, The delegates Of the Commis-
sion for Relief Of Belgium, returning to
Brussels, told the most distressing stories
of the scenes of cruelty and sorrow at
tending the seizures.
Transportation everywhere In Belgium