The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1917-10-24

ih"huScrlpt from Athens u lovely
head of Apollo from Ephesus, and
iridescent glass from Persia, with a
bit of old Tyrian purple lending
spot of flame in one corner and a
little mosaic from Thebes colored an
other when he saw the end was
approaching, while on IL visit to
Egypt. asked that he might be car-
ried home to die i'm the studio, which
he made rich with his soul?
What the Iii,lcOus Hun Has Done.
In some such way as that the
French peasants loved their land, aud
then lost it. One morning the enc
my stood ut the gate. The farmer
with his pruning knife was no match
for German with machine gun.
and down he went under the plum
tree he was pruning. The devas-
tated regions of France are like unto
u devil world. All the pear and
plum trees have fallen over under
the stroke OF German axe, and are
dead and dry. Here and there one
sees an occasional tree where a haIi
inch of bark remains, and, sympathiz-
ing with the PEASANTS sorrow. the
roots have sent a Hood Of sympa-
thetic tears and sap oat into one lit
tic branch amidst the death of hun
dred other boughs that famed in
May its rose and pink of bloom, then
In August gave its red glow to clust-
cred food. But as for the rest, it is
desolaion. Gone all the beautiful
brldges-rhey have been dynamit-
ed. Gone all the lovely and
majestic thirteenth century church
es. Gone all the galleries, for every
city of $500 people in France has it's
quarterly exhibition of paintings sent
out from Paris. and some of the finest
art treasures in the world have per-
ished. The land has been put back
to where 1t was when julius Caesar
described it 1000 years ago-a wild
iand' and waste, growing up with
thorns and thistles. That proclama-
tion on a wall tells the whole story:
Let no building stand, no vine or
tree. Before retreating, let each well
be plentifully polluted with corpses
ana with creosote.' The spirit was
tnis: Since we Germans cannot
have this land. no one else shall"
Your eyes never saw more ex-
quisite bit of carving for the cor
ner Of roof than this Ca spray of
myrtle leaves. carved in stone, after
the Germans had destroyed the
Cathedral of Arras) Look at this
hrebrand Every German company
OF soldiers carried one automobile
lorry filed with these firebra nds. with
a tank of gasoline hanging beneath
the axles. One of the historic chat
eaus is that Of Avricourt, rich in no.
bic associations of history. 1t was one
OF the buildings specially coverd nv
clause in the international agree
ment between England Germany.
France, the United States and all the
civilized nations. safeguarding his
toric buildings. For many months it
was the home of Prince Eitel, the
kaiser's second son.
| Forced TO retreat. the aged French
servants. who understood the electric
lighting and the gas plant and serv-
ed Eitel during his occupancy, when
the judge and jury held the trial at
the ruins of the chateau stated that
they heard the German officers tell
ing Eitel that he would disgrace
the German name If he destroyed
building that had no relation to war
and could be of practically no aid or
comfort TO the French army, and nc
would make his own name n name of
shame and contempt, of obloquy and
Scorn' But the man would not yield
lie brought In great wagons and NOV
ed to the freight cars at the station
aosoiutely every object that was I'm
'he splendid chateau. And. having
promised to leave the building unin-
luref' ne stopped .his car at the en-
trance and exit gates of the ground.
'"n Ddck 10 the historic building with
can or oil that he had secreted.
iIiied the asbestos in tins ball of per-
'"r"tcd iron, ran through the halls
ana waited until the flames were we'll
IN progress. and then ordered his mon
20 hght the fuse of Il dynamite bomb
All the testimony was taken imme-
''"'eiy afterward from aged servants
ana from the little children. and
''e ueseheracy revealed has not been
surpassed since the first chapter of