Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-06-28
THE DAY OF WRATH
A STORY OF 1914
By Louis Tracy

were quite startled by series of knocks
on the boarded floor Dalroy crept TO the
trap door ana listened
Then, during an interval between the
satvos Of artillery he heard Lcontnes s
voice, Monsieur! Mademoiselle :"
lie pulled up the trap. Beneath stood
Leontine, with long pole in her hands
Beside her on the floor was n laden tray.
"Tve brought you something to eat" she
said. Father thinks you had better re-
main there at present. The Germans say
they will soon cross the river, as they
intend taking LieEe tonight"
Not until they had eaten some excellent
rolls and butter. with boiled eggs, and
drank two cups OF hot coffee, did they real
ize how ravenousiy hungry they were. Then
Dalroy persuaded Irene 10 lie down on
pile of sacks, and. amid all the racket OF
a fierce engagement, she slept the sleep
of sheer exhaustion Thus he was left on
guard as II were, and saw the pontoOns
once more demolished
After that he, too. curled up against
the wall and slept. The sound Of rife shots
close at hand awoke ann. His first care
was for the girl hut she lay motionless.
Then he looked out There was renewed
excitement in the main road, but only few
feet of II was visible from the attic. A
number Of women and children ran past all
screaming and evidently in a state of terror.
Several houses in the town were on fire,
and the smoke hung over the river In such
clouds as to obscure the north bank.
Old Henri Joos came hurredy into tho
yard He was gesticulating wildly, and
DalrOy heard a door bang as he vanished
Refusing to he penned up any longer with
out news Of what was happening, Dalroy
lowered the ladder. and after ascertaining
that Irene was still asleep descended He
made his way to the kitchen, pausing only
to find out whether or not 1t held any
German soldiers.
Joos's shrill voice, raised in malediction
OF all Prussians, soon decided that fact
He spoke in the local patois, but straight
way branched off into French interlarded
with German when Dalroy appeared.
Those hogs" he almost screamed
Those swine-dogs They can't beat our
brave boys of the Third Regiment, so what
do you think they're doing now? Murder
ing men, women and children out OF mere
spite. The devils from hell pretended that
the townsfolk were shooting at them, so
they began to stab and shoot and burn in
all directions, The officers are worse than
the men Three came here in an automo-
bile and marked on the gate that the mill
was not to be burnt-they want my grain,
YOU see-and as they were driving off again
young Jan Smit ran by. Poor lad, he was
breathless with fear. They asked him II
he had seen another car like theirs, but
he could only stutter one of them laughed
and said, III work miracle and cure him
Then he whipped out revolver and shot
the boy dead.
Some soldiers with badges on their arms
saw this. One OF them yelled Man hat
geschossen' ('The people have been shoot
ingD, though 1t was their own officer who
fired, and he and the others threw little
bombs into the nearest cottages, and squirt
ed petrol In through the windows Madame
Ddier, who has been bed-rdden for years.
was burnt alive in that way They have
a regular corps Of men for the Job. Then,
to punish the town as they said they
took twenty of our chief citizens, lined them
up in the market-place and fired voleys at
them. There was Dupont and the Able