Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-11-18
A Story Of 1914
By LOUIS TRACY

en- and children ran past, All screaming
and evidently in state OF terror. Sew
sral houses In the town were on fire,
and the smoke hung over the river in
such clouds an to obscure the north
hank.
Old Henri Joos came hurriedly into
the yard He was .s.si Hnr ting w,di =:
vanished. Refusing to be penned up
any longer without news OF what was
happening, Dalroy lowered the ladder,
and. after ascertaining that Irene WAS
way to the kitchen. pausiag emily to
md out whether or no. 1t held any
German soldiers.
Joos' shriM voice, raised in rialedic-
tion of all Pruss.ans. soo1 decided that
fact He spoke in the local patoia, but
strai2htway branched of into krench
fnterlardsd with German when Dalroy
appeared.
'srhose hogs" he almost screamed.
our brave boys of the Sd Regiment. so
what do you think they're doing now?
Numbering men, women aud chiiuren
out OF mere spite. The devils from hell
shooting at them. 80 they began to
stab. and shoot, and burn in all direc-
tions. 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 of again. young Jan Smith ran
by. Poor lad. he was breathless with
fear. They asked him If he had seen
another car like theirs. but he could
only stutter. One Of them laughed. and
said. TIL work q miracle and cure
him. Then he whipped out a revolver
and shot the boy dead. Some soldiers
with badges on their arms saw this
SEN t-rhe people have been shooting).
though II was their own officer who
fired. and he and the others threw lit
tie bombs into the nearest cottages.
and sQuirtsd petrol in through the win
dows. Madame Did:er. who has been
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
volleys at them. There was Dupont.
and the Able Courvoisier. and Mon
sieur Philippe the notary. and-ah.
mon Dieu. l don't know-all my old
sessd' n.r The Ppus.en beasts on Tt,
how can save your They are devils
devils. tell you-devils mad with
drink and anger. A few scratches in
chalk ON our gate won't hold them
You. mademoiselle. had better go with
Leontine hero and drown yourselves in
the mill dam. Heaven help me. that is
the only advice q father can give!"
Dalroy turned. Irene stood close be-
hind. She knew when he left the gar
ret. and had followed swiftly She
confessed afterward that she thought
he meant to carry out his self denying
project and leave her.
You are mistaken, Monsieur Joos."
she said now, speaking with an aristo-
cratic calm which had an immediate
effect on the miller and his distrauRht
womenfolk, You do not know the
German soldier. He Ia a machine that
obeys orders. He will kill. or not kill,
exactly as he is hidden II your house
has been excepted 1t Is absolutely safe"
She was right. The mill was one of
the places in Wise spared by German
malice that day. A well defined sec
ton of the little town was given up to
murder. and loot. and fire. and rapine.
Scenes were enacted which are indie
seribable. A brutal soldiery glutted its
worst passions on an unarmed and de-
fenseless population. The hour was
near when some hysterical folk would
tell Of the apparition of angels at
Mons: but old Henri Joos was unques-
tionably right when he spoke Of the
presence Of devils in Wise.