Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1917-07-25
RIGHT HANDS OF
BOYS CHOPPED OFF
How The MurderOus Huns Butchered
Children i'm the Belgian Raid.
EVIDENCE AS SEEN
in IOWA
A Story That Makes Grey Haired
Men Want to Grab and Use
Gun.

The following is from a late press
dispatch sent out from FIT. Madison,
Iowa, and is recital of known facts
that are sufficiently frightful to make
any red-blooded man want to grab
a gun and never lay it down until
Belgium and her people, and the en-
tire outraged world, has been we'll
ridden Of German butchers. We
publish it with the idea that it will
help to brace up some weakened
young man who is shivering with the
fear that he will be called to do his
duty, and earnestly hope that the
time may come when few grey
hairs will not prevent real men from
answering the pleading call of suf-
fering humanity.
The story of the results of "Kul-
tur" and inbred deviltry follows:
People of Fort Madison have seen
positive proof Of the stories of Ger
man butchery of Belgians and have
heard from the lips of some of the
victims first1hand accounts of the
atrocities which marked the pro-
gress of the German army across
Belgium and into France and later
it's occupation of some of the towns
which it sacked and wrecked to make
Hun holiday.
On a Santa Fe train which passed
through FIT. Madison a few days ago
were a Belgian woman and her two
boys, enroute to California where
they had been promised home and
a chance to erase as we'll as may be
the memories of the horrors through
which they have passed since the fall
of 1914, when the fittle Belgian
town where they lived was entered
by the Prussians and their little
world was overturned in a day.
The mothers wan face, her silver
ed hair and the marks of keen suffer
ing in her face gave the appearance
of woman of middle age. She's Is
still in her thirties. Her boys-one
is seven years old, the other nine
will carry through life their marks
of German "Kultur," for each has
given his right hand as toll to the
brutal armed mob which overran
Belgium, burning, numbering, loot
ing and violating, with a lust which
knew no law, no decensy and no hu-
manity.
Many women and children were
murdered; this mothers life was
spared and her children, with dozens
Of their playmates, lost only their
right hands and escaped from the
Prussian's Belgium alive.
The story of this family, as the
mother told it to sympathetic train
men and travellers during the jour
ney from Chicago to FIT. Madison, is
no different from the story OF many
other families, the woman said, save
that murder was substituted il many
cases for the vivisection which seem
ed to please the lawless Germans
better in other instances.
This family lived happily in lit
tie Belgian town near Louvain. The
father owned little drygoods store
which yielded a living for himself
and his family but left little for saw
ings. When the Belgians were called
to arms to defend their kingdom
from attack, he Joined the colors and
few weeks later he was killed IL
battle.
Meanwhile the Germans entered
the town, wrecked the little store
and most OF the houses in the COM
munity, drove out the old men and
herded the women and children into
the public square.
Then the boys were sorted out OF
the crowd and forced into the CEN
ter of the awed circle of refugees by
erinning Prussian soldiers who did
not hesitate to use their bayonets 10
enforce their commands. Each little
Belgian boy was forced to lay his
right hand on chopping block, and
German officers leered as they swung
their swords and sent them crunch
ling through the tender flesh and i'm
mature bones. Their laughter rang
out as each little boy, bleeding and
moaning was caught up by his moth
er, the Jagged stump of his wris'
leaving a crimson trail until turn
|iquets were applied aad death was
averted.
Only the strongest children sur
CONTINUED on page %