Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1917-12-28
WHITLOCK'SS STORY
OF DECORATIONS
Report Of German Disregard Of
Human Rights on File in
State Department.
OVERWHELMED WITH HORROR
NinlSter to Belgium Declared Il Was
Difficult to Write Calmly and Justly
In View Of the Huns Gratu-
ltouS Cruelty.

Facts concerning the deportation
Of BeIgidnS and the forced labor e1-
tOrted BY tho Hun" military lead
ers, Thich srcitsd the indignation Of
he civilized World, have been thus
officially set forth:
The plnn Of setting forth the
Hal facts OF the deportntions and
forced labor OF Belginns Ia set forth
by the committee on public inforna-
ton ns follows: the documents, TINT
is TO say, a small fraction Of those
which could be cited, tell the story, and
only such comments are added as are
needed to enable the reader 10 easily
grasp the connection OF events.
"The deportatlons were the
Iost vivid, shocking. convincing, single
%appening In all our enforced observa-
lon md experience Of German dis
regard Of human suffering and human
rights in Belgium."-vernon Kellogg
In Atlantic Monthly, October, 1917.
A summary OF the whole situation,
down to January, 1917, can be OBJ
tanned by reading continuously the re-
port OF Minister Whltlock, taken from
the files of the state department. This
tells OF the brutality Of the deporta-
tons.
Legation OF the United States OF
America, Brussels, Jan, 10, 1917.
"The Honorable, the Secretary OF
State, Washington.
"Sir: ] have had II in mind, and I
might say, or my conscience, since
the Germans began to deport Belgian
workmen early In November, to pre-
Dare for the department a detailed
report on this latest instance OF bru-
tally, but there have been so many
obstacles In the way Of obtaining evil
dence on which n calm and judlcious
opinion could be based, and one Is
30 overwhelmed with the horror of the
thing Itself, that 1t has been, and even
now ls, difficult to write calmly and
Justly about II. have Ind to content
myself with fragments Of dispatches
! have from time to time sent to the
department and with doing what l
could, little as that can be. to allevk
ate the distress that this gratuitous
cruelty has caused the population of
this unhappy land.
WhltIoek Opposed Belgian Idea.
"In order to understand fully the
situation. It IN necessary to 90 back to
the autumn of 1914. At the time we
were organizing the relief work, the
Oomlte National-the Belgian relief or
Kanizatlon that coilnborates with the
commission for relief in Belgium
proposed nm arrangement by which
the Belgian government should pay
10 Its own employees left In Belgium,
md other unemployed men besides,
the wages they had been accustomed
10 receive, The Belgians wished to
do this both for humanitarian and pa
triotic purposes; they wished to pro-
vide the unemployed with the means
of livelihood. and, at the same time,
10 prevent their working for the Ger
mans. | refused to be connected In
any way with this plan, and told the
Belgian committee that II had many
possibilities Of danger; that not only
would II place a premium on idleness,
but that 1t would ultimately exnSper-
ate the Germans. However, the policy
was adopted, and has been continued
In practice, and on the rolls Of the
Comlte National have been borne the
names of hundreds of thousands
some 100000, | belicvc-of idle mon
receiving this dole, distributed through
the communcs.
'"rhc presence OF these unemployed
however, was II constant temptation
10 German cupidlty. Many times they
sought to obtain the lists of the Cho-
meurS, but We're always follcd by the
claim that under the guarantees GOV.
Silllk INV : Nv i'N'lhN w
the Comite National and It's various
suborgunizAtlonS were immune. Rath.
er than risk any interruption Of the
rpvitaillemcut, for which, while loath
60 own any obligation to America, the
Germans hive always been grateful
since Il hns had the effect OF keeping
the population calm, the authorities
never pressed the point, other than
with the burgomasterS of the com.
munes. Finally, however, tho mill
tary party, always brutal, and with an
astounding ignorance OF public opin,
ion aud OF moral sentiment. deter
mined to put these idle men to work
Genera! Won Kissing and the civil
portion Of his encourage had always
been and even now are opposed to this
policy, and | think have sincerely don,
what they could, first. TO prevent 1t,