The Washington herald., 1917-12-16
SERBIA WORSE
MISUSED THAN
WAS BELGIUM
Prof. Reiss Gives First Hand
Facts About Actions of
Germans in Balkans.

In making his plea for a declaration
of war upon Austria-Hungary, Presi-
dent Wilson held out the hope Of fu-
ture help and care for Balkan ma
tions.
This was a direct response to the
terrible cry that has arisen from Ser
bia, a gallant little nation that has
been marked for extinction by the
Austrians, even more So than the
Belgians have been by the Germans.
Remember everything you have read
OF the Germans doing to Belgium.
Then multiply 1t by 100 and you have
some idea Of what the Austrians have
been doing to Serbia
have before me a book which has,
doubtless. been looked over by Presi-
dent Wilson. Copies were sent to the
state Department.
Hungarian atrocities made by Prof.
R. A Rsiss Of the Swiss University
Of Lausanne.
The things that Prof. Reiss tells
are things that he himself has veri-
ned and are backed up by indisputa-
BILE evidence-actual photographs OF
the horribly mutilated. nude bodies Of
the victims OF Hun bestiality.
When the Austro-Hungarian armies
hacked their way through Serbia,
they went not only with the intention
Of defeating the Serb army, but with
the further purpose Of largely exter-
minating the Serbian nation. They
used explosive bullets.
They burned down houses.
They pillaged stores and homes
and banks.
But worst of an they made war
upon the civilian inhabitants. It
made no difference whether the age
was or 90. Here are some OF the
forms Of death and torture that
were meted out to the unhappy
Serbs. I quote directly from Pro-
fessor Reiss:
Victims shot; bayoneted to
death; killed with knives; arms
Topped on, torn on or broken; legs
broken; nose cut on; ears cut on;
eyes put out; victims stoned; wom-
en- violated and killed; breasts cut
on; persons hanged; victims burned
alive or buried alive; one child
thrown to pigs; victims clubbed to
death with rifle; victims inapaled
upon stakes; victims whose skin
was cut in strips"
Professor Reiss goes further, He
gives the statistical tables showing
the kinds of death and mutilation
that were suffered by the victims
in three Serb districts.
Thus IS men and 96 women were
burned alive. Thirty men and IS
women had their eyes gouged ont.
And so on in sickening detail.
He tells Of q massacre et Lesh-
nitZa where the Austrians executed
100 civilians between and SO
years of age. They were taken to
a spot where a pit had been prepar-
ed The people were pinIoned to-
gether and a volIey was fred at
them. Everybody fell into the pit,
which was Immediately filled with
earth without any trouble being
taken to see whether any of the VIC
tins were still alive.
Professor Reiss had the pit
opened.
He found some of the bodies still
pinioned. From the positions of some
he could see they had been alive when
buried and that they had struggled
violently against smothering to death.
He estimated that at least half Of the
party had thus perished.
He says the Austro- Hungarians tried
TO defend their actions by saving that
their troops were in many instances
shot by guerillas-
But, to quote Professor Reiss:
Among the victims tabulated there
are eighty-two children under 10,
eight OF whom were not even l year
old: there are 3OS women, and a very
large number OF old men of over so.
1t is impossible to suppose that babies
Of and months or old men Of IS
should be francs-tireurs."
The report by Professor Reiss gives
a list Of some hundreds Of men and
women victims Of the Austrians,
whom he personally interviewed and
whose wounds he examined. He also
> tells a thing that was never pub
hshed in this country.
In the early days of the invasion
Of Serbia, the Austrians shelled Bel
grade, the capital. The Russian and
English legations were hit by Aus
trian shells although the American
and Spanish flags were hoisted above
them.
In other words, long before we went
to war with Austria, that nation had
fired upon our flag.