The Washington herald., 1917-05-14
Terrible Devastation by Germans
Told by Mistreated French Refugees

Special Gable to Ths Washington Herald.
Paris, May 1s.-"what the eye sees In
the regions of France which the German
troops devastate as they retreat has been
described for the whole world. believe
It is interesting and important TO give
the accounts told by those whose homes
have been laid waste and the graves of
their families emptied of their dead.
writes stoddard Dewey in the Evening
Post These poor souls. in bodies worn
by two years and a half under armed
invasion. are coming for shelter and re-
lief into towns all the way to Paris. FL
lott #. Shepard, of New York, wrote
from his house at Chantilly on the zth
of March:
ION Sunday last at $50 pm, go French
refugees from Saint Quentin were dump
ed by automobile camions into our town,
another 70 In La Morlaye, and about Loo
in Senlis. These people consist entirely
of women, with children under Is years
of age, and old men over IS, as the Ger
mans. before evacuating them from
Saint-Quentin and the neighboring dis
tricts, retained all children, both male
and female, of Is years or more. These
refugees have all seen their homes burn
ed to the ground, and most OF them are
separated from their sons or daughters,
and are absolutely destitute. 1 actually
have % Of them, including II children
under Is years of age. in my house. and
everybody In our neighborhood is doing
their utmost to come to their aid. but 1t
is impossible to supply the absolute needs
of ALL"
Mr.. Shepard ends by making hurried
appeal for clothes. money, or any other
gifts.
story Told by n Nun.
ITO avoid any suspicion that natural
feeling is coloring the facts, have
tried to give only accounts from those
whose known character and position
warrant their being heard with respect
The hrst is from a religious sister
who had charge of a small orphan
asylum at Fayet, a village of 800 in
habitants not two miles from Saint
quentin. The Sisters story shows how
long the German retreat has been pre-
pairing.
On February Is. the German COM
mander came and took away the six
Of our orphan girls who were more
than ID years Of age. He told US they
were to be sent to work in the North.
On the 23d he came back and told all
OF us to get our baggage ready. We
strictly necessary.
"'At daybreak they came and fetched
us on the railway to the station of
Babeuf (twenty-four miles back from
Saint-Quentin toward the French linesJ
There We were kept huddled in a cor
ner all day before we could be got to
Noyon (four miles further on and the
nearest point OF the German lines to-
ward the advancing French. Thus the
fad in fnh - Il
tants of the regions they were going
to evacuate nearly a month before
hand and meanwhile completed their
devastation of the country
before we left Fayet in the morn
ing, we saw three automobile wagons
in our little courtyard, loading up our
poor furniture to carry II on in the
other direction from ourselves (that
is, with the retreating German army
and further. whereas the Sisters and
their orphan children were sent back
to. wait for the advancing French).
Soldiers too were already at work
hacking down the fruit-trees in our
garden.
lone OF our Sisters spoke German.
She asked a sub-officer: What are
they going to do with usT
"T know no more than you do he
answered. but I believe we too shall
not be long in getting away-and we
shall never come back
Soldiers Dying of Hunger.
This Sister who spoke German went
every week to Saint-Quentin to our
mother house. She took advantage OF her
trips to carry to the community there a
few things to eat, for the want OF food
was very much felt in the city. The
American committee did its best to re-
victual the civil population-but the Ger
man soldiers were literally dying of hun
ger. Twice the sentinels caught the Sis
ter, for II was forbidden to fetch food.
Each time, instead of arresting her, they
took part of what she had and let her
go on with the rest. For several months,
this Sister saw in her trips thousands of
Russian and Belgian prisoners kept hard
at work roundabout Saint-Quentin."
The Sister was asked what their life
was like during their two years under the
invaders. She answered: Tt was a rule
OF iron. with continual acquisitions and
every kind of annoyance. The officers