Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1918-10-25
CHAPTER v.
The Kaiser Defends German war
Methods.

The kaiser was always very carefui
about everything which might aIec1
his health, ard even after the war
started, when his attention was n@tE
rally occupied by many pressing PROF..
lens, he did not neglect his teeth, Du{
came to me as regularly as he had al
ways done.
OF this I was very glad, because /.
gaye me an opportunity to draw liz
kaiser out on many Of the interestin@
questions which The war suggested
and which l found him always rei-,IG
to discuss. Perhaps the fact that !
was an American led the kaiser t;
greater lengths in MS Justification c
German war methods and measure .
than he might otherwise have though
necessary.
The first time I saw the kaiser aftc:
the war started was about August 10
1914. Between eleven and tWelv,
O'Clock the night before, l had beer
notified by telephone that the kaiser
would like r. . attend him at the
Ter.in p&lGce lie following morning
1t nine c'-le1E. lie was about to max:
his FIST ..sic to tie front and wante"
Lis teeth examined before he went.
The work I had to dc for him Wa
n1thiG=: c: serious character and dif
not occupy more than twenty minutes.
Che OF his Wallets stood by to give II,
any assistance I might need, but lei
the room when I was through.
''iIavc you been reading in the pa
pcrs, Davis" the kaiser asked when we
were alone, "how our soldiers have
been treated By the Bclgians?"
said I h&d not had chance to
read the p2pers that morning"
"Well, you must certainly read them
They've been gc1ging out the eyes Of
ouc wounded ara clat:laiiug my men
horribly! They call It modern, civil
Iized warfare. That's savagery. !
hope your president is taking notice
OF these atrocities"
OF course vas IN no position t.
contradict the kaiSer's assertions, as
] was not in possession OF any Of thu
EactS, but ! learned afterWard thai
four American newspaper correspond
eats had secured Germany from one
end Of the country 70 the other in ali
cirnrt to run down these reports. They
left no rumor unlnvestigated, no mat
ter how far they had to travel to YER
ity it. When they had finally exhaust
Cd every cil< and followed every LEAD
they Ead not found a single case to
justify the charge the kaiser had made
against The BaIsians and which, Of
course, the inspired German press con-
ti,ucd TO r2rcrt i"0m day to day.
The oi,ject 81 these lies was to JUS
thy the o,.tragos which the Germans
were committing in their plan to ter
rorize TIE Inhabitants of the countries
th2y were ovcrrupning. According to
reports The activities Of franc-tireurs
in the occupied territories were met
hy the Germans with the most bar
barrie punts6msnts, crucifixjon and
similar atrocities being very common.
Undoubtedly .a2 kaiser was aware OF
what his soldiers were doing and &c
defend ta4;r conduct he lent a ready
ear t. tie UIiounded charges made
against lie Dclgians.
- lave alycady framed a message
viii. mend sending to your DTe5i-
d~;it ~a~rlilg the use Of dumdTm
br:.@j2 ~ tie Re!gians and French"
tn" I.,.:s.,r went on. "We have ample
pre-! - establish this charge not only
in TIA character Of the wounds suffered
By ~ soldiers but in the shape of TN
use1 cartridges which we found in the
captured forts"
S..r4ngc!y enough, the kaiser sent
Off lis protest to President Wilson
albeit tie same day that President
pc'a>arc forwarded a similar protest
ba.yG mon the use Of dumdum bullets
By Tic Germans.
z:c::arG.nE the violation of Belgium's
ne.;Gajity, the kaiser was able to Of
f.. 10 reasonable argument. The fact
TIL he was willing 10 pay Belgium Tor
permission to allow his armies to 90
through that country was apparently
sufficient justification in his eyes fo-
taking by force what Belgium refused
to sell.
"IIow foolish of Belgium to have re-
sisted u.s." he declared in this con-
nection. "Had they consented to let
lis wall; through We would have paid
for notwithstanding! not
hair of their heads would have been
touched and Belgium today would be
in the same happy financial condition
Tat Luxembourg IS"
st subsequent interview we 70.
ferrod 10 Belgium again, and the k2i-
ser alleged that Japan had violated
the neutrality OF China when she sent
troops through Chinese territory tc
seize Kiao-Chau.
at is all right fer The allies TO 90
these things" he commented sarca&-
fical!y, 'but when Germany does them
England rises up ii righteous in<li&-
nation. The hypocrites! Why, We
found papers in Brussels which
showed conciu$ively that England a2u
Belgium had a secret agreement Is
which in the event Of war with G2H-
many England was 10 be permitted to
occupy Belgium! We've got those Ds;'
Ders in Berlin. We could have No
more positive proof against them. The
BeIgians were simply Eng!and's toois!"
Some of the arguments the kaiser
raised in his discussions with me re-
GarGing the war were so weak and
rntenahle tho ono might well doubt
-. -.;..-.ar;L.- -, ,irciLer them BIZ