Williston graphic., 1918-07-18

man forces. I did not learn what be-
came of the hospital itself.
Beside house with the roof pone
and part of wall blown in, stood a
woman with a babe wrapped in !
shawl. She looked about, bewilder.
ed, dazed. She could not enter the
home for it was in ruins; besides
there was every likelihood Of more
bombs being dropped. She motioncd
frantically at man in passing
horse cart, but the vehicle was crowd
ed and he needed not. She crossed
the street, sank by the roadside and
hugged the babe close to her breast.
And the German Kaiser calls on
God and man to witness the glory Of
his arms.
! We went back to our train but
found it had gone. Again we hur.
ried through the scenes of terror and
devastation to the station, three miles.
hoping to catch the train there.
Two weeks before, when l wanted
to enter the station and take a train
for Paris l had to show my American
passport, my British white pass, have
an officer vouch for me and give the
ticket agent the exact fare. This time
the ticket agent had left, the guard
and porters were missing; little re-
manned but chaois.
The only thing systematic about
the whole place was the ORDERLY man.
ner in which men were carrying in
stretchers bearing the wounded from
the front and placing them on a Red
Cross train in the station
We soon guessed that our train had
not been able to pass through the
station, and walked through the sta
tion and along about two miles of
tracks to find it. There were six
or eight tracks in the yards and we
passed from one to another, climbing
over trains and through cars to make
sure we were not missing ours. The
glass was shattered in every car we
saw; bombs thrown over the area had
worked the havoc.
Many refugees had come into the
yard and had piled on cars to which
no engine was attached, as if hoping
by some chance an engine would come
along and take them somewhere, any,
where, to safety. There were old
women and young women, old men and
children, huddled together, fearful lest
the wrath of the German hordes
should overtake them. We went thru
these scenes for more than two miles
and found our train about a half
mile from where we had left it.
With war on, the German had a
perfect right, according to the rules
of international warfare, to bomb that
railway station, to blow up the tracks,
for it was through that station and
on those tracks that men, munitions
and food were sent from the south to
supply the army Of the north, and an
army has a right to cut off the rein
forcements and supplies of an enemy
army; but there can be no rule of
humanity or decency, no right of any
kind in law or precedent that would
permit the Germans to send Yer air.
planes, and with them bomb women,
children, old men, wounded soldiers
and nurses who were in Amiens that
night.
Gearman Man Traps
When the Germans withdrew from
one city after the first battle of the
Somme they blew the front out Of
buildings with system and thorough
ness.
It appeared as though some one
had come along with huge cleaver,
tying to chop off the frort hcf If
each lui ding.
After the battle, the Germans
possessed this city, and, whi.:, some
of the buildings showed the result of
shell fire in battle, there was plenty
of evidence Of deliberate wreching, of
explosives having been placed in an
entire row Of three-story stone build
ings-used for stores on the first
floors, and dwellings on the second
and third floors and discharged with
ruinous effect. This was done just be-
fore Hindenburg's famous voluntary
retreat, after which the Freach came
back to their city.
They found one building intact. 1t
was their city hall. Of course, they
conjectured, and were even generous
enough to ascribe to the German gen
erals some fine sentiment for having
left their public building, even when
they wrought ruin all about it. The
mayor and others gathered to cele-
brate.
They opened the door and stepped
onto the threshold. There was ter
rife explosion, and people and build
ing were blown to pieces. There was
very little even of the cellar walls
left. Bombs had been placed in the
building and wire attached to the
threshold, with the result seen.
In residence bouquet of flowers
was left for those who returned. 10
1t string was attached, and when
the boquet was lifted there was an
explosion with death and wreckage
following.
IN, - &hn