Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-02-08

ssNp wtIp not Dcatcn, We are not Dtittcl
and with the help of America we never
will he beaten.
That sounds like the uttcrance of a
man but il came from the lips of n girl
not vet 70 Miss Suz anne Silvercruys,
daughter Of the chief Justice of the SUI
nrrnc Court of Belgium, who is in this
,ountrv IN the interests of her suffering
compatriots. but who passed safely
,hroIgh nine months of the German oc-
rupation of her country.
like y lattcr-day Jeanne d Arc she
stood before the Rotarians and told them
that she wanted to do something for the
land that gave her birth IL it was her
hit To peel potatoes and onions In a hos
pital or to nurse wounded she would do
either. vet she rather would give her
life. because she wanted To"
wAR-M,pE WOMAN
Ii was war-made woman who talked
thus. Girls of 20 don't think and express
themselves the way Miss Silvercruys
did unless they have passed through some
tremendous experience that has suddenly
made them almost mature. Standing
easily and gracefully ut the little speaker s
table before her, dressed in the Belgian
colors. She addressed her audience as if
she had been making public speeches for
years.
There never was any hesitancv. never
anv hunting about for word, although
her acquaintance with English IS only
two wears old She had wit and keen
woman's appreciation Of humorous
situation. especially If il has man IN It.
And then after a flash of this phase would
c0me the almost dramatic utterances
that showed how staunch a Belgian she is
and how she is working with every fibre
of her being 10 help her country.
Miss Silvercruys began her talk by
saving that the Bclgians never believed
that Germany would violate Belgian
neutrality But on that fatcful day when
the scrap of paper" was torn up in Ber
I'm she was in the garden Of her father
country home, some miles from Brussels.
suddenly she heard the boom of guns.
She told her father and he IN turn told
her what had happened Together they
went INTO the house. Her mother was
rryIng. for there was son called To ser
Nicc with the colorS.
Then came the refugees, fleeing before
the German advance, and then the first
IL the wounded streaming IN from where
the little Belgian army was trying To
stem the Hun horde.
WARTIME HORRORS.
That settled II for the Sivercruys
They went to Brussels. Miss Suzanne
wanted to 20 into the Red Cross. At
first thcv wanted her to peel potstoes
because they ii ought her too young to
tie a nurse If that my bit, said she,
III do H. and she did until they gave
her a post in the Palais de Justice Hos
pItal Among the wounded she found
her brother She took HIM home, she
said. and with womanlv whImsicalness
81, II of
Then "the little Belgian lady, as
Miss Silyercruys has been called, gave a
thrilling description of the German oc-
cupatlon Of Brussels. They were the
barharians of the twentieth century, she
SAID They spread all over the city after
loot. while the high command imposed
s tax Of $500 600 on the city
Then came the sack Of Louvain, the
horrors Of which the speaker told Let
me FIRST see my husband, said one woman,
who was told that she was TO be shot.
al" said the Hun soldier before her,
That's the man | Just went through
and he made significant thrust with his
bavonct.
GERMAN CONCEIT.
In Brussels everybody suffered. The
CITY was like a Jail and food prices were
tremendously high The German Of
hccr> thought all the women were in love
with them and couldn't understand why
they were Stunned One said: Why, /
brought my dress clothes and | haven't
slad a chance TO use them vet.
Then Miss Silvcrcruys nalvely told of q
street car incident She had entered but
not paid her fare 4 German officer
touched here on the shoulder just as the
conductor approached Wait, she
SAID and with her handkerchief brushed
the spot where the Germans hand had
been laid Then she paid her fare.
After nine months Of horrors her health
broke and she suffered q nervous break
down II was decided she must leave the
country and 60 to her sister IN England
a passport was obtained and her father
went with her to the frontier There the
parting was SAID. Don't go. he said
but she replied Yes, ! 60, daddy Smile.
smile. smile and then she added: THAT
what we all must do these days smile
smile. smile She will never forget as lie
stood watching her go over the border
Safely across, she whipped out Belgian
flag and waved it to where her father stood
between two German soldiers and called
70 MN, Freedom, daddy"
SAFE IN ENGLAND.
She crossed TO England from Flushing
moi FutAluE NUfu Ul EuSlloN. AT TIT
hotel 20 which she went to await the
arrival OF her sister the waiter handed her
q menu card. She couldn't read it but
picked at random. What she got was
bacon and e-gs one of her favorite
dishes Then came q short course at
Newman College to learn English and
meeting with her brother who had been
invalided from the battle front 10 Eng
land. At Newman, during the first
DAYS, English bothered her She was
told at meal-tIne TO 90 and get cocoa
In her own town 8 word similar in sound
20 cocoa means a parrot and cocoa is
expressed by "chOcolat" She hunted in
vain for the parrot, and finally found he
was 'chocolat." Then her brother starred
for America and not long after he ar
rived he sent for her.
Winding up her talk with an appeal
for funds for the Belgians, Miss SilYercruys
declared with the passion Of true pa
triotisn in her voice: Even If the Ger
mans hold Belgium hundred years she
never viii break down the spirit OF the
Belgian people 1t is our land, our home
and our blood has cen shed for IT, We
would not be Bel ians if we faltered or
forgot
Persons wishing TO aid the Belgian
.ause should communicate with Frank
Turner. 1856 du Pont Building