Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1918-08-16
Confined from Last IssusJ
The Graves Of Treason"


This vast and complicated engine
Of oppression and Of terror was in
cessantly, tireIessly hunting down
patriots. seeking out evidence for
prosecution for what the Germans.
by a very peculiar logic. impossible
simply by charging him with trea-
son in time of war. Anyone, II
IL be so desired. may be convicted
OF treason against Germany, no mat
ter what his nationality may be.
cimply by charging him with trea-
son IN time OF war Hundreds or
graves where Belgians lie testify TO
the fact When this was not the
object sought, they were gathering
information for the purpose OF
draining the resources and running
the industries OF the country. The
Kommandantaur and the secret po-
lice formed a section Of the cen
trail military branch OF the govern
ment. and they were by far its most
powerful arm
The whole organization Of Das
General Commencement is exceeding
ly difficult for anyone of Anglo
Saxon or Latin culture and temper
much expansive admiration of the
German genius for organizing. but
IL comes for the most part from
those who have never had actual
experience OF German organization
Perhaps il Is because there is so
much Of il; because il is so col
lossAL IL is in many ways efficient.
no doubt-tney get certain things
49, 80 = n "a Eranrh
who seem to have so little organi-
zation and are so clever in impro-
visation- But the vast, elephantine
elaboration OF German organization
would drive an American captain
of industry mad in a fortnight. 1t
Is heavy, cumbersome: its comph-
Gated machinery rumbles on and on,
remorselessly.- and once set in mo-
ton there is no way of stopping it.
of turning il aside, Of adapting IL
to sudden exigencies. 1t is blindly
impersonal, inhuman, taking no &C
count of persons or of the personal
equation Wherever il touches hu-
man beings il consists of a multi
tude of regulations, of "VerbotenS."
Instead of a few simple guide-posts
to point the way through a wilder
ness, the Germans would put up
myriad sign-boards telling the trav-
eier where not to go; instead Of
barking a few trees to blaze the
trail, they would hack all the trees
in the forest except those along
the way they wished TO Indicate.
That indeed, is what they did in
the park there in the center OF
Brussels, which they took from the
people and closed in for their own
officers Standing at the east en-
trance in the Rue Ducsle. near the
Rue BrIalmont. one morning /
counted twenty-six sign boards Of
many colors, with their various
''verbotens." Before the war. the
only signs that 1 recall were those
reminding the public that certain
places were reserved for the chill
dren 20 play in But then the Bel
gians had learned liberty in their
communal system. and had their
own pride in their own park
In the German system there is no
room for liberty or initiative or
Imagination The nation is organ
lied like q penitentiary. with the
lock-Step. And the difference be-
tween the German system and the
Belgian or the English or the
French or the American. is that
which is expressed so clearly in the
famous illustration Of Tolstoy-the
man in the boat who steers by
landmarks along the coast and the
man who steers by the compass: the
one hugs the shore. the other goes
forth and roves the seven seas.
Our dealings. fortunately. were
with the civil government. We
found them usually much like the
officials with whom one would have
dealings anywhere- They were gen.
orally polite. affable. oftentimes
anxious to please They were rather
slow. perhaps. and sometimes let
tiers referred from one department
to another got caught in the cogs Of
the terrible machine and were lost
for weeks. or forever. And there
was a way. which no doubt had its
convenience. Of sending one from
pillar TO post and from Peter TO
Paul. until one was lost in a hope
less labyrinth But what was
eorst OF all. the machine stopped
clanking sometimes. and the ex-
PLANTATION. given with a shrug of
the shoulders was very simple and
expressed in two words. les mill
taires' 1.-THE military Whenever
les militaires" Spoke the machine
stalled. the organization was in
stantly paralyzed.
There were thousands OF these
civil officials They descended on
Brussels. Immediately after the oc-
cupaticn- like a swarm of grasshop-
psrs- They crowded all the min
fstrfes. warming all the chairs-old
bureaUcrats and clerks. ronds de
CUR. hairy professors and special
lists. filling innumerable reams OF
paper with their strange characters.
compiling figures and statistics and
reportS-untfl the ministries were
not large enough to contain them
all and they had TO seize whole
buildings wherein TO install them