El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1918-09-04
BELGIAN QUEEN
BRAVES DANCER
Villa on the Sand Dunes Is
Subject to Destruction
by Bombs.
BY PIERRE LOTT.

or four days I have been IN service
on the North sea coast in matters OF
lantiaircraft defence. going the rounds
between BouloEne. Calais and Dun
kirk, which right now are very much
bombarded.
I had. this time, slept IN DunkirE-
SLEPT on the alert. be it well under
stOod-at the hotel des Arcades; my
I window with its broken window panes
opened upon the square in which the
I statue Of Jean Bart is euthroned. and
] all the night. above my head. those
/ big buzzing moths. our airplanes on
I guard, danced their rounds in the star
I lit sky Right now fresh and rosy
light is slowly invading my room;
{ the hour OF death has passed, indeed;
no doubt the enemy VIII spare us
I at least till tomorrow tt must be
I something like 4 o'clock; the dawn of
a June sunday without clouds spread
] over the city. which for little while
] is C0inE TO rest in delightful peace.
! ana TIE big Nocturnal moths, their
] watch ended. are flying away TO de-
/ sceud into their resting places. In
the clear sky. which is becoming
lighter. one can hardly hear them
The Horrible Danger Signal
But suddenly the sonorousness Of
I the breaking day is horribly rent by
-he most sinister cry that the world
has ever known; no lion, not even
the elephant. can approach the
strength of this voice. GrOaninE. IL
runs up the scale. descends. and rises
again: one would call IL the Juror
] Of the agony Of some giant monster
Z Before one has cOmprehended 10. just
from hearing IL. one is chilled ana
Cre's hair stands erect. An. yes. one
I knows what this morning seren1ce
means; IL is the big alarm siren which
is singing for us and wants 10 say
Death. death. IL is death that is COM
ing in the air above Death, uealh
is passing above your heads and
soon the thunt err Of artillery re-
scJuds very near by from all sides
at once. They did not let the reply
wait. our old gunners-
Now il is suddenly become helliSh
baccianalia. but still dominated by
the initial grooming which had let
loose everything. and one wants 70
cry out TO the siren. NO. enough.
we have understood Give us respite
We would rather die than all the time
bea1 this cry" I have heard many
sirens in my life. and alas. all Pa
toned TO them these days, but the
NEST horrible cry that remains In my
memory viii always be this cry at
Dunkirk-
1t was q short alarm. The Boche
birds have taken flight. All has be-
lasaaaE NAA4l4 anu rAANaAA Sam IN ava
festive welcome Of the rising sun
only here and there. under the ruins
still smoking. are people VINO nave
died. others who are struggling IN the
death rattle- women. old men. or poor
little children in cradles Here is one
OF the new forms Of war inaugurated
by the high German kultur.
Summons to Belgian King.
7 had counted upon passing nay sun
day visiting the d. g. A. OF the neigh
borhood. On French. ID. a. c."
means defense coutre avious." that is.
"antiaircraft dafense.") But a cyclist
arrived from Belgium. bringing me
an euveloD stamped with the coat or
arms of the martyred soverelgus. the
audience which. upon command or my
general. I had requested OF his mai
eSty. king Albert and which I nad
not expected until tomorrow. had been
granted even for today
Everything breathed JOY. despite
the shrapnel and the horror which are
so near 1t was beautiful radiantly
beautiful. so beautiful that IL could
not seem true. and there is no anguish
that can resist the radiant bitterness
Of the June sun And then. i IS
SUNDAY. Young women. dressed In
their sunday best, are promenading
fin the company OF soldiers Of every
sort. French. Belgian, English. Hindu;
in the distance one always hears the I
barbarians' cannOnade. But on this
rare dav. on which one thinks only I
OF life. it hardly arouses the thought !
Of death. one has the thought that Z
all these humble people whom one
meets on the road have come out TO I
get away from their auxietles. their I
terror and are happy in enjoying .
themselves a little under the spring i
sky. OF a frontier, there is nothing /
left, If we did not see here and there I
on the inns. a sign in the Flemish I
Ion rr~mrrnl ha|fnT-n
still in France.
Arrives At villa.
After an automobile ride Of three D
quarters OF an hour, ] arrived in the /
village where the sovereigns have I
taken refuge. on a last segment OF 3
their pilIaged Belgium. Here are the I
royal villas. on the dunes, right by 4
the shore OF the sleeping sea
In the modest salon into which I am 4
II first invited to step. I hear the
most unexpected and most drou OF
Al. understanding over from an adj
JOINING part one would say that 10
was the play Of a numerous school.
The laughter and cries Of children and
yambols and songs, ] even believe
hat they We're dancing rOndes, ac-
,crdinE TO an old Flemish air, sung
in chorus by number Of comlcal lit
Very modest. also, was the salon
u which his majesty. king Albert. re-
,eived me with his cordial 5000 VIII
nd his perfect grace Of manner. When
had quilted myself OF the mission I.
With which I had been charged by
ny general. his majesty said TO me,
T. the charming formula Of permits
lion granted. You have also asked
% see the queen Come. I viii con-
.uct YOU into her presence" We then
vent into the enclosure. half garden
Darsely set in flowers, half park j \
traightway espied the queen. down ]
.elow. surrounded, submerged
hould say, by hundred very young
hildren. There were only four adult
.ersons I'm the midst Of this crowd
4 very little ones; the queen her
elf who is that svelte blue silhOuet.
ever resemb bling anyone else; ner {
1afd OF honor. dressed in yellow viO-
st- and two good sisters Of an archaic ;
ppearance. Her majesty appeared 10 {
ne once more Just as exquisite and
Dung in her simple costume OF blue &
uk lace. her hair imprisoned under (
sort Of little turbau, with a veil Z
likewise blue and held by pin set {
With a sapphire head. But the blue
which ecIipses all these blues is al ]
-ays that Of her eyes.
Children Are Orphans.
The little children are about 10 20, S
seems- they were the ones. TO be ]
ure. who had produced that very s
eautiful patter when i had arrived; {
o little girls in costumes all alike &
nd so little boys in soldier uniform, .
0rmiug a Lilliputian army. They
-ers all war orphans, escaped by
ONE miracle from slaughter by the
oche. and formed part Of that le- Y
ion Of little abandoned ones whom r.
be queen has received as foster chill i
rem and for whom she has founded d
rrrrre n ra1nrag nFn-Dr p.