Evening journal., 1918-02-02

sThe people in the forge. inciudins
myself. were, as have stated, brought
out about two o'clock and taken to
prison.
about six o'clock the others were
taken TO a place in front OF nv house,
not far from the prison There the able
bodied men were taken out and lined
mp in four rows against my garden wall
An oflcer addressed them in German,
snd then, In the presence Of the women
and children, gave the order to fire.
All fell down. The soldiers looking on
from the terrace formed by the garden
OF NJ. Franqu!nei. the architect burst
into 1ts Of laughter. Encircled by the
flames which were consuming almost
the entire district, those whose age or
sex had saved them were set at libert-
Il believe the exact number Killed
here was i29
'-Tfe volley which struck them down
was the one that we heard when we
were placed IN the prison yard TO be
led 10 death. Thank God, we were late
One hundred and tweniy-nine men were
killed at this spot. but the number con-
demned was still larger Several fell
when the order to fire was given, and
others were only slightly wounded and
succeeded in escaping during the night
Not all those whose bodies were re-
moved were killed on the spot Some Of
those who escaped told me that NJ
Wasseige, the banker. was heard to say
at the beginning Of the night to a
wounded man Don't move. Keep still.
A passing soldier at once finished him
OF.
mot until Wednesday could any at
tention be given TO these victims All
movement was forbidden before then.
On Monday and Tuesday the wounded
were heard crying out and moaning
They died from want OF attention.
Nv. The troops who came by the
Froidval road occupied the district OF
p nant.' The inhabitants were seized
on the arrival Of the Germans and
kept under guard near Rocher-Bayard
When the fire of the French slackened,
the Germans began TO construct a
bridge, but they were still annoyed by
a few shots AS these were infrequent,
the Germans-honestly or otherwise
came 10 the conclusion that they were
fred by francs -tireurs They sent NJ
Bourbon the assistant registrar OF the
Court. to announce that n the firms
continued. all the prisoners would be
executed. He did so, and, recrossing the
Meuse, surrendered himself and in
formed the German officers that he had
been able to make sure that only
French soldiers were firing A few more
French bullets came, and then a mon
strous event took place, which ones
mind would refuse TO believe were IL
not that the survivors who bear wit
ness and the saping wounds Of the
corpses furnished absolutely conclu-
siye proof. The whole mass OF prison
ers-men, women and children-were
pushed up against a wall and shot.
Eighty victims fell at this spot.
WAS u mere or at the Neffe Vladuct,
which ! mention later that a three
months old child was killed? ] no
longer remember
THAT evening the Germans searched
among the bodies. Under the heap a
few poor wrelches were stin living
They were dragged out and added to
some pri oners brought from else
where and put to dig a grave for the
dead They were to be deported TO Ger
many Among them was a i5-year-old
boy. the son OF Registrar Bourbon,
who was found under the bodies OF his
father. mother sister and brother.
Those buried included a woman
who was still alive. She groaned. but
il mattered not. She was thrown into
the trench with the others
fright bank OF the Meuse: The Ger
mans crossed the river.
"St Medard suffered relatively little
Not many were killed, and It is there
that the greatest number Of houses
remain standing.
In the Neffe district the Germans
searched the houses. burning fair
number but leaving the rest alone.
Some Of the people were left az liber-
ty: others were expelled from their
homes and shot on the road; others
again were arrested and taken TO Ger
many In some cases entire families
were murdered without regard to age
or sex lin particular the Guerys and
the Morellesl One house caught ilre
where a woman with a broken les was
lying. stlll alive. Some OF the people
asked permission from the soldiers to
rescue her. It was refused, and she was