The Grangeville globe. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho) 1907-1922, 1918-01-31
TREATMENT OF CIVILIANS
BY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC INFORMATION

The articles contained below are taken from the press
uon OF German War Practices issued by the committee APP
pointed by President Wilson, April 1917 and auentc
Protection of Noncombatants Agreed to by Germany
In the wars waged in times it taken for grant
ed that conquered peoples might be either killed. tortured
e as slaves that their property would be taken and that
their lands would be devastated "Vae vicswoe the
conquered For two centuries there has been steady
advance In introducing ideas OF humanity and especially
conng the evils OF warfare to the combas The ideal
seemed to have become thoroughly established part
internal law that the powers Hague thought it sufficient
merely to state the general principles in Article XV of
regulations Famy honors and rights the persons
and private property well religious convictions and prac
hce must be respected Private property
Gated Germany in with the other powers, solemn
y pledged her faith to keep this article military
leaders had intention of doing They had trained
In the ideas voiced by Gen. Hartmann 40 years ago.
Terrorism be relatively gentle procedure useful
to keep the masses of the people state of obedience This
had been Bismarck policy too According Moriz Busch
bogrpher Bismarck exasperaed by the French
resistance which still continuing in January 1871 said
Bismarcks Idea in 1871.
IF in the territory which occupy we can not supply
everything for troops from time to time shall send
flying column into the localities which recalcitrant
shall shoot hang and burn After that happened
times, the inhabitants will finally their Senses
e fnghf9ness taught by the German leaders had held
diaries of the individual German soldiers
Extracts From German War Diaries
During the night of August 1915 Engineer Cir
gave the alarm in the of Wise Everyone was shot
taken prisoner and the burnt The prisoners
made to march and keep up with the troops'' (rom
the diary of noncommssoned officer Renhod of the
Second Battalion of Engineers Third Army Corpse
"a horrible bath of blood The whole village burnt the
French thrown into the blazing houses civilians with the
rom the diary of Private Hassemer, of the Eighth Army
Corpse
n the night of August village of Saint Maurice
punished for having fred German soldiers being
burnt the ground by the German troops regiments
18th Landwehr and the 17th The village surrounded
posted about yard from another that could
get out Then the Uhans set fire it, house by house. Meth
child could escape; only the greater part
of the livestock carried that could be used Any
who ventured to out shot down. All the in
habans left in the village burnt with the houses.'
om the diary of Private Karl Scheuf of the Third Bav
arian Regiment of Landwehr Infantry
cat 10 O'Clock in the evening the first battalion of the 178h
marched down the steep incline into the burning village the
north of Dinant terrific spectacle of CHASTITY beauty At
the entrance the village lay about fifty dead civilians shot
for having fired upon troops from ambush In the
of the night many others also shot, that
200 Women and children, lamp in hand forced
to look at the horrible We ate later the
midst of the corpses for had had nothing since morning
When searched the houses found plenty of wine
spirit but eatabes Captain Hamann drunk This
last phrase shorthand) From the diary Private Philip
of the 178h Regiment of Infantry Twelfth Army Corps
sAug 9th crossed frontier Inhabitants border very
good and give many things There difference
noticble.
'sAug 23rd Sunday between and Dinant village of
Dsonge At IL O'Clock the advance after the
artillery has thoroughly prepared the ground ahead The po
and Infantry Regiment 178 marching in front
Near small village the latter fred by inhabi
About 900 inhabitants shot village was
artillery is continuously shooting the village lies in
large ravne. Just now O'Clock in the afternoon the
crossing of the Mas begins Dnant All villages,
chateaux and houses burnt down during this night
beautiful sight to the fires all around the dis
tance.
"Aug Oath In every village finds only heaps of ruins
and many dead From the diary of Matbern, Fourth Com