New-York tribune., 1918-11-17
The Mons Angels Again


tice did find the grimly tenacious Brit
ish winning their way back to the Bel
gian town from which the "contempti-,
BILE little army" was pushed by the over
whelming German hordes in 1914. That
battle is the controversy between those
who believe that divine aid, literally
and materially, was accorded the out
numbered British on that memorable
OCCASION in September, 1914, and those
who deny any such superhuman inter
position.
Only week ago a New York clergy
man revived the discussion on this side
of the Atlantic by sermon on the part
played by the angels in defeating the
armies of the Central Powers. No such
revival was needed in England, how
ever, for the discussion has never
lapsed, despite the rush of nation-wreck-
ing events of the last four years. Sew
eral books and pamphlets have been
written on the subject, and mass of
evidence has been and is still being
collected to prove that celestial war
riors took a hand in hurting back the
gray-clad hosts. who at that time were
goose-steppingN across Belgium.
Were it not subject on which SO
many persons feel deeply the situation
would be laughable. for the man who
is responsible for this legend of those
nightmare times solemnly affirms that
the story was pure invention, written as
fiction and never designedly intended
to deceive any one.
The story first appeared in "The
Evening News" of London, September
20, 1914, and was written by Arthur
Machen, member of the staff of that
paper He had been profoundly stirred
by the news from Mons which reached
England on Sunday morning. Going
to church as was his custom, he admits
his thoughts, instead of being on the
sermon, were busy with story, an atti-
tude of mind with which newspaper
men in general are familiar After
ward, when the story had become
matter of public controversy, Machen,
describing his frame of mind in church
and how he developed the story, said:
81 seemed to see furnace of tor
ment and death and agony and terror
seven times heated, and in the midst
of the burning was the British army
in the midst of the flames, consumed by
them and yet aureoled by them, scat
tered like ashes and yet triumphant,
martyred and yet forever glorious So
saw our men with great light shining
about them; SO | took these thoughts
with me to church; and, I am sorry to
say, was making up a story in my head
while the deacon was singing the gos-
pei"
Machen went home and wrote the
story, rcgretfully admitting, as many
another author, that the written prod
uct did not approach the exalted theme
of his inspiration. However, it was
good enough to stir England. He called
it "The Bowmen." 1t related that
when the struggling, despairing, dying
/ English army felt it could not hold out
another moment against the waves of
German soldiers that came on unceas-
ing, suddenly they saw in the air above
them the spirits of the English archers
who fell at Agincourt. These shining
warriors let loose showers of arrows
upon the gray hosts, who turned and
! fled.
In a few days Machen began to get
inquiries which indicated to him that
his story waS being taken seriously
70 dispel this illusion he wrote short
announcement fhof fbo CT
fiction, without any foundation in fact.
Instead of ending the matter, Machen's
statement only let loose a storm of
abuse upon his head. A booklet was
written to prove that Machen was deny
ing the divine inspiration for the story
in order that he might gain the credit
to be derived from having created a
literary product. 1t was and still is
asserted that before any knowledge Of
Machen's story could have reached tie
trenches soldiers were telling of hav'ng
seen st. George on a white horse, IN
exact counterpart of a picture that
hangs to-day in London restaurant" :"
driving back the Huns A certain
psychic society is making it its duty
to collect statements of this kind. 1t
is asserted that the bodies of many of
the German dead bore the marks of
arrow wounds. A woman who was in
Berlin at the time of the English re-
treat from Mons has written to an Eng
lish church paper that there was much
discussion in the German capital OF A
story that German regiments, ordered
to 20 forward, replied that they tried
to do so. but that chose devils of Eng
lishmen were up to something" and they
could not move
Harold Begbie, a well known Eng
lish novelist and war CORRESPONDENT.