Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1918-12-03
:: The Truth About Belgium -:
BY BRAND WHITLOCK

they could understand.
The result OF TINS formal protest,
like the effect OF Information we had
receiN ed in several private discus
sgOns. was the conviction that II any
representations could avail they
would nave to be made at Berlin.
Thc Governor whose policy
in Hel-iunl. while aiming no less
than IIIudenbucs s at the destruction
or the Belgian nation. would nave
been pursued on SubtlCr lines, nad
no duubt Tor some time IClL the
power slipping from him. remark
ing 10 me once on the difficulties OF
ma pOSiIiOn. he said that he was eN-
ucctcd TO unite the suDticty o. a
d4pIomatISt with the nrmness of 4
soldier. III he aid anything that the
.selgIans approved, which was sell
uom, ne was blamed ~ berlin; wnen
ne did SomSDnIuS mat pleased Ssr'
lin. he was eNCcrated by the Bel-
Eians. And now, since 5lnuCnbur5
mad been appointed TO the supreme
command. since the hero had become
the dictator. Won Kissing no longer
in fact was in command.
All was tending then. inevitably
and fatally. toward = rupture WIN
Nnrs-ica. and 2 rupture could only
mean war IN the end. My own de-
sire was TO save the relief work il
possible and above all - ccnpro-
mise II by no inconsiderate act OF
my own.
In these circumstances. and since
Vou Hfndcnburg had oyerridden Won
Kissing, 1 reported the facts 10
Washington, and Ventured 10 suS-
geSt that some action be taken al
Berlin, where the power, II therS
was any power IN Germany nIshtL
tnan the General Stans alone resided
s.y course was approved Dy the gov
eminent and the suggestion auoptSu.
Mr. Gerard had gone home ana Mr,
Grew was in charge AZ Berlin, anu 1
sent him all the facts upon wnlch 70
base 4 representation ana kept III
communication with him.
November came, cold ana gloomy,
with the bells Ioliiug Oh All SAINTS
aav for me dead, the bells N tue
ancient lItile chapel OF StaLe' pc
mind the Orangeilc, changed ats
aIally all DAY long. Ihere were IONS,
ygog-DCgcue professions II bIack 10
ne cemeteries anu thoughts OF the
GzaI II those new graves al over
..etgium and down aIOng the 1SeES
tnOughts. TOO, OF all those VINO were
being herded by the savers 10 Nv
me foUlbs in German mines and
qUarries.
The theory that IL was only chom-
eurs VINO were 10 be seized nau Deei
zDauCpued early in November, at the
moment when the German 3unllnls-
tration was mOralIzilS on the eyll Ell
y.ere selling men everyW mere, WnetA
I'd they were Idle or not, amid sau
and tragic scenes, over All btdDaHt
aud the HaInaulC L suggested 10
AIr. Grew that in case prosesSS' az,
meals or representations should Iall
10 son the hideOuS thing, some POI
icy n least ne adopted; that II the
pretense OF selzing only choheulS
we're observed il would be some
thing, and that il certain classes o.
fEu-Sucn
Is would include married men o.
heads OF families, or Onl. men ioL
military service, or some Sucn lHtuS
it might amelior3te the SlIdaltOl.
1 suggested also that the camps -
GERMANY be open 20 inspection OS
representatives OF our EN- oasSy there
or since spain was in charge or BEL
rian interests at Berlin, 10 the rep
TeseEtstiyeS Of the Spanish embassy
LanckCn had gone 10 Berlin aga!n
10 discuss the business. He-NaS
gone two days. and lmmedIately on
his return November ID had
iOuc conversation with him. in whicl
ne said that he had heard that l
had been suggested that the BE ldii
campS in Germany be open 10 Amer
icsn or other neutral visitation ana
iDspectfon. He said that he was
heartily in favor OF the SuSSeStlOH'
and wished to know II II hau eHlS-
mated from the American govern
me. b I told him that since we were
living in a world where every one
seemed TO be much more ConCeTHSu
about the credit of thing thaf
about the thing itself, ! wlshed 70
one to be deprived of what was ms
The idea was Mr.. HOover's. unless
II were Villalobar's, for Mr. Hoover
had mentioned il TO me AFTER con-
yersation with Nill7lobar.
1t was indeed the idea or MI.
81 IN TsHr q
and indignant over the deportationS'
and Lancken said he would telegraph
at once to urge il on his govern
nient-s consideration. said. too, thar
bad as the whole policy was, X would
pernaps be less evil If there were
some princiDle in it's application. and
1 told him OF the indtscriminate
seizures that were being made al
over. Hainault and Brabant. The baron
said that they could not distinguish
between chomeurs and non-chomeurs
because they had not the lists. re-
pI;ed that of course the Comite Ma
tinnal couIG not give up the lists.
Heavens. no." he said. lifting his
hands with an !ronical gesture, as
or pio-s horror. The Conlte Ma
tiOnal is sacrOsanct.
There was the burgom2sters. 100;
but he recognized the fact, without
having TO protest, that they could not
give IN the lists.
'sThey would be lynched.F he said.
] asked whether, If we were TO
bring TO his notice cases OF what
might be called injustice under the
German policy, as he had defined 1t
such as seizures Of men who were
sr.,nloye1-thev would be considered
and rec;ihed. and he replied shat they
> would. Il was agreed that all Bel
gians employed by the {. y. or by
. the & r. b. should be exempt. Be
yond this. which was so little, the
barOu's visit to Berlin had been
rather barren of results.
Cold in Brussels
By one of those irOnieS that are so
implicit and so inevitable in the
, scheme OF things that they must df-
: feet the purely philOsophic observer
OF l5Ee as mOnotonous, the winter
a came on very early that year OF the
drpOrtatiOns ard was one of the most
severe Belgium had ever known. In
, November il was already cOld-a cold
the more bitter because Of the hG-
nudity OF the low countries. Fuel was
J scarce. The Germans We're taking
great quantities OF coal from the
{ mines down in the BoTinage: they
I controlled the railways. and as they
Z used all the wagons 10 transport their
, troops toward the front. the
! chomeUrs and coal TO Germany, the
2 harges on the canals were the only
: remaining means of transport, and
before November was gone the
/ could not move, and coal for use of
the Belgian population could not be
brought 10 Brussels. One of the sad
. Gest sights OF those sad times was
: that presented TO me one cold morn
ing rs, In my selfish furS, i drove