The Morgan City daily review. (Morgan City, La.) 1916-1920, 1918-08-31
A GERMAN LIE

oSn6
are telling foreigners in that section
that "the Federal soldiers during the
Civil War committed atrocities SINH
lar to those which the Germans have
committed in Belgium" The lie
hardly needs contradiction among
| Americans, but it is interesting t.
compare the General Order issued t.
, the United States armies in the Civil
War with the instructions given to
the German armies in the present
conflict.
At President Lincoln's request
General Order No. 100 was drawn
up for the use of the Federal armies
in the field. Section 16 provides
Military necessity does not admit
Of cruelty, that is the infection of
suffering for the sake of suffering
or OF revenge, nor Of manning or
wounding except in fight, nor of tor
ture to extort confession. It does
not admit Of the use Of poison in any
way nor of the wanton devastation
OF district. 1t admits of deception.
but disclaims acts of perfidy; and in
general, military necessity does not
include any act which makes the re-
turn Of peace unnecessarily diff
cult"
Section No. % points out: private
citizens are no longer murdered, en-
shaved, or carried off to distant parts.
and the inoffensive individual is as
little disturbed in his private rela-
tons as the commander of the hos
tile trops can afford to grant in the
over-ruling demands Of a vigorous
war"
Section No. IS orders: Classical
works Of art, libraries, scientific col.
lections, or precious instruments.
such as astronomical telescopes. as
well as hospitals, must be secured
against all avoidable injury, even
when they are con aimed in fortified
places whilst beseiged and bonn
barded."
Compare with these instructions
the German theory and practice Of
war as given at length in the pamph-
let German War Practises," issued
by the United States Committee on
H. 4
Public Information. For a genera
ton the Germans have been taught:
I'm such dangerous things as war.
the errors which proceed from .
spirit of sgood-naturedness' are pre-
cisely the worst" "The enemy must
not be spared the want and wretch
edness Of war; these are particularly
useful in SCATTERING its energy and
subduing its will" Individual per.
sons may be harshly dealt with when
an example is made Of them, intend
ed to serve as warning" "When-
ever a national war breaks out. ter
rorism becomes necessary military
principle"
Such teachings were summed up
In the official German War Book"
published in 1902. It advised for
instance: "Since the tendency of
thought in the last century was DOM
mated essentially by humanitarian
considerations, which not infreouent-
~ degenerated into sentimentalitv
ana nabby emotion, there have not
oeen wanting attempts to influence
Inc development Of the usages Of
war IN way which was in funda-
mental contradiction with the nature
u war and its object. -. By steep-
ing himself in military history an Of
ncer viii be able to guard against
humanitarian notions: il 4
VIII teach him that certain seventies
are indispensable to war. nav more
-sa' the only true humanity very
, y hes IN ruthless application Of
MEM And in order to assist o. |
man officers in carrying out the shirt
- ','is advlce, manual was pre-
pared for them in 1906, called "Mili-
'ary Interpreter for Use in the Ene-
- ; country" in which were provid
"a TRANSACTIONS in French of p-ocla-
nations threatening towns and vii.
ages with destruction without PITY;
unless wholesale fines were paid. etc. !,
herman War Practises" show in
'etan that all the things forbidden