Evening journal., 1918-02-08
BELGIAN GIRL Tells
Of GERMAN HOREOlS
Miss Silvercruys Tells Ro-
tarians People Will Never
Submit TO Huns
RUSSIAN MAJOR
ASKS FAIR PLAY

Looking Ike living nag or Belgium.
In her national costume Of red, orange
and black, and speaking like the spirit
Of Belgium incarnatc. f9-year-old SUI
zanne Silvercruys. daughter Of the
chief justice Of Belgium, enthused and
stirred to tears her audience at the 10
tary Club In the Hotel dupont List
evening
I'VE lived twenty miles from Liege
when tho fir guns spoke we did not
know what % was" Mrs. Sivercruys
said we could not believe the Ger
mans would violate our neutrality. We
went into the house our mother was
moaning Ny oldest brother had gone
20 Join his regiment at Liege.'
Continuing she said: 81 want Co tell
YOU Of one atrocity. My brother-in-
law was a professor ai the University
OF Louvain. The Germans came. For
ei~ht davs they had Go act as ho Is 90
German officers in their home, As ihel
were sitting at dinner on the eighth
night, the Germans becan 20 pillago and
raNage and burn LOuyain. A band Of
soldiers broke into the diningroom and
accused my brother-in-law OF shooting
These officers can as1lra you 1 did
not shoot answered my brother-in-law,
turning 90 his guests of eight DAYS. The
officers got mp and left the room with
ont saying a word.
Come we are going 90 shoot you
said the soldiers. The wife and five of
the six children. the oldest one i2 years
old. were around the father by this
time. he asked leave 10 90 up and see
his youngest child in the cradle Mean
while. a servant had brought down the
bsby by another stairway The father
was gone very long Finally German
soldier came down the staircase.
Have you seen my husband| begged
The wife The soldier gave great,
coarse laugh.
Was that The fellow just ran
through with my bayonet?' he said
Later they were going 10 shoot the
mother THE i2-yeor-Old girl begged
them "a shoot her instead. as she could
not bo of use 20 her little brothers a'd
sisters. while they needed ihoir mother
Then The mother was allowed io 60
Afterward she became insane.
II wanted Go suffer for Belgium
cried Miss silycrcruys OF wore allied
flags took out my handkerchief and
busted on my shoulder whore a Ger
man oflcer had touched 30. did AN
could 90 be arrested
The young Firl peeled potatoes in
hospital Kitchen then became a nurse
nursing both Belgian. and by force
German wounded. In Brussels. Their
she cooked for the Belgian children
Finally she broke down. and had O
leave The country or become insane.
smile. when you say goodbye e
your boys she urged. "Ihey VIII re
member and be encouraged.
"The Germans may stay In Belgium
hundred wears. but they will neve
defeat the spirit of the Belgian people
Belgium can never Doe beaten, never
neverw
"I leave you a picture OF Belgiun
kncelinr In prayer before great ligo
the light of hope And in that lgh
has appeared O sign OF Victory, tn
stars and Stripes of America.
Like an Belgians, Miss Silvercruy
has & keen sense Of humor, snd toll
many amusing anecdotes TO lightel
the poignancy of her talk.
The illustrated lecture Of the evenin
was unon Russia. given by Major NJ I
Grow. until last July a major In th
medical department OF the hussio
army The slides were from photo
rraphs taken by the major on the east
ern front
His lecture was a plea for justice &
the Russian army from the America
neonle. In word and picture he toll
ihe terrible things those millions q
sol iiers had suffered for the sake q
world freedom. during the figst tw
years Of the war.
sRussia was not defeated at IN
front" he said
.stor reverses We're caused by treach
cry and German propaganda at home,
declared the major emphatcalH
"Let America take warning The Gel
mans are trying 70 do exactly the sam
thinc fin .his country. The German
are depending 80 per cent. on militar
strength and 65 per cent. on prop'
qanda TO win this war. Iney eI
co,i,aced criticism and discomfort. Gel
man soldiers were sent over TO ot
lines to surrender. on their person
wore made-up letters telling OF aWi'
riots and starvation in Germany aI
how anxious Germans were 10 eha ''
war. ,,s -.
"They tried TO fraternize win o,
men saying we DIDN'T want 20 @ @ns,
each other. Then when our men wei
rnset and out Of the mood 10 light an
unready. came the great offensive WI
fheir terrible slaughter Exactly u
same thing, the same propaganda wei
before the Italian disaster.
"Tbe Russians az one time had twel
million men. with about two milliC
rifles for them. The men In the r
serve trenches were unarmed. All Y
could do was stay in'the trenches al
he slaurhtered and the unarmed M
aid n bravely Why was thisf 10 w
found that a Russian munitions iecto.
lad spent four months making shel
mat would not flt Russian art'ller
but when the munitions were capture
n was found that they ftted the &c
man guns. Such treachery IS the a
yNyer. -,
II believe Russia will come back u
NAV not be able 90 make great
rensive but she will come back al
hold enough Germans to turn the "
10 allied l.ctory In the west
Russia win never make an dishono
able peace The spirit which made h
iro0ps save the Italians from dlsast
earlx in the war is still there
Major Grow showed a few very pal
f1l pictures, saying America ought
realize what Russia has suffered In {
war and sympathize instead Of critic
ng.
Il was The Russian drive. he said, III