The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-12-18
h0uIle INSTINCTS
CAUSE Sc0Rh OF sHElsf

UAUOL QUINN III OuLlOLI
I3clgians Brave Death to Regain what
7. Little Is Left Of Their House. -
holds.
BY ROBERT wEIILEs RITCHIE.
Belgian Headquarters, Nov. 3--(by
mail, delayed).-The Germans con-
cealed In a wood across the canal
were ripping of belts Of machine gun
ammunition with the regularity of a
steam riveter. Tat-tat-tat-tat: 81
lence: then thrut -tutut tut tut tut.
Just back of the line of half shat
tered houses which represented all
that was left Of the village OF Rabot
two batteries of Belgian 75's were
pounding-pounding the enemy ma
chine gun forts two miles to the
south in the direction OF Client
Across the little bridge. which the re-
treating Germans had not had time
to destroy. and about 400 yards away
from where the lieutenant and I stood
hattened against a wall house
leaped into the air spread out fam
wise and scattered to dust
Even while we were watching the
dust cloud sift away black figures ap-,
peared out of 1t. bobbing and hobbliug
8rotesouely toward us. They were
trayersing a road which the lieu
tenant. my conductor, had said was
too dangerous for us to pass over
ana the sudden deviation OF the
house on that road pointed his advice
most rertinentiy. When the dust gray
cavsicade drew nearer we could dis
finsuish the pilgrims: two cows draw
Ing Flemish farm wagon piled high
with pitiful household goods; a peas
ant and his wife walking by the cows
heads; two white headed little girls
staring down with round eyes from
the very top of the mountain OF fur
niture. and a dog whose tail was
clamped close between his legs IA an
agony of doggy fright.
The lieutenant stopped the pilgrims
and questioned the man. What was
answered in rough Flemish my con-
ductor translated to me. Jan Diercks,
Elizapeth, his wife and his two
youngsters had been moved by the
Germans fTom their home In Courtrai
to village on the outskirts of Client
two weeks before. Then the Germans
had retreated before the conquering
belgian army and once more the
Diercks family found themselves on
a line Of fire. They knew the enemy's
A0hC IHoSt IdVC iCAG thGtA Obi bGlttS
and lands free. so Jan had bought
the two cows. hired the wagon and
started his brood on the weary road
back to Courtrai, perhaps thirty
miles distant because OF the detours
neeessitated by the destroyed bridges.
Bursting Shclls No Bar
For more than an hour the Diercks
family, cows and dog alike. had ac-
tuai1y traversed temporary No Mans
man outposts. with machine guns
playing from both sides OF them and
shells dropping along the route. But
this was purely incidental with them:
they were going home and that was
one great fact in their consciousness.
I cited this example to point a text
for this article. It is but one OF
score Of similar instances that have
come under my observation during
the week long battle before Ghent-
perhaps a bit more highly colored by
attending circumstances of shell and
machine-gun fire than the others.
Only by giving examples can one
place before American readers the
almost incredible homing instinct of
these Flemish peasants. They are
like the carrier pigeons have seen
in their travelling cotes behind the
Belgian front lines; they will fly
through shellfire to reach the spot
which means home TO them-even
though the guns have left it nothing
Home Love s6ons.
The Fleming, who lives close to
the soil and almost on terms of kin
ship with his cows and chickens,
prizes his land and his earth above
every other consideration in life. not
even excepting hope of final redemp-
ton and successful muster on Judg.
ment day. Every stick and stock OF
household Eaede under his tiled or
matched roof Ia d very part OF him
and precious beyond measure. He Il
rooted TO his home to a degree be-
yond the comprehension Of the care
less restless American farmer. WHOM
always selling out and looking for
the bis chance beyond the western
horizon. Auctions Of household ef-
fects are unknown in this conserva-
tive land.
Conceive. then. how the overwhelm.
.ng wave Of war has torn the peas
ants heart strings. F1qst he was
under German domination and he ac-
cepted that with a philosophy race OF
the soil-chatting and deceiving the
boche master very successfully dur
ing four years. But this backward
rolling OF the battle surf which has
brought nghting once more around
the TIeming's ears has been bitter
thing for he has been forced to give
up his home and. returning. in nine
case en-. OF ten. to fnd his home a
grim. ursightly shell with blackened
beams criss-croasing the sky as he
looked for the first time through the
docr
Tragedy ON Every Hand.
This l. real tragedy. For the thou
sands who have been WANDERERS.
dumb driven plodders along the road
with their family goods stacked high
in carts, all these sleeves Of brick and
wattles scattered along the line Of
the German retreat are homes to be
recopstructed at indnite pain and
labor, and with winter already nudg-
ing the elbow of autumn.
have seen these mournful caravans
OF dog-drawn and cow-drawn wag
|, ons--yes. Of carta with women In the
tarneas--actuAlly passing advancing
lines OF Belgian cavalry hard on the
heels of the retreating Germans and
within sound OF the guns. When Bell
gian nutposts were occupying 4 farm
house and hrinG upon German pickets
entrenched behind a willow copse 200
yards away I have seen the rightfui