The Morgan City daily review. (Morgan City, La.) 1916-1920, 1918-02-05

this procedure. and several neutra
| ctates have done the same. Common
| sense itself demands that we abandon
this procedure which moreover is IL
opposition to the Hague convention t
which we have agreed"
I'm opposition to the secretary o.
state. must recall that when former
| ly the Belgian workmen who had flee
! to Holland returned to Belgium, Gov
ernOr General Won Bissing promised
that these Belgian workmen would un
! der no circumstances be deported tt
Germany. This reassuring promise
has not been kept"
Ambassador Gerard's interesting tes
timony appears in.his recent book:
Ambassador Gerard's Evidence.
Inc president during my visit tu
America in 1916) impressed upon me
his great interest in the Belgians dc
ported to Germany. The action of Ger
many in thus carrying great part of
the male population of Belgium into
virtual slavery had reused great indg-
nation in America. AS the revered
Cardinal Farley said to me few days
before my departure. You have to 20
back to the times Of the Medes and
the Persians to find like example of
whole people carried into bondage
"Mr. Grew had made representations
about this to the chancellor and, on my
I return, Immediately took up the
question.
II was informed that it was a mill
tary measure, that LudendOrf had
feared that the British would break
through and overrun Belgium and that
hostile population at their backs who
might cut the rail lines Of commun.
cation, telephones and telegraphs. and
that for this reason the deportation
had been decided on. I was. however,
told I would be given permission to
visit these Belgians. The passes. nev-
ertheless. which alone made such visit
ing possible were not delivered until a
few days before I left Germany.
BeIgians Forced to Make Munitions.
Several Of these Belgians who were
put to work in Berlin managed to get
away and come to see me. They gave
me q narrowing account Of how they
had been seized in Belgium and made
to work in Germany at making NUM-
tions to be used probably against their
own friends.
II said to the chancellor, There are
Befgians employed in making shells
contrary to all rules Of war and the
Hague conventions He said, 4 do
not believe it, I said. MY automobile
is at the door. I can take you, in four
minutes, to where 30 Belgidns are
working on the manufacture Of Shells
But he did not And time to 60.
"Americans must understand that
the Germans will stop at nothing to
win this war, and that the only thing
they respect is force."-James w. Ge-
rard. My Four Years in Germany, 1917,
PIP. 3951-52.
A similar point Of view is expressed
in an article entitled ''vae Victis"
from the Hungarian newspaper News
zawa Of Budapest QUOTED in K. G. Os-
siannilsson. Militarism at Work in Bel
gium and Germany. 1917, PIP. 53-54.)
Mixed Hungarian Opinion.
Mechanical skill, and especially
qualified mechanical skill, is for the
moment more important factor than
usual. and rs 1t must be obtained
where 1t can be obtained. Belgium has
had to suffer in accordance with the
old saying which always holds good:
Vac victis (woe to the vanquished).
In Poland mechanical skill and sl,e
arms which exist there are mobilized
under the glorious and fortunate BAN
ners Of Poland : in Belgium under the
banner Of necessity"
-. The question remains: for
what kind Of work win the Germans
use the Belgians3 =. every kind Of
work in Germany is war work. wheth.
er It 10 called agricultural or indus
trial work. Az the deported Belgians
have not given their consent, their use
Is contrary to international law, and
the policy Of the Germans In Belgium
and Poland Is equally to be deplored.
Instead Of aiming at bringing us near
or peace. It serves to embitter our op-
ponents and to arouse more hatred to-