The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-01-15
says: Ton file in state department.)

Won Bissing's policy as too mild there
was quarrel; Won Kissing went to
Berlin to protest, threatened to resign.
but did not He returned, and a Ger
man official here said that Belgium
would now be subjected to more ter.
rlble regime-wOuld learn what war
was. The prophecy has been vindicat-
ed. Recently I was told that the dras-
tic measures are really of Ludendorf's
inspiration; do not know. Many Ger
man officers say So"
If Won Kissing had opposed the pol
Icy of deportation when his own iudg-
ment was overruled, he consented to
become the devils advocate" and de-
Tended the system in public Espe-
ciaily instructive is the following CON
versation reported by Mr.. f. c. Wal
colt:
Il went to Belgium to investigate
conditions, and while there | had OPP
portunity to talk one day with
Governor General Won Kissing, who
died three or four weeks ago, man
Seventy-two or seventy-three years
old, a man STEPPED in the system,
born and bred to the hardening of the
heart which that philosophy develops
There ought to be some new word
coined for the process that mans
heart undergOeS when it becomes
stepped in that system.
Il said to him, Governor, what are
you going to do if England and France
stop giving these people money to pur.
chase foodY
Won Kissing Relied on Starvation.
'He said, we have got that all
worked out and have had it worked
out for weeks, because we have ex,
pected this system to break down al
any time
HE went on to say, Starvation will
grip these people in thirty to sixty
days. Starvation is a compelling force
and we would use that force to compel
the Belgian workingmen, many OF
| them very skilled, to go to Germany
to replace the Germans, so that they
| could go to the front and fight against
/ the English and the French
GAS fast as our railway transpor.
| tation could carry them, we would
/ transport thousands of others that
would be fit for agricultural work
/ across Europe down into southeastern
/ Europe, into Mesopotamia, where we
| have huge, splendid irrigation works
All that land needs is water and il
/ will blossom like the rose
1.-THE weak remaining. the old anG
! the young, we would concentrate oppo
site the firing line, and put firing
squads back of them, and force then
/ through that line, so that the English
and French could take care Of theil
own people'
at was perfectly simple, direct
frank reasoning. 1t meant that the
/ German government would use any
force in the destruction of any people
not its own to further its own ends"-
Frederick c. WalcOtt, in National Geo
graphical Magazine, May, 1917.
A brief general view of the character
of the deportations can perhaps b,
gained best from the report of Minis
ter Whitlock.
"The deportations began in October
in the Etape, ut Client, and at Bruges
as my brief kilograms Indicated. TIL,
policy spread; the rich Industrial dis
tricts Of Hainault, the mines and stee
works about Charleroi were next at
tackled: now they are Selling men II
Brabant, even in Brussels, despt,
some indications and even prediction
of the civil authorities that the polio,
was about to be abandoned.
1.-THE etapes were the parts of Bel
GUM under martial law, and included
the province of western Flanders, par
Of eastern Flanders, and the region
of Journal. The remainder of the oC
cupied part of Belgium was unde
civil government
Pitiable and Distressing Scene.
During the last fortnight men hav
been impressed here in Brussels, bu
their seizures here are made evidentl
with much greater care than in tn
provinces, with more regard for tn
appearances. There was no public an
nouncemcnt of the intention to depOrt
but suddenly about ten days ago Ger
tain men in towns whose names ar
on the list of Chomeurs received sum
mons notifying them to report at on
of the railway stations on a given day
penalties were fixed for failure to re
Spond to the summons and there wa
printed on the card an offer of employ
ment by the German government, ei
ther in Germany or Belgium. On tn
first day out of about ! 800 men OF
dered to present themselves at tn
Care du Midi about $50 responded
These We're examined by German ply
sicians and 800 were taken. Their
was no disorder, a large force Q
mounted Uhlans keeping back tn
crowds and barring access to the sta
ton to all but those who had bee
summoned to appear. The commits
sion for relief in Belgium had secure
permission to give to each depOrte
man loaf of bread, and some of til
communesG provided warm clothing fo
those who had none and in addition
: small financial allowance. As by on