The Morgan City daily review. (Morgan City, La.) 1916-1920, 1918-02-12
GERMANS EXCUSE
ATR0C|0US ACTS
Murder, PiIIage and Arson Part
of Deliberate Scheme Of
Warfare.
HIGH OFFICERS GO ON RECORD
No Possible Evasion Of Responsibility
for BestiaI Acts Which for Centu.
ries Have Had No PARALLEL
Officially Endorsed.

OHICidIy SnoOTSeo.
The people of the United States
are beginning to learn the truth con-
corning the conduct Of the war by
Germany. Proof is offered that Ger
man officials deliberately lied IN
their statements concerning atroci-
ties committed by the Be1gians and
11lies. That their own soldiers we're
disgusted by the cruelties practiced
1T the order of high officers Of the
kaiser is shown. Extracts taken
from pamphlets issued follow:
The Vorwaerts of Berlin, October @,
1914, said:
1--WE have already been able to es-
tablish the falseness of great number
Of assertions which have been made
with great precision and published
everywhere in the press, concerning al
legged cruelties committed, by the popu-
lations of the countries with which
Germany is at, war, upon German SOL
diers and civilians. We are now In po-
sition to silence two others Of these
fantastic stories.
"The war correspondent Of the Ber-
liner Tageblatt spoke a few weeks
ago of cigars and cigarettes filled with
powder alleged to have been given out
or sold to our soldiers with diabolical
intent. He even pretended that he had
seen with his own eyes hundreds of
this kind Of cigarettes. We learn from
m authentic source that this story OF
cigars and cigarettes is nothing but a
brazen invention. Stories of soldiers
whose eyes are alleged to have been
torn out by francs-tireurs are circulat'
ed throughout Germany. Not single
case of this kind has been officially Is
tablished.
1T matters little that reports Of this
nature bear an appearance Of positive
gertrude, or are even vOuched for BY
eye-witnesses. The desire for notoriety,
the absence Of criticism. and personal
error play an unfortunate part in the
days in which we are living. Every
nose shot OF or simply bound up
every eye removed, is Immediately
Transformed into q nose or eye torn
away by the francs.tireurs. Already the
volkszeitung of Cologne has been abs
contrary to the very categorical eseer'
lions from Aix-la- Chapelle, p prove
that there was no soldier yin his eyes
torn out in the field ambulance Of this
town. 1t was said, also, that people
wounded in this way were under treat
ment in the neighborhood Of Berlin
but whenever inquiries have been made
in regard to these reports, their abso
atite falsity has been demonstrated. Al
length these reports were concentrated
at Gross Lichterfe1de. A newspaper
| published at noon and widely circu
lated in Berlin printed few days age
in large type the news that at thu
Lazaretto of Lichterfelde alone there
were ten German soldiers, only slight
i " wounded. whose eyes had been wick
edly torn out But to a request fol
information by Comrade Liebknech
the following written reply was sen
BY the chief medical officer Of tn
aforementioned field hospital. datet
, the eighteenth of the month:
"'Sir: Happily there is no trutl
whatever in these stories.
Yours obediently,
PROFESSOR RAUTENBERG,'"
German Soldiers Protested.
Thus the teachings Of the German
War Book and Of the German apostles
Of frightfulness, suspicion and hatred
had now begun to bear their natura
fruit. But the voice Of protest VA
not entirely silent. A considerable
number Of letters by German soldier
who were shocked by the Germal
atrocities were sent to Ambassado
Gerard, because be was the representa-
tive Of the United States, the leadin|
neutral nation. The three letter
which follow, In translation, were r.
ceived BY the American ambassado
from German soldier& :.
Here - the protest Of German col
der, an eyewitness Of the slaughter Q
Russian soldiers IN the 1asurian lake
and swamps:
TT was ff1ghtful, heart-rending. q
theoe masses Of human beings WEI
driven to destruction. Above the tea
1lble thunder Of the cannon could b
heard the heart-rsndtng cries q II
Rusgians: % Ptuosianel o Pruaaans
l-but there was no mercy. Our captall
had ordered: The whole lot must die
70 rapad ara' A I have heard, ~
men and One 00eef O. our Ode wen
mad from these least-ssndlng cE4el
| But most Of my coaesdss and the Oh
cefs joked - ths unasmed and helples
Russians shEieked 1pr mercy Will
they were being sglIocatsd In tn
swamps. and shot down. The orde
vas: Close up and at It hardefr 70
days afterwards those heart-fendin
yells followed me and I daFe not thin
Of them or shau 90 mad. There IL .