The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1918-11-20
Belgium Under the German Heel
BY BRAND WHlTLock.

and plutocrRcy working hand in hand.
They were IN reality limited companies
to which the government Of occupation
granted monopoltes, That is, the But
ter HentrRle had "A monopoly Of but
ter, the kartOnel-Xentral had a mo-
nopoly Of potatoes, when 1t could sc,
any, and SO on as to all sorts Of rjrod-
ucts.
The Zentrale multiplied, there was a
Hentrale for everything, in the end, one
even for jam.
These bureaus, each with its mo-
nopoly, had behind them in every case
DEGREES OF the governor general for
bidding all trading by others In the
II was said hat half Of the profits
they made went to the German army,
IN other quarters II was asserted that
they went elsewhere. | know nothing
as to the fact, only | used to think
that II undertaking had moi gone out OF
style, occupied Belgium might have al.
torded 4 good ground for adventure OF
this sort.
II used to be one Of our most cher
iShed supcrStittons, a part indeed Of
our very stock in trade, in the old days
OF municipal reform in America, that
German cities were ideally governed
| had accepted all that was written
about them and never had any doubts,
untl, myself making certain studies In
Germany, ! was told at the RathRus in
Dresden, when | tnnoceutly inquired
what salary the mayor was paid, that
my question was indiscreet. | found
some police scandals In Berlin OF the
familiar kind, and in another city some
pecuiatlon, but | assured myself that
these Incidents must be exceptional,
and, determined to be orthodox in re-
iormi' went on believing as before, But
II there Is any analogy between tho
methods employed IN German cities and
those that | observed on the part of
certain Geheimrate (priVy Councillursl
IN Belgium, | mimi they might muCl.
better be muck raked than our own.
| suppose now, that German methods
Impressed us because they were for
elgn ana mysterious and we knew
nothing about them. Any machine in
an American city will gladly govern
the city, and govern II with more or
less efficiency, on the same terms. We
never put our best foot forward. Tho
slightest trregularity, the least mistake
is published from the housetops and
cried abroad, the welkin Sllways ring
ing with denunciations Of some one,
ana the atmosphere darkcned by the
flying missiles Of the universal and re-
C~riminAtory accusation, charge and in
dtctmcnt that Is always going on, No
doubt 1t all has it's effect MS IA police
measure and proves us TO be n very
Nlrtuous people, either searching out
our own sins with Il romOrseleRs and
lmplaCable conscience, or else search
ing out the sins Of our %neiRhbors. There
was none OF this In German cities, and
there was none, and could be non in
occupied Belgium and 40 the Eentrale
had pretty much their own way.
Tho managers Of any given 8entrale
would buy the prbduots { the produc-
ers and. to justify Its existence, would
lay aside from 8 to 70 per cent of 1t
for Belgian consumption. The local
brokers, sometimes renegade Belgians,
sometimes Germans who came into the
country to profit by the situation, would
buy that product Of the Eentrale, but It
was openly said that In order to obtain
a stock OF any commodity 1t was nee
cssary to bride certain employees of the
zentrale, The brokers were always will
Ing to pay large COMMISSIONS thou
sand marks for Il stock OF sugar was
said not to be unusual. The brokers
could easily afford to pay this because,
having a monopoly, they could extract
from the consumers, who were among
the easier class In Belgium, what prices
they pleased, and | was told that brok-
era and the corrupt officials Of the zen
trale In his way built up considerable
fortunes. The Berner bund, OF Lou
vain, one Of the Catholic cooperative
societies, organized generally In the
| " '''AA ANN' w pl'N'l U ~ AIl' ItbIlIt
the same benefits hat the socialists
were giving them in their cooperative
societies, made application again and
again at the coal bureau. because it
would not offer brides or commissions
| The German army was ViCtualed
through the central office at Brussels
known az the ProViant-Amt commits
sariaO and the zentrale worked In
close company with II, as did the brok-
ers, who were always TO be found in
tho cafes around the bourse. II was not
only the brokers hat proflted, hut Ger
tain tradesmen. too. There were. for
instance, butchers assistants who set
up for themselves, and though they did
not sell pig n week. bought so on
market day, It was not II violent as
sumption to conclude that the 40 pigs
went to the ProvIant-Amt, and so to
tho German army The provIant-Amt.
too, could exercise Il great difference In
tho price, simply by instructing its
agents to stop buying, the price Of
course would go down and then the
brokers would obtain corners on the
products thus affected, whether pigs
or sugar or coffee, beans or peas. Snug
fortunes were undoubtedly made in
sugar and In coffee,
The brokers who met early in the
morning and late In the afternoon, not
In the hourse, but on the Curhstone
near the bourse, were for tho most part
pTolebSlullal sUecu'h'ols W''i VINO ilau
followed the race track. and the like.
There were among them, too, profess
sional thieves, and walters in cafes.
and the great profits they made went
the way such profits generally go. in
Jewels Or to women These brokers
bought not only of the z~entrale but
they bought for a while from stocks
that had been hidden away in the early
days Of the war and later from stocks
Of food that were made up either from
small quantities smuggled across the
frontier from Holland or from bits Of
food purchased from the communal
shops, or even. in some instances. the
r%atlons OF the poor, as, for instance,
rice.