New-York tribune., 1919-03-30

leanto He put them in it and they
stayed there six or seven weeks until
Louise undertook to get them to Brussels.
"Were you paid for ths?"
"Not a penny. / tell you, I have five
children, and all that time we never had
enough to cat. will tell you something
else. If you want to do a good deed, send
me home to my wife, who is brought to
beggary in my absence
After this, whole crowd of small shop
keepers and artisans were called, whom L
cannot remember very clearly. did not
hear the depostions of the principal actors
in the drama, as they had been called first.
Bodarf
BY this time all the accused had been
heard; then, after whispered consultation
with the chief examiner, boy was brought
in, very slim, with black curly hair and a
pale face He was dressed in black and
somehow his appearance had something fu-
nereal and tragic about it,
"Sit down." said the Interpreter. "Your
name?"
"Bodart"
"Your age!"
Fourteen"
You must take the oath and speak the
truth. You have no parents or guardians9 9v
eyes, l have"
II am his MOTHER" cried woman in a
black veil who was sitting near nic She
was among the most compromised and her
sons deposition concerned her.
After he had taken the oath, the inter-
prefer said to him: Remember, German
law Furnishes false swearing by ten years
penal servitude; besides which. as
Christian, you would commit mortal sim"
The lad stated that NJ Baucq had said in
his house and before him. his mother and
Mile. Thuliez, that he was engaged in mark
ing out sure road for soldiers to the Dutch
frontier. Also this same NJ. Baucq brought
him parcels of the "Libre Belgique," which
he distributed as directed.
The mothers guilt was thus made evident
and she was aghast M. Baucq intervened
to say that the child must have misunder-
stood, which was not surprising seeing his
age and the fact that he constantly talked
English with his mother. at is true | did
say something of the kind, but said that a
road was being marked, not that / was
marking it." (On repere-not Je repere).
| wondered anXiously if the prosecutor made
note of this point.
The lad was dismissed and turned toward
his mother; the interpreter gave him leave
to embrace her They only gave each other
one kiss, but they put all their soul in it.
They did not know if it might not be their
last
The court was moved by this scene, espe-
cially all those fathers and mothers over
whom hung the threat of many years. i'm
prisonment of death.
The examining lieutenant returned. as the
prosecutor wished TO sum up
First of all, he pointed out some anoma-
hes. Some of the accused would not agree
! to the dispositions they had made at the
| examination, and said that mistakes were
due to the examiner having misunderstood
them After having solemnlv taken the
/ OATH the whole court standing up, the lieu
tenant defended himself. According to his
methods any msapprehension was impossi.
| BILE.
! | think really that he was right But there
is one thing he did not count on. and that
| is the pressure exerted at the inquiry and
which every one obeys, in spite of himself.
when his deposition is dictated. The ex-
aminer's will weighs on each witness and
alters the truth more or less Before the
court one wishes to return to ones own
confessions, but it is too late, the written
statements speak against one. Just after.
when | heard the disauieting Interpretation
put on the whole affair by the prosecutor. I
regretted some rather bold words had nut
into my deposition at the instigation of the
examiners and for which would doubtless
pay heavily.
The prosecutor saw in the affair DELHI
crate and careful organization of which all
the accused were members. Given it's size
and its duration, he considered it not only
as recruiting but espionage He was
convinced that some of the men possessed
important military information and won-
dered whether Joffres offensive rad not
profited by it. In any case all this activity
was high treason.
The morrow was then fixed for judgment.
to be delivered
Like a Wedding Partv