The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1919-02-14
SECRET pF Paper
that DEflED HUNS
La ubre BeIgique Published by
Victor Jourdain.
FAIL TO SUPPRESS SHEET

ton OF the Patriot, Its Editor, Jour-
dain, Began Issuing Wili-o'-the-Wisp
Sheet Which for Four Years Kept
the Teuton Officials in a Constant
State Of Irritation.
With the coming of liberty to Bel
GUM, La Libre Belgique has departed,
and the Patriot has reappeared.
1t Is now possible to tell that the
most remarkable of wartime newspa-
pers, La Libre Belgique, which success
fully defied German efforts to suppress
1t for four years, was the Patriot, a
]ong-established Catholic weekly, In dis
guise. Victor Jourdain, aged editor Of
the Patriot, likewise edited the will-o'-
the-wisp sheet which kept German Of
ficialS In q constant state of irritation
during their occupation of his country
and helped to keep the spirit of the
Belgian people steadfast.
He died few weeks ago, just too
soon to see his city of Brussels liber-
ated.
Suppressed by Germans.
The Patriot was suppressed by Ger
man order at the outset of the war. A
few weeks later copies Of new pa
per began to fall into the hands of the
German officials and army officers. 1t
did not prove popular with the latter.
General Won Kissing, military gov
ernor, offered $4,000 francs reward for
the name of the editor and promised
one years Imprisonment to any Belgian
found reading it. There were arrests
in great number of persons suspected
Of the editorship, but no convictions.
It seemed that almost everybody who
could possibly have been guilty was
arrested at one time or another-ev-
erybody except Jourdain. One man was
held by the Germans to have been
proved sufficiently guilty to warrant
'one-year sentence, but Belgians in the
secret say he was innocent.
The baffied German police were kept
busy running down false clews. Given
the tip that the printing plant would
be found at such-and-such a street,
they would rush thither, only to find
vacant lot or an empty house. Told
that a man Of certain name was
the actual editor they would comb
Brussels for him, learning eventually
he was not in the city and never had
been.
While the police hunted, Victor
Jourdain prepared copy. He pointed
out intentional errors in the German
official communique, he gave the Bel
gian people the latest news of the Bel
glan army and the allied armies, he
ridiculed and lampooned the German Of
ficials, and generally kept alive the
peoples faith in better day to come.
: A few times obscure printing shops
n the city set up and printed the lit
tie four-page paper. For the most part,
however, the work was done in shops
elsewhere. Jourdain would appear by
night at the home of some small town
or city printer always selecting one
for the moment free of German troops.
Next morning he would depart in his
automobile with the entire issue con-
cealed in the car. Distribution would
begin as far as possible from the place
where the printing was done.
Compensation for Troubles.
Part compensation for his troubles
was found by the editor in such an
nouncements at these:
"Not submitted to any censor"
telegraph address, Commandatur,
Brussels"
"Offices: Not being able to estab-
lish these in a fixed place, they are
installed in an automobile cellar"
Advertisements: Business being nil
under the German domination, we
have suppressed the page Of advertis-
ing, and advise our readers to keep
their money for brighter days."
"Price per copy: Elastic, from zero
to the infinite. Please do not exceed
this limit"
A typical article from La Libre Bel
gique, printed on the third anniver-
sary Of the war, follows:
"Aug. A, 1914, Dame Germany start
ed Off to war. The plan is simple:
Belgium does not count. Paris taken
I'm six weeks. Russia crushed before
winter. England remaining alone, too
small a thing not to understand that
nothing Is left but to negotiate.
ave made the house Of cards crum-
blei We! After they decided to take
Calais, pass into England, etc., there
was the User! Still usl
"Zeppelins were to destroy London.
London suffered little, the reputation
of the Zeppelins suffered much. Mean
time they tried to finish Russia, by
military means first; the coup failed;
by diplomatic means then; the Rus
sian people put a stop to that. They
plotted in the Balkans, they bled
themselves white at yerdun. All was
useless. And all this time the people
of Germany were suffering enormous
". The new chancellor began to real
lie Il. Then they made their last
throw; the submarinesl And even In
no 40 RI q n