The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-01-09
Cardinal Mercier's Letter.

But in a Lenten pastoral letter which
he had written on SeXagesima Sunday
and had read in all the churches, the
cardinal a spoken out once more; he
had publicly expressed the horrors Of
the deportations.
"Those who are fighting for the lib
erty of the Belgian flag are brave men.
Those informed in Holland and Ger
many, who raised their fettered hands
to heaven on behalf of their country,
are brave men. Our exiled compatriots,
who bear in silence the weight of their
the best of their ability, as do all those
souls who, either behind the c~loister
walls or in the retirement Of their own
homes, pray, toll and weep, awaiting
the return of their absent ones and
our common deliverance.
we have listened to the mighty
voices of wives and mothers; through
their tears they have prayed God to
sustain their courage and fidelity to
the honor Of their husbands and sons.
carried off by force to the epemy's
factories. These gallant men have been
heard at the hour of departure, rally
ing their energy to instill courage into
their comrades, or by a supreme eff
fort, to chant the national hymn; We
have seen some of them on their re-
turn, pale. %haggard. human wrecks; as
our fearful eyes sought their dim ewes
| We w iONCiNiliS pClOlt lhttl lol
all unconsciously they were revealing
to us a new and unexpected aspect Of
national heroism.
after this, car it be necessary tc
preach courage to your
AS a result of the cardinals words
the Germans were once more in a rage
and threatened to rescind the promis,
that the deportations would be discon,
tinued. They contented themselves a
last, however, with arresting the sec
rotary Of the cardinal and some Of tn,
priests who had read the pastoral, ant
nouncement was made, and appeared
In the journals in Belgium:
Berlin. 18th March, 1917.
Certain prominent Belgians belong
ing to various groups have recently ad
dressed a petition to his majesty tn
to the forced deportatios Of Belgia
workmen into Germany, and to hav
those Belgians who have been sen
there returned to their homes.
Those who signed that petition di
rectly addressed to his majesty hav
; just been informed that the empero
has decided to submit the request whic
they have drawn up to the careful con
, sideration OF the governor-general an
l of competent authorities, himself re
= serving a final decision until after ths
examination.
, I'm the meantime, his majesty hs
given an order to have returned In
mediately to Belgium. II his has M
= already been done, those Belgians ser
to Germany by mistake, and to suspen
. until further notice the forced deports
ton to Germany OF unemployed Be
gians."
u The condition that they must wor
: on their return, which at first was
0 deeply resented, proved to have in L
end only an academic interest So Il
AS | know, more except those physical
t incapable Of working were ever r.
/ turned to Belgium, and most of the
- were so far gone that they were brougI
:, home only to die.
Dividing Belgium.
h We supposed, however, that with Il
= imperial promise the deportations hi
come to an end and that we could |
d dulge the natural feeling Of relief tn
o would come with the passing of &
worst OF the horrors the Germans h
brought to Belgium.
q And yet. almost unnoticed, In tho
"A uncertain days of anxiety and cal
- there were being enacted the fiji
d scenes in a tragedy that transcend
any yet played in Belgium, the prepar
a ton for a deed worse than the atro'
7 ties, worse than the Cavell case, wor
! than the deportations.
t. They were of that sensational natu
and OF that stark objectivity which
stantly shocked the civilized porto
m OF mankind. But this went deep
was far more subtle and insidious. T
IN atrocities, the deportations and the re
80 destroyed the body; this was an
m dered men; this would assassinate
nation. !,
on the third Of March, or about Il
time, the German newspapers q