Evening star., 1923-07-08
MEN AND AFFAIRS.
BY ROBERT T. SMALL.

, atrocities were at least two years,
old led to mo- hesitancy In exploiting
the crimes anew every week or SO
Whether the dread tales were true I,
is not for the writer to say. and 1t
was indisputably true that little or
no word of complaint was heard
from the French women and girls In
the occupied regions of France when
| these regions were released by the
American and British armies On tn.
contrary, the French women spokr
in high terms of the discipline main
tanned by the German commanders.
The writer recalls visiting witt
Phillip Gibbs q little village on th,
Somme which. had been burned during
the German retreat in. 1917 The church
! had been spared and we talked witt
the priest He said the German com
mander in the village had an American
WIFE who was very. kind. He credited
the wife with saving his churcn.
Pressed for some word as to the gen
eral conduct of the Germans. the priest
could only say. that the sufferings Of
| the French people under the occupation
had been. mental and Spiritual rather
than physical.
Eventually we found the aged man
of the cloth did have one great grieV-
ance against an earlier military com
lnander i'll the district. 1t seemed thi>
particular boche insisted on pronouncirr
Paris with particularly harsh IS" Al
the end
And all the time he knew it should
be Paree." stormed the priest
The Germans conducted their own
propaganda in the occupied French ter
| ritory by printing daily papers il
French. These papers told some dire
ful tales of what was going on. in tiI,
world, dissension among the allies, tn.
success of the U-boat warfare. the i'm
poteace of America and every other sorr
of thlsehood calculated to break down
the ftench spirit.
Z 4 Z
1n~ Germans themselves supplied the
Britf3sl with their best propaganda
Every time there was a siackening of
British interest in the war, every tirIc
there was a disposition at home 10 count
| the cost and wonder if it was wortI
going on with the Germans would SEM
a few Zeppelins or few Gothas over
| to lombard London and kill noncom-
blatant men, women and children. Also
they would send a U-boat out TO sink
a hospital ship
These depredations were enough 10
stiffen the backs of the English 10
| superhuman efforts. They. helped TO
| keep England in the war and were
| largely instrumental in defeating Ger
/ many. Germany knew she could not
| win the war by sinking few hos
pital ships or by occasionally bombing
! London. These raids were. in them
selves. a form of German propaganda
intended to hearten their. own. folks
| at home.
! The German people were also tiring
of the war. The old stories of rhc
allies heing. the aggreSsors were not
sufficient to keep the people Of tn"
fatherland spurred to fighting pitch
Nor was there anything going on Ia
make them "mad.'' Therefore. the
Germans were appealed to through
their pride Of accomplishments The
t-boats were isOlating England and
would prevent America from crossing
the sea. The ZeppelinS and the air:
| planes had London and Paris in flames
The war would soou be over. And 50
/ ii went. IT was propaganda every
where and in every way, until the peo-
| pies Of the world were bewTldered and
! truth hid her head in shame.