A searchlight on Germany: Germany's Blunders, Crimes and PunishmentHornaday, William T. (William Temple)
History
A searchlight on Germany: Germany's Blunders, Crimes and Punishment
Hornaday, William T. (William Temple)
World War, 1914-1918 -- Atrocities -- Germany; World War, 1914-1918 -- Causes
Nevertheless, Zeppelin died of a broken heart. From a military point of
view his campaign has proven a complete fiasco,--just as Americans long
ago predicted that it would, and his "frightfulness" gas bags are now
on the scrap-heap.
4. TIRPITZ AND THE SUBMARINE MURDERS.
For a submarine to sink a war vessel with all on board is merely war,
no more and no less. No one whines about atrocities of that sort. All
the world does object, however, and very strongly, too, to the sinking
of unarmed passenger steamers, hospital ships, and Belgian relief
ships. All such acts of murder as these are the acts of monsters, not
of men. Of course we know that Germany sees her doom, and her people
are wild over the certainty of defeat. But even a 90 per cent. defeated
prize-fighter must not deliver a foul blow.
The submarine murders are so well known to Americans as to require
no comment; but a few murder statistics will be worth while, lest we
forget.
March 28, 1915. Steamer _Falaba_ 111 lost
May 7, " " _Lusitania_ 1,198 "
June 28, " " _Armenian_ 30 "
Aug. 19, " " _Arabic_ 30 "
Nov. 7, " " _Ancona_ 208 "
Dec. 30, " " _Persia_ 385 "
March 24, 1916. " _Sussex_ (Channel boat) 52 "
HOSPITAL SHIPS MALICIOUSLY DESTROYED BY THE GERMAN "NAVY."
_Portugal._ March 17, 1916 45 Red Cross nurses lost.
40 of the crew.
_Britannic._ Nov., 1915 about 50 lost.
_Asturias._ March 20, 1915 43 lost.
_Gloucester Castle._ March 30, 1915 all wounded saved.
_Donegal._ 41 lost.
_Lanfranc._ (152 wounded Germans
saved by the British Navy!) 19 British wounded lost.
15 German wounded lost.
On a very few occasions, a few German submarine captains have acted
humanely, and some even gallantly; but all these acts have been
besmirched by the acts of cowardly and brutal men who have deliberately
fired upon hospital ships and open life-boats loaded with men
attempting to save themselves from drowning. In one celebrated instance
a U-boat captain and his crew came out upon their deck, and at close
range jeered at drowning men and women who were struggling in icy water.
And here is the latest feat of the brave and gallant German "navy":
On July 31, 1917, 200 miles from land a German submarine engaged in
combat and sank the unarmed British freighter, _Belgian Prince_. They
assembled the entire crew of 40 men on the submarine's deck, stripped
from them their life-belts, and smashed all their life-boats, with
axes. Then the brave Germans went below, closed their hatches, ran on
the surface for two miles, then suddenly submerged. Thirty-eight were
drowned, but two lived to be picked up and tell the story.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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