German Atrocities: A Record of Shameless DeedsLe Queux, William
History
German Atrocities: A Record of Shameless Deeds
Le Queux, William
World War, 1914-1918 -- Atrocities
=M. de Sadeleer, Leader of the Conservative Party;=
=M. Pau Hemans, Leader of the Liberal Party;=
=M. Emile Van der Velde, Leader of the Socialist Party.=
=All these men are Belgian Ministers of State, and were accompanied by
Count de Lichtervelde, who acted as Secretary to the Mission.=
The members of this Mission first came to London to present an Address
to the King. On the evening of the day these gentlemen were received by
His Majesty, and later by Sir Edward Grey, I had the privilege of a
private interview with them.
I had a long talk with M. Carton de Wiart, during which he unfolded to
me many frightful details, and
“=These abominable crimes against humanity and civilization call for
condign reprobation in the face of the civilized world.... Let us
hear no more whining about German ‘culture.’ But let us make it
known that we will make the world ring with our sense of
horror.=”--_Frederic Harrison._
explained the reason for the appointment of a committee of inquiry. He
described to me scenes he himself had witnessed. He laid stress upon the
bombardment and destruction of open towns--that is, towns unprotected
and undefended by any military works--such as Malines and Louvain; while
Antwerp, being a fortified place, ought to have had twenty-four hours’
notice given to its inhabitants before it was attacked with bombs, yet
no such notice was given. On the contrary, attacks by Zeppelins had been
made without warning in the dead of night. He also described to me the
atrocities committed by the Germans in the bombardment and setting fire
to small villages without any military reason or necessity whatever. He
related harrowing details of the massacre of perfectly innocent people,
non-combatants, men, women, and children.
He showed me a letter from a person of repute in Belgium who had motored
from Brussels to Louvain by the Tervueren road, in which I read: “After
I got to a village named Veerde St. George I saw only burning villages;
peasants beside themselves with terror threw up their arms in sign of
submission on my approach. When I got to Louvain I found the whole town
in ruins, and soldiers were still piling straw against buildings which
had escaped the flames and igniting them.”
Authenticated Documents.
The mass of documents which the Mission were carrying to America, he
informed me, were all signed statements of persons who had been
eye-witnesses of the atrocities, as well as those of many who had
suffered.
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