German Barbarism: A Neutral's IndictmentMaccas, Léon
History
German Barbarism: A Neutral's Indictment
Maccas, Léon
World War, 1914-1918 -- Atrocities
The Countess of Vorontsoff, daughter of the Viceroy of the Caucasus,
went so far as to protest. Immediately the soldiers, in a rage, forced
themselves into her carriage, pushed her with the butt-ends of their
rifles on to the platform and began to search her. It was only with
great difficulty that the travellers were able to resume their journey,
which, from Baden to the Danish frontier, lasted seven days. At Reudsburg
station they were again dragged from their carriage and carefully
searched: at the Fleusburg station they were detained for four hours
under a guard of armed soldiers. Other Russian travellers of note were
at first brought to the frontier town of Eydtkuhnen, and then dispatched
again to Mecklenburg, and the Island of Ruegen.
The travellers were fearfully crowded together. Some of them were put
into cattle-trucks and had nothing to eat or drink. Even women were not
spared blows with the fist and with the butt-ends of rifles, nor threats
of death. Several had to make long marches on foot between rows of armed
soldiers, and at stopping-places had no shelter but pig-sties. A large
number of men aged from seventeen to fifty were stopped.
Husbands were taken away from their wives, children were harshly treated,
and left alone at the stopping-places in spite of the cries of their
mothers, who were forced to continue their journey.
In the sanatorium at Frankfurt, which was filled with a large number of
foreigners, especially Russians, several of whom had just been operated
on, shameful behaviour of the same kind took place. The sanatorium was
cleared in twenty-four hours. A woman who had just been confined was sent
to Berne, where she arrived in a dying condition. Her baby died on the
way.
After stories like these, we can easily imagine what bad treatment
travellers of less distinction had to endure. The vicissitudes through
which they passed not merely astound, but revolt, the hearer. The
Russians who were brought to Sasuitz, for the most part robbed of all
that they had, agreed to make the following declaration—
“Those who wish to do so may take the boat to go back to Sweden. Those
who do not wish to return to Sweden _will remain here, as prisoners
of war, until the end of the war_. The women will sew linen for our
soldiers, the men will be employed in making trenches. Whoever departs
from the appointed place where he is to stop will be brought before a
court-martial and will be shot. We do not guarantee regular food.”
HOW THE GERMANS BEHAVED TO FRENCH RESIDENTS AND TRAVELLERS
The French were no more spared than the Russians. At Kembs, fronting
Istein, the German authorities blew up with dynamite Monsignor
Kannengieser’s dwelling-house. The noble prelate, who was almost blind,
was shamefully ill-treated, because (such is the statement of the
_Liberté de Fribourg_) he had in his possession plans of Istein.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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