In the early days of the war the German Government, through the agency of a neutral power, communicated the following two documents to France and Belgium. In order to show that the principle is both technically wrong and inhuman, we propose to reproduce them in full. The first of these documents is as follows— “TO THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT “_The reports of German troops show that in contempt of the law of nations, a national war has been organised in France. In many cases the inhabitants of the country, under the protection of civilian garb, fired surreptitiously on German soldiers. Germany is opposed to this method of making war, which is a violation of the law of nations. The German troops have been instructed to stamp out this kind of resistance by the most rigorous measures. Every non-combatant inhabitant who carries arms, impedes communications, cuts telegraph wires, uses explosive appliances—in short, any one who takes any illegitimate part in the war, will at once be brought before our courts-martial and shot. If by this means the war becomes violent Germany declines all responsibility for it, and France alone will be responsible for the floods of blood that will be shed._” The second document is in the following terms— “TO THE BELGIAN GOVERNMENT “_His Majesty’s Government of Belgium have rejected Germany’s sincere offer to spare them the horrors of war. Belgium has willed war and has replied to our proposal by armed opposition._ “_Notwithstanding the note of the 8th August, by which the Belgian Government intimated that, in accordance with the laws of war, they would wage it only with soldiers, many civilians took part in the battles at Liège, under the protection of civilian garb. They not merely fired on the German troops, but they cruelly killed the wounded and the doctors who were doing their duty._ “_At Antwerp also civilians barbarously looted the property of Germans, and brutally massacred women and children. Germany asks the whole civilised world to take note of the blood of these unoffending people and of the Belgian method of waging war which shows the low grade of their civilisation. If henceforth the war becomes cruel the fault lies with Belgium. In order to protect the German troops against the unbridled passions of the people, it is decreed that henceforth every man who takes part in the conflict without being in uniform and wearing the recognised distinguishing marks, who impedes the communications of our troops, cuts telegraph wires, uses explosive appliances—in short, who takes any illegitimate part whatsoever in the war, will be treated as a franc-tireur, brought before a court-martial, and shot._” THE GERMAN MILITARY AUTHORITIES AND NON-COMBATANTS