ALTONA, _March 1st, 1915_.
Court of the Commandant.
Present:
President, Dr. STEENGRAFE.
Secretary, Sergeant MEYER.
There appears as witness engineer Weiss, who, after the importance of
the oath has been pointed out to him, he declares as follows:
As to Person: My name is Robert Weiss; engineer, in Altona; aged 31;
Christian; motor-driver.
As to Case: After mobilisation I offered my services as a volunteer,
and went into the field as motor-driver on the staff of the IX. Reserve
Army Corps.
On the afternoon of August 25th, 1914, we arrived at Louvain. The
inhabitants behaved at first more than kindly towards us.
Towards the evening I had driven a wounded man to the field hospital
near the market-place. The field hospital was established in a
monastery. About 9 o'clock I drove the car with Captain von Harnier in
it from the monastery back to the market-place, when suddenly firing
began on all sides from the houses. I stopped my car and remained
unhurt; Captain von Harnier was wounded in the arm; he hurried to the
market-place, and I sought cover beneath the car.
I may have remained there about half an hour when a platoon of German
infantry came along the road. I called to the leader, and he had the
surrounding houses, from which the shooting continued, covered by fire.
I then took the car to safety in the yard of the monastery.
When, after a short time, I wished to leave, Captain von Esmarch
was carried in, covered with blood. Whilst being carried to the
field hospital, he was fired upon from the monastery. I went into
the monastery with an infantryman; we found a revolver, but to save
ourselves from being cut off we could not enter the vaults of the
monastery into which the people had evidently retired.
The Belgian field hospital did not want to bandage Captain von Esmarch;
I finally forced a Belgian surgeon, whom I caught by the arm, to apply
the bandage.
Subsequently, on driving my car to the market-place, and from there to
the station with the General Staff, I saw everywhere on the way burning
houses; now and again isolated firing from the houses still took place.
At the station there were no burning houses, and strict orders had been
given to set no houses on fire there. After half an hour the firing
from the hotels opposite the station began. From that point right to
the station there was firing with machine-guns; I could distinctly hear
the regular "tak, tak."
It was only then that orders were given to raze the houses in front of
the station; they were set on fire, but even from the burning houses,
and finally from the ruins, the firing continued briskly. We suffered
losses.
Later on, isolated shots were fired.
The citizens who had in any way taken part in the attack were brought
to the station square, and, if found guilty, shot according to martial
law.
The soldiers, who brought the citizens along, were exhorted--as I
have myself heard--to bear witness carefully and conscientiously. The
examinations were conducted by officers of the General Staff. Whoever
carried loaded arms, in spite of the prohibition issued and announced,
was shot at once.
In the town lay several men in clerical garb, shot; at the station,
too, several men in clerical dress were shot; all were examined, but I
was not present at the examinations.
On the following day, too, isolated shots fell upon us from houses.
Read over, approved, signed.
Signed: WEISS.
The witness was sworn in accordance with the regulations.
Signed: Dr. STEENGRAFE, President.
Signed: MEYER.