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[Transcriber's note: This document contains several illustrations of
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has been included in the description of the illustration.]
[Illustration: His Majesty, Albert, King of the Belgians
_Photograph by Boute, Brussels_]
A JOURNAL
FROM OUR LEGATION
IN BELGIUM
BY
HUGH GIBSON
SECRETARY OF THE
AMERICAN LEGATION IN BRUSSELS
ILLUSTRATED FROM PHOTOGRAPHS
NEW YORK
GROSSET & DUNLAP
PUBLISHERS
_Copyright, 1917, by_
DOUBLEDAY, PAGE & COMPANY
_All rights reserved, including that of
translation into foreign languages,
including the Scandinavian._
TO MY MOTHER
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
His Majesty, Albert, King of the Belgians _Front_
FACING
PAGE
Facsimile of the first page of the German ultimatum to Belgium
(_in the text_) 16
Pass issued by the Belgian military authorities to enable Mr.
Gibson to enter the German Legation at Brussels 16
Maître Gaston de Leval, legal adviser to the American Legation
in Brussels 17
Her Majesty, Elizabeth, Queen of the Belgians 32
Mr. Brand Whitlock, American Minister to Belgium 33
German supply train entering Brussels 96
German infantry entering Brussels 97
German officers and soldiers were always ready to oblige by
posing for the camera 112
"Mit Gott für Kaiser und Reich" 112
Count Guy d'Oultremont 113
From left to right: Colonel DuCane, Captain Ferguson and
Colonel Fairholme 113
Pass issued by General von Jarotzky (_in text_) 116
Letter signed by Burgomaster Max requesting the Belgian
authorities to allow Mr. Gibson to pass (_in text_) 128
Boy Scouts at Belgian headquarters 140
Reading from left to right: a Belgian Staff Officer, Colonel
Fairholme, Colonel DuCane and Captain Ferguson 140
List of the civilians killed by the Germans at Tamines on
August 20, 1914 141
Entrance to the Rue de Diest, Louvain 156
The dead and the living. A Belgian civilian and a German
soldier 157
Pass issued by Field-Marshal von der Goltz (_in text_) 200
A street in Louvain 202
Fixing on the white Flag for the dash between the lines 202
Refugees from the villages near the Antwerp forts 203
Arrival in Antwerp of refugees from Malines 203
At Malines--a good background for a photograph to send home
to Germany 218
His Eminence, Cardinal Mercier 219
Fire at Namur during the bombardment 254
Effect of big German shell on Fort of Waehlem 255
Outside view of the Fort of Waehlem after bombardment 255
View of the Meuse at Huy 262
Refugees fleeing toward Dunkirk before the German advance 263
Graves of civilians shot by the Germans 266
A typical proclamation 266
Views of the Fort of Waehlem after its bombardment 267
Herbert C. Hoover 282
French Howitzer near H---- 283
German camp kitchen 283
Von Bulow's greeting to the people of Liège (_in text_) 324
How the simple pleasures of the German soldiers were restricted
(_in text_) 324
Aux habitants de la Belgique (_in text_) 328
Appeal of the Queen of the Belgians for help from America
(_in text_) 338
Julius Van Hee, American Vice-Counsel at Ghent 340
Lewis Richards 340
A Brussels soup-kitchen run by volunteers 341
Meals served to the children in the schools 341
German proclamation announcing the execution of Miss Cavell
(_in text_) 349
Miss Edith Cavell 356
Fly-leaf of Miss Cavell's prayer book 357
Notes in Miss Cavell's prayer book 360, 361
INTRODUCTION
This volume is not a carefully prepared treatise on the war. It does not
set out to prove anything. It is merely what its title indicates--a
private journal jotted down hastily from day to day in odd moments, when
more pressing duties would permit. Much material has been eliminated as
of little interest. Other material of interest has been left out because
it cannot be published at this time. It is believed, however, that what
is printed here will suffice to give some idea of life in Belgium during
the first few months of the war.
I have eliminated from the journal most of the matter about the early
history of the Commission for Relief in Belgium. My day-to-day record
did not do any sort of justice to the subject, and since it was not
adequate, I have preferred to eliminate all but such casual reference to
the relief work as is necessary to maintain the narrative. I am
reconciled to this treatment of the subject by the knowledge that the
story will be told comprehensively and well by Dr. Vernon Kellogg, who
will soon publish an authoritative history of the Commission's work. As
former Director of the Commission in Belgium, he has the detailed
knowledge of its workings and the sympathetic understanding of its
purpose, which peculiarly fit him for the task.
The work of the Commission is of a scope and significance that few of us
realise. It is without doubt the greatest humanitarian enterprise in
history, conducted under conditions of almost incredible difficulty. To
those who had an understanding of the work, it had a compelling appeal,
not only as an opportunity for service but also as the greatest
conservation project of all time--the conservation of one of the finest
races of our civilisation.
In its inception and execution, the work of the Commission is
distinctively American. Its inception was in the mind of Herbert Hoover;
in its execution he had the whole-hearted assistance of a little band of
quiet American gentlemen who laboured in Belgium from the autumn of 1914
until we entered the war in April of this year. They came from all parts
of our country and from all walks of life. They were simple work-a-day
Americans, welded together by unwavering devotion to the common task and
to Herbert Hoover, the "Chief." It was the splendid human side of the
Commission that made it succeed in spite of all obstacles, and that part
of the story will be hard to tell.
The gallant little band is now widely scattered. Some are carrying on
their old work from Holland or England or America in order to ensure a
steady flow of food to Belgium. Others are serving our Government in
various capacities or fighting in the armies of our allies. Some of them
we shall not see again and there will never be another reunion, as in
the old days, when the "Chief" came over from London to Brussels with
work to be done. But the bright light of kindly human service which
brought them all together is still aflame and will always be an
inspiration to those who served, however humbly, in the great work.
WASHINGTON, D.C., SEPT. 24, 1917.
A Journal From Our Legation In Belgium
_BRUSSELS, July 4, 1914._--After years of hard work and revolutions and
wars and rumours of war, the change to this quiet post has been most
welcome and I have wallowed in the luxury of having time to play.
For the last year or two I have looked forward to just such a post as
this, where nothing ever happens, where there is no earthly chance of
being called out of bed in the middle of the night to see the human race
brawling over its differences. When pounding along in the small hours of
the night, nearly dead with fatigue, I have thought that I should like
to have a long assignment to just such a post and become a diplomatic
Lotos Eater. And at first it was great fun.
That phase lasted until I had had a thorough rest, and then the longing
for something more active began to manifest itself.
I sat down and wrote to the Department of State that while I greatly
appreciated having been sent to this much-coveted post I was ready
whenever there might be need of my services to go where there was work
to be done.
* * * * *
_July 28, 1914._--Well, the roof has fallen in. War was declared this
afternoon by Austria. The town is seething with excitement and
everybody seems to realise how near they are to the big stage. Three
classes of reserves have already been called to the colours to defend
Belgian neutrality. A general mobilisation is prepared and may be
declared at any time. The Bourse has been closed to prevent too much
play on the situation, and let things steady themselves. In every other
way the hatches have been battened down and preparations made for heavy
weather.
To-night the streets are crowded and demonstrations for and against war
are being held. The Socialists have Jaurés, their French leader, up from
Paris, and have him haranguing an anti-war demonstration in the Grande
Place, where a tremendous crowd has collected. Nobody on earth can see
where it will all lead. England is trying hard to localise the conflict,
and has valuable help. If she does not succeed * * *
An advance guard of tourists is arriving from France, Germany, and
Switzerland, and a lot of them drop in for advice as to whether it is
safe for them to go to various places in Europe. And most of them seem
to feel that we really have authoritative information as to what the
next few days are to bring forth, and resent the fact that we are too
disobliging to tell them the inside news. A deluge of this sort would be
easier for a full-sized Embassy to grapple with, but as Belgium is one
of those places where nothing ever happens we have the smallest possible
organisation, consisting on a peace basis of the Minister and myself,
with one clerk. We shall have somehow to build up an emergency force to
meet the situation.
* * * * *
_July 30th._--No line on the future yet. Brussels is beginning to look
warlike. Troops are beginning to appear. The railway stations have been
occupied, and the Boy Scouts are swarming over the town as busy as bird
dogs. A week ago there was hardly a tourist in Brussels. Now the Legation
hall is filled with them, and they all demand precise information as to
what is going to happen next and where they can go with a guarantee from
the Legation that they will not get into trouble.
* * * * *
_July 31st._--No, my recent remarks about nothing ever happening in
Brussels were not intended as sarcasm. I thought Belgium was the one
place where I could be sure of a quiet time, and here we are right in
the centre of it. Even if nothing more happens we have had enough
excitement to last me for some time. The doings of the past few days
have brought out some idea of what a general European war would
mean--and it is altogether too dreadful to think of.
* * * * *
_Saturday, Aug. 1st._--Last night when I went home, at about midnight,
I found the police going about with the orders for mobilisation, ringing
the door bells and summoning the men to the colours. There was no time
to tarry, but each man tumbled out of bed into his clothes and hurried
away to his regiment. Two of my neighbours were routed out a little
after midnight, and got away within the hour. There was a good deal of
weeping and handshaking and farewelling, and it was not the sort of
thing to promote restful sleep.
This morning I got down to the chancery at a quarter past eight, and
found that Omer, our good messenger, had been summoned to the colours.
He had gone, of course, and had left a note for me to announce the fact.
He had been ill, and could perfectly well have been exempted. The other
day, when we had discussed the matter, I had told him that there would
be no difficulty in getting him off. He showed no enthusiasm, however,
and merely remarked, without heroics, that it was up to him.
Colonel Falls, 7th Regiment, of the National Guard of New York, came in,
having been sent back from the frontier. He had the pleasure of standing
all the way as the trains were packed.
Millard Shaler, the American mining engineer, who had just come back from
the Congo, came in with his amusing Belgian friend who had been telling
us for weeks about the wonderful new car in which he was investing. This
time he came around to let me have a look at it, he having been advised
that the car was requisitioned and due to be taken over to-day.
We have done a land-office business in passports, and shall probably
continue to turn them out by the dozen.
* * * * *
_Sunday, August 2d._--Another hectic day with promise of more to come.
This morning I came down a little earlier than usual and found the
Minister already hard at it. He had been routed out of bed and had not
had time to bathe or shave. There was nothing to show that it was a
Sunday--nearly twice as many callers as yesterday, and they were more
exacting.
Mrs. A---- B---- C---- came in airily and announced that she had started
from Paris yesterday on a motor tour through France and Belgium. Having
got this far, some rude person had told her that her motor might be
seized by the Government for military purposes and that an order had
been promulgated forbidding any one to take cars out of the country. She
came around confidently to have us assure her that this was a wicked
lie--and needless to say was deeply disappointed in us when we failed to
back her up. We had refrained from asking the Government to release our
own servants from their military obligations and have refused to interfere
for anybody else, but that was not enough for her. She left, a highly
indignant lady.
The story is around town this afternoon that the Germans have already
crossed the frontier without the formality of a declaration of war--but
that remains to be seen. Brussels was put under martial law last night,
and is now patrolled by grenadiers and lancers.
The money situation is bad. All small change has disappeared in the
general panic, and none of it has dared show its head during the past
few days. The next thing done by panicky people was to pass round word
that the Government bank notes were no good and would not be honoured.
Lots of shops are refusing to accept bank notes, and few places can make
any change. The police are lined up outside the banks keeping people in
line. People in general are frantic with fear, and are trampling each
other in the rush to get money out of the banks before the crash that
probably will not come. Travelers who came here with pockets bulging with
express checks and bank notes are unable to get a cent of real money, and
nobody shows any enthusiasm over American paper. I have a few bank notes
left, and this evening when I went into a restaurant I have patronised
ever since my arrival the head waiter refused to change a note for me,
and I finally had to leave it and take credit against future meals to be
eaten there. We may have our troubles when our small store is gone, but
probably the situation will improve and I refuse to worry. And some of
our compatriots don't understand why the Legation does not have a cellar
full of hard money to finance them through their stay in Europe.
Communications, with such parts of the world as we still speak to, are
getting very difficult on account of mobilisation, the military having
right of way. This morning's Paris papers have not come in this evening,
and there are no promises as to when we shall see them. The news in the
local papers is scarce and doubtful, and I hope for a word from Paris.
Word has just come in that the Government has seized the supplies of
bread, rice, and beans, and will fix prices for the present. That is a
sensible and steadying thing, and should have a good effect.
Nobody seems to remember that a few days ago Serbia was playing a star
rôle in this affair. She seems to have faded away behind the scenes. A
few days ago, Mexico loomed large in the papers and now we have forgotten
that she ever existed. Albania supplied a lot of table talk, and now we
think about as much about her and her troubles as we do about Thibet.
This afternoon I went around to the Rue Ducale to take a look at the
French Legation. The tricolor was flying in the fresh breeze, and there
was a big crowd outside cheering itself hoarse. It was made up of men
who were called to the colors and were waiting to enroll themselves and
get instructions as to where they should report for duty. The air was
electric, and every now and then the military band struck up the
Marseillaise and the crowd instantly became happily delirious. Some of
them had been standing in the sun for hours waiting to get in and get
their orders, but they were just as keenly responsive to the music and
the mood of the crowd as anybody. All the crowd in the Legation had been
working day and night for days, and was dead with fatigue; but, some
way, they kept going, and managed to be civil and friendly when I had
business with them. How they do it I don't know. A Frenchman's
politeness must be more deeply ingrained than even I had supposed.
On the way back from the Legation this evening, I saw von Below, the
German Minister, driving home from the Foreign Office to his Legation.
He passed close to me, and I saw that the perspiration was standing out
on his forehead. He held his hat in his hand and puffed at a cigarette
like a mechanical toy, blowing out jerky clouds of smoke. He looked
neither to left nor right, and failed to give me his usual ceremonious
bow. He is evidently not at ease about the situation, although he
continues to figure in the newspapers as stating that all is well, that
Germany has no intention of setting foot on Belgian soil, and that all
Belgium has to do is to keep calm. In an interview given to _Le Soir_
he sums up his reassuring remarks by saying: "Your neighbour's house may
burn but yours will be safe."
* * * * *
_August 3, 1914._--No mail in to-day. All communications seem to be
stopped for the time being at least. Mobilisation here and in France
requires all the efforts of all hands, and little workaday things like
mail and newspapers go by the board.
According to the news which was given me when I got out of bed this
morning, the German Minister last night presented to the Belgian
Government an ultimatum demanding the right to send German troops across
Belgium to attack France. He was evidently returning from this pleasant
duty when I saw him last night, for the ultimatum seems to have been
presented at seven o'clock. The King presided over a Cabinet Council
which sat all night; and when the twelve hours given by the ultimatum
had expired, at seven this morning, a flat refusal was sent to the German
Legation. Arrangements were got under way, as the Council sat, to defend
the frontiers of the country against aggression. During the night the
garrison left and the Garde Civique came on duty to police the town.
The influx of callers was greater to-day than at any time so far, and we
were fairly swamped. Miss Larner came in and worked like a Trojan, taking
passport applications and reassuring the women who wanted to be told that
the Germans would not kill them even when they got to Brussels. She is a
godsend to us.
Monsieur de Leval, the Belgian lawyer who for ten years has been the
legal counselor of the Legation, came in and brought some good clerks
with him. He also hung up his hat and went to work, making all sorts of
calls at the Foreign Office, seeing callers, and going about to the
different Legations. Granville Fortescue came in from Ostend, and I
should have put him to work but that he had plans of his own and has
decided to blossom forth as a war correspondent. He is all for getting
to the "front" if any.
Just to see what would happen, I went to the telephone after lunch and
asked to be put through to the Embassy at London. To my surprise, I got
the connection in a few minutes and had a talk with Bell, the Second
Secretary. The Cabinet had been sitting since eleven this morning, but
had announced no decision. I telephoned him again this evening and got
the same reply. Bell said that they had several hundred people in the
chancery and were preparing for a heavy blow.
As nearly as we can make out the Germans have sent patrols into Belgian
territory, but there have been no actual operations so far. All day long
we have been getting stories to the effect that there has been a battle
at Visé and that fifteen hundred Belgians had been killed; later it was
stated that they had driven the Germans back with heavy losses. The net
result is that at the end of the day we know little more than we did
this morning.
Parliament is summoned to meet in special session to-morrow morning to
hear what the King has to say about the German ultimatum. It will be an
interesting sight. Parliament has long been rent with most bitter
factional quarrels, but I hear that all these are to be forgotten and
that all parties, Socialists included, are to rally round the throne in
a great demonstration of loyalty.
All the regular troops have been withdrawn from this part of the country
and dispatched to the front, leaving the protection of the capital to
the Garde Civique, who are patrolling the streets, to examine the papers
of everybody who moves about. This is a sort of local guard made up of
people who have not been called for active military service, but who
have volunteered for local defense. They are from every class--lawyers
and butchers and bakers and dentists and university professors. They
have, of course, had little training for this sort of work, and have had
only elementary orders to guide them. These they carry out to the letter.
There are detachments of them at all sorts of strategic points in the
city where they hold up passing vehicles to see who is inside. I have been
stopped by them goodness knows how many times this day. They hold up the
car, look inside, apologise, and explain good-naturedly that they are
obliged to bother me, asking who I am, and after I have satisfied them
with papers that any well-equipped spy would be ashamed of, they let me
go on with more apologies. They rejoice in a traditional uniform topped
off by a derby hat with kangaroo feathers on it. This is anything but
martial in appearance and seems to affect their funny bone as it does
mine.
* * * * *
_August 5th._--Yesterday morning we got about early and made for the
Chamber of Deputies to hear the King's speech. The Minister and I walked
over together and met a few straggling colleagues headed in the same
direction. Most of them had got there ahead of us, and the galleries
were all jammed. The Rue Royale, from the Palace around the park to the
Parliament building, was packed with people, held in check by the Garde
Civique. There was a buzz as of a thousand bees and every face was
ablaze--the look of a people who have been trampled on for hundreds of
years and have not learned to submit. The Garde Civique had two bands in
front of the Senate, and they tried to play the Brabançonne in unison.
Neither of them could play the air in tune, and they were about a bar
apart all the time. They played it through and then began to play it
over again without a pause between. They blew and pounded steadily for
nearly half an hour, and the more they played, the more enthusiastic the
crowds became.
When I saw how crowded the galleries were I thought I would not push, so
resigned myself to missing the speech and went out onto a balcony with
Webber, of the British Legation, to see the arrival of the King and
Queen. We had the balcony to ourselves, as everybody else was inside
fighting for a place in the galleries to hear the speech.
When the King and Queen finally left the Palace we knew it from a roar
of cheering that came surging across the Park. The little procession
came along at a smart trot, and although it was hidden from us by the
trees we could follow its progress by the steadily advancing roaring of
the mob. When they turned from the Rue Royale into the Rue de la Loi,
the crowd in front of the Parliament buildings took up the cheering in a
way to make the windows rattle.
First came the staff of the King and members of his household. Then the
Queen, accompanied by the royal children, in an open daumont. The
cheering for the Queen was full-throated and with no sign of doubt,
because of her Bavarian birth and upbringing--she is looked on as a
Belgian Queen and nothing else.
After the Queen came a carriage or two with members of the royal family
and the Court. Finally the King on horseback. He was in the field
uniform of a lieutenant-general, with no decorations and none of the
ceremonial trappings usual on such occasions as a speech from the
Throne. He was followed by a few members of his staff who also looked as
though they were meant more for business than for dress parade.
As the King drew rein and dismounted, the cheering burst forth with
twice its former volume; and, in a frantic demonstration of loyalty,
hats and sticks were thrown into the air. Two bands played on manfully,
but we could hear only an occasional discord.
Just as the King started into the building an usher came out, touched me
on the arm and said something, beckoning me to come inside. One of the
galleries had been locked by mistake but had now been opened, and Webber
and I were rewarded for our modesty by being given the whole thing to
ourselves. In a few minutes the Bolivian Chargé came in and joined us.
Our places were not ten feet from the Throne, and we could not have been
better placed.
The Queen came in quietly from one side and took a throne to the left of
the tribune, after acknowledging a roaring welcome from the members of
the two Houses. When the cheering had subsided, the King walked in
alone from the right, bowed gravely to the assembly and walked quickly
to the dais above and behind the tribune. With a business-like gesture
he tossed his cap on to the ledge before him and threw his white cotton
gloves into it--then drew out his speech and read it. At first his voice
was not very steady but he soon controlled it and read the speech to the
end in a voice that was vibrating with emotion but without any oratory
or heroics. He went straight to the vital need for union between all
factions and all parties, between the French, Flemish, and Walloon
races, between Catholics, Liberals, and Socialists in a determined
resistance to the attack upon Belgian independence. The House could
contain itself for only a few minutes at a time, and as every point was
driven home they burst into frantic cheering. When the King, addressing
himself directly to the members of Parliament, said, "Are you determined
at any cost to maintain the sacred heritage of our ancestors?" the whole
Chamber burst into a roar, and from the Socialists' side came cries of:
"At any cost, by death if need be."
It was simple and to the point--a manly speech. And as he delivered it
he was a kingly figure, facing for the sake of honour what he knew to be
the gravest danger that could ever come to his country and his people.
When he had finished he bowed to the Queen, then to the Parliament, and
then walked quickly out of the room, while the assembly roared again.
The Senators and Deputies swarmed about the King on his way out,
cheering and trying to shake him by the hand--and none were more at
pains to voice their devotion than the Socialists.
After he had gone the Queen rose, bowed shyly to the assembly, and
withdrew with the royal children. She was given a rousing ovation as
everybody realised the difficulty of her position and was doubly anxious
to show her all their confidence and affection. The whole occasion was
moving, but when the little Queen acknowledged the ovation so shyly and
so sadly and withdrew, the tears were pretty near the surface--my
surface at any rate.
[Illustration: Facsimile of the first page of the German ultimatum to
Belgium.
Kaiserlich Brüssel, den 2. August 1914
Deutsche Gesandtschaft
in Belgien
Trés confidentiel.
Der Kaiserlicher Regierung liegen zuverlässige Nachrichten vor
ueber den beabsichtigten Aufmarsch französischer Streitkräfte an
der Maas-Strecke Givet-Namur. Sie lassen keinen Zweifel ueber die
Absicht Frankreichs, durch belgisches Gebiet gegen Deutschland
vorzugehen.
Die Kaiserliche Regierung kann sich der Besorgniss nicht erwehren,
daß Belgien, trotz besten Willens, nicht im Stände sein wird, ohne
Hilfe einen französischen Vormarsch mit so großer Aussicht auf
Erfolg abzuwehren, daß darin eine ausreichende Sicherheit gegen die
Bedrohung Deutschlands gefunden werden kann. Es ist ein Gebot der
Selbsterhaltung für Deutschland, dem feindlichen Angriff
zuvorzukommen. Mit dem größten Bedauerns würde es daher die deutsche
Regierung erfüllen, wenn Belgien einen Akt der Feindseligkeit]
[Illustration: Pass issued by the Belgian military authorities to
enable Mr. Gibson to enter the German Legation at Brussels]
[Illustration: Maître Gaston de Leval, legal adviser to the American
Legation in Brussels]
For several minutes after the Queen withdrew the cheering continued.
Suddenly a tense silence fell upon the room. M. de Broqueville, the
Prime Minister, had mounted the tribune and stood waiting for attention.
He was clearly under great stress of emotion, and as the House settled
itself to hear him he brushed away the tears that had started to his
eyes. He began in a very direct way by saying that he would limit
himself to reading a few documents and hoped that, after hearing them,
the House would consider the Government worthy of the confidence that
had been reposed in it and that immediate action would be taken upon
matters of urgent importance. He first read the German ultimatum,[1]
which was received quietly but with indignation and anger which was with
difficulty suppressed. Without commenting upon the German note, he then
read the reply which had been handed to the German Minister.[2]
This was followed by a final note delivered by the German Minister this
morning stating "that in view of the refusal of the King to accede to
the well-intentioned proposals of the Emperor, the Imperial Government,
greatly to its regret, was obliged to carry out by force of arms the
measures indispensable to its security." After reading these documents
he made a short and ringing speech, full of fire, which was repeatedly
interrupted by cheers. When he came down from the tribune he was
surrounded by cheering Senators and Deputies struggling to shake his
hand and express their approval of his speech. Even the Socialists who
had fought him for years rose to the occasion and vied with their
colleagues in their demonstrations of enthusiasm. Broqueville rose again
and said: "In the present crisis we have received from the opposition a
whole-hearted support; they have rallied to our side in the most
impressive way in preparing the reply to Germany. In order to emphasise
this union of all factions, His Majesty the King has just signed a
decree appointing Monsieur Vandervelde as a Minister of State." This
announcement was greeted by roars of applause from all parts of the
House, and Vandervelde was immediately surrounded by Ministers and
Deputies anxious to congratulate him. His reply to the Prime Minister's
speech was merely a shout above the roar of applause: "I accept."
[Footnote 1: The following is the text of the German ultimatum:
BRUSSELS, August 2, 1914.
VERY CONFIDENTIAL.
Reliable information has been received by the German Government to
the effect that French forces intend to march on the line of the
Meuse by Gîvet and Namur. This information leaves no doubt as to the
intention of France to march through Belgian territory against
Germany.
The German Government cannot but fear that Belgium, in spite of the
utmost goodwill, will be unable, without assistance, to repel so
considerable a French invasion with sufficient prospect of success
to afford an adequate guarantee against danger to Germany. It is
essential for the self-defence of Germany that she should anticipate
any such hostile attack. The German Government would, however, feel
the deepest regret if Belgium regarded as an act of hostility
against herself the fact that the measures of Germany's opponents
force Germany, for her own protection, to enter Belgian territory.
In order to exclude any possibility of misunderstanding, the German
Government make the following declaration:
1. Germany has in view no act of hostility against Belgium. In the
event of Belgium being prepared in the coming war to maintain an
attitude of friendly neutrality towards Germany, the German
Government bind themselves, at the conclusion of peace, to guarantee
the possessions and independence of the Belgian Kingdom in full.
2. Germany undertakes, under the above-mentioned condition, to
evacuate Belgian territory on the conclusion of peace.
3. If Belgium adopts a friendly attitude, Germany is prepared, in
co-operation with the Belgian authorities, to purchase all
necessaries for her troops against a cash payment, and to pay an
indemnity for any damage that may have been caused by German troops.
4. Should Belgium oppose the German troops, and in particular should
she throw difficulties in the way of their march by a resistance of
the fortresses on the Meuse, or by destroying railways, roads,
tunnels or other similar works, Germany will, to her regret, be
compelled to consider Belgium as an enemy.
In this event, Germany can undertake no obligations towards Belgium,
but the eventual adjustment of the relations between the two States
must be left to the decision of arms.
The German Government, however, entertain the distinct hope that
this eventuality will not occur, and that the Belgian Government
will know how to take the necessary measures to prevent the
occurrence of incidents such as those mentioned. In this case the
friendly ties which bind the two neighbouring States will grow
stronger and more enduring.]
[Footnote 2: The Belgian Government replied as follows to the German
ultimatum:
The German Government stated in their note of the 2nd August, 1914,
that according to reliable information French forces intended to
march on the Meuse via Gîvet and Namur, and that Belgium, in spite
of the best intentions, would not be in a position to repulse,
without assistance, an advance of French troops.
The German Government, therefore, considered themselves compelled to
anticipate this attack and to violate Belgian territory. In these
circumstances, Germany proposed that the Belgian Government adopt a
friendly attitude towards her, and undertook, on the conclusion of
peace, to guarantee the integrity of the Kingdom and its possessions
to their full extent. The note added that if Belgium put
difficulties in the way of the advance of German troops, Germany
would be compelled to consider her as an enemy, and to leave the
ultimate adjustment of the relations between the two States to the
decision of arms.
This note has made a deep and painful impression upon the Belgian
Government.
The intentions attributed to France by Germany are in contradiction
to the formal declarations made to us on August 1st in the name of
the French Government.
Moreover, if contrary to our expectation, Belgian neutrality should
be violated by France, Belgium intends to fulfil her international
obligations and the Belgian army would offer the most vigorous
resistance to the invader.
The treaties of 1839, confirmed by the treaties of 1870, vouch for
the independence and neutrality of Belgium under the guarantee of
the Powers, and notably of His Majesty the King of Prussia.
Belgium has always been faithful to her international obligations;
she has carried out her duties in a spirit of loyal impartiality and
she has left nothing undone to maintain and enforce respect for her
neutrality.
The attack upon her independence with which the German Government
threaten her constitutes a flagrant violation of international law.
No strategic interest justifies such a violation of law.
The Belgian Government, if they were able to accept the proposals
submitted to them, would sacrifice the honour of the nation and
betray their duty towards Europe.
Conscious of the part which Belgium has played for more than eighty
years in the civilisation of the world, they refuse to believe that
the independence of Belgium can only be preserved at the price of
the violation of her neutrality.
If this hope is disappointed the Belgian Government are firmly
resolved to repel, by all the means in their power, every attack
upon their rights.
Brussels, August 3, 1914 (7 A.M.).]
As we came out, some of the colleagues were gathered about debating
whether they should go over to the Palace and ask to take leave of the
King. They were saved that labour, however, for the King had stepped
into a motor at the door and was already speeding to the General
Headquarters which has been set up nobody knows where. That looks like
business.
When I got back to the Legation I found von Stumm, Counselor of the
German Legation, with the news that his chief had received his passports
and must leave at once. He had come to ask that the American Minister
take over the care of the German Legation and the protection of the
German subjects who had not yet left the country. I said that we could
not undertake anything of that sort without authority from Washington,
and got the Minister to telegraph for it when he came in from some
hurried visits he had made in search of news.
While we were snatching some lunch, von Stumm came back with the German
Minister, von Below, and said that some provisional arrangement must be
made at once as the staff of the Legation would have to leave for the
Dutch frontier in the course of the afternoon--long before we could hope
for an answer from Washington. We did not like the idea of doing that
sort of thing without the knowledge of Washington, but finally agreed to
accept the charge provisionally on grounds of humanity, until such time
as we should receive specific instructions as to who would be definitely
entrusted with the protection of German interests. In case of need, we
shall be asked to take over certain other Legations and shall have our
hands more than full.
At five o'clock we went over to the German Legation, which we found
surrounded by a heavy detachment of Garde Civique as a measure of
protection against violence. We drew up, signed, and sealed a protocol
accepting what is known as _la garde des clefs et des sceaux_, until
such time as definite arrangements might be made. The Minister and von
Stumm were nearly unstrung. They had been under a great strain for some
days and were making no effort to get their belongings together to take
them away. They sat on the edge of their chairs, mopped their brows and
smoked cigarettes as fast as they could light one from another. I was
given a lot of final instructions about things to be done--and all with
the statement that they should be done at once, as the German army would
doubtless be in Brussels in three days. While we were talking, the
chancellor of the Legation, Hofrat Grabowsky, a typical white-haired
German functionary, was pottering about with sealing wax and strips of
paper, sealing the archives and answering questions in a deliberate and
perfectly calm way. It was for all the world like a scene in a play.
The shaded room, the two nervous diplomats registering anxiety and
strain, the old functionary who was to stay behind to guard the archives
and refused to be moved from his calm by the approaching cataclysm. It
seemed altogether unreal, and I had to keep bringing myself back to a
realisation of the fact that it was only too true and too serious.
They were very ominous about what an invasion means to this country, and
kept referring to the army as a steam roller that will leave nothing
standing in its path. Stumm kept repeating: "Oh, the poor fools! Why
don't they get out of the way of the steam roller. We don't want to hurt
them, but if they stand in our way they will be ground into the dirt.
Oh, the poor fools!"
The Government had a special train ready for the German diplomatic and
consular officers who were to leave, and they got away about seven. Now,
thank goodness, they are safely in Holland and speeding back to their
own country.
Before leaving, Below gave out word that we would look after German
interests, and consequently we have been deluged with frightened people
ever since.
All the Germans who have remained here seem to be paralysed with fright,
and have for the most part taken refuge in convents, schools, etc. There
are several hundreds of them in the German Consulate-General which has
been provisioned as for a siege. Popular feeling is, of course, running
high against them, and there may be incidents, but so far nothing has
happened to justify the panic.
This morning a Belgian priest, the Abbé Upmans, came in to say that he
had several hundred Germans under his care and wanted some provision
made for getting them away before the situation got any worse.
After talking the matter over with the Minister and getting his
instructions, I took the Abbé in tow, and with Monsieur de Leval went to
the Foreign Office to see about getting a special train to take these
people across the border into Holland and thence to Germany. At first,
the suggestion was received with some resentment and I was told flatly
that there was no good reason for Belgium to hand over special trains to
benefit Germans when every car was needed for military operations. I
pleaded that consideration must be shown these helpless people and that
this course was just as much in the interest of Belgium as of anybody
else, as it would remove the danger of violence with possible reprisals
and would relieve the overworked police force of onerous duties. After
some argument, Baron Donny went with me to the Sûreté Publique where we
went over the matter again with the Chief. He got the point at once, and
joined forces with us in a request to the Minister of Railways for a
special train. We soon arranged matters as far as the Belgian frontier.
I then telephoned through to The Hague, got Marshal Langhorne and asked
him to request the Dutch Government to send another train to the
frontier to pick our people up and send them through to Germany. He went
off with a right good will to arrange that, and I hope to have an answer
in the morning.
We plan to start the train on Friday morning at four o'clock, so as to
get our people through the streets when there are few people about. We
are making it known that all Germans who wish to leave should put in an
appearance by that time, and it looks as though we should have from
seven hundred to a thousand to provide for. It will be a great relief to
get them off, and I hold my breath until the train is safely gone.
The Belgian Government is making no distinction between Germans, and is
letting those liable for military service get away with the others.
Wild stories have begun to circulate about what is bound to happen to
Americans and other foreigners when hostilities get nearer to Brussels,
and we have had to spend much time that could have been devoted to
better things in calming a lot of excitable people of both sexes. I
finally dug out the plan of organisation of the foreigners for the Siege
of Peking and suggested to the Minister that, in order to give these
people something to do and let them feel that something was being done,
we should get them together and appoint them all on committees to look
after different things. This was done to-day. Committees were appointed
to look for a house where Americans could be assembled in case of
hostilities in the immediate vicinity of Brussels; to look after the
food supply; to attend to catering; to round up Americans and see that
they get to the place of refuge when the time comes; to look after
destitute Americans, etc. Now they are all happy and working like
beavers, although there is little chance that their work will serve any
useful purpose aside from keeping them occupied. We got Mrs. Shaler to
open up the Students' Club, which had been closed for the summer, so
that the colony can have a place to meet and work for the Red Cross and
keep its collective mind off the gossip that is flying about.
Last night our cipher telegrams to Washington were sent back from the
telegraph office with word that under the latest instructions from the
Government they could not be forwarded. The Minister and I hurried over
to the Foreign Office, where we found several of the colleagues on the
same errand. It was all a mistake, due to the fact that the General
Staff had issued a sweeping order to stop all cipher messages without
stopping to consider our special case. It was fixed after some debate,
and the Minister and I came back to the shop and got off our last
telegrams, which were finished at three this morning.
I was back at my desk by a little after eight and have not finished this
day's work, although it is after midnight. I have averaged from three to
five hours sleep since the trouble began and, strange to say, I thrive
on it.
I have called several times to-day at the French and British Legations
to get the latest news. They keep as well posted as is possible in the
prevailing confusion, and are most generous and kind in giving us
everything they properly can.
There seems to have been a serious engagement to-day at Liège, which the
Germans are determined to reduce before proceeding toward France. The
report is that the attack was well resisted and the Germans driven back
with heavy loss. A number of prisoners have been taken and were being
brought into Brussels this evening along with the wounded. In the
course of the fighting there was a sort of charge of the Light Brigade;
one squadron of Belgian Lancers was obliged to attack six times its
number of Germans and was cut to pieces, only one officer escaping. The
morale of the Belgians is splendid.
This afternoon as the Minister and I were going to call on the British
Minister, we passed the King and his staff headed out the Rue de la Loi
for the front. They looked like business.
Several times to-day I have talked over the telephone with the Embassy
in London. They seem to be as strong on rumours as we are here. One
rumour I was able to pass on to Bell was to the effect that the British
flagship had been sunk by German mines with another big warship. Another
to the effect that five German ships have been destroyed by the French
fleet off the coast of Algeria, etc., etc.
The Red Cross is hard at work getting ready to handle the wounded, and
everybody is doing something. Nearly everybody with a big house has
fitted it in whole or in part as a hospital. Others are rolling bandages
and preparing all sorts of supplies.
The military attachés are all going about in uniform now. Each Legation
has a flag on its motor and the letters C.D.--which are supposed to
stand for Corps Diplomatique, although nobody knows it. I have seized
Mrs. Boyd's big car for my own use. D.L. Blount has put his car at the
disposal of the Minister and is to drive it himself.
There is talk already of moving the Court and the Government to Antwerp,
to take refuge behind the fortifications. When the Germans advance
beyond Liège, the Government will, of course, have to go, and the
diplomatic corps may follow. It would be a nuisance for us, and I hope
we may be able to avoid it.
Germans are having an unhappy time, and I shall be happier when they are
across the border. Nothing much seems to have happened to them beyond
having a few shops wrecked in Antwerp and one or two people beaten up
here. One case that came to my knowledge was an outraged man who had
been roughly handled and could not understand why. All he had done was
to stand in front of a café where the little tables are on the sidewalk
and remark: "Talk all the French you can. You'll soon have to talk
German." Of course there are a lot of Belgians, Swiss and Dutch who
rejoice in good German names and they are not having a pleasant time.
One restaurant called Chez Fritz, I saw when coming along the Boulevard
this evening, had hung out a blackboard with the proud device: "_Fritz
est Luxembourgeois, mais sa Maison est Belge._" He was taking no chances
on having the place smashed.
* * * * *
_August 6th._--This morning when I came into the Legation I found the
Minister of Justice in top hat and frock coat waiting to see somebody.
He had received a report that a wireless station had been established on
top of the German Legation and was being run by the people who were left
in the building. He came to ask the Minister's consent to send a judge
to look, see and draw up a _procès verbal_. In our own artless little
American way we suggested that it might be simpler to go straight over
and find out how much there was to the report. The Minister of Justice
had a couple of telegraph linemen with him, and as soon as Mr. Whitlock
could get his hat, we walked around the corner to the German Legation,
rang the bell, told the startled occupants that we wanted to go up to
the garret and--up we went.