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Behind the Scenes at
German Headquarters

:: By Henri Domelier ::

With an Introduction by Maurice Barres

LONDON : HURST AND BLACKETT, LTD.
PATERNOSTER HOUSE, E.C.

To Monsieur Maurice Barries,

President of la Ligue des Patriotes.

My dear Master,

During fifty-two long months of German oppression your
stirring articles in the Echo de Paris, in spite of a strict censorship
and pitiless repression, have reached us, sometimes regularly,
sometimes at long intervals. The breath of patriotism with which
they were inspired, the ineradicable confidence which never
deserted you, were a precious source of comfort to us, completely
isolated as we were from our beloved France, and not one of my
compatriots who have had the good fortune to read them will
contradict me, when I say that they have helped greatly to keep
our spirit firm in the presence of the enemy, and to keep alive our
constant hope.

The odious campaign against your noble personality, led by
the infamous Gazette des Ardennes, the low insults poured out for
us by the Alsatian renegade, Ren6 Provost, have given us eloquent
proof of your noble mission of defending the French conscience
against the perfidious attacks of Boche hypocrisy. ... It will be
the great honour of your life to have been splashed by this infected
mud with which they sought, through you and every good French-
man they decried, to sully the honour of our country and to shake
the stoutest hearts. They merely succeeded in increasing our
sympathy and admiration for you and your colleagues, for the
patriotic Press, whom the Kaiser's scribblers, and their French
allies of the " Defeatist " persuasion, so basely attacked.

We, the victims of the barbarian invasion, have listened to the
counsel of Deroul^de's successor in la Ligue des Patriotes, and your
example, reflected in your articles in support of vengeance, have
laid down our duty for us : " To hold out at all costs ; for victory
was the prize of our tenacity " ; in a word, " We must win I "

Thank you, dear Master, for the immense service you have
rendered us. Thanks to you our spirit did not falter for a single
instant ; we never despaired. On the contrary, we held out, and
we have won.

For this reason you will permit one of your admirers to dedicate
to you these modest pages, the sole merit of which is that they give
the impressions of a witness who has seen, judged, and suffered,
and who will never forget 1

Henri Domelier.

CharlcviUe, i$fh March, 1919.

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PREFACE

Germany systematically set herself to destroy, morally and
physically, everything French on which she could lay her hands.

She tried to break down the health of the French prisoners of
war in her camps. To this end, she brought to bear all her refined
and hypocritical malevolence, all her science. She never ensured
their proper nourishment. From 1914 onwards she subjected them
to a terrible regime of starvation. And yet at that time her
store-houses were bursting with food. For the prisoners, the
German winter of 1914-15 was terrible. Without clothes, and
with bare feet, they prowled round the kitchens, and with fevered
eyes searched the refuse bins for any offal that might relieve the
torture of their empty stomachs a little.

The German scientists were well aware that the human organism,
overburdened with physical labour and starved of food, cannot
live, and that malnutrition is the best purveyor of tuberculosis.
The hospitals were soon filled with tuberculous cases. Did German
science come to their aid ? Did it make any effort to save them ?
Herded in special camps, hypocritically christened " sanatoria,"
they were left to die for want of attention. When the French
doctors protested about the thinness of the soup that was given
to these imfortunate men who were in need of abimdant nourish-
ment, tainted soup made of nothing but potato peelings, a surgeon
in charge replied : " What better could you wish for ? Don't you
know that the latest research has demonstrated that all the nutri-
tive value of the potato lies in the skin ? It is for their own good
that we give the tuberculous cases soup made of potato peeHngs."

As the war dragged on, neutral commissions were allowed to
inspect the camps. Then a cynical farce was played. In the
ofi&ces of the Surgeon-in-Chief and the Kommandatur, where the
daily menus were drawn up, an elaborate chart was posted. It wa$
the work of learned professors. It was a long list of all substancef
considered nutritious, and against each class a scale marked the
number of calories of food value contained in a given quantity.

Preface

This list included some strange foods, and food for cattle, the
agouma, the swede turnip, the sugar and ordinary beetroot and its
leaves, the sweet acorn, barley, wheat, the Indian chestnut, cod's
roe, etc. The normal daily ration for a human organism is stated
to be 2,500 calories ; it is then very simple and quite scientific to
feed a camp of prisoners, by giving them for their morning broth
10 kilograms of sweet acorns ; for their midday soup 10 kilograms of
swede turnip (or cod's roe on the two days when meat is provided
by the menu), and 10 kilograms of agouma for the evening stew.
Theoretically this provides the number of calories necessary to
maintain human life. It doesn't matter if, in reality (a cruel
reality experienced by thousands of unhappy men), a man sub-
jected to this regime for two months loses on an average nine kilo-
grams in weight, and travels the road to death.

I give these details with all the necessary precision. To complete
them, read the prisoners' stories, the reports of the commissions
of inquiry ; read " In the Reprisal Camps," by Jean- Jules Dufour.
It is a tragic book. You will see in these how the Germans scien-
tifically killed the body. And now, to learn how, with the same
learned and hypocritical infamy, they sought to kill the soul,
read, " Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters," by Henri
Domelier.

This testimony of a very honest man, who remained in Charle-
ville, and saw at close quarters the methods of the great German
leaders, is one of the most valuable documents that the world
possesses on the political and moral offensive with which our
infamous enemies reinforced their military actions.

Before 1914, M. Henri Domelier edited at Charleville a news-
paper that supported national defence and Union. He foretold
the war and the invasion through Belgium. In the eastern dis-
tricts of our country it was easy to be a prophet. Danger breeds
clear-sightedness. When the Ardennes were inundated by the
enemy hordes, Domelier remained in his little town.

All the municipal officials had deserted their posts. There was
no mayor, no municipal council left. M. Paul Gailly, a manufac-
turer, and Henri Domelier formed a municipal commission to
re-establish the disorganized services. Our colleague filled the
onerous, and often dangerous, position of secretary ; he experienced
all the brutality of the Germans, and twice was sentenced to a
week, and then a fortnight's imprisonment ; but he saw, at first
hand, the methods of the German leaders and the working of their
inmost soul.

Domelier did all he could to keep the population steadfast in
confidence and hope. Further, this brave man accepted the post
of Chief of the Intelligence Service for the English Headquarters

viii

Preface

at Liege. He organized the upkeep of our soldiers' graves and
those of the allies who had died in hospital or in the reprisal camps.
He founded the society for helping French and allied prisoners
of war, trying to provide them with food (and being unable, alas 1
to prevent 150 Englishmen dying of hunger at the camp of Toumes,
near Charleville).

Read his book. You will feel a deep disgust for the Germany
that Prussia built up. The theatricality of the Kaiser, the orgies
of the Crown Prince, the obscene conduct of the officers, their
men's indulgence in every kind of infamy, the requisitioning of
French women, and the consequent association of respectable
women and girls with prostitutes of the lowest type, theft, nameless
bestiahty — all this turns one sick. But the philosophy of the
book, its chief importance is that it shows us how the German
authorities tried to break the French inhabitants.

But never with any success. " We had confidence in ultimate
victory," DomeUer told me. " The Union was kept sacred.
Socialists, Conservatives, Radicals — ^we found common ground
in patriotism and resistance. Catholics, Protestants and Free-
masons listened to the French speeches of the Abbe Bih^ry, whom
we had nicknamed ' le poilu en soutane ' (the frocked poilu, or
' fighting parson '), and the feast day of Joan of Arc was as much
a national festival as the 14th of July. And your articles
reached us."

A sign of this wonderful steadfastness of soul was the failure
of the Gazette des Ardennes. But I should not say failure ! It
helped to maintain French pride and confidence. Domelier says
so distinctly : this paper, which the Germans had started to
demoralize the French of the occupied regions and the French
prisoners interned in Germany, helped, on the contrary, to maintain
their moral. Its spirit of hate and lies horrified its readers. For
my part I received many letters saying : " We liked you because
the Boches insulted you daily."

Don't we notice the same thing in Paris ? The newspapers and
journalists supported by Germany created a public following for
those whom they daily abused.

Nevertheless, it is a terrible thing that Germany should have
found among us so many traitors ready to do her bidding ! I am
told : " They are often foreigners driven from their own country
for theft or forgery." I know, I know ; but real Frenchmen wrote
for the Gazette des Ardennes. It had correspondents among our
prisoners of war, among the civilian population of the occupied
countries. On the very day on which I am correcting the proofs
of this page (20th June, 1919), I read the accovint of the trial of
the Laoa informers. One of them, Toqu6, declares : " The

Preface

Germans said to me one morning : ' If you want to earn a big sum
of money at once, start a campaign against Maurice Barres.' ..."
Lieutenant-Colonel Raynal, the hero of Fort Vaux, has told us
how in the camp at Mainz he heard rumours which made out
that I had made suggestions against the interests of the prisoners.
" My notion of the source of these rumours, and the embarrass-
ment of those who echoed them, showed me at once their Boche
origin. . . ."

Some of these traitors have been discovered ; they will be shot
or thrown into prison. But in face of this vast scheme of corrup-
tion, what negligence there must have been, amounting almost
to connivance. The case of Rene Prevost, the infamous editor of
the Gazette des Ardennes, is very characteristic. On the 28th
October, 1918, he fled from Charleville with Ludendorff' s soldiers.
He is now in Switzerland. You know that this scoundrel is an
Alsatian, born in the valley of Saint Amarin, of parents who are
still living there, and to whose house some of our ofi&cers were
imprudent enough to let themselves be enticed during the war.
It was thought that they disowned their son. But as soon as the
armistice was signed, they went to rejoin him, and then returned
to Moosch, near Saint Amarin, bringing the traitor's child with
them. This child is not responsible for his father, but is his proper
place in French Alsace ? Ought not Prevost's parents to be
treated as suspected informers ? Is it right that all these tainted
people should continue to play their part on liberated soil which
must be purged ?

Let us be on our guard against Germany, which, in war as in
peace, will continue to suborn agents for the destruction of France.
All that is required is to read and spread Domelier's book. No
work reveals to us more clearly the double ignominy of the Boches,
whether wearing their own colours or not.

Maurice Barres.

FOREWORD

Prussian Germany has always followed with the deepest interest
the expression and circulation of thought through the Press. She
acts as foster-mother to her newspapers, and makes their task
easier by putting her postal service at their disposal. It is not the
German citizen who subscribes or buys a copy : the post comes
between the publisher's ofi&ce and its clients, arranges for so many
copies of each paper, and delivers them from house to house even
in the smallest centres.

In this way, it is possible from the number of labels of the Im-
perial post to establish the number of readers of any paper.

German officialdom keeps a no less watchful eye on the foreign
Press. Every day a number of papers are confiscated.

Before the war Germany subscribed to the newspapers of our
frontier districts, and from time to time a letter bearing a twenty-
five centimes stamp would arrive promptly from Coblenz or
Cologne, demanding a copy of some penny paper that had not
reached its destination.

As far as the Press is concerned, the invasion of 1914-18 was
simply a repetition of that of 1870-71, revised, perfected and
extended.

In 1870 the Germans had founded at Nancy a gazette, written
in French, through which General von Bonin, the " Governor-
General of Lorraine," for his Prussian Majesty, issued his prescrip-
tions, doctoral, inquisitorial, and especially requisitorial as far as
Champagne.*

In 1914-15 his successors founded at Charleville the Gazette des
Ardennes {Ardennes Gazette), adding later an illustrated supple-
ment, then an edition in English for the use of British and American
soldiers.

Beyond the frontier they had La Belgique.

* Memorandum from the Prussian Konrad Fischer, dated 4th November,
19 14, to Baron von Gemmingen-Homburg, President (Prefect) of Lorraine
at Metz.

Foreword

In the Briey region, La Gazette de Lorraine, edited and printed
in Metz.

Finally they were planning to establish two new papers at
Nancy. " In the hope that the peace that follows the success
of the German arms will give us possession of the French line of
frontier fortresses, and that accordingly Nancy will also become
a German town, I take the liberty of proposing myself at once
as editor of a German and a French paper at Nancy, and I beg you
to be so good as to give me your kind support.

" You cannot but be aware, Sir, that, as a result of my long
experience as editor of the Metzer-Zeitung, I am in close touch
with questions that concern Alsace-Lorraine, and I think I may
say that the national policy I have pursued hitherto is in harmony
with that of the government of the country.

"It is not necessary to lay any further stress on the great
importance which once more attaches to the Press of Alsace-
Lorraine, especially in the new provinces."*

Nancy did not fall — even for an hour — into the hands of the
enemy. But with what persistence the Germans controlled the
Press " in the new provinces," is shown by the Gazette des Ardennes.
We must thank our friend, Henri Domelier, for having produced
authentic details about the " notorious newspaper," and, in
particular, for having corrected the unintentionally erroneous
report which had it that Prevost, the editor of the Gazette, had
" had eighten years' experience on the Eastern Press. "f

Domelier's articles in the Echo de Paris excited the envy of
twenty colleagues. There began an exhaustive inquiry by the
whole Press into the Gazette des Ardennes and its supporters.

In this book will be found, co-ordinated and carefully arranged,
the striking revelations of Domelier, both with regard to the
effusions of the Boche spies and the incredible spectacle of the
two Hohenzollerns, father and son, at Charleville.

Born in 1870 at Sedan, in the tragic surroundings of the disas-
trous battle, Henri Domelier, who had become editor of the Depeche
des Ardennes, devoted himself in this paper to questions of national
defence. An energetic soul, a warm heart, a leader of men, our
friend had founded the " Ardennes League of Patriots," to combat
anti-militarist propaganda, and the Petit Soldat des Ardennes,

• While Bismarck held sway at Versailles there was also a German paper,
written in French, at first the Nouvelliste, and then the Moniteur Officiel
de Seine-et-Oise.

f Revue des Deux Mondes, ist October, 1918.

Foreword

addressed to all conscripts of the 2nd, 6th and 20th Army Corps
(Amiens, Chalons, Nancy).

In August, 1914, after Charleroi, the Prefect of the Ardennes
withdrew to Rethel. He was accompanied by the municipal
authorities of Charleville, the majority of the members of Council
and the various functionaries. The inhabitants, left to look after
themselves, were fortunate enough to find several devoted men
to form a mimicipal Commission. Domelier was chosen as secretary,
and this organization, this ad hoc institution (which the Germans
had to recognize when they occupied Charleville on the 29th
August, 1914) was to administer the town until it was relieved in
November, 1918. At the end of this long period Domelier received
from his colleagues the testimonial which may fittingly be repro-
duced here :

" Charleville

" (Ardennes),

" 9th January, 1919.

" To the Mayor of Charleville.

" We, the undersigned members of the Municipal Com-
mission of Charleville, the Relief Committee, and the Committee
for Assisting Prisoners of War, certify that Henri Domelier has,
throughout the war, shown the greatest devotion and the highest
patriotism.

" A member of the Municipal Commission from its formation,
he zealously fulfilled the duties of secretary to the permanent
delegation which sat every day, morning and evening, until the
return of the old municipal authorities.

" Although the disappearance of the paper which he edited had
left him without resources, and although his new duties were
entirely gratuitous, he indignantly rejected the repeated offers
of Captain Schnitzer to join the editorial staff of the Gazette des
Ardennes (represented at first as a paper entirely devoted to news),
and we protest as strongly as possible against the infamous calumnies
that represented him as taking a part, however small, in the editing
of this ignoble paper.

" Domelier's patriotism is above all suspicion. His colleagues
often had to moderate it, and make him understand that it was
necessary to bow to the inevitable and yield to the brutal force
which knew no control.

" He did all he could to avoid contact with the Germans, and
his attitude involved him in repeated domiciliary visits and finally
prison.

" He never let slip an opportunity of setting an example of
courage. Until the last day, even imder the shells of th^

xUi

Foreword

bombardment of loth November, he rendered the last honours to
all our unfortunate soldiers, giving stirring addresses over their
graves until these were forbidden.

" He took jealous care of the graves of our dead.

" He comforted the wounded, and the prisoners on their way
through, and was one of the chief founders of the Committee of
Relief, which towards the end was able to distribute food in the
prisoners' camps that had been transferred to our town.

" We are happy to-day to be able to render just homage to him,
and to express to him all the esteem and sympathy that his ener-
getic and brave character and attitude have won for a man who,
during these long hard years of trial, was never for a single instant
unworthy of himself.

(Signed) " A. Blairon, President ; Paul Gailly, Vice-
President ; Andre Lejay, Municipal Coun-
cillor ; Langepol, Municipal Treasurer ;
Leon Jacob, Delegate; A. Gonthier,
Manager of the Comptoir National d'Es-
compte ; Madame L. Graftieaux, Presi-
dent of the Committee for helping Prisoners
of War ; Hechemann, Member of the Food
Committee; L. Pillot, District Agent
for Relief at Charleville."

What is there to add to these eulogies, so handsomely earned ?%
The author of " Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters "
would not wish me to say more than the bare minimum required
to introduce him to the reader.

It is time to make room for Domelier's pages, so full of life and
experience, on the occupation of Charleville. After their very
considerable success in the Echo de Paris last November and
December, they deserve to escape the ephemeral lot of a daily
paper.

"Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters " will rank among
the works of reference on the great agony, and, in their new form,
the articles of our colleague from the Ardennes triumphantly bridge
the decisive gulf that lies between journalism and history.

Leon Coulette,

President of the Press Association of the East.

1st March,ligig.

KIT

CONTENTS

PART I.— THE KAISER

CHAP. PAGE

I. — A Strange Governor 3

II. — The Installation of G.H.Q ii

III. — The Arrival of the Kaiser .... 17

IV. — The Royal Palace 24

V. — A Royal Strolling Player . . . .31

VI. — William II. and the French Population . . 44
VII. — The Kaiser's Doctor and " The Imperial Pouf "

(Doctor Wezel) 58

PART II.— THE CROWN PRINCE

VIII. — A Desk Strategist 71

IX. — Prince or Clown 83

X. — The Son-in-Law of M. Beurier . . . 102

PART III

XI. — The " Generalstab " (The General Staff) . 117

XII. — General Headquarters 127

Kill. — The Secret Field Police (Kaiser's Safety and

Counter-espionage) 142

XIV. — The Fight against Patriotism .... 156

XV. — The War Correspondents of the German Press. 168
XVI. — The Infamous " Gazette des Ardennes," and

the Renegade Prevost 177

XVII. — The Poison Laboratory 195

XVIII. — The Gazette's Campaigns .... 213

XIX.— The Great Offensives (Foch v. Ludendorff) . 231

XX. — The End of the Drama 249

XXI. — Conclusion. — The Moral of the French Popula-
tion in the Occupied Area .... 261

PART I

THE KAISER

Behind the Scenes at German
Headquarters

CHAPTER I

A STRANGE GOVERNOR

The agony of the retreat. — Peaceful occupation. — The first looters. — " Don't
play with firearms." — " We are the masters." — The passion for fishing.
— Pipe smokers in spite of themselves. — Requisitioning love — ladies' lin-
gerie— cheap rifles. — The Governor — an opera brigand. — The generosity
of Hans Krammer. — A captain arrives. — Boche justice squared.

ON 25th August, 1914, the French army in the Charle-
ville area had fallen back from the left bank of the
Meuse on Rethel. Only a few detachments were still defending
the approaches. On the 26th the guns were roaring to the
east ; the crackling of machine-guns rent the air, and that
part of the population left in the towns of Charleville, M6-
zieres and Mohon were anxiously wondering what would be
the result of the great battle before Sedan.

On the following days the bombardment continued south
and south-west, but its intensity decreased daily as a result
of the retreat of our troops on Rheims. These were the only
impressions felt by the inhabitants during these tragic days,
for, apart from some slight skirmishing at M^zi^res on 28th
August, there was no mihtary event worthy of mention.

The German occupation was carried out smoothly. The
Boche hordes marching on Paris had too much to do to indulge
in any military parade which might impress the people. A

'Jj0hifn4; the Scenes at German Headquarters

single battalion of Landsturm, commanded by a lieutenant-
colonel, arrived at Mezi^res in the morning of 29th August
and remained there one night. Patrols paraded the streets
of the three towns ; food and linen were requisitioned. By
way of welcome the commanding officer had the following
two placards posted :

PROCLAMATION

" Citizens :

" A corps of the German army under my command has
just occupied your town. As the war is being waged by the
armies alone I formally guarantee the life and property of
all inhabitants on the following conditions :

" I. That the inhabitants abstain strictly from any act
of hostility against the German troops ;

" 2. That food and forage for our men and horses be supplied
by the inhabitants ; all supplies will be paid for in ready
money or by a voucher, payment for which is guaranteed
at the end of the war ;

" 3. That the inhabitants lodge our men to the best of their
ability and keep their houses lit during the night ;

" 4. That the inhabitants put the roads in good condition
again ; remove all obstacles constructed for the enemy and
do their best to assist our men in the accomplishment of their
task, doubly difficult in an enemy country.

" 5. It is forbidden to collect in the street, to ring bells, or
to communicate in any way with the enemy.

" 6. All arms in the possession of inhabitants must be
handed over at the town hall within two hours ;

" 7. The Mayor, the parish priest and four leading men of
the town are to report themselves to me immediately and
serve as hostages while the troops remain in the town.

" On these conditions I repeat : life and private property
of inhabitants will be absolutely guaranteed. The severe
discipline to which our troops are accustomed makes it possible
that no inhabitant need be forced to neglect his business or
leave his home. On the other hand, I shall immediately.

A Strange Governor

resort to severe measures if the above conditions are not
fulfilled. In this respect I shall deal in the first place with
the hostages. Further, any inhabitant caught with arms
or convicted of any act of hostility against our troops will
be shot. Finally, the whole town is responsible for the acts
of each of its inhabitants and for any annoyances resulting
from co-operation with the enemy."

" The officer commanding the German troops calls the
attention of the public to the following :

" All persons not soldiers and not recognizable as soldiers
by external signs (uniform) firing on German soldiers or com-
mitting other hostile acts against the German troops will be
summarily put to death.

" Whoever destroys or damages railways, telegraph wires
or other means of communication will be immediately shot.

" I proclaim that in case of any attack on a German soldier
or of damage to communications the community on whose
territory the said act is committed will be always held re-
sponsible. The village will be set on fire and all male inhabi-
tants capable of bearing arms arrested.

" As regards return for food for men and horses it is pro-
claimed that a receipt will always be given for the amount
supplied."

The next day the battalion resumed its march " nach Paris."

For about ten days the only signs of the occupation were

the numerous motor cars and requisitioning lorries which

entered Charleville and formed a vast park of vehicles on the

Place Ducale.

With rare exceptions the requisitioning and commandeering
officers used to arrive at the town hall with an armed escort
of several men. Two of these accompanied them with loaded
rifles and fixed bayonets and mounted guard at the door
of the office of the Municipal Commission while the officer,
revolver in hand, entered without knocking. Some of them

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

even, by way of opening business, would point their revolvers
at the people present.

For the most part they introduced themselves with un-
necessary arrogance : " Monsieur le Maire," they would say,
" we must have — " ; or else : " I wish it, it is war." When they
felt any resistance they added pitilessly : " We must have it,
and at once. We are the masters. You are the conquered
and we are the conquerors ; obey ! Everything here is ours,
and we require without delay " (pointing out the object
required) " to enter Paris ! . . ."

Without interruption luxurious motor cars and heavily-
laden motor lorries disgorged their insolent occupants. They
came from everywhere. The first thing they all asked was
the address of the wine and spirit merchants, on whom they
made formidable levies, taking the best brands of Bordeaux,
Burgundy and Champagne as well as famous brandies by hogs-
heads and half hogsheads. There was such an orgy that
as soon as Boche G.H.Q. was installed they had to put a stop
to this requisitioning. There would not have been a bottle
left for themselves.

To this requisitioning of wine and food, which was before
everything else their first concern, other items were added
which had nothing to do with the needs of the army. Some
requisitioned bottles of scent, luxurious soaps, fine linen,
clothing, furs. Others had the assurance to consider watches,
precious stones, or other articles of jewellery as requisition-
able. Their meals, taken in the existing restaurants, were paid
for by voucher. One disciple of St. Peter thus provided him-
self with a whole fisherman's outfit, which he paid for with
a worthless piece of paper. A captain, timid but a great
smoker, did not dare to requisition for his personal account
a briar pipe which tempted him.

His scruples did not last ; he had a brilliant idea. As he
could not requisition it for himself personally he would put
down to his company's account ; so that the shop had to
supply three hundred pipes owing to Monsieur le capitaine's
timidity.

Their post-prandial pleasures were also the object of much
requisitioning. Even a certain maison close, which was later

A Strange Governor

to play a part in the history of Germany and influence the
destinies of the Hohenzollem dynasty, was the victim of this
system. This temple of Venus was the rendezvous of the
officers when the heady wines of France had put them in
a gay mood. Modest as the tariff was they thought it too
high, and the majority decided to get out of payment.

This is how they went about it. At first they conformed
with the rule of the house, which was to pay in advance. They
even showed themselves gallant and generous. But at the
moment of departure the scene changed. The brute
reappeared. They drew their revolvers and on pain of death
forced the victim or the proprietor of the establishment to
return the cost of the entertainment as well as the tip and to
receive in exchange a voucher.

A good number of these looters took advantage of their
dupes' ignorance of the German language. They wrote in
German and signed fantastic vouchers : sometimes an obscene
expression, sometimes as follows : " Payable by Poincar^,
King Albert, or King George of England, when the French are
smashed and the Germans are in Paris and London. ..."

The town of Charleville was the special hunting ground of
the Sedan garrison, and the requisitioners were not content
with looting in the shops what was more or less useful for the
needs of the army : feminine garments, delicate cambrics,
intimate Ungerie destined to be the reward of favours of which
they were the recipients, the most costly articles of toilet,
were also considered requisitionable, and they did not deny
themselves.

The Nimrods, on their side, insisted on ministering to their
favourite pleasure at a low cost. They attained their object
by ordering the inhabitants to deposit in a special depot all
the arms in their possession. It only remained to choose
from among these expensive hammerless guns and selected
Lefaucheux the most modern and perfect sporting guns.
Browning and regulation revolvers went the same way, and
as this form of looting was said to be temporary, no voucher
was given. Finally, when the looters had chosen the best
weapons they had the rest thrown into the Meuse to remove
the traces of their theft.

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

It will be objected that the inhabitants ought to have
refused to obey orders not emanating directly from the official
German authorities. It is easy to criticize when danger is
viewed from a distance. Some shopkeepers, insisting on their
rights, resisted, and in a few rare instances won their case.
But the majority of the inhabitants were terrorized by the
threats, and a revolver pointed at a poor, defenceless woman
soon got the better of her inclination to resist. The subalterns
were particularly addicted to this method of intimidation,
and the soldiers were not slow to follow the lead of their officers
to attain their ends. Among them was a man called Hans
Krammer, " first governor of Charleville," whose adventures
deserve to be related.

The Charleville Red Cross had been authorized by the
Germans to receive in their hospitals a certain number of the
wounded from the battle-fields of Fosse-a-l'Eau, Tain-le-
Moutier and Boulzicourt. One of its delegates, M. Lemoine,
municipal councillor of Mezieres, accompanied by some devoted
citizens, had gone to these localities to fetch our unfortunate
men.

At Clavy-Warby on the 2nd September, 1914, M. Lemoine
asked to speak with the local commanding officer and pre-
sented himself at the address which had been given him.
He rang the bell, a window was opened, and a ruffianly-looking
soldier inquired in German what he wanted. He did not know
a single word of French and M. Lemoine was completely
ignorant of the language of Goethe and Schiller. By dint of
gestures they managed to understand one another. The
French Red Cross delegate explained the object of his mission
and expressed the desire to speak with this famous command-
ing officer he wished to meet. M. Lemoine took the trooper
for an orderly and asked him to take him before his officer
or to ask the latter to come and meet him at the town hall.
He had scarcely arrived there when the soldier in question,
dirty as a pig, with greasy face and shaggy beard, dressed in
sordid and repulsive fustian, entered behind and levelled his
rifle at him.

The delegate pulled down the weapon and repeated to the
dirty Boche — literally as well as figuratively, for he looked like

A Strange Governor

a brigand — ^that he wished to speak to the commanding
officer.

" Ich bin der Kommandant (I am the commanding officer),"
he replied.

The commanding officer, or he who claimed the title of
commanding officer of Clavy, was an individual without warrant
or authority, a deserter from his regiment and a robber of the
dead. It was Hans Krammer, who had found it quite natural
to remain with the French wounded rather than follow the
fighting armies ; the post was less dangerous.

The representative of the Red Cross presented his letters
of credit ; the Boche accompanied him to our men and made
arrangements for their transport.

Hans Krammer accompanied the first convoy. Mounted
on a superb horse which he had stolen in the course of his
thieving expeditions, his rifle flung across his shoulder, bayonet
and revolver at his side, an officer's sword strapped to his
saddle, he looked the typical classical brigand one wouldn't
care to meet at a turning in a wood.

Immediately on the arrival of the wounded at Charleville,
where they had been taken to the civil hospital, M. Lemoine
introduced Hans Krammer to the municipal council. The
fellow then took the opportunity to arrange for a comfortable
position for himself. Calmly, with no authority, he declared
that he had installed himself at the hospital of the girls' high
school, where he commandeered the services of the Professor
of German as interpreter. He then announced his intention
of taking control of the hospitals of Charleville. He added
that if he was satisfied with the way he was treated, he would
place the town under his protection, would guarantee its safety
and would take steps to see that it was not bombarded, burned
or pillaged. Now the German army was more than a hundred
kilometres in front. It will perhaps cause surprise that such
an individual could talk like this without being immediately
thrown out ; but the threatening proclamations regarding
the security of the German soldiers were such as fo inspire
fear of the dangerous consequences that might follow too
hasty action. On the contrary, the matron of the hospital
was recommended to take care of a soldier who presented

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

himself as governor of the town of which he comprised the
entire garrison. It was only too obvious with what sort of
scoundrel the inhabitants had to deal, but in the absence of
any German authority qualified to interfere with his move-
ments it was found necessary to await a more favourable
moment. Krammer took advantage of his privileged position
to carry on his looting whenever he could. He went into the
surrounding country and lifted horses, cattle, carriages, metal,
etc., which he sold to a receiver of stolen property. Every
day he brought back to the hospital where he had chosen his
quarters heaps of provisions and numerous baskets of wines
and spirits.

Growing more modern in his ideas he no longer found the
horse a satisfactory mount. He took over for his personal
use a bicycle and a two-seater car, pillaged the garages and
distributed bicycles to all the thieves he met. He was anxious
to assure himself of the sympathy of the dregs of the popula-
tion by this generosity which cost him little.

He might have carried on his impositions for some time
longer if a requisitioning officer of the lines of communication
inspection of the third army had not happened to be in the
town hall of Charleville at the moment when the governor
was crossing the Place Ducale in his little car. The fellow was
pointed out to him. The captain gave orders for him to be
seized and taken to the military prison at Sedan. However,
the explanations with which he furnished the Boche court of
justice must have been satisfactory, for one evening Hans
Krammer, set at liberty, appeared at the Charleville com-
missariat of police to announce his acquittal. He had in the
meantime on his way managed to steal a horse and trap in
the village of Ayvelles.

He left the next day ; since then no one knows what became
of him. Perhaps he carried on his nefarious career in other
countries ? In any case we feel certain that he didn't meet
a hero's death. Nothing but the bullets of a firing party
could put an end to his exploits.

CHAPTER II

THE INSTALLATION OF G.H.Q.

The Boche pioneers. — " Gloria," " Gloria." — Speeding up repairs. — ^The art
of using railways. — Edelweiss and stags-heads. — " Nach Paris tind
Nach London." — Mohon and Meaux, a geographical error. — The days
pass. . . . — " Ave Cesar." — Trainloads of corpses. — Quartermasters
arrive. — Connoisseurs of pears but enemies of placards. — A badly kept
secret. — The Spartans from beyond the Rhine. — Quarters built for
" him." — Kaiserliches Palast,

UNTIL i2th September, 1914, the excitement felt by
the population was of a modest degree. The passage
of troops hurrying towards the Marne had avoided the three
towns shut in by the numerous windings of the Meuse, whose
bridges, blown up by the French sappers, had not been repaired.
On that day, however, the German occupation became a
reality.

A company of Boche pioneers arrived and took up their
quarters at the artillery barracks. Their mission was to
reconstruct the bridges that had been destroyed and to clear
the railway tunnel which had been blocked by French mines.
Civilian labour was conscripted to cut down the magnificent
pines of a wood near the town of Vivier-Guyon and to furnish
the props and piles necessary for the repairs.

The arrival of the spiked helmets made a deep impression.
The night was dark. Suddenly the heavy, measured tread
of heavy boots on the paving of the street was heard ; then a
whistle. Then two hundred throats sang to the rhythmic
beat of the march, in a strange, guttural language, a hymn
whose refrain invariably ended with " Gloria," " Gloria."

When they were not shouting their " Gloria " they were
singing " Die Wacht am Rhein" or else whistling in chorus.

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

These bridges were to be made ready for use by 25th Sep-
tember, and the railway Hne laid ready for the 26th. On the
19th the first piles were driven in the arm of the Meuse separat-
ing Mezi^res from Charleville, and on 23rd September the
flags of Imperial Germany and Bavaria, wreaths of foliage
and garlands of flowers, told the public that the temporary
bridges were open to the Imperial officers and troops as well
as the inhabitants. The first car had crossed. The railway
bridges carrying the lines going east were also ready on the
same date, and a deviating line passed round the tunnel,
the clearing of which took much longer, as the percolation
of water destroyed almost daily the work that had been done.
This work was urgent. The enemy needed our railways to
throw his troops into the battles of the Aisne and the
Yser.

These lines were an invaluable asset to the Germans for
their military operations. Alas ! how many trains made the
journey to Metz, Verdun, Rheims and Hirson during the four
tragic years of the great war !

In this way we were made aware of the preparations for the
great offensives against Russia, Rumania and Italy, or at the
threatened points of the Western Front. For months at
a time train followed train without interruption every quarter
of an hour, and sometimes less, putting the agony of fear into
our hearts and proving to us the enemy's great knowledge of
the use of railways and the perfect organization of his military
transport.

After this terrible war, which has turned out so badly for
them, the soldiers of the ex-Kaiser ought to know something
of this rapid mode of locomotion, for they have travelled
backwards and forwards over all the railways of Europe,
starting from the French front to fight in the Balkans, leaving
the Balkans for the Tyrol after a detour through Rumania,
and returning to the Ardennes after crossing Poland or the
Bukowina, to reoccupy their trenches before Verdun, in Cham-
pagne or in Picardy.

It was easy to tell in what campaigns these migratory soldiers
had taken part. If they had fought in Italy they wore in their
hehnets a metal crest of Edelweiss ; if against the Russians

The Installation of G.H.Q.

a. leaden medal bearing the effigy of William or Francis Joseph ;
for Transylvania, a stag's head.

As the war dragged on, however, the railway convoys
gave a key to the state of mind of the combatants. At the
beginning the passing trains were decorated with German
flags and foliage. The carriages were scribbled over with
inscriptions : Nach Paris und London, or with filthy abuse
of France and England and coarse caricatures of French and
English soldiers, almost always hanging from a gallows. They
were, moreover, so certain of victory, and at the same time
so ignorant of their whereabouts, that on arrival at Charle-
ville they thought they were a few kilometres from Paris, for
they confused Mohon with Meaux. Don't let it be supposed
that we are alluding to the ignorance of a few private soldiers ;
even the officers thought they were quite near to the capital,
and did not succeed in hiding their chagrin when they realized
that they were 250 kilometres away.

In the early days the trains used to emit ear-splitting shrieks
and deafening hurrahs ! but the high spirits of the Boche
gradually died down as the war was prolonged and the trains,
no longer bearing bellicose inscriptions, passed through in
silence. The men, silent, stared fixedly into space, their
eyes turned towards this little town, the residence of their
Emperor. Seeing them pass, one could not help thinking of
the Ave Cesar, morituri te salutant of the Roman gladiators.
The first successes of their various offensives raised their spirits
a little, but when they came to realize that their great efforts
and gigantic sacrifices had brought no result, these proud
" field greys " relapsed into sullen mutiny.

The colossal losses that they suffered were known to the
French public, who could estimate them from the numerous
Red Cross trains disgorging their wounded into the twelve
hospitals of Mezidres and Charleville and the train loads of
corpses coming down from the north towards Germany, es-
pecially at the time of the Yser battles.

Several of these halted for several hours at night outside
the stations of Charleville and Mohon, giving off a pestilential
and very characteristic stench.

While the railway pioneers were being billeted in Charle-

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

ville a captain of the lines of communication service also
arrived and established a Lines of Communication Head-
quarters to safeguard the relations between the French admin-
istration left in the occupied country and the German military
authority.

Four days later, i6th September, 1914, a group of fifteen
Staff officers, under Major Von Kessler of the Imperial house-
hold, arrived in luxurious cars bearing the royal arms and
presented themselves at the town hall at Charleville. Major
Von Kessler informed the municipal commission that he had
arrived to prepare quarters for an important Headquarters,
which he did not mention by name, consisting of about 350
officers of all ranks, and 1,300 N.C.O.'s, soldiers, secretaries,
chauffeurs, orderlies.

These officers demanded sumptuous villas for the noble
and exalted personages who were to be at the head of this
Headquarters, and comfortable houses for the other
officers.

This group of officers had already made an inspection of
the market and looted the baskets of the fruit-women to
stuff their pockets with succulent pears.

The chief of the mission explained the object of his visit,
while his companions ate in his presence, and in front of the
municipal authorities, the tasty fruits which they had found
and which they hid behind their backs immediately after each
bite like schoolboys doing wrong.

One thing, however, had attracted their attention and some
of them had shown their disapproval. In the corridors of
the town hall they had caught sight of the mobilization placards
and some maps of the war zone. Such a sight could not be
borne by the officers of his Boche Majesty's entourage, and
the notices were ruthlessly torn to pieces. The rankling
of the unexpected defeat of the Marne had not yet been
assuaged.

They left CharleviUe the same day to return to Luxembourg,
where the Kaiser was, leaving behind five officers under
Rittmeister von Rochew, who was to prepare the quarters
for the celebrated Grosses Hauptquariier of the King of Prussia
and the famous General Staff, which, for more than three years,

The Installation of G.H.Q.

was to make the little town in the Ardennes the residence of
the sinister Kaiser and the capital of the Central Powers.

The first task of these five officers was to establish a Kom-
mandanturoi G.H.Q., independent of that of L. of C, and con-
trolling relations between the French authorities and Imperial
Headquarters.

Although the secret was jealously guarded by the Germans
who had already arrived, the rumour rapidly spread that the
Emperor of Germany was soon to take up his residence in
Charleville ; but this sensational news caused no excitement,
no curiosity.

The Boches were disregarded by everybody, their presence
was odious and no one took any interest in their movements.
Scarcely had the Kaiser's quartermasters arrived when,
in certain quarters, everything was turned upside down.
The apartments were loaded with valuable furniture ; pianos,
bilhard tables, costly tapestries were requisitioned at the
furnishers' shops, whose stocks were reduced to a minimum,
or " borrowed " from private people..

Requisitioning is, on occasion, an elegant euphemism to
mask sheer robbery. The furniture, once borrowed, was sent
to Germany on the departure of the occupant, after which
the apartments were refurnished and cleared again in the same
way.

The Boche officers insisted on the most perfect and most
modern comforts : central heating, bathroom, water, gas and
electricity on every floor ; otherwise the municipality was
called on to install these things at the expense of the rates.

Again the simple tastes of the General Staff were not of course
content with water from the town supply : the best wines of
France alone were worthy of their attention, and before the
arrival of Boche G.H.Q. serious levies had been made on private
cellars and the choicest vintages put at their disposal.

Major Von Kessler, during his visit to the town hall, had
explained that this grand quariier, i.e., the Kaiser's immediate
suite, was to be grouped together. He consulted the plan of
the town, selected a district and immediately proceeded
there to inspect the site and the surroundings. His choice
had fallen on the quartier de la Gare at Charleville for th«

15.

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Emperor's quarters and on the Prefecture of the Ardennes
for the General Staff, with the old private mansions of the
Place Bayard as annexes.

The Place de la Gare and its surroundings were admirably
suited for this purpose. They might have been specially
constructed and arranged to receive a sovereign and the
numerous officers and officials attached to his person.

The Imperial palace {Kaiserliches Palast) and its annexes
were bounded by the Place de la Gare, the Avenue de la Gare,
the Cours d'Orleans and the Avenue de Mezieres, new and com-
fortable quarters, especially the Place and Avenue de la Gare,
where superb houses had been built and pleasant gardens
laid out for the wealthy merchants of the district. It formed
a vast quadrilateral in the form of an irregular trapeze, the
top, about 300 yards long, faced east towards the station,
and the base, of 400 yards, followed the Cours d'Orleans ; the
north side, 250 yards, followed the whole length of the Avenue
de la Gare, and the south, 320 yards, the Avenue de Mezieres.

On the base to the east of the Place de la Gare, lined by a
row of handsome houses, stood, a little further back than the
rest, a beautiful detached villa with garage, stables and out-
buildings, and a pretty pleasure garden. It was the residence
of M. Georges Corneau, proprietor and editor of the Petit
Ardennais, a dwelling worthy to receive the unwelcome guest,
in which were concentrated for nearly two years his hopes and
anxieties and perhaps, too, his remorse at having let loose upon
the world, and especially on our land of France, the horrible
scourge of war.

Together with the Kommandantur of G.H.Q. there arrived
the Kaiser's major-domo, Herr Lampeh, an ex-furnisher, to
undertake the furnishing of his master's apartments.

CHAPTER III

THE ARRIVAL OF THE KAISER

The arrangements. — A public square turned into an imperial promenade.
— Installation of the General Staff. — The PTT Boches. — A confused
exchange. — To compete with the Eiffel tower. — The Emperor is pro-
tected— anti-aircraft defence. — The undesirables. — The Staatswache. —
Arrival of the " scrap of paper man." — The crowned fool follows him.
— Charleville a seaport. — " Look out for the bomb ! " — A barbarian's
respect for private property. — Bethmann prefers Charleville to Pots-
dam.— The bustle of a great town. — Well-informed reporters.

EVERY day saw new innovations at the Villa Corneau
and the neighbouring houses. Engineer officers drew
up plans ; sappers carried out the work of pulling down and
rebuilding. The villa, which was to serve as the royal resi-
dence, was next to the noble building of the Claude Lafontaine
Bank (Prevost and Co.), which overlooked the Cours d'Orleans,
and whose magnificent park adjoined the Corneau property.
The Ministry of War was to be installed there, together with
the offices of the Imperial Chancellery. In the Avenue de la
Gare was the private residence of M. Edouard Prevost, the
General Manager of the bank, and here the " scrap of paper
man," Bethmann-Hollweg, Chancellor of the German Empire,
was to be accommodated. It had to be made possible for these
accomplices of William II. to answer at once to their master's
summons. For this reason doors were pierced in the separat-
ing walls, to make the three buildings communicate directly
one with another. In front, the Square de la Gare, on which
before the war, military bands gave weekly concerts, and to
which the shady trees lent a particular charm, completed the
pleasant scene. It was also possible to shut this off with a

17 2

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

barrier, and so protect his Boche Majesty against possible
attack.

Another advantage of the residence chosen for the Kaiser
was its immediate proximity to the fairly important hotel,
L' Hotel du Nord, the kitchens of which could be used to supply
the royal table, and the spacious dining-rooms as reception
and banqueting halls. Further, the numerous guest-rooms
could be made good use of.

The General Staft had taken over as offices the Prefecture
des Ardennes, at Mezieres, which was also the headquarters
of the 4th Infantry Division and the 24th Brigade. The
building was large enough to provide quarters for the Chief
of the General Staff and all the departments under his orders.
The Quartermaster-General and Officers of the General Staff
lived in the old mansions on the Place Bayard, which, after
serving the tutors of the King of France and the professors of
practical engineering, were now to shelter the invader.

The Hotel des Postes was at once put in order again. Crowds
of field telegraphists repaired the lines, or fixed new ones, so
that Mezieres and Charleville were soon caught in a dense
spider's web of copper wire, connecting the Emperor and his
Chief of the General Staff with every part of the French and
Russian fronts, as well as with Berlin, Budapest, Constan-
tinople and Sofia.

The field post service of G.H.Q. would have liked to reopen
the Charleville post office, and especially the central telegraph
office, with which that of Mezieres was connected, but the
central office had been rendered unserviceable so successfully
that it was found impossible to re-establish it. The Boche
post and telegraph service was therefore obliged to content
itself with the Mezieres system alone. It was not until later,
after the Crown Prince had taken up his residence at the
Chateau de Belair and the General Staff of his army group
were quartered in the house of Madame Gustave Gailly, widow
of the former senator of the Ardennes — ^which had previously
served as the Headquarters of the Naval Ministry and General
Staff — that the Charleville office was restored to its old position.
A wireless installation of eleven receivers, several of which
were seventy metres high, was erected on the Berteaucourt

The Arrival of the Kaiser

plateau, which was once the drill ground of the French garrison,
and employed ninety-eight operators.

Finally steps were taken to protect the precious life of this
august personage. The cellars of the villa which he was to
live in were reinforced with concrete ; the walls were thickly
panelled with oak and distempered above, as were also the
staircases, and an exit was made on to the garden on the east
side of the house. A machine-gun post connected by tele-
phone with G.H.Q. was placed on the roof of the station, and
mortars, batteries of artillery, anti-aircraft guns mounted on
cars, kept a look-out for French aircraft on all sides of the three
towns, on the north side of the Plateau de Berteaucourt, at a
place called Boisenval, at Moulin-a-Vent, at Etien, at Montcy-
Notre-Dame, at Mont Olympe, at Aiglemont. The anti-air-
craft cars were posted at Saint- Julien, a suburb of Mezieres,
and at the entrance to the village of Saint-Laurent.

To complete the Imperial protection, the Geheime Feld
Polizei (Secret Military Police) preceded G.H.Q. After that
there was no further doubt as to the rank of the expected
visitor, for a crowd of elegant gentlemen in clothes of French
cut, " made in Germany," with the inevitable green slouch
hat decked with the legendary grouse feather, poured into the
streets. From the way in which they stared at the passers-
by it was impossible to mistake them : these noble gentlemen
were Inspectors of the General Security of Headquarters,
to which we shall devote a special chapter. During nearly
four years the unfortunate French in the occupied area were
to become well acquainted with the scourge of the G.F.P.
and its persecutions : perquisitions, fines, prison, deportation
and even capital punishment. The Bavarian Major Bauer,
formerly Chief of Police at Strasbourg, was at its head. He
has left behind him in the Ardennes an execrable memory.

At the same time an army of servants in liveries of every
colour took possession of the Imperial apartments, and tall and
well-built soldiers, tightly laced into their well-cut uniforms,
with a high collar adorned with nickel, in the blue enamelled
centre of which, in gold characters, was the Gothic letter
" W," surmounted by a crown, were quartered in the artillery
barracks du S^pulcre, for the cavalry, and the Chanzy Lyc^e

Z9 a*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

for the infantry and artillery. The right wing of the latter
had been turned into a hospital, a faithful application of the
Geneva Convention. This was the Staatswache (Royal Body-
guard), whose duty it was to watch over the life of the Em-
peror of the Barbarians. The sentries mounted guard at the
Imperial Palace, and night and day patrolled their beats in the
Square de la Gare and the neighbouring gardens. His
Majesty was well guarded, and might come to France in
perfect safety. The bridges had been reconstructed ; the
trains were running regularly and expresses connected Charle-
ville with Berlin direct. On the 26th September, 1914, in the
evening, M. Bethmann-Hollweg, Imperial Chancellor, dis-
creetly took up his residence at M. Edouard Prevost's house,
followed by M. von Jagow, Foreign Minister, who was quar-
tered in the same house. Grand Admiral von Tirpitz, inventor
of submarine warfare, and one of the authors of the Boche
defeat, took up his quarters at the Admiralty Office (the house
of Senator G. Gailly), and there prepared his genial plans for
the crushing of perfidious Albion. Ministers and generals
were at their post. " Our Kaiser " was expected.

In the evening of the 28th, at eleven o'clock, he arrived in
a car, as modestly as his Chancellor, without pomp and with-
out ceremony. His discretion was such that, contrary to
custom, the bells were not rung. For several days his presence
was even denied by the police and the Headquarters. They
couldn't be too careful.

Charleville became the capital of the Central Powers. The
modest Ardennes city had the misfortune to contain the most
eminent officials of the Empire. The Wilhelmstrasse had been
transferred to the Avenue de la Gare, and the Villa Corneau
took the place of the Potsdam palace. It might almost be
said that the pretty little town, washed by the picturesque
river Meuse, had become a sea-port, for Prince Henry of
Prussia, brother of William II., brother-in-law of the Czar, and
Admirals von Tirpitz, von Scheer and von Cassel, the chiefs
of the German fleet, had brought in their train a whole host
of naval officers, submarine captains and sailors.

Von Tirpitz was a wild sea-dog, who feared nothing, not
even bombs. Therefore, when shortly after his arrival a

The Arrival of the Kaiser

parcel carefully tied with string, and of cylindrical shape, was
found in the cupboard of a servant's room, it caused well-
justified alarm. There could be no doubt that it was a bomb,
placed there by the French to blow up the Admiralty.

The police were immediately informed. A thorough search
was made, and, taking every possible precaution, the artillery
were sent to remove the deadly machine. It was examined from
every point of view, and an artificer, braver than his com-
panions, screwed up his courage to cut the string and remove
the paper. What amazement when the French bomb proved
to be ... an ordinary alarum clock ?

Von Tirpitz was always very correct, with a fine presence
and a magnificent beard ; he liked to display his imposing
person in the streets of Charleville. He would not allow his
residence on French soil to be pillaged. A medallion of the
Senator and Mme. Gustave Gailly, from the chisel of their
son-in-law, the celebrated sculptor Alphonse Colle, attracted
his attention. He had it photographed and sent a copy to
their nephew, M. Paul Gailly, Vice-President of the Municipal
Commission of Charleville, with the following inscription, in
the Admiral's own hand-writing : " How the Barbarians
take works of art." The whole signed " Von Tirpitz." Since
then, however, the Crown Prince's Staff did these things better ;
of the whole sumptuous dwelling there remains nothing but
the four walls. The furniture was taken out and sent to
Germany.

Bethmann-HoUweg worked much and very late into the
night. His tall, slight figure gave him a different bearing
from that of his thick-set and massive compatriots. He
hardly ever went out except to visit the Emperor, to go to the
Temple, or to take a walk in a little garden on the hill of Montcy-
Saint-Pierre, where he had a view of the whole town and the
course of the Meuse. He found the country charming and
preferred it to Potsdam. He chatted quite familiarly with
those he met in the garden, and even performed certain favours
for some of them, by facilitating their correspondence with
their relations in France, in spite of the fact that this was
strictly forbidden by the police. This system of deception
conceived by the Imperial Chancellor lasted about a year.

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

His son-in-law. Count Zech, who had passed his whole life in
embassies and had spent a long time in Paris, was less Boche
in mentality than his fellow-countrymen. France had left
her mark on him ; but, in spite of this veneer, he was thoroughly
German at heart.

Our compatriots will doubtless wonder why the Kaiser took
with him in the field so many administrative departments,
whose presence would have been more useful in Berlin. The
answer is very simple.

The German Government, deceived by the General Staff,
was convinced, in spite of the recent defeat on the Marne, that
a decisive victory for Germany over the Entente was certain
and imminent. That is why Bethmann and Von Jagow
had accompanied their Sovereign, in order to be ready to
take part at Bordeaux — for the haughty William had fixed
on Bordeaux as the scene of the conference — in the peace
preliminaries as soon as circumstances permitted.

On arriving at his residence the Kaiser made a tour of the
property. He found the house well arranged, very comfort-
able and furnished with taste. In his capacity of infallible
art critic, however, he made some remarks about the pictures.
His Omniscient Majesty found the pictures too big for the size
of the house. No change was made in the arrangement of the
rooms, except in the case of his own bedroom, which had been
furnished by his major-domo, the ex-furnisher Lampeh, and
had been the bedroom of Monsieur Georges Corneau. A white
wall-paper, bordered with garlands of flowers and inscriptions :
" Deutschland iiber A lies ! " covered the walls. His iron bed,
enamelled white — in imitation of Napoleon — which followed
him wherever he moved his quarters for any length of time,
replaced that of the previous occupant.

This little corner of the Ardennes then became the centre
of a bustle which its peaceful inhabitants had never imagined,
and which they could very well have done without. The
principal streets, along which motors passed ceaselessly to and
fro, had the appearance of important boulevards. Side by
side with the French population swarmed a vast crowd of
officers, soldiers, and ofiicials of every rank and every branch
of the service, foreign attaches, war correspondents, whose

The Arrival of the Kaiser

copy was furnished by the Press Bureau, which controlled
them. These last were quartered by the General Staff in the
Villa Renaudin, William's future residence after his hurried
removal from Corneau's house, and later that of the Crown
Prince. Military attaches were relegated to a neighbouring
chateau more than three kilometres from the seat of the General
Staff.

CHAPTER IV

THE ROYAL PALACE

Sovereign and vassals. — An imposing Austrian. — The capitulation of the
Bulgarian. — The kinglets round Augustus. — The anger of Caesar. — An
Archduke asks for help. — In Germany's service, Austria is not rich. —
Royal carriages and the Imperial train. — Grandeur and decadence. —
The statesmen appear. — Visit of Mr. Gerard, the American Ambassador.
— The Sachsenvilla. — The Chancellor likes toys. — Supplies from America.
— The slaves of the North. — An historic interview. — Like Quintus Fabius.
— Catholic prelates and a Protestant king. — An independent bishop. —
Cardinal Hartmann begs for war funds. — The courage of a French
archpresbyter. — Boche delicacy. — Final looting.

THE countless wheels of the German High Command,
the General Staff, the Headquarters of the King of
Prussia, began to revolve smoothly from the 28th September,
1914.

The Confederate States had sent delegates to G.H.Q. to
represent their petty kings, grand dukes and princes of innu-
merable parts of the Empire, faithful servants of the master
of Potsdam. The Allied Powers of Central Europe on their
side had detailed general officers to transmit the orders of the
Villa Corneau and the Prefecture to the Austrian, Turkish
and Bulgarian vassals of the new Scourge of God. William's
humble second, the unfortunate Francis Joseph, had appointed
Field-Marshal Count de Sturgh and Lieutenant-Colonel Baron
von Bienerth ; the Sick Man of Turkey, Zekki Pacha, and
Ferdinand of Bulgaria the criminal Colonel Gantcheff. Field-
Marshal von Sturgh was a huge giant, repulsively fat, with the
bearing of a hippopotamus. Too obese to mount a horse, he
always went about in a royal car. Now and again he risked a
short walk, and this mass of flesh moving with difficulty
sweated and groaned piteously. He spent his time feasting.

The Royal Palace

He was always to be found eating. He took no exercise, and
all his movements had to be assisted by his faithful orderlies.
Von Sturgh had put up at the Hotel Terminus. What amusing
things the witnesses could have told about him !

Baron von Bienerth showed up better. In his well-cut
uniform his smart, supple figure made a better impression than
his " Kamerad " of the German army. He was nevertheless
a bitter enemy of France. He took no trouble to conceal his
pleasure at her defeats, but changed his tune when the German
papers had to admit the indisputable successes of Brussiloff,
or the capture of Gorizia. Then he walked about with hanging
head and frowning face.

Zekki Pacha was a gay dog. He had a great weakness for
petticoats, and renewed acquaintance with the memories and
distractions of his harem in the low cabarets of the town.
An old woman was charged with the duty of ministering to
his fancies. He preferred the pleasures of the City of Charles
de Gonzague — himself in his time a frequenter of ill-famed
houses — to the dangers of the front. He never went to the
front except with the Kaiser, and even then he frequently
found some excuse for shirking this disagreeable duty.

When Bulgaria joined the Central Powers, Staff Colonel
Gantcheff arrived at Charleville. Having been educated
partly in France, he spoke French admirably. He posed as a
friend of our country, had little to do with the German officers
and was quite generous to the Frenchmen who were attached
to his person. At the end of the war he was Commander-in-
Chief on the Salonika Front, and one of the signatories of the
Bulgarian capitulation.

After September, Charleville became the rendezvous of all
the princes and statesmen of the Quadruple Alliance. The
Kings of Bavaria, Saxony and Wiirtemberg, the Prince of
Baden, the Grand Dukes of Hesse and Mecklenburg, German
princelets, the Crown Prince and Generals obediently reported
themselves there and bore themselves with military stiffness
when Caesar frowned, or addressed them on the lack of eager-
ness shown by their soldiers to have themselves killed for the
King of Prussia.

There were some pretty lively altercations between William

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

and the Heads of the Confederate States, which reached the
ears of the French pubKc. On these occasions the Kaiser
showed himself particularly violent, and the report of a scene
with the King of Saxony on the i8th January, 1915, in the
course of which the Father of the Crown Prince threw an ink-
stand at the former husband of La Toselli and broke a mirror,
reached the offices of the French Press.

A special mansion in the Rue Forest was set apart for illus-
trious visitors. The Maison Perin acquired a notoriety which
its owners certainly did not desire. The handsome little hotel
had been turned into a palace of kings. In addition to the
German royalty summoned to the Imperial Headquarters
at the whim of their Imperial Master, the princes of the Allied
States also came to do homage.

The King of Saxony lived there on several occasions. Every
morning before going to see the Emperor he attended mass
at the French church, and during each visit he took the
sacrament at least once. He used to walk alone in the town,
without an escort. The Duke of Brunswick, the Kaiser's
son-in-law, and the Prince of Schleswig-Holstein, his brother-
in-law, slept there in turn.

The Heir to the Austrian throne, who was to succeed Francis
Joseph as Charles I., was also a guest of the Palais des Sou-
verains.

He came to Charleville at a critical time. The Russian
advance was causing anxiety, and the armies of Francis Joseph
needed strong help to avoid a catastrophe. Archduke Charles
came to ask for this sorely needed help. He remained two
days at Charleville, walking the streets in his brilliant hussar
uniform, faced with gold. His red trousers attracted great
attention. He made rather a pleasing impression. Charles
was accompanied by Baron Burian, Financial Minister, who
conferred with Bethmann-HoUweg and implored Germany's
assistance to restore Austria's shaky financial position.

On the ist March, 191 6, Boris of Bulgaria came to salute the .
Emperor in the name of his father, the Czar of the Bulgarians.
Both he and his brother Cyril paid several visits to Charle-
ville. Boris went with the Kaiser to the Verdun front at the
opening of the Crown Prince's great offensive. ,^ , ,i^^ ^

26 '^' '"^'"""^

The Royal Palace

The Turkish Heir Apparent also visited Charleville, a few
days before his mysterious suicide. His visit did not attract
attention.

These princely personages came to G.H.Q. in their private
trains to pay their respects to their Sovereign.

We were able to see the carriages of the Archduke Charles
and the Bulgarian prince. That of the former was a creamy
white picked out with gold. The train of the Bulgarian
Prince was royal blue, edged with a gold Hne, with the arms
of Bulgaria and the Coburgs on the doors. The Turkish heir
arrived in a special train belonging to the Compagnie des
Wagons-Lits, and consisting of dining-parlour and sleeping
cars.

The German Imperial train was often shunted on to a special
siding kept for this purpose. The coach-work of the carriages
was bottle-green, decorated very simply. The train consisted
of a sleeping-car, a study and drawing-room, a dining-car and
a kitchen. To these four coaches specially reserved for the
Kaiser were attached a first-class coach for the officers and a
second-class for the personnel.

The dining-car was large enough to seat thirty at table. The
furniture was of ordinary appearance ; the chairs and arm-
chairs, in Henri H. style, were in maroon leather. At one end
there was a small smoking-room.

The drawing-room, decorated in old gold, contained a table,
two tapestry sofas and several arm-chairs. In one corner
was a small white lacquered table on which stood a long-necked
vase always filled with flowers, and several photographs, in-
cluding his own and that of the Empress, which he always took
with him on his travels.

The coach containing the kitchen was remarkably fitted with
kitchen range and utensils. We cannot supply any informa-
tion as to the sleeping-car, as no one was allowed to enter it
except the valeis de chambres, and the curtains were always
kept drawn.

Beside these triumphal cars another, which had known
happier days before being imprisoned in a goods yard, was
shunted about from time to time among the cattle-trucks.
This coach was dark maroon colour, and contained three

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

compartments, drawing-room, bedroom and dressing-room. On
the door was a coat of arms, surmounted by a crown. It had
been used, we were told, by King Albert of Belgium, and was
said to have been captured when the Barbarians entered
Brussels.

The Boches had a special grudge against this unfortunate
coach. It was left in a disgustingly dirty state. The varnish
was beginning to peel off the woodwork ; the crowns on the
ceiling were broken, and one fine day the ex -royal coach, no
longer in a condition to be used, disappeared from the station.

The Kaiser did not only receive visits from crown princes.
The statesmen of the Alliance were also summoned, and the
Austrian Counts Berchtold and Burian, the Turks Talaat Bey
and Enver Pacha, and General von Bissing, the sinister
Governor of Belgium, also paid several visits to Charleville.

Mr. Gerard, the United States Ambassador in Berlin, dealt
with the Lusitania question at Charleville. The honourable
diplomat describes his visit in his recently pubUshed memoirs.

Between times the Ambassador spent his time visiting,
admired a splendid collection of exotic birds in the house
of a retired prison warder in the suburbs of the town, inspected
the working of the American relief in the Charleville district
and saw young men and girls deported from Lille, Roubaix
and Tourcoing, forced to heavy agricultural labour, which
drew an indignant protest from the distinguished diplomat.

With the Kaiser and his Chancellor he engaged in diplomatic
conversations which temporarily eased the situation, for on
1st May, at eleven o'clock in the evening, Mr. Gerard left
Charleville in the same sleeping-car in which he had come.
He arrived at 4 p.m. the next day in Berlin, which he was
to leave finally on 5th February, 1917, after having asked for
his passport to return to America via Switzerland.

At the Villa Perin the Kaiser did not only lodge royalty
and distinguished diplomats. He also summoned to his
presence the high dignitaries of the Church. When it was
necessary to rouse the zeal of the German Catholics, he sum-
moned the prelates from beyond the Rhine, and the Bishops
of Metz and Treves, the Cardinal-Archbishops of Breslau and
Cologne responded obediently to the call of the King whom

The Royal Palace

they regarded as a heretic. The Archbishop of Breslau
came to Charleville on i6th January, 1915, and stayed at the
Royal Palace. On loth April it was the turn of Archbishop
Hartmann of Cologne, who came with the Bishop of Treves,
Monseigneur Korum, to take the Kaiser's orders.

Monseigneur Korum, who is of Alsatian origin, came on a
special mission. This is how the prelate's visit came about.
The metropolitan bishop of Cologne, Cardinal Hartmann, had
ordered a collection to be made for the German areas devas-
tated by the Russians and he was anxious to hand the funds
to William in person. In order to carry out this mission
with proper ceremony, he brought with him the oldest bishop
in Germany, the Bishop of Treves, and Monseigneur Korum
could not get out of this uncongenial task ; he had, moreover,
already given a proof of his independence of authority. He was
one of the adversaries of Bismarck, whom he opposed actively
at the time of the Kulturkampf.

In the spring of 1916 Cardinal Hartmann came a second
time to the front to lead a campaign in favour of the German
war loan. He visited the rear line of the trenches, catechized
all his chaplains and celebrated the pontifical mass in the
French church at Charleville without the authority of its
direct chief, his Eminence Cardinal Lu9on, the heroic
archbishop of Rheims La Martyre.

The Kaiser was present. In the choir, heavily decorated
h, la Boche, had been installed a throne for the Lutheran
monarch who officially honoured with his presence a Catholic
ceremony. In his sermon Cardinal Hartmann urged the troops
to empty their purses before sacrificing for the Fatherland.
With typical Teuton tact he indulged in base abuse and lying
prophecies about the final overthrow of the hereditary
enemy.

The Archbishop of Cologne, however, was bitterly dis-
illusioned at Charleville. He assumed that the clergy of this
parish would humbly bow the knee before his Eminence.
The Catholic chaplain of the Court, Dr. Berg, a priest as tho-
roughly German as he was anti-French, ambitious, hypocritical
and a liar, was entrusted with the task of dealing with Mon-
seigneur Lejeune, the venerable archipretre who, supported by

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

his vicars, had always maintained a very dignified and brave
attitude in the face of the enemy.

Monseigneur refused to go and salute the German prelate.

The Headquarters insisted, with the same lack of success.
The Court Marshals made a supreme and threatening effort.

The Archipretre persisted in his refusal, and as the French
priest was within his rights, the Cardinal had to swallow this
affront without being able to make any reprisals. The German
prelate nearly choked with rage.

The Maison Perin was always respected by its guests. Once,
however, some visitors, claiming to be important German
journalists, carried off a portrait of the mistress of the house,
and left an impertinent note which the thief omitted to sign,
substituting for his signature the words " A Boche." The care-
taker of the house did not allow himself to be intimidated.
He complained forcibly to the Kaiser, and the portrait, sent
back by a Brussels photographer, was replaced in its former
position.

A placard showed that the house was reserved for the
service of his Majesty. It thus avoided pillage until a few
days before the Armistice, when a fatigue-party came to steal
some furniture which had attracted the attention of an officer
of the Crown Prince's staff.

CHAPTER V

A ROYAL STROLLING PLAYER

THE Imperial Court was at length installed, under the
direction of the High Steward of the Court, Count von
Reischach, while the Military Cabinet, which found its home
first in the offices of the Petit Ardennais, and subsequently
in the house of Dr. Rozoy, Rue du Petit-Bois, started its work
under the direction of General von Plessen, a personal friend
of the Kaiser's.

Like his son, the latter was never in a hurry to go to the
front. He never went there unless he was informed by tele-
phone that some success had taken place. When that hap-
pened he started off in an imposing cortege, consisting of his
own car and the six cars of the officers of his mihtary household,
an anti-aircraft gun mounted on a motor lorry and known
as La Jeannette, and another lorry holding eighteen faithful
soldiers of his guard to whom the protection of his precious
person was entrusted. He remained only a short time in the
rear lines at the front, for Charlemagne's successor had little
stomach for danger, and returned a few hours later, after
issuing to the echoes of the press his high-sounding orders of
the day, or sending his pompous telegrams to the Kaiserin
or his beloved Crown Prince, the skilful general of a new
petticoat war.

Everything about him smacked of parade. He remembered
the simplicity of Napoleon when in the field. He tried to
imitate it. He slept on a camp bed of white lacquer, but in-
stead of setting it in some miserable farm, or a tent among his
soldiers, he established it in a luxurious villa which he had
protected against bombs with a thick concrete shell, a villa

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

which lacked nothing in the way of comfort (modern) and
refinement. Madame Georges Corneau's drawing-room had
been transformed into a study. A large staff-map was hung
on the wall and the table was filled high with papers and tele-
grams.

An army of servants was there to look after the master, who
changed his clothes, including linen and silk stockings, several
times a day. His Majesty despised such plebeian things as
socks.

The household servants comprised the officials of the chef's
department, who wore a green livery (and thus earned the
sobriquet of " frogs "), and the chauffeurs and valets, who
wore the field-grey uniform edged with silver ribbon and
embroidered with the Imperial eagle.

His Majesty was an early riser. He was at work and busy
with the post before seven o'clock. He then rode out to
Vivier-Guyon, a group of farms near Charleville where a riding
track had been laid. A road that he had specially made in
Lecuyer woods brought him to the Aiglemont Road. He spent
an hour there enjoying his riding and then returned in truly
theatrical fashion in the midst of a glittering military escort.
But this did not excite the curiosity of the inhabitants, who did
not even take the trouble to stop when he passed.

When he was residing at the Villa Renaudin he passed
through the village of Montcy-Notre-Dame and would gallop
in the meadows by the Meuse before returning to his residence
at Belair. His Imperial person was well protected. Police-
men were concealed behind every bush, while sentries stood
on guard at every turning.

When his ride was over he would turn up at the Prefecture
in M^zieres for the General Staff's report, visit a Lazarett (the
German field-hospital) and then return for breakfast. He
received at his table generals who were on their way to or from
the front, generals on the Staff and the officers of his military
household. Sometimes he gave ceremonial dinners, for
example on military anniversaries, family birthdays, and to
celebrate the visits of distinguished guests or the birthdays of
his principal generals or admirals.

Then among his favourite guests was Bauer, the chief of

A Royal Strolling Player

the secret police, who kept him posted on all the details of his
work, and particularly on the activities of the French counter-
espionage. One day in the spring of 1915, Bauer was invited
to the Imperial table. The conversation veered round to the
subject of popular feeling in Alsace-Lorraine, and it was
on this occasion that William declared he would dictate peace
to his enemies and compel them to hand over Wetterle Blumen-
thal, Georges Weill (the gallant deputies for Colmar and Metz),
Helvner (the tireless advocate of the French cause), Hansi
and Zislin (the witty caricaturists of Pan-Germanism), and all
the Alsace-Lorrainers of mark who had betrayed their German
fatherland by deserting their country and entering the service
of their hereditary enemy.

His meals, prepared by the chef's staff in the kitchens of the
Hotel du Nord, which had been appropriated for the Imperial
use and cleared of its occupants, who were accommodated
in an annexe, were very simple : soup, fish, a joint with vege-
tables, and dessert. Beer was the usual drink, but hock
or Moselle appeared with the dessert.

A bakery, the owner of which had departed, had been
specially requisitioned, and here was produced his white bread,
which was not exactly war bread, the rolls for his breakfast
and dinner parties and certain patisseries which were not
made at the Hotel du Nord.

The following menus, which were simply polygraphed on an
ordinary card headed with an Imperial eagle, show what the
Kaiser's table was like ; they run thus :

December 2jth, 1915.
Royal table for the evening (Dinner).
Poulets rotis.
Filets de Chevreuil froid avec salade.
Dessert.

January 10th, 19 16.
Royal table for mid-day (Luncheon).
Oie rotie avec des choux verts.
Gateaux de riz.
Fruits.

33 3

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

The menus of the great banquets were very similar, though
they were relieved by hock, claret and Heidsieck-Monopole
champagne. A military band completed the programme.

The banquets were held in the dining-room of the Hotel
du Nord and the tables were laden with glass and plate brought
from Potsdam and flowers sent specially from Berlin.

The tapestries, hangings and furniture were borrowed
from houses round. The plate was of solid silver and the
china and glass were adorned with the Imperial arms. The
dining hall was perfumed. The hall was decorated with
plants, and garlands of leaves and flowers were draped round
the pillars. A silver bell was placed close to the monarch,
and he sometimes used it to command silence when the conver-
sation became too noisy. Contrary to what might have been
expected, there was no bust, either of himself or his deathless
grandfather, and no flag to decorate the table.

The cruet stands, like the flowers, came from Berlin. Meat
and poultry were kept in a special ice-house built for the Im-
perial kitchen in the garden. Whenever a dinner was to be
given at the Hotel du Nord the police made a most elaborate
search in all the rooms, attics and cellars, and sentries were
posted at all the doors.

The banquets were almost as modest as the ordinary meals :
three courses and an entremets formed the menu. Here is
the menu of January 27th, 1915, the Kaiser's birthday.

GROSSES HAUPTQUARTIER January 2^fh, 1915.

Konigliche Abendtaffel (Royal Table — ^Evening).

Caviar

Mousseux

Konigennensuppe (Soupe a la royale)

'93 Steinberger Kabinet
Gefiillte.Puten garnirt (Dinde Gamie)]

'06 Heidsieck
Strasburger Pateste (Pate de Strasburg)
'78 Chateau Montrose
Prinzessinen Reis (Riz a la Princesse)
Nachtisch (Dessert)

A Royal Strolling Player

GROSSES HAUPTQUARTIER March 22nd, 1915.

Konigliche Abendtaffel (Royal Table — Evening).
(Dinner given on the occasion of the anniversary of von
Tirpitz's entry into the service.)

Krastlriihe mit Einlage (Puree au hachis)

Seezungen in Champagner (Filets de poisson au champagne)

Fruchtsalat (Salade melange de fruits)

Spieszerrucken (Dos de dague)

'93 Riidesheimer

Ganzleber Aufiauf (Foie d'oie soufHe)

'06 Heidsieck

Frische griine Erbsen (Petits pois nouveaux)

'78 Chateau Montrose

Vanillispeise (Creme a la Vanille)

Nachtisch (Dessert)

The meals of the General Staff affected the same Spartan
frugaUty. This is the menu of a banquet given by General
von Falkenhayn to the foreign military attaches :

Potage : Soupe a I'oseille

Roti de Veau, pommes a la vapeur

Fromage

Miinich beer and hock.

No fruit or dessert.

But let no one delude himself into thinking that this affecta-
tion of frugality had become second nature in miUtary circles.
The Crown Prince's table was most elaborately served, and
the greatest delicacies of Belgium, Spain and Italy (before
that country entered the war), the very best fish and the
choicest game were considered hardly worthy of the delicate
palates of the stoutest eaters in the General Staff.

The cellars of the Villa Renaudin still contain masses of
corpses of our finest vintages to which his Highness did full
justice.

As for our celebrated French wines, the Boche tipplers
were abundantly supplied from the cellars of Charleville, which
were scientifically looted by Count Arnim, brother of the general

35 3'

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

of the same name, ably assisted by his accomplice, the N.C.O. Dr.

Appens, inspector of schools in peace time. The powers of
absorption of the officers were such that within a few months
many hundreds of thousands of bottles they had discovered,
either by requisition or denunciation, and ruthlessly stolen,
were emptied of their precious contents.

In spite of the apparent frugality which William affected,
Charleville was nothing but the scene of vast orgies organized
by the highest representatives of the army and the aristocracy,
who lived riotously day and night.

The virtuous exterior concealed a monstrous complex of
depravity, vice and debauch which my pen refuses to dwell on,
especially when it comes to describing the shameful scenes
which distinguished a certain lonely villa, at the foot of Mont
Olympe, which had been baptized, appropriately enough, the
" Villa Eulenburg."

The Kaiser endeavoured always to make a great impression
upon all who met or saw him. You could see him walking
in the square by the station, his brows knitted but wearing an
air of great dignity and always accompanied by his faithful
basset hound. His atrophied left hand was fully visible. But
he could not conceal the changes that had set their mark upon
his features, and the sovereign who was still young when we
first knew him at the beginning of the occupation had become
a bent old man with haggard features and perfectly white hair
in the last months of the war. He never managed to recover
that air of majesty which distinguished him in the happier
hours of the campaign ; the weight of remorse lay heavy on
his shoulders.

However, he played the part all the same and was always
ready to be photographed. The photographs of himself that
he had taken at Charleville are numberless. He could be
seen in every pose and every st3'le of costume, walking in the
park, riding or motoring, visiting the hospitals, chatting with
the Kaiserin, an imposing lady with wonderful white hair,
who was anxious to appear majestic but never managed to
avoid seeming a parvenue. She came to see him twice in
Charleville during 191 5, but showed herself in the town very
little, confining her appearances to visiting the hospitals.

A Royal Strolling Player

For a grand finale the Crown Prince, Hindenburg and Luden-
dorff (who visited G.H.Q. very frequently) were photographed
with him.

Very often, especially in the early days, he would go to the
station when troops were passing through. He would have
them drawn up on the square while he reviewed them and
delivered a speech. He never failed to announce to them that
victory was at hand, thanks to the God of the Boches, and
adjured them to die bravely for their German Fatherland.

But it was at church, more than anywhere else, that he
liked to be theatrical.

The Evangelical Church in the town was found too small,
and he had a stable in the artillery barracks converted into the
House of the Lord. A huge eagle with outstretched wings,
the whole of stucco, was fixed on the wall and seemed ready to
devour all France and cover the world with a colossal flag in
the Boche national colours.

Below, a pulpit hung with a cloth of black, white and red
stood ready for the preacher. In the first row an armchair
on a small dais dominated a row of smaller chairs assigned
to his sons, the princes of his family and his vassals : it was
the Imperial throne. The rest of the faithful stood round
in the great hall.

The Court chaplain, Pastor Doctor Goenz, officiated and
delivered the set sermon. Sometimes his Imperial parishioner
took his place in the pulpit and delivered the Word of God
to his soldiers.

When the service was over the whole staff, the officials
and domestics, the troops of the garrison and those merely
passing through, were drawn up on the great Flanders road.
The Kaiser reviewed them and delivered an impassioned
harangue ; then both officers and men defiled before their
sovereign to the loud strains of fifes and drums.

This religious ceremony was not ventured upon until certain
precautions had been taken, so great was the unfavourable
impression made upon his German Majesty by French aviators.
In the first place he had an armoured casement built round
the stable-temple, proof against bombs and with several exits.
Further, while he was parading before his troops on the public

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

road, machine-gun batteries were installed quite near and a
squadron of Fokkers patrolled the heavens above.

William II., like his troops for the matter of that, had a
great aversion to French aviators, and each of their visits
filled him with painful apprehension, not unnaturally. Why,
on two occasions, the French aces nearly hit God's anointed,
who retained a very unpleasant recollection of these visits.

It was on 15th April, 1915, that our aeroplanes for the
first time came to pay their respects to the Teuton monarch.
Five bombs fell round the Imperial palace. One blew a hole
in the station square, barely sixty yards from his residence,
while another fell in a neighbouring house. The third and
fourth damaged two houses in the Rue Daux, less than a hun-
dred yards from the Villa Corneau, and a fifth got lost in the
same vicinity.

The arrival of these birds of France was greeted with joy
by the inhabitants, who had been expecting them long before.
It was otherwise with the Germans, whose countenances showed
signs of extreme consternation. In their amazement the
machine gun placed on the roof of the station forgot to receive
the enemy machines in a fitting manner, and when they had
recovered from their surprise and wanted to get their gun
into action it refused to work, like the legendary Belgian gun
of the late King Leopold. The following day the machine
gun was withdrawn and replaced by proper anti-aircraft
defences, comprising searchlights, fixed batteries and motor-
batteries.

From that day the Kaiser, who had vanished the minute
the bombardment began, acquired the habit of moving his camp
bed into different houses in the town with a view to balking
the cunning of spies and escaping the sharp eyes of the French
aviators.

The second alarm was even more disconcerting for the Kaiser.
It occurred on 26th April, 1916. Haunted by fears of bom-
bardment, the foundations of the Corneau house had been
strengthened and dug-outs had been established in the many
cellars in the town. Placards in German invited the subjects
of his Majesty to take refuge there. That is what happened
on the 26th April, 1916, at four o'clock in the morning, when

A Royal Strolling Player

our aviators put in a fresh appearance. As on the first occasion,
the weather was magnificent and the noise of the bombs brought
the inhabitants out of their houses.

Of course they had taken the precaution of dressing quickly
before coming out into the street. There they were permitted
to behold a refreshing spectacle.

Faithfully carrying out the orders they had received, the
Germans of all ranks rushed out into the streets to take refuge
in the shelters. Unfortunately their haste was such that not
one of them had given himself time to put on his trousers before
appearing in pubUc.

Imposing colonels, portly majors, officers, scared field-greys
could be seen running in the streets, wearing diaphanous cos-
tumes and with their shirts waving disrespectfully at the
mercy of an unkind spring breeze.

Only their flat caps indicated the quality and rank of the
particular individual.

This strict fulfilment of orders had very effective results.
The attendants of the Imperial train, instead of making for
the deep cellars of the Hotel du Nord, rushed to the dug-
out established in the Cafe de I'Univers, forty yards away, at
the very moment when a French bomb was descending from the
sky. Not one of them escaped. The chief engineer, a personal
friend of the Kaiser, the officer in charge of the train, the cooks
and the ordinary attendants found a hero's death in their
headlong panic-stricken flight.

Further, five soldiers were severely wounded. Yet the
cellars of the Hotel du Nord provided excellent shelter, but
these slaves to duty fell victims to their desire to get to the
Schiitze gegen Fliegerbomben (bomb shelters). If they had
stayed quietly where they were they would probably be
aUve to-day to meditate on the history of the greatest of
great Germanys.

This time William had had enough. He left the Villa
Corneau for the time being and made up his mind to change
his habitation. His Court Marshal had orders to find a more
suitable abode and his choice fell on the Villa Renaudin at
Belair, where the journalists were installed. The latter were
ordered to remove their household gods elsewhere. They

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

obeyed their orders, but not without carrying off part of the
splendid furniture they considered so necessary to their
well-being.

The Chateau Renaudin is a magnificent place, in a delightful
situation, with a magnificent view. The rooms have that air of
comfort and elegance which could not fail to please William.
The dining-hall, with its superb furniture, was quite worthy
of the receptions which the Sovereign gave for his distinguished
guests. Yet there was a shortage of chairs : the Boche journa-
lists had commandeered them. Skilful requisition soon pro-
duced other chairs in the style of the room.

The Kaiser took up his quarters in the room of Monsieur
Henri Renaudin, manager of the " Compagnie de I'Est." He
brought his camp bed with him and turned Madame Renaudin's
bedroom into his study. The dressing-room seemed to him
too small, so he had the walls removed which separated it from
the linen room, thus enlarging it, and turned it into a bath-
room. The bathroom of the house was not considered large
enough. When Wilhelm Junior disappeared to Holland,
bath and water-heating apparatus went with him.

The residence certainly pleased the lord of the Hohenzollerns.
It had only one drawback : it was not sufficiently protected
from the attentions of French aviators.

Anti-bomb defences were at once put in hand. The vesti-
bules of each story were lit by sky-lights, and these were hardly
a serious protection against bombs. A net, being an elastic
mattress with the material so tightly compressed as to possess
enormous resisting power, was put in position. It rested on
mechanical buffers so that it would yield to the pressure of
the projectile, and to meet the case of these buffers failing to
effect their purpose a very large and flexible wire cage was
installed to receive the second shock. This erection was to
protect His Majesty's bedroom. Another net of the same kind
and equally strong had been established in a neighbouring attic
to protect the great room in which the receptions were held.
Here were deposited the clothes and other things taken from
the cupboards of the house in order to make room for the
Imperial wardrobe. The clothes went to reward the ladies of
the Kaiser and his son's suite. The rest was condemned to

A Royal Strolling Player

systematic destruction, and the top-hats were distributed by
the Crown Prince to the black prisoners of war who had been
sent to him for his personal use. The crowned comedian thus
hoped to pour ridicule on the French uniform.

These first measures of defence did not succeed in calming
WiUiam's anxieties. He could never be sufficiently protected
from bombs. The children's bedrooms were on the floor
above immediately over the royal bedroom. Enormous iron
beams were brought and placed to support a layer of solid
concrete, a yard thick. Henceforward his Majesty thought he
could sleep in peace.

However, he still ran the risk of being caught when walking
in the park. When the latter was laid out a little pond had
been built and the excavated earth had been thrown out in
front to form a kind of wall, twelve yards high or so. This,
with the pond as a ditch, formed a splendid and quite respect-
able fortification. Behind the pond the German engineers
now constructed a powerful concrete dug-out with a thick
layer of earth over it ; the whole forming a casemate against
which the best of bombs would explode in vain.

A whole series of passages with two exits led to a pretty
large room, fitted with electric light, and a safe refuge against
bombs and poison gas. Finally a kind of platform was built
on a house near by. On this were installed anti-aircraft
machine-guns, while a look-out post was established in the
woods of the chateau from which the arrival of the birds of
France could be observed.

These were serious precautions. Yet even these were not
enough for the Crown Prince when he came to take his father's
place at the Chateau Renaudin. The Kaiser had considered
the cellars safe enough and had not deemed it necessary to
have any alterations made. His degenerate son thought
otherwise. He turned them into a subterranean chamber,
compared to which the colossal dungeons of medieval chateaux
were but a house of cards. A heavy oak door with the in-
scription Eingang (Entrance) led through a series of concreted
passages to a casemate covered with concrete more than a
yard thick. Two cast iron doors, more than two inches thick,
with bolts as thick as your arm, defended the entrances. A

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

double band of impenetrable felt protected all the joins against
the infiltration of poison gas. The chamber held about thirty
persons. The walls were washed with ripohn and around
the walls was a protection of oak four inches thick and four
feet high. There was a cupboard in which were stored a
Vermorel apparatus, oxygen tubes and capsules of hyposulphite
for use in cases of gas-poisoning. The floor was covered with
linoleum and the whole place was lit with electric light and
suitably heated. To avoid accidents the electric wires ran
through tubes of lead inside other tubes of copper.

An exit had been cut on the northern side of the house. It
was not enough. The Prince had another winding passage
built, twenty-five yards long, leading to an exit at one corner
of the park. With a view to conceaUng this exit a charming
copse was planted over the opening, thus giving the place the
appearance of a pleasure ground.

When these defence works had been completed everybody
felt relieved. WiUiam was able to dwell in peace in his new
residence and considered himself safer than by the station
square.

" La troisieme fois fait le droit " (" The third time estab-
lishes a legal right "), says an old French proverb. Its truth
was illustrated towards the end of the following summer,
on August gth, 1916, when a French aerial reconnaissance,
not followed by bombing, took place. New batteries had been
established in different places and it was hoped to forbid
a passage to our aeroplanes by a very violent barrage. Our
fliers were greeted by a heavy fire. It was about nine o'clock
in the morning and William was out for his ride to Vivier-
Guyon.

This morning's visit annoyed the Kaiser, who hastened to
take refuge in a handy hut in a quarry. Nor did he come out
until all danger was over, and then only to rush into his car
and return to the Villa Renaudin at top speed.

To complete his discomfiture bad news had just come in
from Austria. A Russian offensive had captured 80,000
of Francis- Joseph's soldiers. The Kaiser's presence was
needed on the Russian front. His decision was soon taken.
It was precipitated by the visit on August 14th of another

A Royal Strolling Player

enemy airman, who flew over Belair, quite low down, at eleven
o'clock in the evening.

A few days later, on August i6th, to be exact, the brave
Kaiser said farewell to Charleville, where he was not to return,
except for rare and very short visits. In the first instance,
he went to his castle of Pless, in East Prussia, from which he
directed the operations on the Eastern front. His health
then became poor, and he went to take the waters at Wiesbaden,
The castle of Wilhelmshohe, his own place, had the honour of
being his residence for some time. Shortly afterwards the
General Staff and the larger part of General Headquarters
removed to Kreuznach, and, towards the end of 1917, to Spa.

This brilliant behaviour greatly amused the inhabitants of
the occupied regions and they could not help thinking of the
" Marseillaise." The only thing was that certain alterations
had taken place when the children sang it.

When the schoolboys spied the Kaiser, this is what they
used to hum :

I'm not coming out of my quarry

Till the French have all gone away.
Though bullets don't make me worry

And bombs I treat as play.
I'm not going to bother to chase them.

And I don't want to lie in my grave.
I'm proud, but it's no good to face them

If my own precious skin I would save.
Help, Prussians, help ! Your lord must fly
Or his tainted bones in this land may lie.

It was a lucky thing that the secret police never heard
them, for otherwise this innocent joke would have become
the terrible crime of treason.

A few weeks later, the merry Crown Prince took his august
father's place at the Villa Renaudin.

Belair was en fete.

CHAPTER VI

WILLIAM II. AND THE FRENCH POPULATION

The Kaiser cultivates his popularity. — The visit of Pastor Goenz. — Demands
for bread. — Business integrity. — An Emperor's munificence. — A present
arrives at the wrong address. — A victory claimed in Russia. — " The bells
must be rung." — A mayor's firmness. — The empire's knell. — A profitable
lesson. — No wish to know him. — The Belair incident. — The Kaiser and
the " Marseillaise." — Threats of reprisals. — Schoolboys in prison. — How
to make them salute. — The baptism of " Copusse." — William and the
householders. — Those responsible for the war. — Peace at Bordeaux.
— Plans for a Franco-German alliance against England. — William and
the paralytic. — The Imperial memory. — A proud answer. — A crowned
wood-cutter. — Visiting the chateaux. — A golden portrait. — At the
castle of Bellevue. — An Emperor's French lesson. — The flags of Mont-
cornet. — The last parade. — Giving back the villas. — Bethmann follows
the example of his master. — The Imperial seal valueless. — From capital
of an empire to capital of a canton.

ONE of William II. 's first political acts, immediately after
his arrival at Charleville, was to try and work himself
into the good graces of the French population.

At the beginning of October, 1914, Pastor Carpentier, an
excellent Frenchman, whose patriotic attitude was weU known,
received a visit from Dr. Goenz, chaplain to the Guards and
private chaplain to the Kaiser. He made the following
declaration :

" I am charged by his Majesty to inform you that it is
his wish that wherever he is no misery should exist. For
this reason he has instructed me to beg you to let him know
in what way he can relieve local distress."

M. Carpentier acted as his colleagues' interpreter and the
Municipal Commission replied that, as his Majesty was ani-
mated by such good intentions, he might use his authority
to have flour sent to the town, which would be paid for. The
supply of bread was almost exhausted and in spite of the
repeated demands of the town no delivery had been made.

William II. and the French Population

Some days later a note, " On His Majesty's Service," in-
formed the municipality that 300 cwt. of wheat flour had
been put at their disposal, at, if we remember right, 43fr.
20 per cwt., payable in French gold or German silver.

On the day fixed, however, the flour did not appear, and it
was not until representations had been made to Dr. Goenz
that a consignment of 300 cwt. was delivered at Charleville,
more than a fortnight late. But instead of the promised
wheat flour, the flour received was rye, almost uneatable,
and at the price fixed for wheat flour. The Imperial generosity
was then nothing but humbug.

A second trap was baited.

On 20th of October, M. Leon Pailliette, the ambassador of
the Municipal Commission, whose diplomatic tact and patriotic
firmness were of the greatest service, was summoned to the
Kommandatur, and Rittmeister Schnitzer handed to him, in
the name of the Kaiser, a sum of 3,000 marks for distribution
among the poor of the three towns, 1,400 marks being specially
earmarked for the poor of Charleville.

At the same time, a form of thanks, composed by the Kom-
mandatur, was sent for the signature of the president of the
Municipal Commission, and also to the municipal authorities
of Mezieres and Mohon, who had received similar gifts.

On 2nd of January, a gift of the same amount was sent on
the occasion of the New Year, and on 27th of January, a sum
of 3,000 marks was granted to the poor of Charleville, to mark
the Kaiser's birthday.

The Municipal Commission would have liked to refuse such
liberality, but it would have been very dangerous to raise such
opposition and to rouse the Imperial wrath. It was decided
therefore to assign this money to the work of the Vestiaire,
which was looking after the clothing of poor children. But
the visit to express gratitude which the Kaiser expected did
not materialize.

The year after the same occasion gave rise to an incident.

M. Paul Gailly, the president of the Municipal Commission,
met during the latter half of January Wolter, the deputy
Chief of the Secret Police, who told him point-blank :

" The Director of the Secret Field Police is very surprised

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

at not having received the town's thanks for the new gift of
the Emperor."

" Before expressing gratitude to the Emperor," M. Gailly
repHed bitingly, " it would be first necessary to receive the
present of which you speak. We have heard nothing about
it at the Mairie."

Wolter was not much put out and did not insist. The sum
had possibly passed into the funds of the Secret Service. In
any case the gift never reached the town hall, and no more
was heard about the Imperial generosity.

These were the only attempts at a rapprochement, and it was
probably reported in high places that the French authorities
were frankly refractory, and resisted all German advances.
Two fresh incidents went to confirm the enemy's opinion of
the French administration.

On 17th of October, 1914, at 7 p.m., shortly after the first
example of Imperial munificence, M. Paul Gailly, Vice-
President of the Municipal Commission, received at his home
the following order :

Grosses Hauptquartier G.H.Q., iph December, 1914.

2 Kommandant.
Monsieur le Maire,

Hereby I have the honour to request you to have the bells
of Charleville rung from 7 to 7.30. p.m. (German time), the
hour when they will be rung in Germany, to announce to our
troops a great and decisive victory over the Russian army,
now in full retreat.
I have the honour to remain. Monsieur le Maire, etc.

A.-B.
Schnitzer,
Captain.

The hour at which the letter was sent is a t5^ical example
of German duplicity. At that hour, the daily sitting of the
Municipal Commission had adjourned, and M. P. Gailly had
no time to coUect his colleagues to consult as to what should
be done. He was practically faced with a fait accompli.
Further, the decisive victory over the Russians originated
in the fertile imagination of G.H.Q. to stimulate the enthu-

William II. and the French Population

siasm of the Landsturm troops who were to start for the front
on the following day, and were showing signs of a certain
unwillingness to risk their lives for the Fatherland.

What did M. Gailly do ? He went at once to the Kotn-
mandaiur, where he had an interview with Rittmeister
Schnitzer. He pointed out to him that the Mairie only pos-
sessed one bell, the alarm bell ; that, in spite of the occupation,
the town was still under French legislation, and that, since
the law separating Church and State, the municipality had no
jurisdiction over the parish church, of which M. I'Archipretre
was the sole master. The brave councillor added that there
was another point of equal importance : that a municipal
administration of occupied France could not give an order
for a town which was still French to join in the celebration
of a German victory.

" Then," replied Schnitzer, " you refuse to give the order
and I have only to inform the Commandant of your refusal."
M. Gailly made no direct reply to this question. He merely
added : " You are the masters and you can have the bells
rung, if you like. All we ask is that you do it yourselves."

Schnitzer retorted that he had no orders to act in this way.
Then M. Gailly added : "If you insist on having the bells
rung, as your note indicates, you will attain your end by
having them rung and by sending your soldiers to fetch the
ringer. If you refuse it means that you wish at the same
time to wound the feelings of the population. Now, up to the
present, you have always shown a correct attitude towards
us, for which we give you credit. I think that on your side
you will admit that we have done our best to behave to you
in the same way and will also give us credit for this. We ask
you to continue in the same way."

The terrible Rittmeister went out to report to the deputy
commandant, Lieutenant-Colonel von Hahnke, the emphatic
remarks of M. Gailly. He returned some minutes later and
said : " Monsieur Gailly, since you claim to have no authority
over the church, don't take any further steps in the matter ;
we will act accordingly."

The Vice-President of the Municipal Commission then went
to see M. VArchiprHre, and informed him of the situation.

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

At 9 p.m., some German police, escorted by soldiers, came
to fetch the keys of the church and rang the bells themselves.
They made a fine hubbub. The inhabitants, astonished at
these belated j anglings, wondered anxiously if a band of
lunatics had broken into the church to indulge in an orgy.
It can be imagined what amusement there was on the following
day, when the reason for these frenzied peals was known.

The Abbe Nicolas, the parish priest of Belair, a quarter of
Charleville where the Emperor lived some months later, also
received an order to hand over the keys of his church at the
same hour, and for the same purpose. The venerable eccle-
siastic refused point-blank. The officer charged with carrying
out these orders ordered his men to level their rifles at him,
but in spite of this characteristic threat, the priest persisted
in his refusal. The German took the keys by force and a band
of field-greys, flushed with wine, burst into the belfry, while
others stripped the altar of its candles, lit them and indulged in
a wild dance in the churchyard to the tune of an Austrian hymn.
On the following 27th January, the Emperor's birthday, a new
order came for the bells to be rung. The order was trans-
mitted to the Archipretre, who carried it out in his own way.

In the morning of the 27th, the inhabitants were astonished
to hear the church bells tolling the funeral knell employed
for important funerals. It was a witty way of celebrating
the Kaiser's birthday. All the French were delighted at this
amusing practical joke. The Germans did not dare to show
their anger : the laugh would not have been on their side, but
they were finally cured of their insolent mania.

The public always treated the Kaiser with perfect indiffer-
ence. William passed unnoticed : he did not even attract
curiosity, and that in spite of all his studied politeness — for
he was the first to raise his hat when a lady passed — no one
wanted to know him.

In his thirst for popularity, the Kaiser would have liked a
gesture of greeting from the inhabitants. He only succeeded
in causing an incident which, but for the intervention of the
municipal authorities, might have had deplorable consequences.
As the monarch intended to take a walk in Belair on Sunday,
2nd April, 1916, his private physician. Dr. Wezel, informed

William II. and the French Population

the parish priest that the Kaiser would like an acknowledg-
ment of the salutes with which he greeted the passers-by, and
that if anyone did not wish to conform to this request, he had
only to stay at home. He was particularly anxious that the
children should show respect to his Boche Majesty.

The priest found the commission little to his taste, and,
to avoid any possibility of offence, he took the boys under his
charge to have a game of football in a meadow some way
from the suburb.

As ill luck would have it, the priest was recalled to his
parish on urgent business, and the bursting of the ball put a
stop to the game. The boys returned to Belair, whistling
the " Marseillaise," just at the moment when the master of
Germany's destinies was taking his walk.

In the course of this same walk, the HohenzoUern met a
party of ladies who, talking among themselves, did not ac-
knowledge the Imperial salute. Monsieur B — , an inhabitant
of the town, acted in the same way. The mighty personage
frowned. In his view he had been insulted. The next day
the priest of Belair, M. B — , and the children were arrested,
and Dr. Wezel informed the municipality that if such a thing
occurred again he would give orders to have Belair cleared
of its inhabitants. The inhabitants had to be discreetly
warned of this intention, and, the innocence of M. Nicolas,
M. B — , and the boys having been established, they were
set at liberty.

It was thought that the incident was closed when Count
Wengerski, representing the General Stai^ on the committee
of American relief, called M. Paul Gailly before him and
informed him officially of the wishes of his Majesty's military
household with regard to the attitude of the population
towards the officers of the Emperor's personal suite.

It appeared from this conversation that the High Court
Marshal did not wish to impose drastic orders, forcing the
inhabitants to salute the Emperor and his Staff, but that he
would be glad if the Municipal Commission could find means
of letting the population understand that they would be per-
forming an act of high courtesy towards the Sovereign and the
officers who wore a double amaranthine stripe on their trousers.

49 4

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

M. Gailly replied that it was very difficult for a French
municipality to give orders that should only emanate from
those who had a right to give them, and that the only way of
obtaining any result was to ask those who had influence in
certain quarters to do nothing, on meeting the Emperor
and his officers, that would be likely to cause difficulty and
annoyance to the population and its representatives.

Count Wengerski asked for time to think it over. The
Municipal Commission heard no more of the Belair incident ;
William had realized that to push the matter too far would
expose him to ridicule.

Dr. Wezel, for his part, went to see the head master of the
boys' school at Belair, M. Blanchemanche. He would listen
to no explanation and made him responsible for the conduct
of his pupils. He concluded with the threat : " The ' ecoliens '
[sic) must salute or be sent to prison."

The inhabitants of Charleville and Mezieres continued to
pass the King of Prussia in the street without deigning to pay
him the least attention.

He inspired so little respect that he was nicknamed " Co-
pusse," the name of a poor half-witted fellow well known
in the country. This nickname stuck to him, and even
reached the firing-line. The German authorities, hearing
about it, had to take severe measures even in the trenches
to prevent soldiers and civilians from making fun in this
way of the HohenzoUern monarch.

William, whose private life, unlike that of the Crown Prince,
was above reproach, studied his bearing, which he tried to make
impressive and would have liked to make attractive.

Since his arrival in 1914, he chatted familiarly with the
domestic staff at the Prevost bank, including the gardener,
whose blunt common sense he probably admired.

In September, 1914, he declared his ardent sympathy with
France and deplored the scourge which was ravaging Europe,
the responsibility for which he placed at the door of England.

" How many things," he would say to this worthy man, " we
could have accomplished if only France and Germany had
been allied ! Alas ! This beautiful country is a prey to Jews
and Freemasons, who are the thorn in the side of the

William II. and the French Population

Republic and have brought upon her the war from which we
are all suffering.

" The Republic can never be the real government of France.

" I have no animosity against your country. The war will
soon be over. I am going to sign peace with France at
Bordeaux. I shall be very generous towards her. France will
recognize at last her true friends, and we shall form a powerful
alliance to drive England from French soil and give back to
your country Dunkerque, Calais and Boulogne, which the Eng-
lish will know how to keep as the price of their intervention."

Then he would talk gardening and give advice on grafting
trees and cultivating plants, for this man, thinking himself
omniscient, talked of everything as an expert.

This conversation, which we guarantee strictly true, was
repeated to a number of people whom he met on his walks.

He always cultivated the theatrical side. He liked people
to talk about him and to praise his ability.

When he lived in the Chateau Renaudin, one of his dis-
tractions was to go from house to house and enter into con-
versation with the people he visited.

At Belair he had struck up acquaintance with a paralytic
whom he went to see every day. In fine weather this poor
man was carried out in front of the door to get a breath of
the pure, life-giving air of the forest of the Ardennes. But his
financial position would not allow him to buy himself a me-
chanical carriage for his airings. The imfortunate invalid
complained of this to his Majesty. WiUiam, always generous,
promised to satisfy this wish. Doubtless a king's whims are
not always promptly realized, for the poor cripple had to wait
a long time for the promised carriage.

At last, at the beginning of 1918, the Kaiser came to Belair
to preside over a council of war. The paralytic reminded
him of his promise. This time he had to keep it, and Dr.
Appens, an N.CO. whose duty in time of peace, in his capacity
of inspector of elementary schools, was to instil into Boche
schoolboys respect of property, and in time of war to plunder
that same property, was requested to obtain in Charleville
the carriage required. -^t

The only one to be found in the town was in a house

51 4*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

inhabited by an officer of the Kommandatur. It was immediately
requisitioned from its lawful owner and presented personally
by William to his protege. The latter was overcome with
gratitude. The Kaiser was pleased : he thought he had
enhanced his popularity and his generosity had not cost him
much. But the parsimony of the Hohenzollerns is proverbial.

He also liked to take walks in the woods near the town and
to stop the women who were collecting their scanty store of
wood for the winter. He would talk to them, interest him-
self in their families and, at the beginning of his stay, give them
a five-mark piece, being careful to add : " Keep it as a souvenir.
It is a present from the Emperor of Germany."

This generosity was short-lived. The prodigal William
soon reduced his charity account : from five marks the present
was reduced to two and then to twenty-five sous.

Another time he met a splendid girl, supple in body, with
delicate features and hair of bright gold. This combination
of health and beauty, in spite of the worn clothes, in a girl of
the people attracted his attention. He congratulated her
and suddenly asked : " You are German, my child ? "

" No, monsieur," she replied, " I am French ! "

" You must have German connections in your family ? "

" No, sir," she insisted emphatically. " There has never
been any German blood in my family. I am French, very
French, and I intend always to remain French."

The crowned Boche did not insist further : he broke off the
conversation abruptly.

This hail-fellow-well-met attitude suited this theatrical
character, but did not satisfy his thirst for admiration. He
wanted to pass himself off as a manual worker.

When he inhabited the Hotel Corneau, he amused the
French occupants of the Pr6vost bank by devoting himself
to felling trees in the park. When he moved into the Villa
Renaudin, he had a carpenter's shop fitted up and indulged
in his favourite hobby.

His residence was not far from the road from CharleviUe to
Nouzon. Another property belonging to M. Renaud bordered '
this important highway. It contained a little wood with
some magnificent trees. The Imperial mountebank chose

William II. and the French Population

it for the scene of his labours. The passers-by were therefore
very astonished to see the German Sovereign strip off his
field-marshal's tunic and set about felling the superb trees
which were the ornament of the estate.

When his woodman's task was over he would take a whip-
saw and cut up the timber that he had felled. His ankylosed
left arm, which he could not use, prevented him from com-
pleting this intellectual task.

When the Crown Prince was visiting Charleville he used to
help him with this work. Otherwise he would call in the
assistance of a soldier, who would have preferred to be elsewhere
to collaborating with his Emperor in manual labour.

One day an officer from the front was passing and saw this
wood-cutter in uniform. He questioned an orderly, who told
him who it was. " Der ist unser Kaiser ? " (That is our
Emperor ?) he asked with amazement.

Receiving an affirmative reply the officer roared with laughter
and went on his waj', shrugging his shoulders.

The sawn wood was then distributed among the necessitous
families of Belair. There were three distributions. Their
object was to create a sympathetic atmosphere with the wood
of the local landowners without costing the civil list a penny.

All these efforts of William fell flat, however. The public
passed and looked. Like the German officer, they shrugged
their shoulders or laughed : the Kaiser as a workman did
not impress them. They could not understand why the
head of an army of more than eight million men should need
to saw wood in order to win battles.

One of his favourite occupations was to visit all the chateaux
in the neighbourhood. This was less dangerous than visiting
the trenches. As a rule he only found a bailiff or caretaker.

At the end of his visit he would thank the caretaker for his
kindness and give him a twenty-mark piece, adding : " I am
giving you a portrait of myself ; it is in gold ! "

But William reckoned that this fancy of his was becoming
too expensive and afterwards was content to distribute five-
mark pieces. The portrait became a silver one.

When the representative of the landowner was a more
exalted person than a caretaker or gardener he would change

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

the form of his present. In these cases he would send, some
days after his visit, a gold tie-pin with the initial " W " sur-
mounted by a royal crown. He met with several misadventures
in the course of his wanderings. Almost immediately after
his arrival in Charleville he visited the historic chateau of
Bellevue, where Napoleon III., after the capitulation of Sedan,
surrendered his sword to King William of Prussia, the grand-
father of the vanquished emperor of igi8.

On the day of the crossing of the Meuse at Sedan on the 25th Au-
gust, 1914, the park of the chateau had been the scene of bloody
fighting and the property had been sacked by the Barbarians.

After inspecting the chateau and the garden and admiring
the view of the Meuse valley from the terrace, the Emperor
asked to see the proprietor, the widowed Mme. Ninnin.
It was very difficult for her to refuse this request, so she had
to consent to receive an enemy whose grandfather had already
rent her Frenchwoman's heart in this very place.

In the course of the conversation the father of the Crown
Prince alluded to the damage he had noticed and asked who
was the cause of it.

" Your troops," replied Mme. Ninnin proudly. " It was
they who did the damage after the battle."

" In that case," answered the Kaiser, " you will permit
me, madame, to contribute towards the cost of repair ? "

" No, sir," retorted the lady firmly, " I require no help
to repair my property. I shall look after that myself. I
have only one thing to ask of you, and that is that you pro-
tect my house from the intruders who come here and behave
as though they are in a conquered country,"

In face of this attitude the monarch did not insist. He
promised to do what she had asked and withdrew ; then, at
the moment of departure, a general came back to the room
in which Mme. Ninnin was, and, without any explanation,
placed on the mantelpiece a i,ooo-mark note and with-
drew so hastily that Mme. Ninnin had not time to ask what
was meant. The poor got the benefit of the gift. William's
1,000 marks were given to the aged people of the Little
Sisters of the Poor in Glaires, who had suffered by the battle.

This visit did no good to the Ninnin family, for, in December,

William II. and the French Population

1917, Madame Ninnin's son, a Sedan lawyer, was placed on
the list of hostages sent to Russia, where, in the camps of
Miljegany and Block-Roon near Vilna, he tasted the horrible
barbarities of the descendants of Attila.

On another occasion he was visiting the ruins of the Chateau
de Montcornet. Afterwards he went into the humble church
of the village, but, hardly had he entered the sanctuary, than
he came out again : the parish priest, who had always shown
himself a brave and devoted patriot, had decorated the altar
with red-white-and-blue flags.

The priest expected reprisals, but nothing happened.

The Emperor must have been in an indulgent mood that day.

Such were his ordinary relaxations.

His last theatrical action was in December, 1917, a few
days before Christmas.

Hitherto he had been content to hold reviews on the old
race-course, now called the Paradeplatz, but the French were
rigorously excluded from these military displays.

This time he chose the Place Ducale to provide the French
public with a spectacle and gave as an excuse the decoration
of a lieutenant-general with the order Pour le Merite.

The ceremony was to take place at eight o'clock in the
evening, and the Place Ducale, where the town hall stands,
had been appropriated for the occasion. It was very cold ;
braziers had been placed here and there. Wreaths of fir had
been woven and electric light installed. The effect was
apparently intended to be fairy-like. It was far from being
artistic, however, being heavy and clumsy. The corps of
officers and the troops of the garrison were drawn up in a
square, while the Sovereign, mounted on the terrace of the
Hotel de Ville, and supported by the Crown Prince and the
Staff, harangued his faithful troops. A military band accom-
panied the royal speech with the Wacht am Rhein and Heil dir
in Siegerkranz, the national anthems. He hoped to hear
cheers. There were none. The inhabitants had been given
permission to remain out of doors until eleven o'clock, but,
with very few exceptions, the whole population refrained from
attending the Imperial parade.
^ _ To begin with, service was held in the Catholic Church of the

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Boulevard Gambetta, which had been transformed into a
Lutheran temple. Carpets, armchairs and chairs were borrowed
from different drawing-rooms in the town. They were never
restored to their owners.

William was no more successful than he had been before.
It was the end of his relations with the inhabitants. He under-
stood at last that he would always remain an enemy.

He returned several times since, at the opening of each
big offensive, but he always refrained from appearing in
public : all his theatrical turns had been failures.

Before he transferred G.H.Q. to Spa, for he left Charleville
on i6th August, 1916, William wanted to make it clear that
he did not steal clocks. On 22nd February, 1917, his Court
Marshal told off one of his officers. Lieutenant Keestener, to
hand over to M. Leon Paillette, municipal councillor of Charle-
ville, and the Abbe Bihery, to whom the Kommandatur had
given the title of confidential cleric, the keys of the Chateau
Renaudin. The places were inspected. The two houses
were sealed and an official deed of surrender in good condition
was drawn up by the second in command G.H.Q.

To prove that the Emperor had not stolen anything, several
baskets of wine from the cellar of M. Georges Corneau, closed
with the Imperial seal, were deposited at the Mairie to be handed
in due course to their owner. Their immunity, however,
did not last long, for almost immediately after the arrival of
the Inspectorate of Lines of Communication of the ist Army
at Charleville, the Inspector, Lieutenant-General von Heyde-
breck, disregarding the Imperial will and seals, had M. Corneau's
baskets of wine removed from M. Paul Gailly's house, where
they had been left, and appropriated them for his own use.

It was the same with the villa in the Place de la Gare. A
few days after the handing over of the property, the seals
placed on the back of the house were broken and Boche officers
and men rifled with impunity the silver and art treasures
that their Kaiser had left.

A short time before, 20th February, 1917, the Chancellor,
Bethmann-HoUweg, handed over in the same way M. Edouard
Provost's house, where for only too long a period he and
his august master had directed the policy of Germany. Charle-

William II. and the French Population

ville had fallen from its rank of capital : it was to become
the centre of the pleasures of the heir to the throne,

THE LAST DAYS OF THE EMPIRE

It is very difficult for us to follow the Kaiser in his constant
wanderings. The strict internment to which we were sub-
jected and the absence of news from outside prevented us
from following the journeys of this indefatigable traveller.

We only know that William II. left Spa at half -past nine
in the evening of 9th November, 1918, for the Dutch frontier.
As most of the trains were full of revolutionary soldiers it
was intended to take him and his suite to Holland by aero-
plane, but it was decided otherwise, and the Emperor travelled
by train as far as La Reid, two stations away from Spa. The
same afternoon he summoned the Crown Prince to join him.

At La Reid the Kaiser and his suite crossed by motor-car
into the kingdom of Queen Wilhelmina. No one knew about
this journey, which was kept secret until after the departure
of the dethroned Caesar.

At the beginning of November, when the situation was
critical, the Kaiser could not make up his mind to abdicate.
His entourage had tried to bring pressure on him to prevent
him from making such a decision.

On 8th November, in the evening, the news arrived that a
Naval Division from Flanders was marching on Spa to force
the Sovereign to abdicate. The General Staff building was
surrounded by the Guards to arrest the march of the mutinous
troops. Unfortunately for him, the Kaiser could not rely
on the loyalty of the Guards, who threw down their arms
and refused to fire on their comrades. Admiral von Hintze,
the last Foreign Minister, appointed a few days before the
Armistice, and head of the political department of G.H.Q.,
intervened and strongly advised abdication. It was not until
9th November that the last Emperor of Germany finally made
up his mind to this peace move and signed his abdication in
the drawing-room of the Hotel Britannique. He retired to
the Castle of Amerongen, where he will find time to write his
memoirs, if the Entente do not demand his extradition to
punish him for all his crimes.

CHAPTER VII

THE kaiser's doctor AND " THE IMPERIAL POUF "*

(Doctor Wezel)

Festivities at G.H.Q. — The Emperor's sons at Charleville. — Oscar an un-
discriminating drinker. — Joachim's facetiousness. — Tire la patte. —
An old rou6 and an old fool. — The governor of Belair. — The Geneva
Convention trampled underfoot. — Fine answer of the martyrs. — Brutal
expulsion. — Hunting down the sick. — Rat poison as a purgative. — A
famous charlatan. — Municipal patriotism recognized by a Boche. — A
benefactor of humanity. — Small presents that keep friendship alive.
— Christmas geese. — Paying the bill. — Milk the wine of the aged, wine
the milk of Wezel. — A Saint Vincent de Paul in a spiked helmet. — How
to wring gratitude from children. — The adventures of a little spy. —
The sisters' tyrant. — Sister Edwige, a worldly nun. — Respect " La
Wezel." — Lucrative inspection of morals. — An expensive injection. —
Wezel as " Alphonse." — Wezel the patron of . . , Maison Tellier. —
Motherly advice. — " Ladies to the drawing-room." — Imperial patronage.
— The week's takings. — Failure of the management. — How prostitutes
were recruited at G.H.Q. — A paying profession. — Proprietor at Dresden.
— Honeymoon.

IT is impossible for us to describe all the officers at G.H.Q.
in this work. There were too many of them : more
than six hundred general officers formed the military cabinet,
the General Staff and other departments of G.H.Q. There
would be little to tell about them, for the majority, belonging
to the highest families of Germany, behaved correctly enough
from the official point of view. Their private life was less
irreproachable. Life at G.H.Q. was a succession of daily
festivity. The tables were loaded with good cheer, and other

* The word Pom/ was used by the Germans to indicate certain maisons closes
specially set apart for the troops.

The Kaiser's Doctor

pleasant diversions made them prefer life at Charleville to
the dangers of the front.

Among the princely personages in the Kaiser's suite must
be mentioned his sons, who were summoned to their father
to take part in the military displays or to receive paternal
scoldings. Prince Eitel was his favourite and observed a
certain decorum. Oscar was a coarse drinker who could not
distinguish between the ordinary brandy, which was chris-
tened " Fine-Oscar " after he tasted some at the station refresh-
ment room, and the choice Grandes Champagnes. Joachim
was a gay night-bird. He was once unceremoniously turned
out of a certain maison close by the proprietor for wishing to
carry off his wife in a car. Adalbert, the sailor of the family,
is not the hero of any scandalous stories.

Round the Imperial princes gathered several other members
of the Prussian royal house : Waldemar, son of the Emperor's
brother and nephew on his mother's side of the Czar Nicholas,
a poor, puny child who limped badly and was nicknamed
" Tire la Patte " by the street boys. Too sickly to get into
mischief, his thoughts were occupied by looking after his
delicate health.

Prince Leopold of Prussia, Colonel-General of Dragoons,
grandson of Frederic-Charles, the red hussar, the hangman of
Chateaudun and father of Prince Frederic-Charles, named
after his great-grandfather, killed while flying, had only
one passion, shooting. He shot from morning till night, and
hares, rabbits, partridges and pheasants were the only enemies
he brought down.

The Prince of Schoenburg-Lippe, whose brother George,
the reigning princelet, had married William's sister, was an
inveterate drunkard. He indulged in the most awful orgies,
often in the company of the Crown Prince, and took part in
several gallant adventures which, in ordinary times, would
have brought this " Old Rou6," as he was called, before the
assize court. The Emperor held him in little esteem and only
invited him to his table when obliged to ; Schoenburg, on
his side, avoided the Court, and the invitations were to him
irksome duties which he sought to avoid.

More than sixty years of age, the excesses to which he was

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

addicted affected his reason, and he was finally sent to Frank-
furt am Main to be treated by German mental specialists.

There is, however, one person whom we ought not to separate
from the Kaiser, for he belonged to the inner circle of his
intimates and confidential entourage. We mean Dr. Wezel.

This staff-surgeon, whose German sister had married a
Frenchman from the neighbourhood of Maubeuge, was William's
second doctor, but he enjoyed the confidence of his sovereign,
who frequently sent him on private errands among the French
population. He tried to win the sympathy of the inhabitants
of Belair, where he had met the lady of his choice. He assumed
the position of his master's agent, and well deserved his nick-
name, " Governor of Belair."

Thin Dr. Wezel, beardless and of uncertain age, was a prey
to inordinate ambition which, combined with a greed of
gain, made him very odious. His fortunes being slender, he
sought to make himself the chief doctor of Charleville, while
at the same time accumulating a competence which would
enable him to gratify his appetites. It did not matter how
this was done, as will be seen in this chapter.

He wanted to take over the Civil Hospital and become its
chief surgeon. This establishment was under the direction
of Dr. Richelet.* With this in view he established a German
annexe and did all he could to obtain control of the
whole.

On 14th November, 1914, he came to inspect the wards.
In one of them, side by side with French wounded soldiers,
were some civilians who, while crossing the Meuse on 29th
August, the day Charleville was occupied, were hit by German
bullets. One had had to have his leg amputated. In the
same ward two unfortunate orphan children were lying,
victims of the Boche. The first, Achille Vaucherot of Haybes-
sur-Meuse, had been seriously wounded by the Barbarians at
the time of the massacre and burning of this place. The
other, Emile Jeunehomme of Nouzon, had had his skull broken
by a bullet, while the Saxons, who had set fire to his home,

* His devoted care for the patients and his admirable direction of the
hospital during the bombardment of loth November, 191 8, won him the
Croix de Guerre.

The Kaiser's Doctor

were murdering his mother and sister before his eyes. Both
these poor children died of their wounds soon afterwards.

Wezel tried to be facetious. Turning to Vaucherot, he said :
" So you hurt yourself while playing ? "

" No, I was not playing. The Prussians shot me like a rabbit
while I was running away from our house, they had set on fire."

" And you," he said to Emile Jeunehomme, " you've been
fighting with your playmates ? "

" I haven't been fighting," answered the little boy. " The
Prussians did it. They killed ray mother and sister, too, and
set fire to our house."

Wezel had no luck. Gerard was, perhaps, not a victim of
the Boches.

" I suppose your condition is a result of an accident while
at your work ? " he asked him.

" There wasn't any accident," the poor fellow protested.
" I was shot by the dirty Boches."

The doctor tried to impose silence, but little Jeunehomme
persisted : " Yes, I will say it again. It is the Prussians who
killed my mother and sister and they tried to kill me too ! "
while Gerard went on repeating : " Shot by the dirty Boches."

The Emperor's private physician did not continue his in-
vestigations. He withdrew hurriedly without waiting for any
more.

A few days later, however, some motor-drivers (they were
not hospital orderlies) deposited at the doors of the wounded
ward some women patients and shouted brutally : " Heraus,
die Verwundeten ! " (Clear out the wounded !) and forced
the staff to remove our unfortunate men, at once, and without
any preparation, to a distant wing which had not been made
ready for their reception.

He took over a certain number of wards which he called
the German section and tried to obtain patients. To do this
he hunted the town for sick folk, and after a preliminary
examination in their homes, persuaded them to come to
the hospital for a consultation, where he admitted them as
urgent cases. He liked to assemble all these out-patients
in a circle in one of the wards and walk round them asking
how they felt. He would then return with medicines which

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

he distributed right and left, without remembering what their
complaints were. He didn't even take the trouble to examine
the records. Once he gave a patient some rat poison. The
poor wretch appealed to one of the sisters. Sister Jeanne, an
admirable nun whose exertions and sufferings under a Boche
like Wezel have been rewarded by the Croix de Guerre, asking
her how the medicine was to be used. Sister Jeanne laughed
and sent it back to the doctor to ask for an explanation.
The latter, rather crestfallen, gave another drug and went on
with his rounds.

Among impartial witnesses in a good position to judge, this
notorious doctor was recognized as a thorough charlatan.

Charlatan ! the word is no exaggeration. What else could
a man be who got Scheuermann, the famous correspondent
of the Rhenish and Westphalian Gazette, at that time special
correspondent of the Deutsche Tageszeitung at Versailles,
and about whom we shall have more to say later, to write a
panegyric of him in the Almanach de la Gazette des Ardennes,
1916 ?

Scheuermann heads his dithyramb : " The German Doctor."
He pictures Charleville, Mezieres and Mohon as a collection,
in peace time, of 40,000 inhabitants reduced to half since
the panic of 1914 and left without medical help. Two doctors
stayed behind. " Some," says this Boche journalist, " were
mobilized ; others, doubtless, took part in the stampede of
the leisured classes before the approach of the Germans.

" Happily the charitable heart of the good German doctor
was melted by all this suffering when the hospitals were crowded
with wounded and the local authorities took up the quasi
patriotic attitude of turning a deaf ear to all suggestions coming
from a German source, even when the good intention was
obvious ..."

Wezel commandeered one part of the civil hospital of Charle-
ville, staffed it with nurses of Saint Vincent de Paul, taken from
the French section, and gave gratuitous consultations, " Of
which a large number of patients took advantage, in spite of
the secret terrorism of part of the population, for there was a
risk of being put on the list of unpatriotic citizens by the
exalted chauvinist, ..."

The Kaiser's Doctor

According to Scheurmann, Wezel is a model of devotion.

His attendance was gratuitous as Scheuermann affirms.
But he accepted all kinds of presents which he solicited very
discreetly and was very skilful in obtaining. He would accept
anything : silver, ribbons, cashmere shawls, tapestry, clothing
and antiques, for which he had a special liking. Fond of good
wine, he had contrived to spoil the famous cellar of one of his
Mezieres patients in exchange for milk, which he drew from
the municipal dairies for the patients of the hospital.

From the country he was supplied with provisions of all
kinds. Butter, poultry, pork ; he refused nothing. He
started keeping choice poultry, and the splendid geese which
he had secured at small cost, and which were the pride of his
country house, were much admired by the passers-by. He
fed them up with particular care in view of the approaching
Christmas festivities, but the saviours of the Capitol tempted
a connoisseur, and one fine morning Wezel was thrown into
despair by the disappearance of his beloved birds.

To his great chagrin they formed a Frenchman's Christmas
dinner instead.

" Medicines were gratuitous," said the Almanack de la
Gazette. It was easy for him to distribute them gratuitously.

French pharmacies had been requisitioned and supplied
him from their French stocks, without pajnnent, while the
medical supplies obtained from Germany were paid for by
the municipal funds and even by the patients. He told them
that he had to pay ready money and that they must help him
to raise it.

" The township of Charleville," he said, " had never regu-
larly subscribed to the upkeep of the hospital." If the munici-
pal books are examined they will convict Wezel of imposture.
Each quarter the municipal receiver had to meet the cost of
the medical attendance and medical supplies of the German
section, and the whims and generosity of Wezel cost the relief
fund more than 100,000 francs for the care not only of ordinary
patients but also the prostitutes who were admitted in large
numbers. New wards had to be built and specially fitted up.

There was also the traffic in milk. At first his patients
at the hospital were well supplied. Gradually, however, the

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

ration diminished, for Wezel commandeered the greater part
for his civilian patients, until, finally, those patients whose
complaints made necessary the daily supply of a certain
quantity of milk were cut down to half or quarter of a litre.

During the first year the Emperor's doctor was fairly regular
in his visits ; the second year this regularity fell off, and
afterwards he hardly ever appeared at the hospital at all.
He left his duties to his assistant, Dr. Craye, who, to give him
his due, discharged them conscientiously and took no trouble
to hide his opinion of his chief.

Wezel also tried to pose as the rescuer of children. In an
illustrated magazine, " The Album of the Great War," distri-
buted over the occupied territory, to demoralize the French,
he is shown sitting on a bench in the orphanage with two little
orphans on his knees, to whom he is giving sweets. In I' Al-
manack de la Gazette he is seen chatting to two little patients.
He is even described by Scheuermann as a Saint Vincent de
Paul in a spiked helmet.

"... And quite charming is the gratitude which shines
in the faces of the little boys and girls in this section of the
hospital. There is Rene, a little chap of five. He says he
never wants to leave Uncle Wezel. Just before the New Year
there was a sort of conspiracy among the little folk : they
whispered together, they had secrets in common, they asked
the sisters for pen and ink. And on the first of January a
letter was presented to the doctor, written by Carmen, a little
girl of nine, on behalf of her companions, AUce, Raymonde,
Rene and Jean, all between four and six ! Mile. Carmen
declared, in her best handwriting, that her friends were still
too young to express themselves in writing, but that their
wishes came from their hearts. Certainly this touching mark
of gratitude from the child of a poor working man or farm
labourer will be the most gratifying reward for the labours of
the benefactors who have never solicited (?) or expected a word
of thanks from another quarter. ..."

What a comedy ! Wezel prompted this spontaneous grati-
tude every day. He used to say to these poor children who
had no will or judgment of their own : " Am I not good to
you ; am I not always kind ? "

The Kaiser's Doctor

And they would answer innocently : " Yes, doctor."

It was he who inspired and dictated Carmen's letter. When
the hospital was visited by persons of importance, like Beth-
mann-Hollweg or a Prince of Bavaria, the benevolent doctor
would rehearse the children beforehand and so he won the
princely congratulations. He had trained one little girl,

Paulette F , whose mother had left the occupied territory,

to spy on the sisters and patients, and this eavesdropper used
to repeat to the doctor the conversations she had overheard.

Wezel was on the contrary an insufferable tyrant. His
overbearing behaviour oppressed everyone, and Sister Jeanne,
who was put in special charge of the German annexe, was the
greatest sufferer from his tyranny.

At every turn he reprimanded her :

" Try to obey," he would say. " You are nobody, you and
your administration. I am the master, I am in command
here. Do what I tell you and don't argue. If you force me
to it I will turn you out — the whole lot of you."

But Sister Jeanne is a proud Frenchwoman who was not
afraid of the Boche. She frequently put him in his place
sharply.

Wezel had foisted on to her a German nurse. Sister Edwige,
from the Imperial hospital. She was a worldly nursing sister
of twenty-two, while Sister Jeanne had a record of thirty
years' hospital service. Sister Edwige was more regular in
her attendance at receptions and soirees than in the wards,
and Sister Jeanne had to wait late at night for the ScBur
Mondaine to relieve her. The latter was very easy-going in
her habits. She smoked like a trooper and danced and sang
in the bedrooms without stopping to think whether the smoke
or the noise would disturb the patients. In spite of this,
this girl was placed over Sister Jeanne and had charge of the
section for venereal cases. This post did not appeal to her
for long. After eight months, in August, 1915, she had a
violent quarrel with her doctor and told him straight out that
she had come to nurse wounded, not prostitutes, and left
the hospital, slamming the doors behind her.

Wezel had a mistress, Louise F , a pretty brunette

from Belair who was the terror of her fellow countrywomen.

65 5

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Woe to anyone who had the temerity to displease her ; her
powerful lover was always ready to avenge her. She was
feared and detested. She used to make herself at home in
the hospital and the sisters had to treat this woman with
respect and deference, but they did their best to avoid her.
Once a lay nurse had the misfortune to be caught smiling at
her. The next day she was dismissed and turned out helpless
on to the street.

The Kaiser's private physician had also taken on himself
the control of public morals. He found it a good opportunity
for making a lot of money. The filles puhliques were all his
protegees. In return he was not above accepting little
presents which helped their release and the pursuit of their
profession.

This confidant of WiUiam II. was not fastidious where
money was concerned.

This strange interpretation of his duties as a surgeon did
not satisfy his greed for lucre. It was not long before he
became a member of that class of society that the police watch
with special care, and the white slave trafhc had no secrets
for him. Wezel was to become the tenant of a house of ill-
fame.

This so-called maison de societe was frequented by the sol-
diers of the invincible German army. Situated as it was
near the station, all the troops passing through Charleville
devoted to it a part of their short visit, where they met their
comrades of the garrison. It was always crowded, and the
entrance was blocked in the morning by an impatient band of
clients. In the evening the officers of G.H.Q., including even
the princes of the Imperial house, met in the drawing-room.
For the proprietor it was a gold-mine. The Boche High Com-
mand found that monsieur was making too much money,
and he was ordered to pay a monthly contribution of 500
marks, which were to be paid to Dr. Wezel. Further, this
conscientious staff-surgeon took a small commission on
the sale of alcohol in this establishment. In addition
to the monthly payment, the proprietor of the maison
close had to submit to numerous fines for alleged offences
against the rules. The whole sum came to more than 12,000

The Kaiser's Doctor .

marks. It was a good windfall for the war chest, but Wezel
found it insufficient and he thought that direct control would
be more profitable to his country's finances. He, therefore,
sought an excuse to turn out the future father-in-law of the
Crown Prince. M. Beurier, the proprietor, was accused of
hiding a French airman and assisting him to escape. He could
not be dealt with by the courts for want of sufficient proof,
but it was a good opportunity to get rid of him. His expulsion
was decided on and the Emperor's private physician took over
the control of the maison close. To his ordinary Christian
names was added that of Alphonse.

The ceremony of taking over the direction was an impressive
one, as at the time of the inventories the doctor came to
take over the Temple of Venus. Madame handed him the
keys and withdrew.

The maison de societe was transformed into an Imperial
Pouf and placed under the Imperial patronage of his Majesty
the Emperor of Germany, the immediate management of the
Financial Minister and the intelligent direction of Doctor
Alphonse.

Every Saturday Wezel paid a visit to the rue de la Gravi^re
to receive the week's takings.

Nevertheless, the control was difficult. Madame the
manageress understood how to feather her own nest, and her
accounts were not exactly accurate. Direct control did not
produce good results. The manageress was reUeved of her
post and the German administration decided to revert to the
old system.

A new tenant was found who had to pay a monthly con-
tribution of 2,000 marks (2,500 francs).

Alphonse, however, still continued his little business in
medical appliances at undiminished prices.

As the building in the rue de la Gravidic was not large
enough, three other houses of the same kind were opened for
the virtuous sons of Germany, and Wezel was appointed
furnisher by special appointment.

The poUce in charge of this department found recruiting
for their establishments difficult, and they hit on a clever
method of obtaining their personnel. Unfortunate victims

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

of the vengeance of the officers or the poHce were forcibly
interned in these obscene haunts, and when they get back
in their own country the German journaUsts will find here
good material for their tirades against the licentiousness of
occupied France.

By this pretty profession Dr. Wezel, the private physician
and personal friend of William II., accumulated a fortune.

PART II

THE CROWN PRINCE

CHAPTER VIII .

A DESK STRATEGIST \

The arrival of a hero. — Precautions against famine. — His bodyguard. —
Another Napoleon. — A passing glimpse. — The New Gugusse. — A Death's
Head Hussar, who is not taken seriously. — The front has its dangers. —
Discretion is the better part of valour. — The best of trenches. — A
shattered dream. — Reims and Compi^gne still French. — A jolly good
fellow. — Summary ejections. — A newspaper office turned into baths. —
The Parole. — A great achievement.^-Genercil Chanzy under arrest. —
A senator made fun of. — Enthusiasm on the wane. — Disrespectful
privates. — A general who is too shy. You must salute his Highness. —
The debacle. — The last review. — " Good-morning, Kameraden." —
Tradition dies — no more goose-step. — The amusements of princes. —
Against our prisoners. — After Moreuil, he begins to see things clearly.
— Father against son. — " A horse trainer — anything may happen," —
Confidences in private. — " We are done for." — A negligible quantity. —
— The sottish behaviour of the Staff. — A new lena. — A Hohenzollern
wallowing in his own mire. — The father of the Big Berthas. — Strange
firewood ; princely bowers • gas masks are necessary. — The great
disappointment : the wandering Prince. — The first harvest. — The journey
into exile.

ON the 1st March the Heir Apparent of the German Empire,
William of Hohenzollern — he bore the same Christian
name as his father — arrived from Stenay, where he had com-
manded the 5th Army, to take over the command of the
Centre Army Group at Charleville. A few days previously
the Villa Renaudin at Belair, which had been locked up by
order of the Kaiser, was opened for the Crown Prince, who
took up his quarters in this residence, where the Kaiser had
stayed before him. He made preparations for a lengthy stay,
for his equerry caused ten hectares of the best land in the
districts of Charleville and Montcy-Notre-Dame to be requisi-.
tioned for his personal use, and a pond to be prepared for 200

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

ducks and geese, as well as a huge poultry farm, where a host
of fowls, guinea-fowls and turkeys could multiply at leisure.
The cow-shed held ten cows for his suite, and an equal number
of pigs were left fattening there. With these resources a
prince might bear the worst privations, A Company of the
98th Jager battalion acted as his bodyguard. His special
police watched over his personal safety, aided by a section
of the Secret Military Police, stationed at Charleville, for
this town was still the official seat of G.H.Q., although William
had left it on i6th August, 1916, to go first to his historic
castle at Wilhelmshohe, where the Emperor Napoleon III. had
been interned, and from thence to his castle at Pless, to superin-
tend the operations on the Eastern Front.

The Sovereign used to come to the Villa Renaudin from time
to time, but only on rare occasions on his way to the front,
and he never stayed for long.

The Crown Prince had the reputation of being a gay, good
fellow, and nobody credited him with any military talent.
The people of Charleville were not long in finding this out.

At the beginning of his stay at Charleville, young William
might have cut a figure in the eyes of those who believed the
official accounts of a servile militarised Press, or who scanned
the pictures of the Illustrirte Zeitungen, showing the Sovereign
and his heir posing for the cinematograph in a " Watch the
Dicky-bird " attitude.

One of these pictures in the " Album of the Great War "
had made a particularly strong impression on us : one of the
Crown Prince in his study.

The young Prince was sitting at a large table, applying his
compasses to a map, whilst an A.D.C. stood respectfully
in front of him. His abstracted look seemed to be concen-
trated on some grand plan, -his mind was reaching out to vast
horizons. Already he saw himself passing victoriously beneath
the " Arc de Triomphe " de I'Etoile, and taking possession
of the modern Babylon in the name of Germania Virtuous and
Invincible.

The photograph achieved a genuine and legitimate success
at Charleville. The Crown Prince was already famous and his
miUtary reputation had been so far established that the Com-

A Desk Strategist

mander of the Centre Army Group was honoured with the
elegant sobriquet of " Gugusse."

And so the theatrical pose of the Desk-Strategist was
received on all sides with a shrug of the shoulders ; the son
was just as big a courtesan as his father.

This a soldier ! Heavens ! The good people of Charleville
who saw him parading the streets morning and evening every
day for eighteen months have something to say about that.

Although he wore the uniform of a General, and on the
occasion of a certain military parade flaunted the impressive
costume of the Death's Head Hussars, he was never taken
seriously either by his officers or by the French of the invaded
regions.

There may have been some illusion in the rest of France when
the newspapers spoke of the Crown Prince's Armies. Many
people may have imagined that, wishing to go down to pos-
terity as a great captain, he lived in the midst of his troops,
surrounded by a wise General Staff, and shared the dangers
and privations of his men.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Wilhelm, Junior,
never got to the front, except by accident, when the Command
had prepared a big affair, when success was in sight and when
his august presence was required to revive the spirits of the
Field-Greys, whose moral sank after each offensive, even if
victorious, as a result of the terrible sights of the battle-
field and the monstrous sacrifices imposed by Hindenbiurg and
Ludendorff.

On such occasions the Prince went to collect the laurels
gathered by his soldiers, still hypnotized by his name. But
he was never absent for more than twenty-four hours.

Sometimes he left his chateau in the evening and returned
in the morning, as during the course of the offensive on the
Oise. At other times, as during the period of the Somme
battles, he went away in the morning, to return at dinner-
time. But he never assumed actual command of his armies
in the firing-Une.

Things did not always go according to plan. Four times
between May and July he went off at ten o'clock in the evening
to enter Reims, telegrams from the front having announced

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

the imminent fall of the martyred city. Each time he returned
without achieving the object he so eagerly coveted, but he
never showed signs of disappointment or discomfiture. For
the life which he led at Charleville seemed to him preferable
to the exertions of camp life.

A similar misadventure occurred to him during the June
offensive. He had made all arrangements for departure,
in order to take possession of the Chateau of Compiegne, and
had requisitioned a house in advance for his mistress, but in
the end he was obliged to re-establish his quarters at the Villa
Renaudin, where she lived. His good humour did not suffer
in the least ; he laughed and laughed again, and attached only
minor importance to military events, as he returned to his
cosy little amour.

In short, the Crown Prince only made brief visits to the
battle zone. His time was spent at Charleville, in company
with his two chief A.D.C.'s, Majors von Muller and vonMulner,
the heads of his civil and military establishments, and his
faithful police-agent, Klein, whom he nicknamed " The
Criminal," and who used to beat up his game.

His Staff was quartered in the Place Carnot, a vast square
with ancient houses, the comfort and elegance of which were
particularly pleasing to the tastes of the Teuton officers. This
square in its ensemble was well adapted for the installation of
military offices. The General Post Office, which had been
temporarily taken over as an elementary school, resumed its
former animation, and the telephone worked day and night,
bearing the tale of Germany's invincible valour to the four
corners of the world. The telephone section was established
in a neighbouring house, which had been conscientiously
looted beforehand. The inhabitants were immediately ex-
pelled from their home ; the furniture suffered the usual
removal ; a few antiques, a few bronzes, a few masterpieces
of painting started on the way to honest Germany. But
these changes were not of great importance, for they took place
at each change of authority.

Doorways were opened in the walls of the houses, so as to
enable the gentlemen of the General Staff to visit each other
without having to go through the street. Sumptuous living-

A Desk Strategist

rooms were transformed into offices, and offices into living-
rooms. The Editorial Department of the Depiche des Ardennes
was first a bathroom, then a bed-chamber, and finally an ad-
ministrative office : a drawing-room, furnished with pieces
borrowed from the choicest furniture in the town. The draw-
ing-room and the living-room of the residence of Monsieur
Gustave Gailly, formerly Senator for the Ardennes, after having
housed the Minister of the Marine and the Admiralty Staff
with Von Tirpitz, became the Army Headquarters, where the
Crown Prince came every day to dictate his report.

The " Parole," as his report was called, was the greatest
military achievement of his Imperial Highness.

He used to arrive every morning at nine o'clock at the Gailly
residence in a little blood-red car, driven by himself, the shield
of which bore the royal crown as an indication of its high
estate. He would enter the big drawing-room, from which
had been removed the full-length portrait of General Chanzy,
a friend of the family, as well as the marble bust of the de-
ceased senator, which his officers had relegated to the yard,
and irreverently crowned with a crumpled top-hat. The
Crown Prince would sit unceremoniously on the edge of a
marqueterie table, which had been turned into a writing-
table, and, lighting a cigarette of mild tobacco, in which he fre-
quently indulged, would bandy jokes with his officers for half
an hoiu" or so.

He would then look over telegrams from his army comman-
ders, have the replies dictated by his Chief of Staff, and then,
serious conversation being at an end, he would take a drive
round the tpwn before lunch, whilst his Majesty's troops
were being slaughtered far from their chief, for the glory of
mighty Germany and her dangerous sovereign.

The same kind of comedy took place at three. The Crown
Prince used to look over the communique from Headquarters,
then return to his chateau, not without having arranged
beforehand a little demonstration on the part of soldiers, who
stood in front of the offices of the General Staff and hailed
the Heir of the Empire.with " Hochs " as they had been ordered
to shout. But this nne enthusiasm did not last for ever.
During the last months, especially after the June and July

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

offensives, the Field-Greys, massed in the Rue Carnot, showed
by an icy silence their eagerness to see the futile butchery
come to an end as soon as possible. This coolness on the part
of the men increased from September on ; the groups of soldiers
became a less and less frequent sight, and respect diminished
as the Boche retreat on the Belgian frontier became swifter.
Many neglected to salute him, and we were then able to
realise the change on Sunday, the 29th September, at half-
past nine in the morning.

The Crown Prince was coming back from making his report,
and, followed by his car, was walking down the Rue de Moulin
at Charleville, on the way to his villa. On the same side of
the street, but in the opposite direction, came three soldiers,
fresh from the front. Instead of giving way and saluting, as
directed by military regulations, in France as well as in Ger-
many, the three Field-Greys took up the whole breadth of
the pavement and obliged the Crown Prince, a General of the
Infantry, and Commander of a whole group of armies, to step
aside and make way for them. Instead of the military salute
they gave a jeering smile.

We were expecting an explosion of anger, as had occurred
on several occasions of a similar kind, but what was our sur-
prise to find that this almighty chief, though red with shame,
did not make the slightest protest against such a breach of the
regulations.

This wave of insubordination had been growing evident
for some time past, for the General Staff of the lines of
communications had on several occasions been obliged to put
up posters in order to remind the men, and even the officers,
of the marks of respect due to his Royal and Imperial Highness
the Crown Prince.

The first of these is dated 5th April, 1917. Here is the text
of the order issued by the Kommandantur :

" Order of the — ^th Kommandantur

" In view of the presence of his Imperial Highness the
Crown Prince of the German Empire, at Headquarters in
M6zi^res-Charleville, I direct, through the medium of the

A Desk Strategist

garrison report, that the honours shall be paid by officers,
officers of the Veterinary and Hospital Corps, military employes,
as well as by non-commissioned officers and privates, by facing
directly the Crown Prince.

" Headquarters, Mezi^res-Charleville, 5. 4. 1917.

" Count Arnim,
" Major commanding the Lines of Communications."

These reminders remained a dead letter, and from September,
1918, we of the invaded regions clearly perceived the crumbling-
up of German discipline and the beginning of the final debacle.
In October the German transport fell back in a disorder
which boded most happily for us. The German army was
marching towards Belgium as fast as it could, ragged, worn-
out and sullen ; it was already a rout.

One of the military distractions of the future Kaiser was,
on leaving the offices, to bestow Iron Crosses on soldiers who
had been awarded them. This little ceremony took place
without any parade. A company of infantry did the honours.
The prize-winners were massed in the Place Carnot, he pinned
the decorations on them, offered them a cigarette, said a few
banal words of congratulation, and then returned to more
tender occupations, about which we give interesting details
further on. He very seldom held reviews ; parades used to
tire him.

On one solitary occasion, in September, 1918, he inspected
in the Place Ducale a regiment of Pomeranian Grenadiers,
which was to leave for the front and of which he was the
Honorary Colonel. The companies were reduced to fifty-five
men. The Prince passed rapidly in front of the men, using
the prescribed formula in addressing each unit : " Good
morning, comrades." To which the Field-Greys in turn
replied : " Gruss Gott, Kaiserliche Hoheit ! " (" God give you
greeting. Imperial Highness ! ") He ended the review with a
hasty address to his troops.

Black prisoners were another amusement for our Imperial
idler. Thirty-seven Senegalese, or Algerian tirailleurs, cap-
tured during the Aisne offensive in 1917, had been placed at
his disposal. At first these unfortunate prisoners of war ha^i

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

served him as playthings. He had their hair done up in eight
faultless tufts and took them about with him in turn, in his
car. His great delight was to make them sweep the streets
in this guise. He photographed them himself, both in undress
and without any dress at all, and these documents, which he
carefully preserved, were not the least glorious of his military
career.

These wretches were badly treated by their guards, and
deprived of nourishment. The people of the city, moved by
pity for these brave soldiers who had been captured while
defending the country, tried to pass them eatables and tobacco.
Unhappy they who yielded to these promptings of their heart.
They were driven away with the butt end of a rifle, and heavily
fined.

The Kommandantur approved of the brutalities of the Boche
soldiers and issued the following notice, under the date of
15th May, 1917 :

" Since 13th May, a certain number of prisoners (African)
have been interned at Charleville, and are being used chiefly
for the cleaning of the streets.

" To-day the following incident occurred :

" As the prisoners were being marched from their quarters
to the Base Hospital, some women rushed towards them,
and tried to kiss them, holding out their children to them,
throwing flowers upon them and into their hands.

" These facts, which are incompatible with the maintenance
of discipline and order, oblige me to warn the population that,
as a consequence, I shall immediately arrest any inhabitant
who endeavours to approach prisoners and enter into relations
with them, and I shall punish him in exemplary fashion, with-
out respect of persons.

" Count Arnim,

" Major Commandant.

" Headquarters,
" 15th May, 1917."

However, he foresaw the logical conclusion of events, and
we have grounds for believing that he made himself the pro-
tagonist of peace offers, which were scornfully rejected by the

A Desk Strategist

Quartermaster-General. Young William did not insist, and
from that time on he had no voice in counsels of a military
nature.

Here is the story, according to information from a very
reliable source : the Crown Prince, after the action at Moreuil,
and the defeat before Amiens and Calais, realizing that victory
was daily slipping out of the grasp of Germany, unsuccessfully
proposed, in a conference said to have been held in April at
the Chateau Renaudin, at which Hindenburg and Ludendorff
were present, to make offers of peace to the Entente, granting
very large concessions to France. Now, the Heir Apparent
was staying at the same Chateau of Belair in October of 1918.
A stormy discussion took place, and the son reproved his
father with having led Germany to its ruin and his dynasty to
its fall by his blind ambition and his refusal to consider a
reasonable peace.

He always expressed his opinions to the persons he honoured
with his friendship, and he never disguised his fears for the
future. This anecdote is a proof of it :

The Crown Prince was a very good horseman, and possessed
a magnificent stable of fine thoroughbreds.

A lady, who was accorded full liberty of speech, in retiurn
for certain services she had rendered, once congratulated him
on his excellent equestrian qualities.

In a joking tone, but one veiled by a certain sadness, the
Prince replied : " Well, it is always handy to be able to ride ;
who knows if I may not be glad to be a horse-trainer one day ;
an3rthing may happen."

And then, after a few moments of silence, he added, in a
hollow voice : " What is going to become of me ? I can't go
back to Berlin, either as victor or vanquished ! "

To one of his ofiicers, rather indiscreetly, perhaps, he also
confided his fears, and concluded : " It's no use hiding the
fact ; we're done for."

He did not conceal his anxiety from his mistress, Gabrielle
Bernier, although he never disclosed anything of a military
nature to her. Nevertheless, in moments of expansion he
often told of the plight of the German armies. Even after the
first big offensives, which were shattered each time^in their

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

impetuous onset, the final outcome did not inspire him with
much confidence ; but after June he had no more illusions,
and when, on 15th July, the Stoss Truppen (the shock troops)
were held in check by the splendid poilus of Gouraud, and, on
1 8th July, Mangin developed his offensive, according to the
mathematical plan of Foch, the young General-in-Chief took
no trouble to disguise his thoughts. Like the doctor who
follows the progress of a malady step by step, the Crown
Prince noted day by day the progress in the military science
of our famous Marshal, and realized ever since the month
of April that defeat was inevitable. And so he was not
surprised at the debacle of November. He had been expect-
ing it for three months. It was the only time he showed
any signs of foresight, and his dispute with his father was
the outcome ; but not for a single moment did he entertain
the idea, or have courage enough to plunge into the inferno
and die at the head of his troops.

The Crown Prince was no longer regarded as an authority
in the military circles in which he lived, and Ludendorff con-
sidered him an absolutely negligible quantity. The Heir to
the Crown did not inspire Hindenburg and his Quartermaster-
General with the respect which was required by a strict code
like that of the Hohenzollern Court. Whenever he addressed
them it was to beg a favour, and even then he was not certain
of getting what he wanted. He found himself in the same
predicament when the command of the First Army was trans-
ferred from Valenciennes to Charleville, and when the Inspector
of Lines of Communications established himself there, in the
person of a real Boche brute, Lieutenant-General von Heyde-
breck, who made the French population feel the weight of his
heavy German heel, the Prince had no more influence with
him than his junior subalterns, and Heydebreck did not hesitate
to disregard the Crown Prince's requests, if he did not consider
them regular or sufficiently justified.

The Crown Prince was only a nominal commander of his
group ; the real head was General von Schulenburg, his Chief
of Staff. This officer was considered a soldier of some merit,
which did not prevent him from finding the French Generals
more than a match for him. The two aides-de-camp of the

A Desk Strategist

Prince, von Muller in the military affairs, and von Mulner for
the civil establishment, were policemen in uniform, rather
than orderly officers. They followed him at every step,
and watched his least gesture. He protested against this
intolerable surveillance, but could not gain his point. His
officers had established their casino (as the Boches used to
call their mess) in what used to be Bethmann-Hollweg's Chan-
cellory. No incident of any interest took place there. The
Crown Prince often went to take his meals with his officers,
amongst whom the most solid drinker was Major von Lena,
Commandant at the Prince's G.H.Q. The major used to
drink until his orderlies were obliged to carry him back to his
quarters dead drunk. He found a worthy partner in the
Prince of HohenzoUern-Sigmaringen, the father-in-law of King
Manuel. The German reverses could not allay their thirst, and
one day when Sigmaringen was a guest at the casino — the
German armies were already retreating — ^he was so drunk
that next day he was found lying on the floor of his room,
wallowing in his own excreta. (One must have an eschata-
logical pen to be able to describe these people.) The Crown
Prince's Staff included not only drunkards, but thieves. The
following fact will serve as proof :

In the spring of 1918, his officers wished to celebrate the
Somme offensive and his birthday together, by giving a
banquet to " his Highness." They did not consider the
electro of the Casino elegant enough to receive such a
guest. They made a search in the houses of the rich for
dinner-services and plate. The appointments were splendid,
but after the banquet neither silver nor dinner-services found
their way back to their lawful owners. Their new owners
sent them to Germany. The dinner-service, engraved with
the name of a leading Charleville citizen, was found in the
canteen of one of them.

The Staff of the Crown Prince remained at CharleviUe till
Tuesday, 5th November, four days before the relief of the
town by the French. Amongst Schulenburg's officers was
Major von Beck, Commander of the " Big Berthas," who was
inconsolable at the thought of not being able to bombard the
fortress of Paris any more.

8x 6

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

f' Their departure was well worthy of Germany. Innumerable
convoys carried away the pieces of furniture which had been
stolen here, there and everywhere. The private residences
in the Place Carnot were to a large extent stripped bare. The
rich furnishings of Madame Gustave Gailly's house, the quar-
ters of G.H.Q., had mostly disappeared. The offices of the
Depeche des Ardennes had been rifled. Magnificent drawing-
room pieces had been sawn up as firewood, and the rooms had
been transformed into a veritable plague-spot. When Guil-
laumat's poilus wanted to establish the Vth French Army's
Bulletin there they shrank back in horror, and they were almost
forced to use their masks to fight against the poisonous gases
of the latrine. The Boches had left their cards behind them.

It seems that the brother-in-law of King Christian of Den-
mark left Charleville with regret. His residence at Belair was
only handed over to the municipality on 7th November, 1918,
at four o'clock, less than two days before the entry of the
French into the town. At that same hour the Prince himself
had set out for Belgium.

His General Headquarters Staff left for Vielsam (in Belgium)
on the 5th ; he joined them there two days after. His stay
there was not very long, for almost immediately after his
arrival he fled to Holland.

A special carriage had been prepared at Charleville station
to take him with his luggage and his furnishings, but the
rumbling of the revolution was already audible, and, on the
6th, mutinous soldiers burst open the carriage and set about
looting systematically.

After that he was interned on the Island of Weiringen. His
mode of hfe there is well known.

CHAPTER IX

PRINCE OR CLOWN

The Crown Prince courts popularity. — A rather cold reception. — A studio
turned into a reception room for ladies. — Favours that pay. — The Prince's
preference for French bread. — His passion for French girls. — " Write
to me at ' La Friture.' " — A post-card of value. — Stolen wine is not fit
to drink. — The tact of a great Prince. — Caligula and Poincare — " Salute
his Highness I " — The resistance of the population. — The anniversary.
— Souvenirs of the Ardennes going cheap. — " For the Crown Princess,
if you please." — French humour. — First visit of the Crown Prince to
the town hall. — " Give us coal." — His father's son. — " I am doing my
best, but I am not the master." — Free advertisement. — A friend of France.
— " I never wanted war." — Second visit to the town hall. — A music-
hall turn. — The monkey and the prince. — Silent meditation ; the Crown
Prince is descended from a monkey. — " Give us our hostages." — The
French Government is to blame ; it persecutes the Alsatians and treats
German prisoners like swine. — A Frenchman's dignified reply : " France
has always been the land of chivalry." — " I'll ask old Hindenburg."
— Peace in the offing. — " You can never impose it." — The hostile French
Press. — " Long live the King, down with the Republic." — Why an Em-
peror is better than a President. — The company of children. — A game of
maxbles. — Obstacle races. — " Cigarettes, Crown Prince." — As at Water-
loo.— He inspects the schools. — The capture of Berlin. — " God bless you,
your Highness." — A visit to the shops : the way to get rid of him. —
A warrior in lace.

ALTHOUGH the Crown Prince was one of the most en-
thusiastic authors of the war — a fact, however, which
he always denied with superbly affected indignation — he bore
no responsibility, as we have seen by his role in military matters,
for the decisions of the Boche High Command, which led to
the crushing of the mighty German army : so little attention
did they pay to him at Headquarters.

He prepared to court popularity in his residence in the
occupied regions by playing the part of a benevolent prince
to the French, whose country he had invaded.

83 6*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

At Stenay, when he was in command of the 5th Army, he
had tried to rouse interest in himself and gain sympathy by a
series of little services. He also made frequent visits to
Sedan, and would have liked to thrust his company upon certain
old families, who showed by their undisguised coldness how
little they cared to receive such an undesirable guest.

The man was hungry for advertisement. That is why, before
establishing his headquarters at Charleville on ist March, 1917,
he had made careful arrangements to be preceded by a repu-
tation for simplicity and generosity.

While he was still in command of the army at Stenay, he
paid frequent visits to Charleville, either to appear at the
General Staff, or to have his portrait painted by one of the
painters attached to his august person, for he was very anxious
to hand down his features — unprepossessing though they were
— to posterity. Two artists rejoiced in his special favour —
a Munich professor called Adam, who had taken possession of
the house of A. Damas, a well-known painter, who had died
prematurely. The other, Schutze-Gerlitz, had nrst occupied
a little summer-house on the estate of M. Edouard Prevost,
which his brother, M. Eugene Prevost, a talented painter, had
turned into a studio. The Crown Prince would often betake
himself there, not only to have his elegant silhouette put on to
canvas, or his historic bust shaped in marble, but also to receive
there such charming ladies as were anxious to behold at close
quarters the divine features of a future Emperor of Germany.
On his way there he lavished smiles and salutes, but he did
not get much in return for his amiability ; the ladies whom
he honoured with his princely gallantries laughed loud and
cried out in amusement : " There's the idiot going by ! "

He had replaced his father at the Villa Renaudin. Like the
Kaiser, he was an early riser. During the summer season he
used to take a sun-bath in the park of the estate. It was then
permissible to gaze upon the princely torso, which, clad only
in a pair of cotton pants, disported itself on the lawn.

In this practice he was rather more modest than the officers
of the Staff of the ist Army at Rethel, who also gave them-
selves up to the caresses of old Sol in the very heart of the
town. These did not show the same discretion as their chief,

Prince or Clown

for they exhibited themselves entirely naked on the balconies
of their quarters, and drew the attention of passers-by, espe-
cially of ladies, by their shouts and cries. A colonel of the Staff
was even a past-master in this species of exhibition.

As soon as the Prince arrived at Belair he granted certain
privileges to the inhabitants, especially to the farmers of the
district, whom he exempted from some of the requisitions
imposed on other communes, especially from requisitions of
milch cows, on the condition, however, that the farmers, in
selling their produce, gave precedence to German officers,
soldiers and civil servants. The result, of course, was that
this measure of exemption was worthless, for, once the Boches
were served, the population of Charleville, except for a few
specially privileged persons, and invalids supplied by the
Municipal Dairy, never saw any milk at all during the Crown
Prince's stay, apart from the occasional distribution of con-
densed milk, provided by the American Relief Commission.

The Crown Prince detested German bread. He used to have
his bread made by a local baker, asserting that French bread
was infinitely superior to " K.K." bread, and it ended with
his refusing to eat any other. In all his habits of life he tried
to give himself a French cast. With his cap aslant, he used to
take long walks through the village, which he no doubt con-
sidered a fief of the Crown, chatting familiarly with the peasants
and the labourers, especially with the women, and more par-
ticularly with the girls, in an academic kind of French, without
any accent whatever.

Everybody he met he would invite to apply to him in case
they needed assistance. He assured them he would stop at
nothing to help them.

For instance, he took steps on several occasions to issue
passports to those who wished to return to uninvaded France
by repatriation trains ; it was enough to be young and pretty
to be sure of his favour. Unfortunately his influence did not
carry much weight, either with the police or with the Inspector-
General's Staff ; for a good many people who had based all
their hopes on the intervention of the Prince were bitterly
disappointed when the lists of the repatriates came to be pub-
lished. However, he was anxious to show his goodwill, as he

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

said, to M. Pailliette, Member of the Municipal Council, in
particular.

This gentleman the Prince met in the Rue Forest, where his
stables were located. Unable to avoid him, M. Pailliette was
obliged to listen to his conversation :

" You don't know me," the Prince protested. " You con-
sider me an enemy to France. Nothing is further from the
truth. I love the men of France more than any other people ;
I love the women of France still more, in spite of all the obstacles
in my path. Look how they have torn me from my love ;
it has caused me deep sorrow. People don't seem to consider
the feelings of the heart when it comes to princes. We are
always sacrificed to the exigencies of policy.

" That is why I want it to be known that people may always
write to me. Only they must not bring their petitions to the
house in the Place Carnot " (the office of his Staff) " nor to the
Kommandantur, for any personal letters addressed to me by the
people and left there never reach me. They must take them
to Madame Claudet's, at the ' Friture ' ; she will forward them
to me directly." (This conversation has been recorded in the
Municipal Archives.)

The " Friture " is a shady inn in the outskirts of the town, at
the foot of the hill on which stood the Crown Prince's villa.
It was here that the gay ladies of Charleville used to give their
rendezvous during the war to the gallants, French or German,
who undertook to relieve the monotony of their life under the
occupation.

The Crown Prince was a daily visitor at this establishment,
which was also known as the " Cafe du Barrage," and relished
the company of the special kind of habitues he met there. He
even had his photo taken on horseback in front of " La Friture,"
with the sign hanging proudly above his slender, elegant figure.
This photograph, popular in the form of a picture post-card,
had a great success as a curiosity.

He would often enter into conversation with the people at
the tables, and sometimes he condescended to drive with them.

He was interested in the visitors of the house ; he would ask
them details about their lives, and he always came back to the
same leit-motiv, that the war was idiotic {sic !) and that he pro-

Prince or Clown

tested with all his might against the accusation that he had
provoked it.

He was lacking in tact at times. The following incident is
an example. It was during the first days of the May offensive.
The Chemin des Dames had been carried by a surprise attack,
and his armies had crossed the Vesle in the direction of Chateau
Thierry. Young William was not at the front, the post was
too dangerous. He preferred to stay at his headquarters at
" La Friture " and evolve the plans for a campaign of love-
making with his lady Chief of Staff. At "La Friture " he
happened to meet some of the habitues with whom he had
already exchanged conversation.

" I have very sad news to announce to you," he told them.
" My soldiers have stormed the Chemin des Dames ; Fismes has
fallen, and my victorious armies are marching swiftly on to
Paris. The one good thing about this triumph of our arms for
you French is that peace will soon be signed and we can become
good friends again."

" That remains to be seen," said one of the party dryly.

The Crown Prince did not carry the conversation any further.

The attacks of the French Press used to irritate him. The
Matin had spoken of him as a " Caligula," and he was very
hurt about it. He confided his resentment to a person he used
to meet on his walks.

" Your Press," he told him angrily to his face, " certainly
doesn't try to humour me. Have you heard how the Matin
has spoken about me ? "

A gesture of ignorance.

" Well, I'll tell you, it has called me ' Caligula.' Do you
know what kind of man Caligula was ? "

" Yes," answered his involuntary companion, " if I remember
my Roman history aright, Cahgula was a Roman Emperor, a
debauch6 who went raving mad and was assassinated."

" That's the man, and yet I am not a Caligula."

A few moments' silence, and then the son of the German
Caesar continued excitedly : "I'd like to find a nickname for
Poincard. What can I call him ? "

" Call him Cic6ron," retorted the Frenchman, who had a
weakness for puns.

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

" Why Ciceron ? "

" Because Ciceron is not carr6 ! "*

" No, I'll think about it, and when I've found a good name,
I'll let you know."

But the Crown Prince did not find it, for he never made
known the sobriquet he was so anxious to fasten on the Presi-
dent of the French Republic.

At the beginning of his stay he made efforts to obtain
attentions from the invaded population, and he lavished smiles
and salutations upon persons of both sexes whom he wished to
honour with his salute. But, apart from the microcosm of
prostitutes, who saw an amorous carpet-knight in young
William, no one responded to his advances. Whence the anger
of the Prince, who, in the spring of 1917, published an order
through the Kommandantur that the male population should
salute the future Kaiser as well as all officers and civilians of
the Administration, whenever it met them on the street, and
that it should step aside from the pavement to make way for
them, under penalty of prosecution.

And so, on 7th April, 1917, the municipalities of Charleville,
Mezieres and Mohon received the following notice :

" NOTICE

" The long duration of the occupation and the daily contact
between soldiers and residents have given rise to a certain
nonchalance in the attitude of some of the civil population.
For this reason, I am issuing the following Decree for the
District of the Kommandantur of the Lines of Communications
comprising the towns of Mezieres, Charleville and Mohon.

" The civil population is to be careful not to block .traffic
by standing about in the streets.

" Residents of the male sex, above twelve years of age,
are required to salute, by doffing their hats, all officers and

* Translator's Note. — The pun is on the words Cicdron (Cicero), which in
French might mean " Cis is round," and Poincax6, which might mean " not
square." Cicero's name (suggests the Frenchman) would do, because " Cis
is round " (Cic6ron), it is not square (Poincar6).

Prince or Clown

civil servants holding the rank of officer in the Army and
Navy of Germany and the Allied States.

" Civilians are required to step aside politely in the streets
to make way for officers and civil servants as specified above.

" Any breach of this will be punished by a fine not exceeding
150 marks, or by imprisonment.
" Headquarters of the Lines of Communication,

" April 5th, 1917.
" Count Arnim,

" Major Commanding."

The municipality protested against this humihating insult,
and its representative, M. L^on Pailliette, observed to Count
Arnim :

(i) That in France the civilian population is not accustomed
to salute French officers in uniform, unless personally ac-
quainted with them.

(2) That it is very difficult to distinguish between the ranks
of the German army.

(3) That a salute imposed by force would be no guide to the
feelings of the inhabitants when saluting officers whom they
did not know, and for whom it would be difficult to feel
personal sympathy.

(4) That it would be painful in the extreme for persons of
advanced years, or persons holding a certain position, to
salute youths on the ground that these were officers.

Count Arnim admitted M. Pailliette's logic. He stated that
he was not the originator of the decree, that he had, on the
contrary, even protested against its terms, but that he had
been obliged to bow before a higher authority, the Crown
Prince's Staff, to wit, and obey.

All of which did not prevent Arnim from making himself
a police agent and passionately hunting down delinquents.
These measures did not disturb the male population, however.
They resisted the decrees of the Kommandatur and kept out
of the way of this new Gessler.

A preliminary warning, with a threat of severe punishment,
reached the town hall on 5th May, 1917. Other notices

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

were published ; there was a flood of fines ; brutes were found
to apply the lash to delinquents. It made no difference.
Except for a few timid souls the majority of the Charleville
population managed to avoid saluting his Highness and the
officers. It should be realized that in this affair, as in numerous
others, the population stood firm by their policy of discreet
but patriotic opposition.

In the meantime the municipality was called upon to
furnish statistics as to the resources of the city. Here again
the Crown Prince and his Kommandatur did not have their way.
The municipal council showed them more than once that
it would not take their orders.

In this connection a significant incident occurred on ist May,
1918. The Crown Prince's birthday fell on 5th May. In
order to commemorate the historic date the officers of the
Kommandatur were going to give a present to the Crown
Princess Cecilia, who expressed a wish that the souvenir
chosen should be something connected with the Ardennes.
Her Majesty's loyal subjects spared no pains to earn the
thanks of the Princess. And so, for 6th May, 1917, Arnim's
minions discovered in the library of M. Henri Faure (President
of the Charleville Chamber of Commerce) an artistic edition
of the " Ardennes lUustrees," by M. E. de Montagnac, a very
rare work nowadays.

This book, they thought, would look well in her Highness's
library. So the volume was promptly dispatched to Berlin,
and M. Faure, on his return, did not even find a note of re-
quisition.

In 1918, the Kommandatur wanted to make the municipality
participate in the Crown Prince's birthday celebrations against
its wishes. On ist May, Appens, a non-commissioned officer
and Arnim's factotum, appeared at the town hall and announced
his master's kindly intentions.

His officers, he stated, were thinking of sending the Kaiser's
daughter-in-law a souvenir of a distinctly artistic nature,
associated either with the history of Charleville or with the
traditions of the Ardennes. The price was not to exceed
300 marks. He asked the municipal council if it knew of
any collections where objects of this kind were to be found.

Prince or Clown

The council replied to the effect that the town did not
possess anything which would satisfy N.C.O. Appens, nor did
it know the value of the collections in Charleville. Moreover,
if there had once been artistic collections in the city they
would now be no more than a memory, as a result of the numer-
ous searches and requisitionings of copper objects, ohjets d'art
and furniture.

As for a " souvenir connected with the history of Charle-
ville," it added amidst smiles, " there were the public monu-
ments and amongst these the ' Combat des Coqs ' " (cock-fight)
by the Charleville sculptor Alphonse CoUe, a bronze group
of two young wrestlers which had been set up in the
square by the station and which William II. had often
admired.

The " Combat des Coqs " was a work of great merit and
worthy of a place in the most famous galleries. There were
other works of art at different places, amongst others the
patriotic monument erected to the memory of the men of
the Ardennes who had fought for their country in 1870-1871,
and the statue of Bayard, the knight " sans peur et sans
reproche " who had saved M^zieres from the Imperial troops
in 1521.

All these monuments would have excellently suited the
intentions of the Kommandatur, but the relentless requisitions
of copper had passed that way, and the only statue left in
Charleville was that of Charles de Gonzague. The removal
of that would have been a pretty difficult task, as the Crown
Prince had put it under his lofty protection.

Herr Appens laughed sourly and left with the remark that
he would make a search and easily find what he wanted.

We do not know what souvenir was finally sent to the
Crown Princess, the Kommandatur not having seen fit to
inform us.

These were not the only relations between the municipal
council and its princely guest, who would have preferred
the council itself to make the first advances. On two separate
occasions it came into contact with him when he thrust himself
on its attention. However, it tried to ignore him, but this
attitude did not suit our desk strategist, and since the

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

municipality would not come to him he made up his mind he
would go to the municipality.

On loth December, 1917, at 11 a.m., a figure in the uni-
form of a German General appeared in the council chamber
of the municipal council and was received by the president,
M. Achille Blairon, a veteran of 1870 who pretended he did not
recognize his visitor. He asked whether M. Blairon was the
Mayor. M. Blairon replied that he was the president of the
voluntary municipal council which had undertaken the
difficult task of administering the city in the absence of the
elected representatives. The stranger then expressed a
desire to speak to the president in particular, but M. Blairon
then objected that if it was not a case of a personal affair
he himself could explain the object of his visit to the members
of the permanent council who were present.

Hardly had the distinguished visitor entered the council
chamber before he began to complain of the cold, and the
president remarked that the scarcity of coal, due to the few
deliveries made by the German authorities, imposed a very
severe economy on the municipal council. If he desired to
be warmer all he had to do was to send some fuel. It would
be welcome.

The officer then took up the conversation.

" When Headquarters was installed at Charleville," he said
in his well-known nasal tones, " my father gave orders that
Charleville, Mezieres, Mohon and the neighbourhood should
enjoy a more privileged regime than the other occupied
districts."

At this point M. Blairon pretended to recognize the
German Crown Prince and saluted him as such.

" Accordingly," continued the Crown Prince, " your life
has been less hard than in the other towns, and when Head-
quarters was transferred to Germany and I came to settle
in Charleville and took over the command of my army group,
I wanted to follow my father's example and try to secure the
same privileges for the three towns as they enjoyed in the
Kaiser's time.

" Appeals and petitions reach me from all sides. I always
listen to them and try to give satisfaction. Unfortunately

Prince or Clown

I often run up against the Inspectional Staff for the Lines
of Communications, and you know that the Inspectional Staff
and the First Army are not the same thing as Headquarters.
They have made quite a reputation for themselves in the
zone of operations. The French population must have realized
the difference of regime. That is why, whenever I wanted to
defend the interests of the natives, I often came into collision
with the Inspectional Staff and did not always succeed as I
should have liked. I even wrote to my father, as well as
to Marshal Hindenburg, to ask for an exception to be made
in favour of the three towns, but I did not receive the answer
I wanted. His Majesty could not grant my wishes, for, in
spite of the fact that I am Crown Prince, I am only a plain
General, after all, whereas the Inspectional Staff is the supreme
organization in the country of the First Army, and I have to
submit to its decisions just like anyone else. An Array
Commander is all-powerful within the limits of his own army.
He can authorize or prohibit as he likes, whereas the com-
mander of a group of armies must not interfere in the ad-
ministration of his armies. And so my role consists in directing
military operations and the movements of troops (?). When
I was in command of the Fifth Army at Stenay I did
what I wanted, and I don't think the inhabitants of that little
town had any reason to complain of my stay there.

" In short, I want you to make it known amongst the
inhabitants, that I sympathize with them, that I am always
ready to consider any matters which may be brought before
me, and that if I don't succeed each time, it is not my fault,
but the fault of the organization behind the lines."

The young Crown Prince would have been glad if the
municipality had made known his good intentions to the people.
But the president replied that such publicity would be useless,
for his visit would soon be known throughout the town.
In any case the people would show their gratitude to the Heir
Apparent more willingly if his benevolence were to express
itself in deeds rather than in promises and words.

This dignified tone was not at all to the taste of this clown,
who hungered for advertisement. A repatriation train was
just starting on its way to uninvaded France, and he insisted

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

above all that he should appear before the French on the other
side of the lines in the guise of a good Prince. That is why
he added :

" I am always ready to consider your demands, if they
are within the limits of my power, for, I repeat, I want the
people to know what I am trying to do for them. A repatria-
tion train is going to leave shortly, and it would be particularly
pleasing to me if the repatriates were to make known in un-
occupied France what my feelings are towards their com-
patriots in occupied France."

The president of the municipal council profited by this show
of kindly disposition to put before him the desiderata of the
inhabitants.

" You will permit me," continued M. Blairon, " to put before
you other grievances, and I shall ask you to do your best
to facilitate our task and avoid any needless friction. You
are right, the Inspectional Staff is not the same as Head-
quarters, and we are sorry it isn't. Headquarters gave us
credit for all our efforts to administrate the town amidst con-
ditions often very delicate, as well as for the unfailingly digni-
fied and correct attitude of the population. How many diffi-
culties were avoided thanks to the courteous relations between
the municipality, the Prefecture and the Kommandatur. But
things are not the same now. We go to town wondering
what brick is going to fall on our heads. Fines are showering
on us at all moments, and that for the most trivial reasons."

The Crown Prince again promised to intercede, then he
repeated his intention of pleasing the inhabitants and his
desire that this should be known in Charleville and throughout
France. And he concluded :

" They represent me as an enemy of France and say that
I tried to bring on the war. It is a ridiculous slander. I
never wanted war. I was only a supporter of those who wished
to organize the army for Germany's defence. That is all
I wanted."

As no one replied to this vehement diatribe, the Prince did
not insist and left the municipal council.

Young William visited the town hall for the second time
on December 31st, 1917, when a new repatriation train was

Prince^or[^Clown

under steam, and when the German authorities had started
to take hostages and send them to the hell-hole in Miljegany,
near Vilna.

On that day he appeared in the council chamber of the
municipal council, accompanied by a civil policeman and
five superb greyhounds, which he took delight in making jump
over his leg.

It should be added that, at his residence in Belair, he pos-
sessed a fair sized monkey, which together with his women
was one of his main amusements in the country. Its name was
Dingo, and he had made a play-room for it in one of the
concrete rooms built as a protection against air attacks. A
special heating apparatus had been installed, to protect the
animal against the inclement weather of the Ardennes. As
amusement he had put at its disposal the wardrobe of the
Maison Renaudin, which had been left behind. In fact it is
known that a part had been borrowed or distributed by his
suite.

The Crown Prince would often fall to musing in the presence
of his favourite monkey, and after seeing his own reflection
in the mirror would ponder over Darwin's theory.

We must ask the reader to pardon this digression, but the
greyhounds' frolics tempted us to draw the picture of the
monkey palace of Belair.

The president of the mmiicipal council thanked the Prince
for having kindly lent a favourable ear to the grievances of
the municipal council, on his last visit.

Seeing that he manifested such kindly sentiments for the
inhabitants of Charleville, he would take the liberty to bring
to his notice the painful impression created in the district by
the taking of hostages and the threat of a demand for women
hostages. He described the consternation of all the families
at the end of this sad year, and he appealed to the consideration
which he had shown in different cases, to interest the Heir
Apparent of the German Empire in the miserable plight of
our unhappy fellow-citizens.

The Crown Prince replied that the German Government had
indeed made a hard nding, but that it had been necessitated
by the reluctance of the French Government to exchange the

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Alsatians interned in France, and that it was to oblige France
to modify its attitude towards the Germans held in the French
concentration camps, who, according to the Crown Prince,
were treated like swine (sic).

" At Reims," he added, " they even tore medals from
captured German officers."

" You will permit me, your Highness," retorted M. Blairon,
" to express my surprise that such treatment could be meted
out to prisoners of war in France, and to doubt the veracity
of such reports, until proofs to the contrary are forthcoming,

" As you observed just now to one of my colleagues, facts
often reach the ears of chiefs intentionally distorted by sub-
ordinates who are interested in mangling the truth.

" That in the heat of battle and amongst the horrors of
bloodshed, the soldier descends to excesses, is an act of passing
madness, whose excuse is the intoxication of the fight. But
that a Frenchman deliberately and in cold blood will indulge
in acts of cruelty, that I refuse to believe. The Frenchman
is always generous in his feelings, and considerate towards
the unfortunate.

" Beneath our exterior, we of the Ardennes may be brutal
at first, but at heart we are kindly disposed and can pity the
misfortunes of our neighbours."

The Crown Prince was silent. The council profited by the
occasion to bring up again the question of hostages.

It demanded insistently that he should release the hostages
from the Ardennes as the German authorities could not accuse
them of any malevolent act during the occupation.

If, however, the orders of the military were inflexible on this
point, the council begged him to exert his great influence to
relieve the women of the terrible prospect of being deported
to Germany.

The Crown Prince replied that he would do his best to pre-
vent the deportation of women, and even, if it were possible,
to improve the condition of the men hostages. With this
object, he would telephone to " old Hindenburg " (sic) ; in any
case, he advised them not to be discouraged, for the pourparlers
that had been begun were not broken off as yet, and he was
even in hopes they would lead to a satisfactory conclusion.

Prince or Clown

He then dealt with certain questions relating to female
labour. But he changed the conversation and embarked
on political subjects. He announced that the war would end
soon and that in three months peace would be signed. We
were present at this interview and quickly retorted :

" Do you think so ? "

"So it's not your opinion," replied his Highness. " Why
not ? "

" Because you can never impose peace on us."

Changing the conversation, he launched on a violent diatribe
against the French Press, which he accused of being the cause
of all the miseries of the war. He next sang the praises of the
monarchical form of government, saying that he could not see
why France was a republic, and that it would be much happier
under a good king than under a president.

" The king," he declared, " is the father of his subjects ;
he looks on the State as his family. He takes the same interest
in them as in his own children, and nothing happens to them,
fortunate or unfortunate, that does not give him either pleasure
or pain.

" A president, on the other hand, has only one object : to
court popularity with a view to securing his re-election. That
is why he scatters millions broadcast amongst journalists —
so that they may sing his praises. The president is only a
representative functionary, without any responsibility, and
not, like the king, an executive power who accepts all the
consequences of his government."

" I understand your point of view," replied a municipal
councillor. " You preach on behalf of your own saints. And
you defend the rights of the king because you belong to the
profession.

" As far as we are concerned, you will permit us to remain
loyal to the form of government which we have chosen of our
own free will."

This councillor, M. PailUette, then brought the conversa-
tion on the subject of the difference between the mayors
elected by universal suffrage, who, being re-eligible for office
every four years, cannot elaborate large municipal programmes,
and the professional mayors in Germany, who are nominated

97 7

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

by the Government and need not worry themselves with the
fluctuations of the ballot and can initiate and execute plans
in the interests of the city.

With these assertions the Crown Prince's visit came to an
end. Just as he was leaving the council, he asked if they had
liked the concert given in the Place Ducale on the occasion
of the Kaiser's visit, a few days before.

As no one replied (for good reason), he praised the acoustic
qualities of the Place Ducale and departed.

His intercession with " old Hindenburg " bore no result except
that of preventing the women of Charleville from being
deported as hostages to the camp of Holzminden. The men
hostages did not obtain the same favour ; on 7th February, 1918,
they left for Russia, in Siberian temperature, in carriages
without any heat, and there, in the camps of Miljegany and
Bloock-Roon, they suffered the terrible martyrdom of hunger,
cold and Boche brutality.

These were the only relations the municipality had with the
Crown Prince ; after that date he never appeared at the town-
hall of CharleviUe. It was a strain for him to play a serious role
as befitted his rank for any length of time. He preferred
the company of street-children and genial ladies whose intimate
manners appealed to him far more than respectable people.

From the day of his arrival he won the sympathy of the
young urchins of Charleville by taking part in their froUcs.
One day he would throw them a handful of coins and delight
in watching them scramble for the coveted mark. Another
day he would play at marbles, and loved to be watched as a
skilful player by his out-at-elbows, down-at-heels partners,
who always treated him with no respect.

We have seen him in the Place Camot, enjoying himself with
the youngsters of a neighbouring school, jumping over the
sand-heaps brought to scatter over the square, where in order
to encourage his invincible warriors, the Kaiser's eldest son
used to distribute Iron Crosses in profusion.

He would start off first with his greyhounds, jump nimbly
over the obstacles, and then organize races for the youngsters.
The winner would receive a mark from his august hands. .

One of the chief amusements of this eccentric Group Com-

Prince or Clown

mander was to scatter prodigally exquisite Oriental cigarettes
amongst these little ragamuffins, who did not wait to be
asked to taste of the forbidden fruit. In this way he ac-
quired an important following, which hung close to his heels
whenever he appeared in the streets.

How many times did the members of the municipal council
witness the spectacle of a band of fifty to sixty young urchins
pulling the Prince by the sleeve or by the edge of his tunic
and shouting at the top of their voices : " Cigarettes, Kron-
prinz, cigarettes ! "

One would have thought it was a masked figure at Carnival
time followed by the jeering crowd of cheeky children. Very
often the number of the mendicants would increase, and in
order to escape from the over-urgent clamours of his little
proteges, " Gugusse " was obliged to seek asylum in a shop,
where a shop-girl without instructions would save him from an
excessive popularity.

Sometimes, if the Prince was less liberal than usual, the
procession of children would loftily express its dissatisfaction.
We were able to see for ourselves one day. The Crown Prince
had turned a deaf ear to all entreaties and was not very liberal.
His customary clients, losing their temper, shouted after him
with energy the immortal word of " Waterloo,"* which they
coupled with his Imperial title.

When he was in a bad temper, facetious Willie played the
moralist. For instance, one day he summoned the head master
of the boys' school at Belair, so as to order his pupils not to
smoke.

" The remedy is simple," said the teacher. " Don't give them
any more cigarettes, and they won't smoke."

Many bon mots are quoted from the lips of children who
met his questions with French repartee.

One day, in the Place du Moulinet, he made a boy shout :
" Down with England," for two marks.

The youngster submitted, but once he had the promised
coin in his hands, he ran away at full speed and shouted from

* Translator's Note. — One of Napoleon's generals, on learning that th«
day was lost, gave an ejaculation which has remained classical but un-
printable.

99 »•

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

a distance : " Eh, Kronprinz, Vive la France, down with
Prussia." His Highness smiled, he had no bitterness.

At that time, owing to the lack of coal, the classes were
assembled in one room, under the supervision of a single master.
It contained pupils of all ages. After visiting the school, he
took it into his head to question the scholars on the history
of France and chose as period the reign of Napoleon. The
attendance at class was irregular, for various reasons : the
youngsters were often absent for the numerous food-lines, or
in order to bring in their provision of wood from the forest.
The more or less ignorant pupils who were present gave him
poor answers. It was a great joy for the Imperial inspector to
sing the praises of the Boche schoolboy and to prove his
superiority over his French comrade. " All little Germans have
history — even the history of the world — at their fingers' ends."

One last answer, however, cooled his enthusiasm. In answer
to a question asked by the master about the campaign of
1806, the youngster, after having mentioned the victories
of lena and Auerstaedt, told of Napoleon's entry into Berlin
and explained how the Burgomaster handed over the keys
of the city on a silver plate. The benevolent inspector was
caught. He never repeated his interrogations or his scholastic
visits ; the example of Charlemagne did not tempt him again.
[. Not that he considered himself beaten. The following
month, in June, he asked the head master, M. Blanchemanche,
if the boys had a German class. On receiving an answer in
the negative, he sent out an order that German should be
taught to every pupil who could read and write. The result
was that the school attendance fell off stiU further.

The Prince also found that the school children did not know
how to give greeting in German. His private secretary
sought out M. Blanchemanche a month later and gave him
a new order from the Crown Prince : to show the children from
that day on, how they were to say Good-morning to the
sovereign of Belair. This was the formula that had to be
used: " Gruss Gott, Kaiserliche Hoheit" ("God bless 3^ou,
your Imperial Highness ").

And the malicious youngsters sneezed each time, irreverently,
on the passage of his Highness.

100

Prince or Clown * :

The company of the Charleville street urchins was not the
only amusement of the august idler. He also used to enjoy
visiting the town shops, where he noticed pretty shop-girls.

Every day, after making his report, he would take a walk
through the cheap shopping centres, stopping at the windows.
As soon as a pretty face met his eyes, he would go in without
any ceremony, and without asking whether his company was
agreeable or not. He would start a conversation and often
stay for hours, not caring to realize that his presence kept
customers away, and that the sales-girl would prefer to see
him go. The best way to get rid of him was to press him to
buy. It was a most effective stratagem, especially when the
objects for sale were of a high price. He would disappear
and never come back again.

He was rather niggardly in his purchases. For Christmas,
1917, he sent toys to his children. It didn't ruin him. He
had chosen dolls or soldiers' suits at just over a shilling.

In this way his Imperial Highness the Crown Prince of the
German Empire whiled away his days. He did not have time
to go to the front to encourage his valiant soldiers, who, for
their part, began to find that the war had lasted long enough
and were soon to show how they felt in a way that boded no
good to the reign of the Hohenzollern. The heir to the Crown
had other cares. He wanted to be a hero after his own style,
and sit to Georges D'Esparb6s as a model for a new episode
in his Guerre en dentelles.

lOI

CHAPTER X

THE SON-IN-LAW OF M. BEURIER

Aiming at immortality. — An easily pleased Don Juan. — French aviators
salute the Crown Princess. — " Wash-bowl." — The Grand Duke's tour
of inspection. — A new deer park. — A lady major-domo. — The Chemin
des Dames. — Queering Dr. Wezel's pitch. — A strange case of fisti-
cuffs.— Sentenced to go back to his wife. — The story of a medallion.
— The son-in-law of M. Beurier, — An exquisite idyll. — Love at first sight.
— Like a schoolboy. — " You will yield, or else . . ." — Princess of the
Bar Sinister. — Scripta manent. — What a diligent seeker found. — From
Bagatelle to Sans-Souci. — True love. — " We are beaten." — " You are
the only person I love." — The Shock Troops. — The vanished plans for
the July offensive. — Aviators in distress. — A romantic abduction. — Anger
and despair. — A gilded prison. — A policeman-thief. — The Prince as
looter. — Last effusions. — An Algy. — Help the " little darling " in her
need. — The value of French money. — En route for Holland. — The
flight to Ninove and the retreat from Verviers. — Rise and decline. — A
faithful lover. — His mania for writing,

DESK-STRATEGIST and clown, these are the two aspects
under which we see the man, who, but for the defeat
of the Germanic hordes, would have become the very powerful
Emperor of Germany.

His love of histrionics went so far as to put up in the
Lyc6e Sevigne at Charleville, which had become the Crown
Prince's hospital, a monument dedicated to his glory. On
a column of Givet granite was placed a medallion in white
marble, showing the august profile of the royal degenerate.
Hindenburg was not without his imitators !

At this point our task becomes more delicate. We have to
Hft the veil from part of the young Prince's private life and
reveal him to the public in the guise of a Don Juan.

The Kaiser's son had arrived at Charleville, not with the

102

The Son-in-Law of M. Beurier

romantic halo of a young lover, but with the reputation of
a connoisseur of easy pleasures, fully satisfied even by the most
ordinary adventures.

At Stenay he had left behind him the reputation of a none
too delicate rake. The Crown Princess had, meanwhile,
arrived to console him in his rustic isolation, but an indis-
creet visit by French aviators had driven her, together with
her fickle husband, into the cellars of the chateau, and cured
her once and for ail of any desire to move into occupied France.
That is why the Villa Renaudin did not have the honour of
welcoming her, nor Mme. Claudot, the notorious hostess of
" La Friture," of making her acquaintance.

His escapades at Stenay had already brought him into
evidence. He had requisitioned the country house of the estate
of Presles, in the canton of Carignan (Ardennes), in order to
devote himself to his orgies. The chalet was in an isolated
position, and secure from prying eyes ; it suited him in every
way. He had come there in the company of an officer whom
the people of Stenay had christened by the graceful name of
" Wash-bowl."

The tale of his escapades on the Meuse had reached our
ears, and rumour further attributed to him some rustic amoretti
in which the Heir-Presumptive had bestowed his favours on
some young country-girls, whose heads were turned at the
idea of attracting a patron of Imperial blood.

We soon saw that the gossip which circulated about his
doings was not exaggerated. In fact, hardly had the gallant
Crown Prince reached Charleville before he began to sow his
wild oats under the very eyes of the public. Together with
the old Prince of Schonburg-Lippe, one of the chiefs of the
aristocratic Auto Corps, a drunkard, whose special prowesses
had won for him, as is known, the title of " Old Rou6," he made
a close inspection of the Charleville battalions. The lowest
of women stood a good chance of becoming his favourite for
the moment.

Several of them were under the control of the Watch Com-
mittee.

One girl, whose Christian name sounded sweet to his Ger-
manic ears, and who had already been the delight of the

103

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Staff Officers and their orderlies, as well as of the lively manager
of the Gazette des Ardennes, held his attention for some time.
However, this genial lady, who professed but little respect
for his Revelling Highness, and often used the title of " Old
Blackguard " to designate her princely friend, did not remain
at court for more than a few months. After having frequented
the low cabarets of the little town, with her boon companion,
after having roamed about the dark streets on noisy night
excursions, singing and promenading at hours when all civilians
were supposed to be at home, the poor creature tasted the
bitterness of disgrace.

In order to receive his lady visitors, the Prince had selected
an elegant residence, enjoying a splendid view, from which
his father delighted to gaze upon the country round Charle-
ville and the valley of the Meuse. This he transformed into
a Boche deer park. The house must have pleased his artistic
temperament, for it contained paintings of great value. Un-
fortunately, the Boches had passed that way before him, and
the furniture of the rooms in which he spent his hours of
intimacy was of a rather crude kind. Not that he was
dissatisfied. After all, war is war.

As president of this establishment, he made the acquaintance
of the ineffable Mme. Claudot, his confidante, errand-woman
and lover. Mme. Claudot was entrusted with special mis-
sions ; one day she would be a messenger of love, bearing
perfumed billets-doux from her Imperial friend; another day
she would be the major-domo of his pleasures. And so the
daughters of joy always passed through the " Friture" before
arriving at the new Sans-Souci. A special path had been
carefully prepared and covered with sand so as to lead directly
to the place of assignation, without passing through Belair.

Now, " La Friture " belonged to a secluded portion of
Montcy-Notre-Dame called Waridon. It is situated in the
heart of an ancient seignorial estate which bears the prophetic
name of La Folie. It is from La Folie that the secret path
starts, and it received a name full of glorious associations for the
valiant warrior, for ever since it has been known by the signi-
ficant title of Chemin des Dames.

^*>-He never received women at the ViUa Renaudin, and he

104

The Son-in-Law of M. Beurier

remained deaf to all appeals to do so. His two A.D.C.'s,
who kept a close watch over him, would not have allowed it ;
they had their orders.

The amorous campaigns of the Boche Cahgula did not
always come off. He even met with some misadventures.
The most famous was his altercation with the Emperor's
private physician, Dr. Wezel.

Dr. Wezel, as the reader learnt in the chapter devoted to
him, possessed a mistress to whom he was genuinely attached.

The Crown Prince singled her out the very first day of
his arrival in Belair. He immediately resolved to make her
acquaintance. His " criminal," the agent Klein, was in-
structed to seek an audience and to advise the young lady
that his august master would appear that very day at five
o'clock. The prospect of this visit threw both mother and
daughter into consternation, a fact which Dr. Wezel noticed
when, just a few minutes before the arrival of the Prince, he
came to see his mistress as usual. He made inquiries, and
when he heard the reasons for their agitation he asked his
sweetheart to withdraw and undertook to receive the royal
visitor himself.

A stormy interview took place. From words the two passed
to action : challenges were exchanged.

The incident was noised abroad. It was impossible to
keep it from the Kaiser, who, as punishment, sent Wezel to
the front for two months, and the Crown Prince to his legiti-
mate wife for twenty days. The heavier sentence was the
Prince's.

He was attracted by all the women and girls whom he met,
and he tried to enter into conversation with them.

But this kind of hfe only half pleased this respectable young
man. Family life suited his temperament better.

That is why the Don Juan from beyond the Rhine resolved
to enter upon a more serious alliance. In the summer of
1 91 7 he became the son-in-law of M. Beurier. Emile Augier
never dreamt that there would be such a pendant to his im-
mortal masterpiece.*

* Translator's Note. — The Gendre of M. Poirier ("The Son-in-Law o( M.
Poiricr") is the oame of a well-known French comedy by Emile Augier.

105

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

M. Beurier is the owner of a special establishment in the
Rue de la Graviere, at Charleville, which bears a street-mark
of considerably larger dimensions than those of the neigh-
bouring houses.

Soldiers on leave, dilatory revellers, could always find
amusement there after closing hours, at fixed prices.

M. Beurier is also the father of an exquisite brunette, who
was soon to become one of the heroines in the history of re-
spectable Germany.

In praise of M. Beurier, be it said that, in spite of his pro-
fession, he was absolutely unaware of the intrigues which
elevated his daughter to the position of a favoured Sultana.
Quite the contrary : he did all in his power to avoid any such
honour, but the will of a great prince is all-powerful. He was
obliged to give way and submit to the importunities and per-
secutions of his illegitimate son-in-law.

Nay, more : having concealed a French aviator, he had
been arrested a few months earlier, and then summarily
ejected from his establishment, not before paying many fines
and being replaced in his house by Dr. Wezel, the Kaiser's
private physician, as mentioned in the preceding pages.

This touching romance began with a tender idyll. In
September, 1917, the Crown Prince was on his way to report
at the Place Carnot, in his usual car, when, coming from " La
Friture " on to the Meuse embankment, he beheld two ladies,
one of whom arrested his attention. He passed in front of
them again and again. Finally, plucking up courage, he
alighted from his car, and, bearing in mind the scene in Faust,
timidly accosted the two ladies.

He asked the younger one details about her hfe and her
address, chatted politely with her, and then jumped gaily
into his car, and raced away to G.H.Q., about which he had
entirely forgotten, turning back several times and waving
adieux. It was a case of love at first sight. The next day
his ambassadress appeared at the house of the young lady,
who lived with her sister in the Boulevard Gambetta, and gave
her a letter. This intrigue lasted a fortnight. The Crown
Prince behaved like a regular schoolboy. Every day he used
to write passionate letters which his official_^envoy duly de-

106

The Son -in -Law of M. Beurier

livered, but the fair one did not always respond to the tender-
ness of her royal wooer. The patience of the latter began to
wear out, the letters changed from tender to threatening ;
the last one, in fact, frankly declared that if the young lady,
who had been singled out for the honour of becoming a great
prince's favourite, did not crown his desires, she would bring
severe reprisals on her head ; she herself would be deported
to a camp in Germany, and her father attached to a civiUan
labour battalion.

The next day, Klein, his policeman-pimp, sought her out,
and took her to the Sans-Souci in Belair. When she came
back, the Kaiser's son did not need to use threats again.
Gabrielle Beurier had become the second Crown Princess.

An Imperial Highness, in spite of the bar sinister, she could
hardly remain in her old apartments. Her exalted patron
transferred her to his own surroundings, and in so doing
wasted neither time nor money. Non-commissioned officer
Appens discovered a little house, furnished and ready for
occupation, in the Rue Jean- Jacques Rousseau. The Prince
visited it, liked it, and the fair Gabrielle was ordered to take
up her residence there. She submitted to the will of her
royal lover, and abandoned her family, in order to enjoy
the favours of the Kaiser of to-morrow. Only on two occa-
sions, however, did he go to visit her. He preferred to receive
her in his own villa, which he had had arranged so as to suit
his own fleeting desires. Usually it was in the afternoon,
sometimes at dinner-time, less often at night, for his two
bodyguards watched him closely and did not allow him
to sleep out. They acted as if they were really his warders.

The Crown Prince had been weak enough to write letters,
which might have been used against him after the war. It
was necessary to obtain possession of these at all costs. To
accompUsh this Von Miiller and Von Mulner had recourse to
a machiavellian device.

The pretext under which the Beurier family had been ejected
from their so-called house for social gatherings came in very
handy. The two orderly officers pretended that Gabrielle
had been mixed up in the affair, that she possessed corre-
spondence with French agents, and that, as a result, she herself

107

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

was under suspicion as a spy. The letters of the Prince were
found and immediately confiscated. The favour of her in-
fluential patron saved her from prison. She could congratu-
late herself on escaping so easily. The trick had succeeded.
The poor creature, free from all malice or evil designs, who
did not really care much for the Kaiser's son and had yielded
to him through fear as much as weakness of will, had not
for a moment thought of putting in a safe place documents
which might have been of the greatest use to her later.

This state of things continued till April. Young William
found that his favourite was too far from his palace. And so
he resolved to bring her nearer to him, and the indispensable
Appens, furnisher of bachelor's apartments in war-time, was
called upon once more. He had the right kind of nest, all
ready at hand. A pretty little summer villa stood on the top
of Montcy-Notre-Dame Hill, not far from the " Friture." Its
owner had asked some months previously to be allowed to
return to Charleville, but permission had been withheld.
It was a favourable moment. The occupant was told to look
for quarters elsewhere and move out as soon as possible.

A police-officer escorted Gabrielle Beurier to her new
dwelling. A motor truck, by order of the Kommandantur ,
removed the furniture at the Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau ;
and a new honeymoon began in a new setting. Bagatelle
was close to Sans-Souci.

The two turtle-doves saw each other more regularly and
more often now. Almost every afternoon the " little darling "
would walk up the Chemin des Dames. There she would find
her " big boy " (these were the names the lovers gave each
other), and in this way plans for a Franco-German Alliance
took a tender shape. Sometimes he spoke to her about the
war. He did not conceal from her that they were beaten
and thoroughly beaten, and that he had no illusions about the
future. He would never be Emperor of Germany. He had
resigned himself gaily to his fate, and the only thing he re-
gretted was that after the war he would not be able to stay
with his sweetheart. Ah, if he were only able to stay in
France after peace was signed, how gladly he would have
accepted the situation. But alas ! it was only a beautiful

io8

The Son-in-Law of M. Beurier

dream which would never be realized. He even opened his
heart further. He complained bitterly of state and dynastic
reasons which force princes to marry against their inclina-
tions, and to take to wife princesses for whom they feel no
attachment. He even embarked upon insinuations which
we cannot repeat, as we have no desire to drag in third persons,
who knew nothing about the orgies of this crowned Lovelace.
Let not the reader think we are exaggerating. Such con-
versations were repeated to others, and if the Prince's con-
fidante, the lessee of "La Friture," cared to talk, she could
furnish ample subject-matter for the scandalous tale.

The Crown Prince had achieved the height of his desires.
His painter-in-ordinary, who shared his pleasures, sketched
the delicate features of his darling ; and he himself photo-
graphed her in alluring negliges, and his joy would have been
unbounded but for the clouds which cast their shadow over
the young couple's happiness in the summer of 1918.

Several scenes of disorder at Charleville had created uneasi-
ness in German military circles.

During the month of June, a performance in the Municipal
Theatre at which the Crown Prince was present had given
rise to a scandal. Soldiers from the front were in the pit,
whilst Boche women, who had come to replace the orderlies,
secretaries and other " shirkers " who had been dispatched
to the firing-hne, occupied the boxes, sitting ostentatiously
with Staff Officers. The sight of the fair-haired Germanic
maidens roused the fury of the Field-Greys, who could not
forgive them their monopoly of easy jobs, whilst they were
being uselessly slaughtered in the name of the Fatherland.

Shortly after some regimental officers picked a quarrel
with their colleagues from the Staff of the First Army.

A few days before the July offensive, a detailed plan of the
operations which were to lead the invincible army of the Crown
Prince in a few days to Paris, was lost. It had been left behind
at the Villa of Sans-Souci, and no trace could be found of it.

To crown these misfortunes, at eleven o'clock that night, a
motor defect brought down two French aviators, who started
looking for repairs at Nouzon in the middle of the night, and
were caught in the early morning of the next day.

1091

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

All these incidents annoyed G.H.Q., and the officers of the
Staff, whose behaviour had given grounds for complaint,
were called to Verviers to explain themselves before Luden-
dorff.

In order to excuse themselves, they stated they were only
following the example set in higher quarters. The Kaiser
insisted on clearing up the mystery, and summoned his son.
The truth emerged, and a few days before the July offensive,
after a visit of the Crown Prince to the Empress, it was decided
to send away his light-o'-love. In spite of his mother's in-
sistence, the Prince firmly refused to see his wife. The Police
Commissioner of the Armies in Lille was entrusted with the
task of seizing the girl.

The trick that had obtained possession of the letters was
employed afresh. Gabrielle Beurier was accused of espionage
for a second time. It was said she had stolen the lost plans.
For form's sake, a search was made. She was also accused of
having entered into relations with the recently captured French
aviators.

Her deportation was not effected without energetic protests
on the part of the Crown Prince. He posted sentries at the
four corners of his estate to prevent her abduction, and he came
to blows with his physician, whom he accused of aiding and
abetting the kidnappers. It was a lively squabble, and the
desperate lover sent the doctor downstairs a good deal quicker
than he had come up. However, negotiations were entered
into, and finally the Crown Prince consented to part from his
beloved.

On the 28th of July she was taken by car to Liart, and from
there, in a reserved carriage, to Lille. By order of the Kom-
mandantur she was interned in an apartment in the Rue
Berthelot, which she was forbidden to leave. Here she stayed
three weeks. She was then transported to East Flanders, to
the Chateau of Hoverbulaer, near Grammont, where she was
subjected to the same close surveillance, for she was only
allowed to go out once a month in the company of a policeman,
who had been attached to her person.

The reign of a favourite thus has its disgraces. At Baga-
telle she had not been allowed to receive any visits, not even

The Son-in-Law of M. Beurier

from her father or mother, and this gilded captivity continued
to the day of the Armistice.

The deportation proved a blessing for one person. Klein,
the policeman, whom the Crown Prince jokingly, but justi-
fiably, used to call his " criminal," was fascinated by the furni-
ture of the viUa. As soon as the young girl had left for Lille
he hastened to send it to Germany on his own account.

The Prince was inconsolable. A story is even told in this
connection, which we believe to be true, but which we submit
with reserve, not having been able to check its authenticity
ourselves.

Some days after their forced separation, young William, we
are told, wished to see the dear deported at aH costs, and
confided his plans to his trusted chauffeur. It was arranged
that the Heir-Presumptive should disguise himself as an auto-
mobile driver, and that the shield of the car, bearing the Royal
crown, should be cunningly painted over.

But as the Crown Prince was afraid of being pursued by
Staff Officers, instructed to prevent him from finding his " little
darhng," the ingenious chauffeur showed him how easy it
would be to keep them back by smashing certain parts of the
motor.

According to the tale told us, he actually carried out his
plans, but the pohce were freed from the necessity of pursuing
their chief, as they had already been informed of what was
going on.

It was a pity. A Prince in the role of a saboteur is distinctly
something out of the ordinary.

In the midst of his sorrow, he tasted one supreme delight.
During his stay in Lille, his beloved mistress was authorized
to come and stay two days at the Villa of Sans-Souci.

It was their last interview, and touching it was, for they
were never to see each other again. Only his favourite
chauffeur was to bring news of her health. And so ended the
idyll which had begun so auspiciously.

Did the Crown Prince's behavioiu: give rise to stringent
financial measures which did not allow him to continue the
monthly allotment of 3,000 marks that he had promised
to make to her Morganatic Highness ? Or did the state of the

III

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

German Budget exclude any generous grants on the civil
lists of the Kaiser's family, and prohibit a generous settlement
of the Crown Prince's love affairs ? Or was it the notorious
stinginess of the Hohenzollerns which came into play ? What
is certain is that the heir of William II. applied to his new
father-in-law, M. Beurier, for money. He even used threats
to gain his ends.

On the first occasion, some days after the departure of
Gabrielle, a messenger brought the old tenant a letter from his
son-in-law, reminding him that, like a provident father, he had
announced his intention of giving his daughter a dowry of
50,000 francs, and asking him to pay out this sum at his earliest
convenience, so that it might be forwarded to the person
concerned. Very much astonished, as he might well have
been at such a demand, M. Beurier replied by the following
letter :

" When you allowed us to see our daughter before her de-
parture, I asked her if she needed money. She replied that
she had enough for her needs, and asked us not to worry on
her account, as she had a reserve.

" I have never told anyone that she had 50,000 francs, but,
out of my personal account, I have set aside for her 10,000
francs, which will be paid her when she is of age. But if she
should need money in the meantime she would only have to
drop me a line, and I should do my best to send her the amount.
" I am, your Imperial Highness,
" Respectfully yours,

(Signed) " Beurier."

The poor man's trials were not at an end. On another occa-
sion he was summoned at eleven o'clock at night to " La
Friture," to learn from the Crown Prince's lips that he was to
pay 20,000 francs for the girl's support. Trembling with fear
at the prospect of the vengeance which might be visited on
them, the parents meekly said that they could not find such a
sum at the moment.

Other police methods were employed, though in vain, to
ascertain the investments of his Highness's father-in-law.

112

The Son-in-Law of M. Beurier

They held out, and so time passed till the 6th of November,
the day preceding the Prince's departure — an event which
must have been very painful to him, so sorry was he to wend
his way back to Germany and leave a country with so many
tender associations, a country which, as we have seen above,
he pretended to love as much as his own country.

The Beurier family hoped to have done with the troubles
which the Kaiser's son had brought upon their heads, when, on
the afternoon of the 6th, a messenger from Belair, again Mme.
Claudot, brought an autograph letter from the Prince. Her
orders were to communicate the contents and bring back the
letter without delay.

However, the missive remained long enough in the hands of
those concerned to be copied in its entirety.

This letter, the copy of which actually passed through our
hands, ran as follows :

" Sir,

" Please give bearer the sum of 10,000 francs, in good
French currency (so as to facilitate its exchange abroad), for
the needs of our dear girl {sic).

" Best wishes."

For signature there was only an initial, but the writing was
undoubtedly in the Crown Prince's hand. The father-in-law
remonstrated. He firmly refused to answer such a demand,
and the next day the vanquished Prince sorrowfully took the
road to exile.

Some weeks before the Armistice, Gabrielle Beurier had been
released from her prison and sent to Holland, by order of her
lover, under the escort of one of the Secret Police of the ist
Army. But at Ninove she was able to leave her luggage in a
place of safety and escape from her guard. She fled to Verviers,
whence the order for her expulsion from Charleville had been
issued, and remained in concealment there, under an assumed
name, for seven weeks. It was only on the 15th of November,
the day of the Allies' triumphal entry into the former head-
quarters of the General Staff, that she resumed her identity.

Since then she has returned to her paternal hearth, where

113 8

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

she helped to manage the establishment, and welcomed our
poilus with the same smile which she had once reserved for the
quondam Prince. What a fall was there !

But the ex-Crown Prince had not forgotten her. On 14th
January, 1919, Mme. Claudot received a postcard in the hand-
writing of the man who, but for the Allies' victory, would have
been Emperor of Germany. On this card, the handwriting
of which has been authenticated beyond a doubt, the exiled
Prince asked for news of his darling, and instructed his confi-
dante to convey her his good wishes.

This card was signed " Your Big Boy " — the familiarname
by which his beloved companion usually called him.

Three days later a new card reached the same address, on
which his Highness again inquired after his darling, and asked
mine hostess of " La Friture " if his old favourite was in need
of assistance, and he concluded by asking whether it was
practicable for him to continue corresponding with her.

Such is the fine fellow whom we set out to describe. The
reader will admit that he is hardly calculated to increase the
glory of that family of brigands whose crimes for four whole
years terrified the world !

The father — a murderer. The son — a rake. What a family !

114

PART III

CHAPTER XI

THE " GENERALSTAB " (THE GENERAL STAFF).

A formidable war machine. — A brilliant idea of the elder Moltke for dominat-
ing the world. — A very exclusive body. — But Foch reveals himself. . . .
— Face to face with disaster. — An incompetent : the grand-nephew of the
great man. — The disgrace of the Marne. — Reasons of health. — The man
who insulted the Wackes at Saverne. — A lover of walks. — The walking-
stick which served as a barometer of the war. — The day's report. — The
consequences of Verdun. — Rumania as a punishment. — The idols of
the people. — Rapid advancement. — The real dictator. — An over-rated
reputation. — William suspects Hindenburg. — The colossus with the feet
of clay. — The Quartermaster-Generals. — The departments of the General
Staff. — The Boche Boscharth. — Bayard's Cup. — Disappointments and
apprehensions. — Revolution thunders from afar. — Spa decorated with
flags. — The Red i^lag at G.H.Q. — A sorry return. — The grain of sand
does its work. — The lies and pride of the Germans are the causes of their
defeat. — The murderer of Germany.

THE General Staff is the formidable war-machine which,
from Luxemburg, Mezieres, Kreuznach and Spa
directed the operations of the German armies on all fronts.
It corresponds to the G.H.Q. in France, especially from the
time that General Foch assumed sole command of the armies
of the Entente.

The General Staff was a brilliant idea of the elder Moltke,
and was the chief factor in the German victory of 1870. On
the morrow of his triumph and the formation of the Empire,
he worked away industriously at preparations for the next
war with France, which was to bring about the final crush-
ing of the hereditary foe and the complete domination of
barbarous Germany over the whole world.

The German General Staff was a very exclusive body, which
only admitted the 61ite of the officers and the cream of Teutonic

117

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

aristocracy. The entrance examinations for the Academy of
War, their chief miUtary school, were extremely difficult,
and the double stripe of amaranth in the breeches ranked
those who wore it among the military aristocracy, and made
them the envy of their regimental comrades. The General
Staff was the executive brain of the army, which prepared its
work of destruction in silence, and anticipated the war down
to its smallest details. It was the most highly perfected
machinery in the military organization, and its effects would be
devastating as soon as mobilization allowed it to function
regularly.

Proceeding directly from the Emperor, it stood above the
Ministry of War, whose duties were confined to administering
the army, without concerning itself with the elaboration of
plans for future campaigns. The General Staff drew up the
military conventions which bound the States allied to Germany,
prepared the regulations for recruiting personnel, and fixed
the amount of the grants necessary for the maintenance of
the army. All the Ministry of War had to do was to apply
the decisions of the Staff ; it was, more or less, the subordinate
of the first Quartermaster-General ; the Kaiser was automati-
cally its chief. No step was taken in the war of 1914-1918
that was not studied, weighed and decided by this remarkable
organization, which had been mobilized, more or less, for the
last forty-four years. It started from the humble Brigade
Orderly Officer and culminated in the great chief at Berlin,
who held in his hand the wires which could set nearly ten
million soldiers in motion, and who made them respond to
his touch like an accurate machine, and sent them light-heartedly
to death for the greater glory of the Fatherland.

However, the smallest grain of sand couid disturb the
machinery, and the Boche, foreseeing to the point of excess,
but slow-witted, and narrow, was incapable of swift initiative.
It was necessary for him to revise, reconstruct, multiply
equations, and finally lose time. The grain of sand dislocated
the springs, threw the command into disorder, and the
assurance of victory became the most startling and crushing
defeat ever recorded in the annals of the world's history.

Foch, by his genius, which one is tempted to say would have

118

The " Generalstab " (The General Staff)

been the envy of the unsurpassable Napoleon, had overcome
the cunning wiles of Hindenburg and the bold strokes of a
Ludendorff . The German army, finally and decisively beaten,
was, on November nth, 1918, a mere body without a soul, a
chaotic horde of panic-stricken refugees, ready to lay down
their arms and surrender unconditionally ; in one word, a
corpse in full process of decomposition.

Hindenburg knew it. That is why he pressed the German
delegation to accept the clauses of the Armistice without dis-
cussion. He hoped in this way to avert what would be an
irremediable catastrophe, namely, the complete destruction of
the Kaiser's armies, once invincible, now powerless.

The future will decide whether the Armistice of the nth of
November was not premature, and whether it would not have
been preferable to crush the demoralized troops of Ludendorff
in the strong grip of the Entente, who had cut off their retreat
on the East.

Not being a military critic and confessing ourselves unable
to judge a matter as complex as the science of war, we leave
it to those better qualified to judge and give a decision.

On the declaration of war. General von Moltke, the grand-
nephew of the famous von Moltke, who forty years ago pre-
pared the defeat of France, was at the head of the General
Staff. This post he held against his own wishes, for he knew
well that he did not possess the qualifications for directing
such an organization, nor the strength of character to assume
its heavy responsibilities, and shortly before the outbreak of
hostilities he had asked the Kaiser to relieve him of his com-
mand. But as he bore an historic name, and as that name
might make a strong impression on the enemy, William con-
sidered him to be the right man for this important post, and
kept him there. Then came the war. The German army
marched on Paris, after violating Belgium's neutrality and
invading the North of France. But it met with an obstacle,
the battle of the Marne crushed the hopes of the sovereign,
and he did not dine at the Ely see on the appointed day.
Moltke, who had been obliged to obey his orders, was made
the scapegoat, and sacrificed. However, as the German people
had not been informed about the defeat oi its army nor

119

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

instructed as to the real reasons for the retirement of the Chief
of Staff, the latter resigned his post on grounds of health. As
a matter of fact, his health had really suffered as a result of
his big disappointment, and the grand-nephew of the great
strategist died during the course of the war.

He was replaced by the Minister of War, General von Fal-
kenhein, who had already acquired publicity by his attitude
at the time of the Saveme incident. As Minister of War, he
had upheld young Baron von Forstner, who had insulted the
Alsatians and was killed later on the Russian front, and the
Colonel of the 99th Regiment of Infantry, von Renter, who,
by making common cause with his lieutenant, had come so
near to provoking a serious revolt.

He resided at Mezieres from September, 1914, to August,
1916, and occupied the private apartments of the Prefect of
the Ardennes. The new chief of the General Staff was a man
with rather a good figure and a genial, ruddy face. He had
a liking for walks, and he could be seen every day on the
roads near G.H.Q. The inhabitants used to consider him a
barometer of the war by the way he carried his cane. When
he carried it in his right hand, his face beamed. That day
the bulletins from the front were unfavourable for the native
population. If the stick was in his left hand, the General
seemed annoyed. Then a smile would spread over the face
of the French : the news must be good. Falkenhein's for-
tune consisted of a long list of debts, and he lived from hand
to mouth. When he assumed his new duties, the Kaiser
allowed him a large sum of money, appropriated from more or
less secret funds, in order that he should settle part of his debts.

Each day, punctually, at noon, the representative of the
Staff was closeted with the Kaiser and discussed the results
of the operations in the presence of the Chief of the Military
Establishment.

On February 21st, 1916, like a thunderbolt, came the big
offensive at Verdun which was to crown the Crown Prince's
military career, but which cost the armies of the Central Powers
so many sacrifices and obtained such insignificant advantages.
It was the work of Falkenhein, whom the Germans never
forgave for this bloody fiasco. It was generally said that with

120

The ** Generalstab '* (The General Staff)

the troops at his disposal he should have attacked another
part of the front. He would then have stood a better chance
of success and the war would have ended sooner. His critics
reproached him with having carried on the offensive too long,
and so causing useless losses. It was also said that Falken-
hein, after ten days' fighting, had realized the impossibility of
success, and that he should have stopped the attack after the
first unsuccessful onset.

The failure at Verdun lost him the confidence of the Kaiser,
who relieved him of his duties. He put him at the head of a
group of armies, which after the declaration of war with
Rumania took the field against this nation. He was more
fortunate than at Verdun, and, after his victories, we did not
hear any more talk about him. Up to the day of the Armi-
stice he was at the head of a group of armies on the Eastern
front, where his inactivity met with severe criticism.

Till then, the Eastern front, where Hindenburg was in com-
mand, had been practically independent of the Chief of the
General Staff. When it was decided to withdraw one of the
two unsuccessful generals of Verdun, the Kaiser resolved to
place the Eastern and Western fronts and all the allied fronts
under a unified command, which was entrusted to Field-Marshal
von Hindenburg and his lieutenant, the Infantry General
Ludendorff, absolute idols of the German people, who had
placed all their confidence in them.

On the mobilization of the army Hindenburg had been
unattached, while Ludendorff at the same time was in com-
mand of a brigade at Strassburg. These two personages
were not so well known in Charleville, where they only made
short stays.

After Falkenhein's departure, the Kaiser had left the
Ardennes, and G.H.Q. was at Pless in Silesia, where Field-
Marshal von Hindenburg had stayed before his transfer to
Kreuznach. Ludendorff exercised a strong influence on
military and political affairs at home. The Minister for Foreign
Affairs, von Kiihlmann, was dismissed by the Kaiser in 1918,
at the express desire of the First Quartermaster-General, for
having declared to the Reichstag that Germany could not win
the war by force of arms alone.

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Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Von Kiihlmann was summoned to G.H.Q., where he met with
a more than cold reception. Violent discussions took place
between the Kaiser, the Minister and Ludendorff, and the un-
fortunate Secretary of State was not even asked to the
Imperial table, in accordance with etiquette.

Ludendorff' s reputation was attacked by certain German
Generals, who claimed that his military value was overrated,
that he was incapable of any great plan, and that credit for
his knowledge should go to one of his staff subordinates,
Colonel Bauer, whom they considered a real soldier.

The relations between Hindenburg and William were
officially very cordial, but in private the Kaiser and his Chief
of Staff could not bear each other. The proud Hohenzollern
was jealous of the popularity of his immediate subordinate
and suspected him of ambitious designs which aimed at nothing
less than the overthrow of the dynasty and his proclamation
as Dictator. He kept him at his side, however, for the
people obliged him to do so, and he did not possess either the
strength or the authority of preceding years, to break down
all opposition and impose his will.

During the offensive of 1918 the influence of Hindenburg
diminished, the Emperor was pushed into the background
and the star of Ludendorff shone brighter than ever.

At that time he was the real and all-powerful master of
Germany.

But the events of October, 19 18, convinced Ludendorff that
the hour of his responsibilities and decrees had struck. He
retired to Berlin during the last days of October, 19 18, He
sent away the officers under his orders and set out the same
evening for Germany.

General von Groener was nominated in his stead. He was
not unknown in Charleville, where he had resided from the
arrival of G.H.Q. to the end of 1916, in the capacity of
Superintendent of Field Railways.

On November 13th, 1918, he left Headquarters at Spa and
betook himself to Cassel with the General Staff.

The General Staff comprised four Quartermaster-Generals,
who were, first Falkenhein, then Ludendorff, and Generals
von Freytag, Zoellner, Sauberzweig and Hahndorf. At the

122

The ** Generalstab " (The General Staff)

beginning of the occupation, General von Freytag was en-
trusted with the task of dealing with the French administra-
tion through the agency of the Kommandantur. General
von Hahndorf was also commissioned as a result of this, and
took up all questions touching the issue of notes and the
sequestration of banks, business houses and factories.

There were three special sections in the Prefecture.

The first, perhaps the most important in the whole of the
General Staff, was the section of military operations, which
only counted the most distinguished Staff Officers in its num-
ber. It was connected by telegraph and telephone with all
points of the front and with all military centres and head-
quarters. When in March, 1918, G.H.Q. was transferred from
Kreuznach to Spa, the official seat of the General Staff was
Spa, but as a matter of fact, Hindenburg and Ludendorff,
together with the section for military operations, installed
themselves at Avesnes-sur-Helpe, where the Kaiser came to
join them just before the big offensives of 1918 were launched.
They remained at Avesnes till September, 1918, and went
back, some to Spa, some to Verviers.

The political section was the connecting link between the
Army High Command and the Imperial Government. It
dealt, amongst other things, with the administration of the
occupied regions.

The Intelligence section was entrusted with the task of
coUecting and co-ordinating all information of a strictly mili-
tary character. The Intelligence Officers and services of all
the armies and the Department for Prisoners of War were
attached to this department. Within its jurisdiction came
also the censorship of the Press.

The General Staff did not occupy the attention of Charle-
ville to any extent. The mass of work which absorbed it
day and night did not allow its members to make a show of
themselves, h!ke the Kaiser and his son.

A certain subaltern, however, gave rise to comment. His
name was Boscharth. In Boscharth is boche, and in a Boche
there is very often a thief. This Boche, or Boscharth, which-
ever you call him, had a passion for old furniture, antiques,
objets d'art, old editions and bibliophiles' treasures. He was

123

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

always on the look-out. Not that he used the methods of
Bill Sikes. Oh no ! Our Boscharth was more refined. He
had at his disposal the Staff's stamp and requisition forms.
A regular requisition was forthwith produced, and the victim
had no option but to accept : Boscharth was conqueror and
lord. In this way he got together a veritable museum and
furniture shop, which he sent off to Germany. He had
arranged things so as to avoid investigation. The Staff had
special carriages for carrying its documents and files, etc.
Boscharth annexed one for himself, put the regulation seals
upon it, left shortly after on duty for Berlin, where he received
delivery, and, behold ! the trick was played ! This little
intrigue lasted nearly two years. Boscharth had agents and
accomplices, who used to advise him of good hauls to make,
or who warned him in time if danger threatened his gang.
But every adventure has an end, and Boscharth's stunts came
to the ears of his superiors. He was sent to Berlin as a
result of his exploits, and we do not know whether he was
sent to jail or decorated with the Cross " Pour le Merite,"
for, in Boche eyes, to rob a Frenchman is no crime, but an act
of restitution.

Another story also gave rise to scandal.

The town of Mezieres possessed an object of historic interest,
an artistic drinking-cup of wonderful design, out of which
Bayard, the saviour of Mezieres, had drunk. It was well
known to collectors, antique dealers and silversmiths as
Bayard's Cup, and its photograph had been reproduced in
many catalogues.

Now a Staff Order reached the town hall at Mezieres, in-
forming it that it had to move out of several municipal offices
and departments in order to make way for German bureaux.
Bayard's Cup had been hidden in one of these places, amongst
the archives of the department. The municipality wishing
to put it in safety — for it had every reason to suspect the
occupying forces — made a search for the historic cup. Alas,
it was nowhere to be found. Had it been stolen, or carefully
hidden in some unknown spot, so that, when occupied France
was reunited to free France, it should be produced again ?
Nobody knew.

124

The '* Generalstab '* (The General Staff)

We were all lost in surmises, when, in 1917, an officer belong-
ing to the administration of the Imperial Museums appeared
before the Mayor of Mezidres, and, showing him a photograph,
asked if he knew the object depicted. It was a picture of
Bayard's Cup. The Mayor could scarcely believe his eyes.
When he had recovered from the amazement, he asked how
this photograph had come into his hands.

A Berlin lady, he explained, owner of a large fortune and
also a connoisseur of the arts, had been looking for interesting
finds, when at the shop of a Berlin antique dealer a chiselled
cup had attracted her attention. She examined it thoroughly,
consulted her catalogues, found the exact facsimile, and was
convinced that it was the historic cup which the knight " sans
peur et sans reproche " had put to his lips. It happened this
lady knew the official from the Imperial Museums, who was
attached to the Prefecture of M^zieres : she informed him of
her find, and the latter, after making sure that this objet d'art
was the one whose disappearance had been officially an-
nounced, took the necessary steps to restore to the town of
M6zi6res a relic which had the greatest value in its eyes.

The General Staff had its happy days. It also had its days
of disappointment, even of dread, when the army could not
resist any longer, and the revolution began to appear on the
horizon of Germany.

It did not remain immune from it.

In all the detachments of troops and military formations
Soldiers' Councils were formed on the advice of Field-Marshal
Hindenburg. The Supreme Council of the Soldiers had its
seat in the Staff building, and called itself the Council of the
Soldiers of Headquarters. It published notices, informing the
soldiers and inhabitants of Spa that authority had passed
into its hands, and enjoined them to maintain silence and
order.

On November loth, 1918, permission was given the in-
habitants to hoist their flags, and for a short moment all Spa
was decorated with Belgian and French flags. In the face of
this spontaneous demonstration many of the higher officers
took alarm and raced back to Germany in their cars. There-
upon the Soldiers' CouncD seized all the cars and forbade

125

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

anybody to leave G.H.Q. without its authorization. In order
to avoid reprisals, the aristocratic officers of his Majesty had
placed red flags on their cars. Every soldier had a red flag
and wore a scarlet cockade in his buttonhole. The food in all
the officers' clubs was confiscated, and the women employed as
helps were obliged to leave Spa within twelve hours. These
women were looked askance at by everybody on account of
their scandalous behaviour with the officers. When Hin-
denburg and von Groener left Spa on November 13th, a
special train was prepared to take them to Cassel, which had
become the new G.H.Q. It was commanded by representa-
tives of the Workers' and Soldiers' Council at G.H.Q.

Such was the pitiful end of the terrible General Staff, which
had undertaken to make the whole world tremble before it.
True, its organization was excellent. But the inborn pride
in every German blinded him so that he could not conceive
of any obstacle which could hold it back. When, at length,
it bit the dust, there was no time to recover. The grain of
sand had made its machinery useless. Instead of frankly
stating the truth, and exposing the whole situation, the Staff
adopted a system of steady lying, and in its official bulletins
spoke of the German rout as successful rear-guard actions or
a victorious defensive. When the people realized the situation,
it was too late. Lying and pride had slain Germany, and its
murderer was the sinister Ludendorff and his accomplices.

The great German Staff is no more. May it never arise
again, for the safety of France and Europe and for the peace
of the whole world.

126

CHAPTER XII

GENERAL HEADQUARTERS

German and French G.H.Q. — Composition of G.H.Q. and of the General
Staff. — Ettapenschwein. — The gentlemen of the Automobile Corps. — A
decayed prince. — The triumph of the shirkers. — Motorists as police and
spies. — The descendants of the drivers of 1793. — The golden days ar«
over. — German time. — Some proclamations. — A costly requisition. — A
friend of the Kaiser who weeps about the sufferings of his soldiers. — The
army of thieves and bandits. — A reign of terror. — The evil genius of
Amim. — If he could strangle the French. — The gibbets for the Allies. —
The Treaty of Frankfort and police des moeurs. — A pasha at the Kom-
mandantur. — Elementary school inspector, housebreaker and thief. —
A Tartuffe. — Personal requisition. — The new carabineers of Gerolstein. —
Final humiliation. — The people of Charleville are avenged.

THE German G.H.Q. is not the equivalent of our G.H.Q.,
which has practically the same organization, at any
rate the same powers, as the General Staff.

The French G.H.Q. directs operations. It sends miUtary
orders to the Army Groups and the armies. The German
G.H.Q. is a special administration which, while subordinate to
the General Staff, is more especially attached to the service
of the Kaiser.

This is why it is not called the Imperial G.H.Q., but bears
the title of Grosses Hauptquartier S. M. des Konigs von
Preussen (G.H.Q. of H.M. the King of Prussia). It contained
representatives of the civil and military departments which
had immediate access to the Emperor of Germany, who was,
at the same time, King of Prussia.

Side by side with the Ministries of War and the Navy there
sat the Chancellory and the Imperial Secretariat of State for
Foreign Affairs.

Z27

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

The G.H.Q. was, therefore, a semi-civil and semi-miUtary
administration, with as many ramifications in the Prussian
Administration as in the Imperial Government.

The military and civil establishments, the military Cabinet
of the Kaiser, were under the sovereign's immediate authority,
together with the Chancellory.

The G.H.Q. contained :

1. The Marshal of the Court.

2. The Military Cabinet.

3. The Civil Cabinet.

4. The Imperial Chancellory.

5. The Ministry of War.

6. The Naval Cabinet.

7. The Foreign Office.

8. The Controller of the Imperial Household.

9. The Civil Police, called the Geheime Feldpolizei (secret

military police) , and the political police.

10. The Automobile Corps.

The General Staff was divided as follows :

1. Grand General Staff.

2. Field Telegraphs.

3. Field Railways.

4. Artillery.

5. Munitions and Ordnance.

6. Engineers and Pioneers.

7. Medical Services and Volunteers.

8. Sanitary Inspection.

A Kommandantur (G.H.Q. Kommandantur) co-ordinated
the orders of G.H.Q. and of the General Staff in view of the
necessary relations between the German authorities and the
French Administration.

A Kommandantur of Lines of Commimication, subordinated
to the Inspection of the army area of the Third Army, then of
the First Army in 1917, administered the districts of Charle-
ville and of Mezieres, which belonged to the territory of these
armie^ A third Kommandantur at the station was in charge
of the superintendence of troops passing through and of
transport. It was directly responsible to the General Staff.

128

General Headquarters

The following is a list of the principal general and superior
officers of G.H.Q. and the General Staff.

G.H.Q.

THE emperor's SUITE '.

WilHam II., Emperor of Germany.

Count von Reischach, Marshal of the Court.

General von Plessen, Chief of the Military Cabinet.

Lieut. -General von Gontard.

Lieut.-General von Chelius.

Lieut. -General Count von Marschal.

Colonel von Mutius.

Lieut.-Colonel von Hahnke.

Major von Caprivi.

Major Count von Moltke.

Major Count Arnim.

Major Count Hirsfeld.

Surgeon-General Dr. von Ilberg,

Surgeon-Major von Niedner.

Surgeon-Major Wezel.

Colonel Prince Adolfe von Schoenburg-Lippe.

Prince Leopold of Prussia.

Major Seitz von Hohenloe, A.D.C. to the Prince.

CIVIL CABINET

Privy Councillor Valentin.

Privy Councillor Abb.

Privy Councillor Vollmann.

Envoye Von Truetler.

Privy Councillor Neimke

Dr. Goenz (Ecclesiastical Councillor).

IMPERIAL CHANXELLORY

Von Bethmann-Holweg, Imperial Chancellor.
Von Mutius, Privy Councillor.
Count Zeck, Secretary of Legations.

Z29

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

FOREIGN OFFICE

Von Jagow, Foreign Secretary of State.

Von Stumm, Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs.

Von Redowitz, Ambassadorial Councillor.

AUTOMOBILE CORPS

Chief Prince Waldemar of Prussia.
Chief of Staff Major von Buxenstein, Commercial
Councillor.

POSTMASTER

Domislaff, Privy Councillor.

THE emperor's CIVIL POLICE (gEHEIME FELDPOLIZEI)

Major Bauer

Kuntze, Chief of the Political Police.

CONTROLLER OF THE EMPEROR'S HOUSEHOLD

Lieut. Kaestner.

MINISTRY OF WAR

General von Falkenhein, later appointed Chief of the

General Staff.
Major-General Wild von Hohenberg.
General Count von Lyncker.
Colonel Count von Marschall.
Major Count von Hake.
Major Count von Vehre.
Major Count von Hoffmann.
Privy Councillor Stellers.

NAVAL CABINET

Admiral Miiller. _, l

Privy Councillor Massmann. |

ADMIRAL STAFF

Grand Admiral von Tirpitz.

130

General Headquarters

GENERAL STAFF

General von Moltke.
Then :
General von Falkenhein, formerly Minister of War,

and finally Field-Marshal von Hindenburg.
General Rheetz, replaced by General Vogt.
Lieut. -General Ritter von Venninger (Military attache

for Bavaria).
Lieut.-General von Gravenits (for Wiirtemburg).
Lieut. -General Count von Leuckart (for Saxony).
Field-Marshal Count von Stiirgh* (for Austria-Hungary).
Lieut.-Colonel Baron von Bienerth (for Austria-Hungary).
Adjutant-General Zekki Pasha (for Turkey).
Colonel Gantcheff (for Bulgaria).

MEDICAL SERVICES AND COURTS MARTIAL

Surgeon-General Prof, von Schieming (Chief of Medical

Services) .
Dr. Belle (for Military Jurisdiction).

FIELD TELEGRAPHS

General Balk.

Colonel Marquis von Wolf.

Major Schak.

FIELD RAILWAYS

General von Groener.

FOOT ARTILLERY

General von Lauter.

MUNITIONS AND ORDNANCE "

Von Ortzen, Master.

• Count von Stiirgh helped to draw up tho Austrian Memorandum to the
Kaiser which let loose the war with Serbia.

131 «•

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

FIELD INTENDANTUR

Pieszsecke.

ENGINEERS AND PIONEERS

Major-General Schultheib.
Major Wilche.
Major Wagner.

DIRECTOR OF VOLUNTARY RED CROSS WORKERS

Prince Solens-Baruth.

SANITARY INSPECTION

Major-General Schmidt,
Major-General Schulze.

G.H.Q. KOMMANDANTUR

Commandant, General von Freytag.
Assistant-Commandant, Lieut. -Colonel von Hahnke.
Capt. Schmitzer, Adjutant Interpreter.

KOMMANDANTUR OF L. OF C.

Capt. Andre.

STATION KOMMANDANTUR

Major Schmidt.

There were at least six hundred officers at G.H.Q. They
brought back to the little town the animation which it had
lost when French troops and a section of the population re-
treated ; sumptuous motor-cars furrowed the streets and
elegant cavaliers cavalcaded in the main streets. They gave
themselves up to fetes and parties whilst their comrades were
tasting the uncomfortable life of the trenches and calling them
Etappenschwein (L. of C. " Cuthberts ").

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General Headquarters

The Automobile Corps was a formation peculiar to G.H.Q.
It was composed of volunteers belonging to the wealthiest
classes of Germany, who had signed on for the duration of
the war, and suppUed motor-cars and drivers. They were
given a special and fairly high gratuity for their pay, board
and upkeep of their cars. The wherewithal was supplied
to them by the Controller of the Imperial Household.

The Automobile Corps was put imder the command of
Prince Waldemar of Prussia, son of Henry of Prussia, High
Admiral of the German Fleet and brother of the Kaiser. As
has already been stated, Waldemar was a sorry creature,
an invalid, afflicted with a purulent malady which made him
Hmp badly. Like his uncle the Emperor, he was a victim
of the hereditary disease with which the decadent race of the
Hohenzollerns has been stricken in its degeneracy.

His Chief of Staff, Major Buxenstein, was an ardent drinker
of Munich beer ; he was a Berlin magnate who thought quite
as much of his own business interests as of the defence of the
German Fatherland.

The Auto-Corps was the shirkers' paradise. It took to its
bosom all the representatives of the big German automobile
firms, the men of the world and the sons of the aristocracy,
who did not care to bare their breasts to the French machine
guns. They had a good time of it and their club was the centre
of noisy, often scandalous, carousals.

Their work consisted in taking the orders of G.H.Q. to the
services behind the firing line — there was no danger attached
to it — and in reporting on what they saw during their journey-
ings to and fro, either in military circles or among the civilian
population. The motorist was both policeman and spy.

Their chauffeurs were vulgar bandits, worthy descendants
of the drivers of the Revolution. Wreckers and looters that
they were, they would take upon themselves to clear out of
a lodging and then pillage it, breaking and burning furniture,
floors and wainscoting, ransacking the cupboards, searching
for hiding-places and throwing into the streets all that they
could not carry off. Threatening everybody as they did with
revolution, they were the terror of their billets.

The golden days of the Auto-Corps did not last for ever.

133

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

The war went on and finances ran low. First of all their pay
was decreased. It made little difference to its members,
for their personal fortunes enabled them to bear this decrease
without any great effort. Later there was a shortage of
necessaries, and the gaps in the front had to be filled. It was
then decided to suppress the Auto-Corps and its aristocratic
members had to put on second-lieutenants' uniform and go
to the front. Consternation was general. The suppression
of this corps coincided with the departure of G.H.Q. to Russia
in August, 1 916. Prince Waldemar returned to Berlin to
tend his wounds, his Major Buxenstein followed him, and
Charleville was deprived of their illustrious presence.

At this time the G.H.Q. Kommandantur stayed behind with
the secret police and a few officers of G.H.Q. and the General
Staff to keep open the offices, since the Kaiser and his suite
were stiU supposed to be living in Charleville. The Kom-
mandantur had arrived with G.H.Q. on 21st September, 1914,
and a few days afterwards Lieut. -Colonel von Hahnke took
over the command of it. His first act was to issue a proclama-
tion in which he said among other things that " any hostile
act against the German Authorities must be avoided." Any
infringement would be severely punished according to the
laws of war.

" Those persons also will be punished who, witnessing a
malevolent act, do nothing to prevent it. The communes
will be made responsible for any individual who evaded the
statutory penalties."

German time was imposed, regulations were issued, fixing
a time when everybody had to be within doors, and controlling
traffic. Assemblages of more than two persons and naviga-
tion were forbidden ; the sale of absinthe was strictly pro-
hibited.

The Chief of the General Staff, von Moltke, caused another
proclamation to be placarded about the town, the text of which
was as follows :

134

General Headquarters

PROCLAMATION

All the authorities of the French Government and the
municipality are hereby informed :

1. Every peaceable inhabitant will be able to pursue
his regiilar occupation in complete and undisturbed
security. Private property will be respected absolutely
by the German troops. Provisions of all kinds which
supply the needs of the German army, particularly
food, will be paid for in currency.

2. If, on the contrary, the population should dare in
any form whatsoever, whether open or secret, to take
part in hostilities against our troops, the most severe
punishments will be inflicted upon the culprits.

All firearms must be deposited forthwith at the town
hall. Any individual found bearing arms will be put
to death.

Whoever cuts or attempts to cut the telegraph or tele-
phone wires, or destroys the railways, bridges and high-
roads, or whoever commits any act whatsoever to the
detriment of the German troops, will be shot out of hand.

Those towns or villages whose inhabitants take part
in the fight against our troops, fire on our supplies and
transport columns, ambush any German soldiers, will
be burnt, and the guilty persons straightway shot.

The civil authorities alone are in a position to spare
the inhabitants the terrors and scourge of war. They
will be held responsible for the inevitable consequences
of any infringement of the present proclamation.

The Chief of the General Staff of the German army.

Von Moltke.

Finally, the Inspector of Lines of Communication issued a
third proclamation well adapted to reassure the population.
Let the reader judge for himself :

135

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

PROCLAMATION

The town of Charleville is now included in the army area.

I bring to the notice of the population the proclamations
of the Generals commanding the German troops, of which the
following are paragraphs i to 7.

1. The inhabitants are to abstain from any hostile
act against the German troops.

2. The inhabitants are bound to supply victuals and
fodder to our troops. Every transaction will be paid
for immediately in currency or by cheque, the payment
of which is guaranteed after the war.

3. The inhabitants are to lodge our soldiers and horses
as well as is possible and houses are to be illuminated
during the night.

4. The inhabitants are to keep the roads in good repair,
to remove all obstacles constructed by the enemy and,
as far as possible, to assist our troops in their doubly
difficult task in enemy territory.

5. It is forbidden to assemble in the streets, to ring
the bells or to get into touch with the enemy in any way.

6. All arms in possession of the inhabitants are to be
deposited at the town hall within two hours.

7. The mayor, the cure and four prominent citizens
of every town and village are to report to me forthwith
to serve as hostages during the stay of the troops. These
orders are still in force.

In addition I bring to public notice that every town
or village is responsible for all damage done to the roads
and means of communication within its boundaries.

For the special protection of the railways prominent
citizens will be carried on trains as hostages if necessary,
similarly some will be kept in very exposed positions.

Finally, I warn the population that all persons who
do not belong to the enemy troops — also the Government
officials of the enemy — will be punished with death if

136

General Headquarters

they undertake to succour the enemy or to injure German
troops. What applies to the German troops applies also
to all military persons and German employees.

I guarantee the lives and property of the inhabitants
if these conditions are fulfilled and if the conduct of the
population is loyal, but I shall make use of the most
rigorous measures against any transgression of my orders.

I desire the population to continue its habitual occupa-
tion as far as possible, and to do everything to guarantee
internal order.

26th August, 1 914.

Inspector of L. of C.

Moreover, the Controller requisitioned the following as long
as G.H.Q. or any portion of G.H.Q. is {sic) at Charleville,
at Mohon, or at Mezi^res, to be paid for by the town :

1. Billets.

2. Three bullocks, weighing on an average 500 kilos

daily. If possible 10 pigs also with an average
live weight of no kilos.

3. 24 cubic metres of firewood (or coal).

4. 200 litres of good cows' milk daily.

5. 350 litres of red wine in little barrels with taps daily,

and also one delivery of 25 bottles of Cognac.

This requisition took the place of the usual war levy which
was imposed every time German troops entered a neighbour-
hood. It cost the three towns about 1,200,000 francs.

Lieut. -Colonel von Hahnke was a friend of the Kaiser, one
of his intimates. His father. General von Hahnke, had been
Chief of the Military Cabinet and himself a boon companion
of the Kaiser. The Imperial favour ought to have procured
for him very speedy advancement, especially during the war.
He did not benefit by it, for he acquired his Colonel's rank
with great difficulty.

It must be admitted that he had a particular repugnance
for the front and that his masculine courage confined itself
to signing chits and notices, levying war contributions,

137

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

inflicting fines and issuing fishing permits. He had a difficult
manner, and deputed his adjutant, Captain Schnitzer, whom
we shall soon meet again at the head of the infamous Gazette
des Ardennes, to manage his interviews. He was scarcely
known except for his notices, which often reflected his lively
hatred of France. Thus in June, 1915, the municipality had
asked him to postpone for an hour during the summer months
the time when the inhabitants had to be within doors. His
reply, dated 7th June, 1915, was a refusal, and added :

The population must console itself by thinking of the
millions of our soldiers who have to undergo the hard-
ships of war, which have been imposed upon them by those
Governments which aimed at revenge and the annihila-
tion of Germany.

To be just, however, it must be admitted that, if he was some-
times cantankerous, he was often quite conciliatory in certain
delicate matters — the discovery of firearms, for instance,
made in the municipal buildings — which could have meant
heavy fines to the town. He was even quite reserved, and he
had told his officers never to allude to current events, and
never to try to wound the feelings of those Frenchmen who
presented themselves at the Kommandantur. They were
to confine themselves to the business in hand.

When the famous strategic retirement of 1917 obliged
the Germans to withdraw their defence behind the celebrated
Hindenburg line, Charleville, Mezieres and Mohon were
attached to the area of the First Army and the Inspector of
L. of C. from Valenciennes installed himself there.

The First Army had an unpleasant reputation even among
German officers and soldiers, who usually called it " the
army of thieves and bandits." What then must this band
of barbarians have been like when even its own brothers
considered it past master in the art of pillage and destruction.
The last traces of G.H.Q. disappeared with the arrival of
the Inspector of L. of C, and Lieut. -General von Heydebreck
came to exercise his nefarious function in the Ardennes. His
Chief of Staff was Colonel von Vireck, who seconded his General

138

General Headquarters

in worthy fashion. We then perceive that this reputation
had not been exaggerated. From the day when this In-
spector of L. of C. was installed at Charleville persecutions
and vexations multiplied, fines and sentences of imprisonment
rained like hail, and the inhabitants lived under a reign of
terror which did not cease until the arrival of Guillaumat's
army. All that remained in the way of wines, furniture
and works of art was systematically removed, and the French
population confirmed the verdict of the Germans, the First
Army was indeed an army of thieves and bandits. The
Kommandanturs of G.H.Q. and of L. of C. were combined
under the command of Count Arnim, member of the Prussian
Upper Chamber, brother of the President of the same Upper
House and of General Sixte Arnim, formerly Governor of
Strassburg and during the war Commander of the Fourth
Army on the Flanders front. He was also grand-nephew of
the Arnim who was German Ambassador at Paris after 1870,
the personal enemy of Bismarck and one of the signatories
of the fateful Treaty of Frankfurt.

At first he had been attached to the Kommandantur of G.H.Q. ,
where his duties had consisted principally of stealing wines.
We can affirm that he discharged this duty to the satisfaction
of his comrades. Personally Arnim was not a bad man, but
he had a horror of responsibilities and depended for the
direction of the Kommandantur on his adjutant, Lieutenant
Lohr, a little bank clerk from Brandenburg who was dazzled
by his own lieutenant's insignia. This Lohr was a regular
bully, whose only pleasure was to harass and persecute the
French, whom he would have liked to wipe out to a man.

He had a real influence on Arnim and was his evil genius.
Treating everybody in the lofty manner he did, this little
fellow of barely five feet in height possessed an unparalleled
arrogance and was only happy when he could insult France.
The only people who found favour with him were cowards
and merchants who made him numerous presents. When
he was at the Kommandantur of Nouzon he had redoubled his
extortions ; but the energetic protest of the Mayor, M. L(^on
Crepel, a courageous and worthy patriot, had got him removed
from thence, and the Inspector-General had placed him under

139

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

the Commandant of L. of C. at Charleville. He knew what
he was doing, for the wickedness of the one compensated for
the weakness of the other.

Arnim was a big landed proprietor, one of those Prussian
Junkers who had promoted the war. He manifested his hatred
of us by erecting in his dining-room as many Httle gibbets as
there were AUies in the Entente and in hanging from each
of these a doll dressed as a soldier of each nation.

Careless and idle by nature, he confined himself to the
signing of documents which he did not even read. Even this
formality became too great an effort for him and he had a
stamp made of his signature, which his departmental chiefs
used for all documents without submitting them to him.

Among the regulations which bear the signature : " Count
Arnim, Major and Kommandant," there are two which will
perpetuate his memory. These are two orders signed by him
giving precise instructions for the management of brothels,
and the work of the girls in them. They are drawn up in
terms which could not be surpassed for obscenity. It seems
to us useful to point this out, for to find the signature " Arnim "
on the Treaty of Frankfurt and on the walls of certain houses
and in the bedrooms of prostitutes is something distinctly
unusual.

Arnim passed the greater part of his day with his mistress,
a languid blonde whom a section of the inhabitants made
pay dearly for her aristocratic relations on the day of the
Armistice, and he devoted the rest of the day to riding either
on horseback or in his carriage. If he happened to come
to the Kommandantur and received the delegate of a munici-
pality, the Commandant was brought to earth ; he was spoken
to of a current event of which he then heard for the first time.

With Count Arnim we ought to bring to a close the list of
the Germans of mark whom it is necessary to know ; but we
think that it is also necessary to present to the public a simple
N.C.O. who seconded him admirably in his work of cleaning out.

It has already been stated that Dr. Appens was an inspector
of elementary schools at the time of mobilization and revealed
himself during the war to be a perfect housebreaker and
stripper of cellars and rooms. We wonder how his conscience

140

General Headquarters

as an inspector, charged with the development of moral
sentiments among school children, could reconcile itself
to this work of pillage.

Under the exterior of jovial good nature he was the falsest
being that one could meet. With his furtive but mobile look
behind his round spectacles, he never allowed any detail of any
place to escape him, and his prodigious memory recalled to him
after an interval of months the positions of insignificant objects
which had escaped the occupants themselves.

When at work he always adopted a contrite attitude, de-
ploring the task that he had been ordered to fulfil, and promising
to use his influence to get the Commandant to rescind a measure
which revolted his honest heart. The next day, however, he
would return broken-hearted, and, in spite of it all, despoiled
the unfortunate French.

He was well aware of the feelings that he left behind him
when he departed. As he was saying good-bye to one of his
victims, she asked him if he would come back again to Charle-
ville one day. " Impossible," he replied ; " I should want a
bridge of gold across the Meuse to pay for the devastation
that I have caused there." On that day he was frank for the
first time in his life !

The Kommandantur left Charleville on 8th November, 1918,
at four o'clock in the afternoon (German time). The golden
days of Arnim and of Lohr had come to an end. The last
news we had of them dates from 18th November, when they
were at Gerolstein, the country of Offenbach's carabineers.
The German revolution had been proclaimed and the Soldiers'
Council had torn from the two officers their epaulettes and
their cockade. They had received orders to act as connecting
link between the Workers' and Soldiers' Council and the troops,
and every day Major Count Arnim reported to the soldiers
and received instructions which he meekly transmitted.

What a humiliation for the arrogant nobleman !

The Count was overwhelmed ; he wept like a child, and his
lieutenant was no less angry. To crown his misfortune there
were no longer any French people that he could martyrize.

The people of Charleville were avenged.

141

CHAPTER XIII

THE SECRET FIELD POLICE

(Kaiser's Safety and Counter-espionage)

The terror of the invaded territories. — The instrument of G.H.Q. — An officer
turned policeman. — The enemy of Hansi. — The Grand Master of the
G.F.P. — Two bright specimens. — How Wolter was " had." — The cen-
sor.— The horror of the house-to-house search. — Policemen and camp
followers. — The merry story of an absinthe hoard. — The denouncer
denounced. — Police society. — Schwarzkoppen's valet. — A gipsy from
over the Rhine. — Rifles that don't fire. — A Parisienne " made in Ger-
many."— A woman decoy. — A nice family. — A good thoroughbred
pointer. — To protect Copusse. — A well-guarded Kaiser. — A trembling
bully. — Policemen everywhere, even in the hedgerows. — Nuns as
searchers. — They see a spy in every Frenchman. — War on aviators. — The
little baskets of pigeons. — Trained retrievers. — The Chemin des Dames
pigeons. — Preventing pigeons from doing their work. — Wireless and the
G.F.P. — Espionage in Belgium. — The usefulness of smugglers. — A
Governor- General confesses his impotence. — The sacrifice of the heroes. —
Espionage by repatriates. — Truth will always out.

THE moment the Kaiser arrived in Charleville, elegant
gentlemen clothed in the latest Berlin fashion made
their appearance in the streets, walking gravely up and down
and scrutinizing the passers-by with a profound and piercing
eye. This band of ruffians belonged to the German Secret
Police, which sowed terror throughout the occupied territories
during the occupation. Nobody was at all deceived as to
the abominable task they were about to begin.

The Geheime FeldpoUzei, as it was called, was a mighty force
in the hands of the General Sta.ff. Born policemen as the
Boches are, one could but expect them to introduce into their
military machinery an organization which would enable
them to penetrate into the remotest corners, to extort the

142

The Secret Field Police

most intimate secrets and to extract by threats and intimida-
tion any information that might be of service to the operations
of their armies.

The Geheime Feldpolizei (secret military police) arrived at
Charleville in the middle of September, 1914, when G.H.Q.
was being installed there. Down to the end of March, 1915,
its officers were accommodated in the Restaurant Holwec,
Place de la Gare, and were afterwards transferred to the
Avenue Mezieres.

The control of the Secret PoUce was in the hands of Police
Director Bauer, who was also a major in the reserve (Bavarian
army) and police commissioner at Strassburg before the war.
He was the son of a Munich head master, and after finishing
his studies there he performed his military service in order
to become an officer in the Bavarian army.

Some years afterwards he went to Alsace-Lorraine in 1887,
and entered the German police service. For some time he
acted as poUce commissioner at Metz and frontier commissioner
at Noveant. He was then made adviser to the Alsace-Lorraine
Ministry at Strassburg. In this capacity he was responsible
for the superintendence of persons suspected by the police,
especially those whose sentiments were supposed to be Franco-
phile.

He played a special part in the Hansi trial. During the
hearing he warned the Imperial Cotmcil against setting Hansi
at hberty, even on bail.

When the war broke out, Bauer was put at the head of the
secret military police at the German G.H.Q. In this capacity
he was also chief of the secret police in the whole western
theatre of war. Each army had its Feldpolizei under a chief
officer, who had a certain number of inspectors at his disposal.
When, at the end of June, 1917, the First Army, under Otto
von Below, who was to be succeeded the following year by
General von Mudra, was brought north into the Charleville
region, the criminal pohce of this army established itself
also at Charleville in a house in the Boulevard Gambetta.
It continued to work side by side with the G.H.Q. pohce.

As chief of the G.F.P., Bauer was under the orders of the
second commandant, Lieut. -Col. von Hahnke, who placed

143

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

full confidence in him. It was their mutual and constant
endeavour to compel the inhabitants to bow to the German
orders and regulations, by means of the heaviest possible fines
and imprisonments. In this connection they worked hand in
glove. Bauer was to propose the heaviest penalties. Von
Hahnke settled them, and was often compelled to moderate
the zeal of his over-impetuous collaborator.

The director of the infamous Gazette des Ardennes, who was
also adjutant to the assistant commandant, was equally in-
terested in the Secret Field Police. He frequently went
to Bauer's office to denounce various inhabitants who had the
honourable reputation of being hostile to the Germans or
suspected as spies.

The Bavarian major was execrated by the people. He took
a cruel pleasure in torturing particularly the women whom
he cross-examined, and liked to drive them to despair by
his persiflage and insulting raillery. Speaking French as he
did quite correctly, he thought he was being witty in the
French way. To assist him in his sinister task, he was sur-
rounded by a gang of rufiians animated by the same passion
for torture and all worthy supporters of such a chief.

In the van of those docile collaborators, who were prepared
for any infamy or any crime, we shall place the sub-chief of
the secret police. Commissioner Wolter. He was a bearded
man of medium height, with false and furtive eyes behind
his gold-rimmed glasses, and he never dared to look anybody
in the face. He was cautious and insinuating, and tried to
obtain by kindness and cunning the confession of his victims.
He was profuse in his greetings and excuses, but this did not
prevent him from pursuing his task with the savagery of a
barbarian.

As he was naturally slow-witted, it was easy to put Bauer's
adjutant out of countenance. For our own part (if we may
be pardoned this personal intervention), we often had the
pleasure of outwitting him every time he questioned us con-
cerning the orations made at the obsequies of wounded French
soldiers who had died at Charleville. We always ended by
persuading him that our speeches were not such as would
irritate German susceptibilities, and he would go away satisfied.

144

The Secret Field Police

Before he came to Charleville, Wolter, who was born in
Brandenburg, was a poUce officer in BerUn ; and in addition,
a captain in the reserve. His services were not always appre-
ciated as he desired, for he was sent to the front at the end of
1916, a fact which discomforted the brave captain exceedingly.
He returned some time later to take over the censorship
of letters. The reader can imagine how he discharged his
new duties.

In addition Bauer was assisted by five police commissioners
and about thirty inspectors. Although these belonged to
the inimitable Boche police, the majority of them were of a
somewhat doubtful morality. Some of them carried on
business and forced merchants to buy from them under penalty
of continual oppression. In his terror the wretched man
used to submit to the high-priced demands of the police agents
for the sake of his own peace of mind. But the submission
was not always effective. The G.F.P. agent would point out
his client to a colleague, who would hasten to search for and
discover this merchandise of German origin. Then followed
a serious fine, sometimes prison.

What a nightmare those searches were ! A cyclone could
scarcely cause more devastation. The inspector would arrive
at daybreak and enter, without knocking, even the rooms
of young girls. They would compel them to dress in their
presence. Nothing was respected. Private papers were
exposed to their unhealthy curiosity ; mattresses and pillows
were ripped open ; bedclothes and linen were hurled in dis-
order into a corner of the room. Generally the persons sub-
jected to these searches were taken to the lock-up, leaving
their houses to the mercy of the looters.

These searches were generally the result of denunciations.
But the informers, who received a reward as the price of their
treachery, did not always enjoy the fruits of their crime.
A typical anecdote will support our statement.

Some toady had given information concerning a hoard of
absinthe at a retailer's. The sale of this product was strictly
forbidden, and rigorously suppressed. A search was made
and the hoard discovered. The delinquent was punished with
confiscation and a fine of 1,500 marks. The police agent,

145 10

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

delighted with his find, thanked the informer and gave him
six bottles marked " Pernod " as a reward.

The agent had his own scheme. Scarcely had he got back
to the offices in the Avenue Mezieres than he pointed out the
informer to a comrade and told him of the present he had just
made. " The price is 30 marks at the moment," he said.
" He will hasten to sell his stock. I cannot with any decency
catch him at fault, since he has done me a service. Get on
his track, you cannot help taking him by surprise. You will
draw the premium and we shall share it."

The second inspector went off at once, caught the defrauder
in -flagranti delicto, and the latter found himself fined 1,500
marks.

The sale of absinthe was a source of revenue for the Boche
police agents, who, aided by the N.C.O. Appens, the looter
of cellars, sold it usually at 20 francs in French gold or 30
marks in German paper money.

And they found customers.

But this was by no means the limit to the dirty work of the
secret agents. They frequented dubious establishments and
low cabarets, they mixed with the scum of the population,
and particularly with evil women. Some of them even gained
a living by prostitution, and one of them who made himself
too conspicuous was removed to another post : his name
was Kramm. He had been engaged in German espionage at
Nancy, where he knew the mistress of a corporal in a regiment
and had asked her to get him a French machine-gun.

We could not mention all Bauer's collaborators, for they are
too many. We shall content ourselves with pointing out the
principal inspectors at the G.F.P. First among these we must
place Inspector Funck, who was considered one of the best
sleuths in the German police, and his colleagues, Longfils,
Schlaf and Hemkehr. They spoke French and English pretty
fluently, for all of them had had employment in France and
England before the war.

Funck, who was punctilious enough, had a certain respect
for himself. His method was wholly that of intimidation.
He was always polite, but his utterances were brief and incisive.
Pitiless when he discovered his proofs, he did not seek, how-

146

The Secret Field Police

ever (let us be impartial) , to incriminate innocent persons when
he was convinced of their innocence.

Funck lived in France for a long time before the war, and
for some years in Paris, where he was valet to the German
military attache, Schwarzkoppen.

Longfils, who spoke French with a slight Belgian accent,
had also lived in France. He belonged to that band of spies
from which were recruited those pseudo-gipsy orchestras
which infested the cafes of big towns. He had a very good
opinion of himself, and had some unlucky adventures which
forced his chiefs to send him to Belgium.

He wanted to make out the discovery of some firemen's
guns in a public building to be a grave conspiracy against the
safety of the Germans. But the good faith of the towns-
people was recognized. This failure to secure a verdict did
not suit Longfils, who was bent on finding a store of arms
at any cost. The first time he unearthed some guns in the
drill-room for military training : they belonged to a school
cadet corps and were harmless toys. The second time, he
tried to pass off as rifles some old flint-locks without hammer
or breech, which were used by the supers in touring companies.

The laughter of the inhabitants won over the German police,
and, as a reward for his exploits, this smart agent was sent
to watch the Dutch frontier.

The two other inspectors, Schlaf and Hemkehr, had also had
positions in England and France, where they had been waiters.

Finally, the Secret Field Police made use of women. The
most notorious of these is Marie-Louise Gamier, who was born
in Mulhouse, and hved at Freiburg in Breisgau. It was her
mission to call upon marked women. She carried out her
duties, of which she was very proud, chiefly on the occasions
of the departure of a repatriation train.

Marie-Louise Gamier was Bauer's evil spirit. She was short,
thick-set, coarse-featured, and her dress consisted of costumes
which she had partly stolen from French houses, and which
she wore very badly. She was anxious to make herself indis-
pensable to a certain group of Staff officers and police officials,
whom she introduced to pleasant feminine acquaintances.

She would try to start a conversation and perform little

147 10*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

services in order to make her way into French families, with
whom she always stressed her Alsatian origin. She had prac-
tised spying in France before the war, and had even been in our
country during the course of hostilities. Before she officially
joined the German police at Charleville, she played the role of
a decoy in civil prisons, in order to worm out the secrets of
those who were accused of being in intelligence with the enemy.

She certainly had claims on Bauer's confidence, and her
antecedents opened wide the doors of the Field Police to her.
For she had already been sentenced by German tribunals for
misdemeanour. Her family were birds of the same feather.
Her brother-in-law, who lived at Miihlhausen under the eyes
of the high police, had been barred from the Kaiser's army
for having spent several years in the cells.

Her nephew, a young hooHgan of fifteen years, whom she had
taken with her, did not disgrace his family. He had a good
example before him. Dismissed for theft by his employer, a
Freiburg dentist, he had had to be sent away from Spa on ac-
count of further pilferings, on the complaints of G.H.Q. officers.

This strange policewoman was noted for robbing the
women who were authorized to return to France. She was
convicted of robbing a set of furs from the repatriation train
leaving on i8th December, 1918, and, to her shame — short-
lived though that was — she was obliged to restore them.
When, in February, 1917, G.H.Q. was transferred from
Charleville to Kreuznach, Bauer remained with his employes
at Charleville. He only left in March, 1918, when Headquarters
moved to Spa. Here he remained till the conclusion of the
Armistice.

It was imperative that the personnel of the secret police
should be specially chosen throughout, for it had to watch
over the most sacred interests of the Empire : the Kaiser,
his son and G.H.Q.

The sacred person of the sovereign was well protected.
A distinct administration, pubHc and secret, under the direc-
tion of a Justiz-Geheimrat (Councillor of Justice) , constituted a
special service, feared as much as en%ded, since the slightest
relaxation from vigilance might have the most grave conse-
quences.

148

The Secret Field Police

As the name indicates, the service for the Personal Safety
of the Kaiser {Der Sicherheitsdienst beim Kaiser) had the duty
of preventing any criminal assaults on the life or person of
William II, The Emperor's apartments were surrounded
day and night by police officers, and in the immediate neigh-
bourhood of the Imperial Palace policemen were constantly
on picket-duty.

While the Emperor occupied the residence of M. Georges
Comeau at Charleville, the police mounted guard at the Place
de la Gare, Cours d'Orldans, Rue Daux and Avenue de la Gare.
Sentries belonging to his guard paced up and down the square
in order to prevent any traffic in this public thoroughfare, which
was reserved by order for his Majesty the King of Prussia.

Later, when the Kaiser stayed at the Villa Renaudin, at
Belair, the police were stationed at different points of the
chateau. If the Emperor went outside for a drive in his
car, or, more rarely, for a walk in town, poUce inspectors guarded
the streets and street-comers. In fine weather, when the
monarch went riding on horseback at seven in the morning,
the police preceded and followed the cavalcade, and occupied
all the immediate surroundings, for fear of an attack. Very
often, in order to make the watch still stricter, the residences
surrounding the Imperial Palace were searched in turn from
the attics to the cellars by the secret police, which called in
the engineers to explore the basements and look for explosive
matter — whence the origin of the rumours regarding attempts
on the Kaiser's life.

In the immediate entourage of the Kaiser was a special body
of police which used to be at his side even before the war. It was
called the poUtical police, and consisted of Police Commissioner
Kuntze and three inspectors. It lived in the Imperial chateau,
and performed its duties in the apartments of the King of
Prussia, in the gardens and adjoining estates. In order to
forestall any attempts on the Attila of modern times, his
political police inspected in detail his lodging and his personal
apartments twice a day. The same precautions were taken
before he got up, and after he had gone to bed at night. WTien
the Emperor visited the front, or went to Russia, Vienna,
Sofia or Constantinople, the political police always had to

I49_

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

accompany him. It also moved from Spa to Holland, when he
fled from his G.H.Q. on the evening of 9th November, 1918.
His Adjutant-General, Excellenz von Plessen, the chief of
his military cabinet, sent Bauer, the Director of the Secret
Police, once a week, and the latter reported to him the measures
taken by the police to ensure the personal safety of the Kaiser.
Bauer was persona grata with William, for he was frequently
invited to his table, where the Chief of the G.F.P. had to inform
the Emperor about French espionage.

This bully, whose conquering moustachios pointed heaven-
wards, was a coward. So he never neglected any measure for
the protection of his august person, and he professed a sincere
affection for the police. Above all, he dreaded the avenging
act of a champion of justice, and he trusted to the police to
ward off his arm.

It was not sufficient for the Field Police to watch the imme-
diate neighbourhood of Caesar ; it was of the highest impor-
tance that the environs of G.H.Q. should be guarded, and that
an eye should be kept on all strangers who were permitted to
enter the towns of Charleville, Mezieres and Mohon. Conse-
quently the severest measures were decided upon with regard
to the inhabitants of the district.

All French people of the occupied territories who came in
from outside the G.H.Q, area had to possess a passport which
was originally issued by the Assistant Commandant, and later,
when G.H.Q. had moved to Kreuznach, by the O.C, L, of C,
after favourable reports had been given by the Inspector,
L, of C, for a removal from one army area to another, and from
the Governor-General of Belgium for crossing the frontier.

Besides this, every inhabitant of more than twelve years of
age had to be in possession of an identity card. After the
Pauline Jacquemin affair, a grave case of espionage which cost
several brave patriots their lives, a strict control was established
by the secret police upon movements to the G.H.Q, area, and
in its environs. There were police agents at all the most fre-
quented points of the three towns, applying this control with
the utmost rigour — in the market square, on all the Meuse
bridges, in the neighbourhood of the Prefecture, where the
General Staff was quartered, and at other points. Anybody

150

The Secret Field Police

arrested coming from outside the area who had no passport
was searched and incarcerated forthwith. Anybody who had
forgotten to bring his identity card was fined forty marks and
given twelve days' imprisonment by the Assistant Com-
mandant and the O.C, L. of C. This control by means of
identity cards was executed with amazing zeal by the police
agents, for they drew a premium on every fine that they realized.
The control of the entrance to the town was ensured with the
same rigour. There were sentinels at every exit to verify the
permits. Not only did they mount guard in the streets and
at the exits, but the personal safety police encircled the town
with patrols which hid in the fields and woods to catch people
who were not armed with passports. Smugglers coming from
Belgium often fell into the hands of the police, as well as women
and children coming for provisions. The goods purchased by
these poor people with their little hard-earned money were
confiscated and never returned. In addition they had to pay
the fine which was inflicted on them, regardless of the term of
imprisonment that they had to serve.

A police patrol was kept day and night at Charleville station
for the purpose of verifying the papers of all persons alighting
there and of searching them in the hope of discovering suspicious
objects. These searches were more than intimate, for the
victims were compelled to take off all their clothes to go through
them. At first nuns were given this unpleasant task with the
women, and later the female police agent, Marie-Louise Garnier.

The spy organization working on behalf of the French and
British General Staffs in the occupied territories of Belgium and
Northern France was a source of great worry to the secret
police. The police agents, always apprehensive, saw a spy in
pretty nearly every Frenchman or Belgian, especially when a
German attack came to grief at some point on the front. The
various spy services, particularly those carried on during this
war, were known to a certain number of inhabitants in the
occupied district. They heard talk of aviators, who were
landed for the execution of perilous missions. Many good
patriots, who had stayed behind in the invaded regions, helped
these aviators, and gave them every possible assistance, regard-
less of the great danger to which they were exposed. Similarly,

151

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

the French of the invaded districts were well aware that in
spite of the strict watch and the closing of the Dutch-Belgian
frontier, brave citizens sent by the General Staff had succeeded
in passing from Holland into Belgium and the occupied terri-
tory of France, and in executing dangerous missions in the
interests of the Allied Armies.

In spite of the vigilance of the secret police, a number of
homing pigeons came into the hands of Frenchmen, who were
conscious of their duty, and these were sent back to France,
bearing with them extremely valuable information. These
pigeons, placed in little baskets, had been dropped, by means
of parachutes, by French aviators. The secret police waged
continuous warfare against this form of espionage, and tried
to prevent it by all the means in their power. It arranged
matters so that passports were given only in exceptional cases,
so as to prevent the transmission of news from one locality to
another. It held the Franco-Belgian frontier rigorously
watched, and Belgian territory was placed strictly out of
bounds. By this move, the German police intended to prevent
the spy systems working in Belgium from having access to those
parts of France in German possession. Violent attacks were
also made upon travelling pigeons, for fear that the inhabitants
were sending military information by letter.

Correspondence with the interior of the invaded territory
for Belgium or uninvaded France was strictly forbidden. The
writing and transmitting of a letter, even if it only contained
private and harmless information, and bore no relation at all
to military events, was mercilessly punished. More often
than not it was German soldiers who acted as the go-betweens
in these prohibited correspondences.

In order to take aviators by surprise, the G.F.P., by means
of sentries and patrols, kept under continual observation any
high ground which could be used as a landing-place for aerial
passengers. So great was the general fear of being unable to
prevent our intrepid agents from fulfilling their missions !
In order to prevent the inliabitants from finding and utilizing
the winged messengers, the German police used special dogs,
which were trained to seek out these graceful birds. Police
agents kept these dogs scouting the sectors which they had to

152

The Secret Field Police

watch, whenever it was thought that the aviators had been
dropping pigeons. In spite of this, however, many inhabitants
succeeded in getting hold of a large number of these birds, and
in sending very important information to France.

Unhappily some which were carrying messages strayed in
their flight, owing to fatigue or other causes, and fell into
German hands.

Here is an example. At the end of March, 1918, a pigeon
was found in the Hirson lines in a state of complete exhaustion ;
an ampulla attached to its leg contained information of the
highest value. The message gave details of the transference
of German troops towards the Chemin des Dames. The poor
bird was released a few days before the Chemin des Dames
offensive by a good patriot of La Capelle (Aisne). The German
police were overcome with rage when they obtained possession
of the pigeon and its document. The culprit was closely sought
for, and the police would have had the greatest pleasure in
putting him against a wall and shooting him. They were not
successful.

After this discovery, the German military authorities pla-
carded the walls with notices which indicated the methods
employed by the French Staff to obtain information. It was
also stated that the German General Staff intended to sub-
stitute German homing pigeons for those dropped by aeroplane.

The Boche police wanted to frighten the population of the
invaded territories by these warnings, and indeed these methods
were applied. But since they were not successful, big rewards
were promised those persons who found feathered messengers
and handed them over to the German authorities. Sad to
relate, some wretches preferred to obey these summons rather
than be of service to their country.

Some news was still transmitted to iminvaded France by
wireless telegraphy. Various installations existed from before
the war. During the occupation these apparatus were con-
scientiously used by those inhabitants who had remained
behind.

Moreover, agents landed by aviators brought wireless ap-
paratus for certain persons who were deserving of confidence
and able to send information to France. The secret police

153

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

were not very successful in their searches, although they
imagined installations to exist in every locality. Whole
communes were searched from top to bottom, but the G.F.P.
only succeeded once in discovering an installation in the North
of France.

In Belgium the ground was much more favourable for
carrying on espionage than in the occupied region of France.
The Belgians did not require passports, and thus possessed
a great advantage over us when they moved about ; their
identity card was sufficient. To this was added the neighbour-
hood of the Dutch frontier, and of course news passed more
quickly from Belgium into Holland than from occupied France.
With freedom of access and the possibility of travelling at
liberty, the information services were able to exist more easily
and to do more useful work.

It is well known that Holland has not got the same espionage
law as Switzerland ; consequently the French, English and
Belgian organization had a good chance. Their main effort was
to collect information on all events of a military nature happen-
ing in Belgium and to turn it to account. To this end the
Intelligence Services established organizations with very reliable
agents, whose work was to watch the movements of troops and
to get information concerning military dispositions. The
organizations at work in Belgium got into touch with Holland
by means of persons who were particularly skilful in crossing
the Belgo-Dutch frontier. For the most part these were
smugglers who knew the devious routes in the frontier zone.
They acted as couriers between Belgium and Holland and
vice versa. Very often they connived with the frontier guards
to get through, for the latter are always easy to bribe with
victuals and money.

The spy organizations in Belgium worked excellently.
General von Falkenhausen, Governor-General of Belgium,
successor to the famous von Bissing, himself admitted it. He
declared to some neutral journalists at the end of 1917 that
he had suffered a great deal from the spying carried on in
occupied Belgium.

Numerous agencies were discovered, either entirely or in
part. In spite of the many death penalties or terms of im-

154

The Secret Field Police

prisonment imposed on a certain number of Belgian and
French patriots, it may be said that the German police, taking
all in all, only put out of action a very small number com-
pared with the organizations which existed. The G.F.P.
owed the bulk of its success to treachery.

It frequently happened, too, that a courier was stopped on
the frontier. On him was found hidden confidential informa-
tion, which led to the discovery of a certain number of indi-
viduals. But the brave Belgians did not allow themselves
to be dismayed by the numerous death penalties executed in
their country, and if the German police did succeed in finding
out some spy systems, these latter were immediately replaced
by others.

One more terror of the Boche police ! Those persons who were
being repatriated by special trains also constituted a serious
danger from the point of view of transmission of information.

The German police was always opposed on principle to
repatriation, and on several occasions made representations
to the higher military authority regarding this matter.
Through these trains the police chiefly feared espionage, and
the circulation of news concerning the bad treatment meted
out to the French of the occupied areas. But the High Com-
mand could not grant this request, for it was of the highest
importance to get rid of as many persons as possible, in the
interests of the provisioning of the city.

Those persons whom the German police suspected of espion-
age, or who had made themselves prominent by their patriotism
or their hostility to the invader, were mercilessly struck off
the list of repatriates.

Luggage was ransacked. After the luggage came the search
of person, carried out by police agents and police women.
Children, as well, were subjected to this painful formality.
Those persons who had been searched were completely
separated from their compatriots ; they were shut up in a place
where they were closely watched. They were not even allowed
to see their family again.

And yet, in spite of these unheard-of precautions, the truth
filtered through, and our Intelligence Department was always
in possession of exact and timely information.

155

CHAPTER XIV

THE FIGHT AGAINST PATRIOTISM

Patriotism prohibited. — The French colours taboo. — An owner of the Medal
of Honour who does honour to his ribbon. — A patriotic clergy ; war on
the cures. — The " Poilu in a cassock." — Unfavourable conditions. — The
funerals of French soldiers. — Germany afraid. — A funeral procession
reduced to its simplest terms. — July 14th in the occupied regions. —
The French flag waves in the air. — A costly joke. — It is forbidden to read
or write. — How to obtain French newspapers. — The population regis-
tered.— To avoid the Boches. — Useless vengeance. — The hunt for French
soldiers. — The Military Police. — Rivals of the G.F.P. camp followers. —
Tracking down deserters. — Stadt Wache (The Town Guard). — "Big
Boys' " Police. — Traitors to their own country. — Honour to good women.
— The women clients of Wezel, the dandy. — A professor of moral studies.
— 'The pavilion. — The ladies of these gentlemen. — Agents for German
safety. — The motives for their treachery. — Patriots with false noses. —
The G.F.P. prison. — Dangerous decoys. — Looking for soldiers. — " Where
are the arms ? " — Too mild a punishment. — Involuntary informers. — The
thirty pieces of silver of Judas. — Anonymous treachery. — To point out
traitors is not to denounce. — Honest folk want to be avenged.

THE Secret Field Police was convinced that the French
army was in constant communication with the inhabi-
tants of the occupied regions, and obtained important informa-
tion from them. It was therefore its duty to keep a sharp
look-out for clues and try and destroy an intelligence system
so detrimental to the plans of the Staff.

The G.F.P. watched the population not only for counter-
spying, but also for acts which were calculated to raise the
moral of the natives. It was strictly forbidden to meddle in
national matters, which would maintain amongst the French
the hope and confidence which had never failed them, even
under the most critical circumstances. The G.F.P. had pro-

156

The Fight against Patriotism

hibited the wearing of the tricolour, and even tried to take
away the red, white and blue ribbon from those who had
received civilian decorations. One of the members of the

Municipal Council of Charleville, M. J , although called

upon twice to remove his decoration, energetically refused to
obey such an order, even under threat of prison. Knowing
himself supported by law, he filed a protest with PoUce Head-
quarters and the Kommandantur , stressing the fact that the
wearing of these ribbons was authorized not only in France,
but also by the Chancellories of foreign nations, amongst others,
of Germany, which was not harsh about this, even in Alsace-
Lorraine. M. J gained his point, and the police were

reluctantly obliged to tolerate the sight of the prohibited
colours.

The resident clergy, worthy rivals of the Belgian cur^s,
formed the object of an uneasy surveillance by the spies of
the Boche Secret Service. All the priests fostered the cult of
patriotism and faith in ultimate victory amongst their parish-
ioners. We should like to mention in especial, out of this fine
body of ecclesiastics, the name of Abbe Bih^ry, vicar-in-chief
at Charleville, whose passionate sermons won from him the
honourable title of " the Poilu in a cassock."

The police did not miss a single word from the lips of the
preachers, and their slightest actions formed the subject of
exhaustive investigations ; on all Sundays and holidays, the
churches in Charleville, M6zieres and Mohon, as well as in the
towns which possessed the unenviable privilege of a German
police, were watched by Inspectors. But although they spoke
French fairly well, their dull and heavy wits generally failed
to grasp the subtleties and spirit of the language.

That is why, if a preacher uttered a single word which in
German eyes was calculated to stir up the feelings or rouse the
patriotism of his congregation, he was very severely punished.

There was another kind of ceremony which used to perturb
the police, namely, the funeral of French or Allied soldiers.
A certain number of these brave fellows had died in hospital
and were buried in the cemetery at Charleville, in a plot
specially reserved for our heroes.

At the beginning of the occupation, the bodies were handed

157

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

over to the civil authorities, who celebrated their obsequies
with due solemnity. A flag in the national colours was laid
upon the coffin ; the fire-brigade, in uniform, but without arms,
paid military honours in the name of the French army. The
municipality was officially represented, and in its train marched
a long procession of patriots. The hearse was buried beneath
flowers and wreaths tied with tricolour ribbons.

At the graveside, the head of the municipal council spoke
a few words of farewell, impregnated with a lofty spirit of
patriotism.

Germany was in danger ! First of all, one of Bauer's agents
was sent to the cemetery to eavesdrop on the speeches and
conversations. Next came an order to remove the flags and
national colours of " the enemy." Then the procession was
limited to fifty persons, and finally, as the result of an incident
created on 5th April, 1918, by a pastor who celebrated the
obsequies half an hour before the time fixed by the Kommand-
antur (an incident which provoked a protest on our own part,
and cost us seven days in prison at the Charleville Detention
House), the population was forbidden to take any part what-
ever in these obsequies. Only a delegation from the municipal
council, composed of three members, was admitted to the
cemetery.

These regulations lasted till loth November, 1918, when
Charleville was finally liberated, and, without constraint or
spies, but under the shells of a bombardment, was able to bury
two brave young poilus who had been mortally wounded at
the crossing of the Aisne.

The celebration of the National Holiday of July 14th was
another day of agony for the Boches. It was announced on
posters with a marginal note " National Holiday of July 14th,"
and was celebrated by a service in memory of the soldiers who
had fallen for their country during the war of 1914-1918.
In order to seize on prohibited phrases and prevent patriotic
addresses, numbers of police agents made their way to the little
church, which was too small to accommodate the citizens
of political parties and creeds who wished to attend. Agents
walked about in the streets so as to prevent the slightest French
demonstration in the city and in the cemetery, and so as to

158

The Fight against Patriotism

arrest anyone wearing red, white and blue badges. In spite
of their vigilance, they did not prevent a majestic French
flag from floating gaily over the artillery barracks on 14th July,
1 91 8, a symbol and harbinger of the unsuccessful German
offensive in Champagne and of the great liberating victory of
Foch, Gouraud and Mangin. This httle joke cost the town
30,000 marks.

The reader will not be surprised to learn that political
meetings were strictly forbidden.

The G.F.P. devoted special attention to preventing news
from unoccupied France from filtering into the invaded dis-
tricts. That is the chief reason why we could not obtain French
newspapers and pamphlets dropped by aviators. From time
to time the German authorities put up posters ordering the
inhabitants to hand over all papers and pamphlets dropped by
aviators or balloons, under penalty of a fine or imprisonment.
A monetary reward was paid to any person bringing in propa-
ganda sheets. Further, anyone who received correspondence
otherwise than through authorized channels and by means of
prisoners of war, or anyone who was found in possession of
letters, French newspapers or pamphlets, was prosecuted for
espionage, and sentenced to severe penalties of imprisonment
or confinement.

All these barbarous measures did not prevent many inhabi-
tants from receiving letters from Holland or obtaining French
newspapers. It often happened that soldiers would steal
newspapers from their ofiicers and gave them to civilians in
return for a tip or gift of food.

Even the infamous Gazette des Ardennes did not escape
the common fate of numerous French journals, but it was
chiefly L' Echo de Paris, L Homme Libre, Le Temps, Le Matin,
Le Journal and La Victoire which used to disappear each day,
down to the very last days of the occupation. They were all
fairly recent issues, rarely more than four or five days old.
What delight when we succeeded in getting a copy !

Men of military age were placed under the special control
of the German police. An employment book, which contained
the name, address and occupation of the individual in question,
together with a deposition from his employer regarding the

159

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

nature of his work, was given to every man between the ages
of seventeen and forty-eight, whether Hable to miHtary service
or not. In addition, he had a red identity card instead of the
white one which was given to women, to children between
twelve and sixteen years of age, and to men above forty-
eight. Men liable for mobilization were obliged to work,
and had to appear once a month before the secret police
with their employment book. Whoever failed to comply
with their orders and with the orders of the Employment
Bureau [Arbeitamt] — an annexe of the secret police — was
sentenced to a heavy fine. In addition, he was sent to a
disciplinary battalion and forced to do hard labour.

Many young men, brought up in French traditions, with a
sense of duty, could not accept such a situation. They pre-
ferred to make for the Dutch-Belgian frontier, try and outwit
the vigilance of the sentries, and reach France in order to
serve their country to some purpose.

Some of them were arrested on the way by patrols, police-
men or detectives, or were betrayed to the enemy through the
treachery of certain guides. These young men were deported
to Germany and interned in a civilian prison camp. However,
many of their comrades succeeded in their efforts, in spite of
the bullets of the guards and the electrified barbed wire on
the frontier.

The Field Police always tried to prevent the departure of
young men liable for military service. To this effect, in-
structions to report were published, and every head of a family
was obliged to announce the departure or absence of a mobiliz-
able relative within twelve hours. Needless to say, fathers
and mothers preferred to undergo the severities of German
justice rather than betray their children.

As a matter of fact, whenever a young man succeeded in
passing over to Holland, the G.F.P. took vengeance on his
family. As a general rule, the father was sentenced to a fine
of 100 marks or 30 days' imprisonment. In addition, all
the members of the family were placed under the strict sur-
veillance of the Police of Safety. This organization also
hunted down a number of French soldiers who had lost touch
with their units in the early fighting of 19 14, and had remained

160

The Fight against Patriotism

behind the German lines. Any French soldier caught in
civilian clothes in occupied territory was liable to the death
penalty, or at the very least to a long term of imprisonment.

A certain number of inhabitants who had concealed soldiers
and given them food and lodging were either condemned to
death or deported to Germany and sentenced to long years
of hard labour. An eloquent proof of this may be found in
the Tocqu6 affair.

In conjunction with the secret police at Headquarters and
the criminal police of the army, was a similar service whose
object was purely disciplinary.

The military police [Militdr Polizei) was attached to the
Kommandantur and had to enforce all orders issued by the
Commandant or his Adjutant. These officers had to be kept
posted about affairs in the three towns by the lieutenant who
was chief of the military police.

The military police consisted of two branches : the military
police proper and the street police.

The duty of the military police was to follow up all criminal
actions committed by both soldiers and civilians, except
crimes and offences against the common law committed by
French civilians against their fellows, which came within
the sphere of the municipal police.

It took over the duties of the secret police when the latter
left again for Spa.

Finally, the chief task of the military police was to seek out
German deserters, who swarmed in the three towns. This was
no small task, for each new offensive by Ludendorff brought
back a mass of Field-Greys who objected to returning to
the front. The prospect of several years in prison was vastly
more attractive to them.

At the same time the chief of the military police was in charge
of the detention houses in Charleville and Mezi^res, and of
the military prisons specially established for the innumerable
deserters of the Kaiser's armies.

The street police consisted of soldiers of the Landsturm,
whose function was indicated by a red, white and black bras-
sard. It was known as the Stadt Wache, which the malicious
citizens of Charleville translated by a bovine word used in

i6l IX

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

a rather more parliamentary manner by M. Clemenceau,
when he called his subordinates a crowd of ladylike helpers.
The good folk of the Ardennes were not as polite as the Tiger.

The Belair quarter had a special guard which belonged to
the Crown Prince's police, and was independent of the G.F.P.
It was composed of three inspectors of the Berlin police, who
were attached to his person from pre-war days. One of them
is already well-known to the readers, Klein the criminal, who
always wore a green suit and a hat of the same colour. He
invariably used to follow his master's automobile on a bicycle
and his duty was to fill the Crown Prince's harem.

Prince William's police was not under the direction of Bauer.
It was under the orders of Major von Miiller, and was stationed
near the chateau, whose grounds it patrolled day and night.

The G.F.P. was admirably equipped for the terrible task
it had assumed. The life and liberty of the citizens were in
its hands, and it took advantage of its unlimited arbitrary
powers as it desired. But if it had been acting only on its
own resources, it would often have found itself powerless to
discover matters which made it invaluable to the High
Command. If all French people had been able to hold their
tongues, how many heroes who perished by the bullets of a
firing squad would still be alive.

Unhappily it is our sad duty to record the fact that the
police was assisted in its evil machinations by some scoundrels
who did not hesitate to work against their own country in
the hope of appeasing feelings of personal hatred or selling
their compatriots, and even their friends and relations, for
some filthy lucre. This category includes evil-living women
and informers.

If we are to do justice to those brave people who resisted
the enemy in every way, we have the shameful duty all the
same to indicate certain acts of defection, which will for ever
dishonour those who performed them.

Although mothers of families that were short of everything
had their hearts torn by the hungry cries of their children,
but yet remained true to their honour ; other women did not
possess this feeling of honour in an equal degree and abandoned
themselves to the worst of debauches with the enemy. We

162

The Fight against Patriotism

believe that we should not keep silent on this point, so as
to render homage to those who remained worthy of their
country. We shall brand the one type to do homage to the
other. Let us acknowledge, nevertheless, that they were
in the minority, and that these vile women do not stain the
reputation of the invaded regions of France. For this reason
the German police established a special civil police during the
occupation, not to check prostitution — it was too serviceable
to the G.F.P. and was encouraged — but to control it in the
interests of the army. The victims had to report to the Ger-
man police and give the name of the woman they suspected.

The civil police was controlled by Inspector Eugene Schott,
formerly a police officer in Cologne ; he was an inveterate
drunkard, who in the morning never neglected any of the
duties of the perfect Catholic and in the evening liked to pursue
moral studies with his female clients.

The women who frequented the circles of the officers and
the police formed a different category. But this high favour
did not exempt them from the little formality with Dr. Wezel.
They were received by the Kaiser's dandy friend in a different
room from those of the hospital.

These abominable creatures fulfilled a double purpose.
In the first place they responded favourably to the advances
of all grades of Boches, but they also supplied useful informa-
tion about their compatriots either to their friends of the
moment or their policemen lovers.

To some extent, therefore, they can be catalogued among
the informers.

The Tocqu6 affair produced some startling revelations
concerning the way in which informers worked in the occupied
territory. The G.F.P. was able to establish most opportunely
a system of treachery which rendered the greatest service.
It had at its disposal a number of French spies which it could
not have done without. It had special funds with which to
pay them. These informers were called agenls for the secret
police.

In most cases these informers, urged by a revolting cupidity,
volunteered their services to the German police. Others,
spurred on by necessity, abandoned themselves to this

163 XX*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

repugnant employment in the hope of securing a more agreeable
existence or of enjoying certain advantages which were denied
their fellow citizens. Lastly, a third category of scoundrels
" sneaked " from a desire for revenge or else out of spite
at having been punished for some misdemeanour whilst a
neighbour or a more favoured rival had gone scot-free. This
is the explanation of the innumerable arrests of young people
who had been hidden and who were afterwards sent into Ger-
many as civilian prisoners of war, or into disciplinary battalions.

The miserable wretches who served as " agents " for the
police were given their jobs according to their capabilities
and their ability to execute them.

The most skilful agents were used in the counter-espionage
service. They had to get into touch with those inhabitants
who were suspected of espionage or of patriotic propaganda,
or give assistance to the young men who tried to escape the
exigencies of the German Kommandantur by taking to flight.
They would win their confidence by a display of false senti-
ments and offer to act as guides to the frontier, to find travelling
companions for them, or even to get letters from certain persons
delivered to their families in uninvaded France, and to secure
replies from the latter. Now and again they would pose as
French soldiers who had stayed behind the enemy's lines or
as agents from the Allied Staffs.

Others were given facilities for going to Holland in order
to get into touch with the Entente intelligence services by
representing themselves as agents at the disposal of the spy
organizations. These traitors often succeeded in their wicked
occupation, and this Franco-Belgian branch of the German
police led to the discovery of organizations in occupied France
and in Belgium.

Another method of procuring information secured results
through the agency of decoys. This species of informer con-
sisted of " agents " in the pay of the police, who worked in the
civil prisons. They were locked up, not to work off a sentence,
but to make their fellow-prisoners " talk." In the cells they
would spy upon prisoners undergoing cross-examination,
particularly those who refused to confess or betray their accom-
plices.

164

The Fight against Patriotism

The decoys would represent themselves to be the victims
of Boche injustice or barbarity, and would boast of their own
patriotic deeds or pretend to be emissaries of the Allied counter-
espionage service. Some people turned a kindly ear to the
lying talk of their prison companions, and allowed themselves
to be drawn into confidences or confessions which would be
immediately conveyed to the counsellor of justice, reporter
to the court-martial. The latter would put them through a
close interrogation crammed with facts and details ; if neces-
sary, it would confront the victim with the informer, and in the
end the former would fall into the trap, dragging down other
accomplices in his fall.

The G.F.P. also made use of another category of agents who
had quite a special duty of their own. This was to find French
soldiers who had hidden in the woods on the frontier and in the
farms and villages. Their method of work was quite different.
They posed as members of the French army in a similar fix,
and would go among the inhabitants, taking advantage of
their patriotism and generosity. Then when they knew the
hiding-places, they would inform the German police, who came
up at once. Richard, the murderer of M. Jacquet at Lille ;
the denouncers of Dr. Freal at Chaumont-Porcien ; the Tocque
band in the Aisne and the Ardennes, were thus the precious
assistants of the Kaiser's executioners.

These spies also tried to find out the possessors of firearms
and munitions. They had to keep themselves informed as to
the mentality of the inhabitants, and they would try and pro-
cure French newspapers in order to discover by what means
people obtained possession of them and through whose hands
they had passed.

Side by side with these criminals, for whom the gallows would
be too mild a punishment, there must be placed those involun-
tary informers who by their heedless chatter, which was
devoured by interested ears, or from fear of punishment or
prison, which was aggravated by the threats of a clever inquisi-
tor, were drawn into making disclosures and so betrayed their
friends.

With what money were these Judases paid ? It is well
known that the German budget has always devoted wild sums

165

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

to the Secret Service funds, which are exempted from fiscal
control. The Kaiser was the sole master of them, and disposed
of them as he wished, to maintain the army of spies which
poisoned France, Belgium and the whole world after 1870.

One cannot be surprised if these traitors had to go for their
pay to this reptile exchequer to receive the rewards for their
crimes. The payment of the agents was different. Some of
these rascals made a great deal of money out of their dirty work.
The German police which operated in Belgium and occupied
France spent many millions on the services of these agents.
Those agents who were sent into Holland to try to get into
touch with the representatives of the enemy intelligence
services were generously paid. These scoundrels not only
drew money but victuals, generally those which had been
confiscated from smugglers.

As a general rule it may be stated that a big spy affair was
rated at 800 marks (;^4o), a medium affair at 500 marks (£25),
and an ordinary one at 250 marks (£12 los.). For information
about a hidden French soldier, the fee was 60 marks (£3) ;
the discovery of a store of arms and munitions 50 marks
{£2, los.) ; information about a person in the possession of French
newspapers 20 marks (£1) .

Another form of human baseness was manifested even
against honest people in the shape of anonymous letters.
Even the German police agents were disgusted by this method,
and they were not very particular. Every decent person and
every French administration was besmirched by these letters.
The G.F.P. pretended to be nauseated, but it turned these
anonymous denunciations to good account. Every accusa-
tion contained in these letters was taken into consideration,
and the inspectors immediately proceeded to make their
inquiries and domiciliary searches down to the minutest detail,
and even to make arrests.

Such, then, are practically all the methods adopted by the
G.F.P. to fulfil its implacable mission. It was so distributed
as to have an agent in every locality. More often than not
there was an informer in every little commune ; and always
several in the larger units.

Indeed, it is very painful for us to expose such base deeds,

166

The Fight against Patriotism

but our conscience as Frenchmen would reproach us for not
having pilloried these prostitutes and these traitors who worked
against their own country, and were the cause of so much
suffering. We owe it to those families who are weeping for
their children, to those honest women who have suffered so
much, and to those patriotic workmen who have refused to
work on war material.

167

CHAPTER XV

THE WAR CORRESPONDENTS OF THE GERMAN PRESS

Singing the praises of the Superman. — Guests of the Kaiser. — Military
attaches of the Neutral Powers and Boche journalists. — Reporters who
see nothing at all. — A very limited confidence. — Journalists who do
exercises like schoolboys. — The attaches at the front are allowed no
freedom. — Far from the Kaiser. — The headquarters of the Press. — Beer
on tap. — Disgraceful conduct. — The orgies of the decadence. — The
martyrdom of a dog. — The journalists' carnival. — Complaint against a
parasite. — An inexhaustible store of linen. — War correspondents. — ■
Articles to order. — A deputy protests. — Visits to the front. — War with
bottles. — Under the eyes of the High Police. — The Allied and Neutral
correspondents. — The unspeakable Colonel " Eigle." — The Prussian
Scheuermann. — His debut in journalism. — The war a source of money. —
Lille becomes Ryssel and Charleville Karlstadt. — A prophecy by Scheuer-
mann which doesn't come true : To unveil a patriotic monument. —
Messrs. Rosner, Katsch, Wegener, Kalkschmidt and others. — The Iron
Cross for essays in style.

ONE fine morning in September, 1914, some days before
the arrival of the Kaiser at Charleville, Captain von
Rochow, who was instructed to establish G.H.Q., went to the
Belair district to find quarters for the guests of the Kaiser who
were commissioned to exalt his glory and celebrate his exploits
and his merits as a Superman. These guests feU into two
categories, which, without belonging either to the army or to
the German administration, came under the head of the auxi-
liary services ; the one was military, the attaches of the
Neutral Powers, authorized by the Kaiser to follow operations
on the German front, and the other civilian, the war correspon-
dents of the German newspapers.

The General Staff had ordered these two extraneous branches
of the service to be installed at a good distance from its own

168

War Correspondents of the German Press

quarters, so as not to allow them to see things, or discover
information which might jeopardize the plans of the Staff
by their indiscretion. The conj&dence of the Staff, especially
in its journalists, was very limited, and Von Rochow was only
echoing Staff views when he said during the course of his in-
vestigations : " The journalists are quartered as far as possible
from our offices, and we only take them within twenty miles
of the front. They are dangerous men, for they cannot restrain
their pens."

And so their role was confined to taking notes, like school-
boys, writing essays on a given subject and submitting them to
the approval of the censor.

The military attaches were lodged in a beautiful villa, over-
looking the Meuse and commanding a superb view, but situated
more than three kilometres away from the Prefecture and
altogether out of the military centre. There were fourteen
of these attaches at first, including the Italian, Rumanian
and American representatives, and they belonged to the follow-
ing nations : Spain, Switzerland, Holland, Italy, Greece,
Rumania, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, China, the United
States, BrazU, the Argentine Republic and Chili.

The Italian attache left G.H.Q. on 21st March, 1915, and
the attaches of the other Powers which sided with the Entente
three months before their entry into the war.

Swiss, Dutch and Swedish missions also passed through
Charleville, but these were quartered in the vicinity of G.H.Q.,
as their stay was for a definite and limited period.

From time to time the military attaches would make a
trip in motor-cars to the front, but on every occasion they were
accompanied by German Staff ofl&cers, who dogged their steps
and did not allow them to wander or stray apart. When the
Kaiser came to live in Belair, the foreign officers were trans-
ferred to another secluded spot, four kilometres from there,
in the Bellevue district, which was situated to the north of
Charleville. They still had the advantage of a wonderful view,
bui that was all. During the last years of the war, the foreign
missions were abolished altogether, and the attaches returned
to i:heir legations in Berlin.

The German journalists were installed in the Villa Renaudin,

169

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

which was to become the residence of the Kaiser. They
brought themselves into prominence by their gay life, doing full
honour to the carefully kept cellars of the house and settling
in the chateau, which they turned topsy-turvy. They behaved
like real Boches. And indeed, when the Kaiser, after numerous
visits from French aviators, decided to fly to a safer refuge and
selected this property, the German journalists, forced to move,
carried off part of the valuable furniture with them and obliged
the Billeting Service to requisition other furniture for the use
of his Majesty. They then took up their residence in the
Boulevard des Deux Villes, and selected for their club a fashion-
able little house belonging to a member of the Chamber of
Commerce, M. Menager. Their stay in this house was
characterized by sheer beastliness — ^we cannot think of any
other word which describes their conduct. From Belair they
had brought the silver and the crockery which they had easily
been able to take, because William only used his own table
service. At M. Menager's house they indulged in disgusting
orgies. This respectable dwelling was turned into a disreput-
able tavern. All the rooms were illuminated a giorno. On the
dining-room table stood a cask of Munich beer, from whose tap
everyone swilled, till a heavy Teuton drunkenness prevented
them from imbibing any more of the indigestible liquor. When
the war correspondents of the great German newspapers were
in this condition, their greatest delight was to smash the
crockery and throw it out of the window.

The journalists, whom the Press of the civilized world
should pitilessly cast forth from its bosom, took part, according
to the statements of M. Menager, in scenes of the most dis-
gusting sadism.

The table was presided over by Captain von Buntzen, the
representative of the General Staff. It would seem that he
was more or less a gentleman, for he did not take any part
in the horseplay and retired whenever it threatened to de-
generate into scandal. This captain possessed a magnificent
dog, to which he was very much attached. One night, two
of the journalists, Scheuermann and Queri, excited with drink,
perpetrated outrages on the unfortunate animal well wor V
of the savages that they were. A wild and bestial idea 1

170

War Correspondents of the German Press

entered into their heads, stupefied with the fumes of alcohol.
They seized the dog, tied it fast, and slashed at it alive with
knives, in spite of the terrible barks, which woke up the
whole quarter. Then they let it loose in the street, and the
martyred animal collapsed in the Cours d'Orleans. However,
it managed to find its way back to the house. Did they
realize the seriousness of their behaviour then, or was it merely
another cruel impulse they were obeying ? They alone can
tell ! The fact remains, that after having hacked the dog
alive, they throttled it, and flung the carcass into the street.
Captain von Buntzen registered a complaint at the G.F.P.
against them, and they received a severe reprimand. That was
all their punishment.

On another occasion, in February, 1918, M. Menager informs
us, they celebrated Shrove Tuesday in their own fashion.
They were, of course, dead drunk, and decided on a torchlight
procession. Their fancy dress was not very expensive : they
simply disguised themselves as savages. And then, in this
most primitive of costumes, with a mug of beer in one hand
and a candle in the other, they wandered through the rooms
and posed on the staircase in obscene tableaux vivants, which
we leave it to their colleague, Maximilian Harden, the historian
of the Moltke-Eulenburg scandal, to describe. They tried
to drag Captain von Buntzen into their orgies, but this officer,
beside himself with anger, refused to have anything to do
with such cads, and when they became pressing, threatened
them with his revolver.

In order to avenge themselves for the incident of the dog,
the Boche journalists complained to the General Staff about
their table president, whom they accused of having enjoyed
their party without spending a penny.

They left with the last debris of G.H.Q. in March, 1918.
It goes without saying that they carried off some very valuable
furniture. In order to conceal their plunder, they paid in-
significant sums to their women attendants, whom they used
to terrorize. In this way they stole over a thousand pounds'
worth of furniture for which they did not spend as much as
1,500 marks.

The wardrobes of M. Menager, who was a large dealer in

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

linen goods, were emptied, " This gentleman's wardrobes
are a regular store of linen," they said, " and it is a real pleasure
to draw on them." This was the way in which the German
Press observed the laws of hospitality.

Each important newspaper had its war correspondent at
G.H.Q. They were supposed to make trips to the front and
then write articles describing what they had seen and ex-
perienced. It was the only way of maintaining the moral of
the people and army, which was apt to be shaky at times. We
say " supposed to make trips," for, in reality, the war corre-
spondents never went to the front and only reported what
they had been ordered to publish. At Charleville there was
a Military Press Bureau, where the war correspondents received
the latest news from the front and were instructed how to present
it in their articles. At times, one of their number, Wegener or
Kalkschmidt, was commissioned to write an article for general
use after a prescribed pattern, and this was afterwards repro-
duced in a large number of newspapers.

At a session of the Reichstag, Haase, the independent
Socialist Deputy, reproached the war correspondents with
" trailing behind the front and writing articles which were
not in accordance with the facts, since they had been dictated
by the military authorities who were entrusted with their
control." This declaration elicited protests from all the war
correspondents in their papers, but it did not keep them from
going to receive instructions every day at the Military Press
Bureau.

As a matter of fact, they never saw the front line trenches ;
the furthest they ever got was Divisional Headquarters. Here
they were invited to lunch by the commandant, who gave them
information suitable for publication. They also received in-
vitations from army commanders, who were glad to grant an
interview, in order to obtain publicity.

The military journalists, who were always reconnoitring
for the sake of their bellies, then launched into flattering
appreciations of the General's confidence, his high opinion
of the value of his troops, and the high level of their energy
and moral.

Messrs. the war correspondents were far from knowing the

172

War Correspondents of the German Press

benefits of liberty of the Press, and the admirable independence
of the real journalist. They were placed under the surveillance
of the Secret Field Police because, early on in the war, one of
them had contrived by roundabout ways to pass on information
from the front to neutral journalists. This correspondent
was sent away for spying.

Rittmeister von Buntzen, who in time of peace was a Berlin
merchant, was the head of the war correspondents' organiza-
tion and formed the liaison between the war correspondents
and the Staff. All articles were sent to him for censoring, before
they were published. It was he, too, who decided which section
of the front the correspondents might visit for their studies.

Correspondents of Austrian, Turkish, Bulgarian and neutral
papers passed through Charleville, but they only stayed a
few days at most. The neutral ones, who represented Ger-
manophile papers, lived apart from their German colleagues.
They were supposed to advertise the General Staff abroad,
and were taken to certain portions of the front where they
could give free rein to their admiration for the invincible
German army. Amongst the best known of these were the
Swiss Colonels Wilte, Muller and Egli, the military critics of
the Berne Bund, the Zurich Journal and the Neueste Busier
Nachrickten, whose articles were the delight of the French
General Staff and the occupied regions.

Amongst the war correspondents who stayed in Charleville
till March, 1918, we should single out for special mention Herr
Scheuermann, the correspondent of the Rhenish-WestphcUian
Gazette, the Pan-German organ of Krupp's firm at Essen,
of the reptile-like Sirassburger Post (the Strassburg Post)
and the Sirassburger Neue Zeitung {The New Journal of
Strassburg).

Scheuermann was the son of a German employee in the
offices of the Ministry of Finance at Strassburg, and nephew
of a departmental chief of the Statthalter. After quarrelling
with his father, this immigrant — for the Alsatians would never
own him — had started his career in Strassburg as a reporter,
■whilst still at school. He worked for the Neueste Nachrichten
(German), the Post (an official organ) and the Elsdsser, the
journal of the Alsatian Centre. It was as art critic on this

173

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

last paper that Scheuermann made a name for himself ; he
contributed to it from 1901 to 1905. At this period he did not
show any signs of Pan-German tendencies. His hatred vented
itself upon Alsatian liberalism. From 1903 on Scheuermann was
attached to the Great Agrarian League {Bund der Landwirte) ;
he became the editor of the Deutsche Tagezeitung, the chief
organ of the League, which he represented with the German
Peace Delegation at Versailles.* Amongst all the corre-
spondents attached to the army, Scheuermann proved himself
the most ingenious and politic — since he declared in 1916
that the town of Lille, which he called Ryssel, wished to remain
German, and in a little guide to Mezieres and Charleville, un-
christened this latter town, in order to call it Karlstadt.

Scheuermann was hoping to publish pamphlets on the war
after peace was declared. He is well equipped for the task,
since he saw and heard a good deal. During the occupation
he wrote an historical German guide to Mezieres and Charle-
ville for the series published by the Gazette des Ardennes. The
public and municipal libraries were opened for him, so that
he might consult their documents. Amongst his descriptions
is one of the National monument in memory of the Ardennes
soldiers who laid down their lives for their country in 1870-
1871. He denounced this as a monument of hatred, and de-
clared its destruction to be imperative. He was obeyed by
the Kommandantur , which, on 27th February, 1918, took ad-
vantage of a requisition of metals to melt down Croisy's group,
as well as the statue of Bayard at Mezieres, the busts of local
worthies, and the works of art on the public walks.

Since the war Scheuermann has not dared to return to
Alsace, his dear little adopted country. He has taken refuge
in Berlin, where he can collect precious documents on the
Boche revolution for his forthcoming history of Germany.

Around the person of the correspondent for the Rhenish-
Westphalian Gazette was a cluster of military critics more
modest, but of a totally different order of merit. In the
first place Herr Rosner represented the Berliner Lohal-

* Scheuermann is that strange journalist who declared that the German
Delegation was surrounded with French spies, and had to be called to order
by the Council of Four.

174

War Correspondents of the German Press

anzeiger {The Berlin Local Courier). He enjoyed the respect
of the Kaiser, who often invited him to his table and conferred
a prominent order on him. He used to accompany William
on his journeys, and wrote long articles on the presence of the
Emperor amongst his troops at the front. Which is rather
humorous when one remembers that Caesar Imperator did not
risk his life in very dangerous parts.

M. Katsch, who prided himself on his Francophile sentiments,
and who was none the less a fanatical Pan-Germanist, repre-
sented the Kolnische Zeitung {The People's Gazette of
Cologne). He wrote articles on the duties of the war corre-
spondents and their perilous mission at the front (thirty
kilometres behind the firing line). His chief military expedi-
tions consisted in the walk from his quarters to the station
for the purpose of buying newspapers.

Koster was the special representative of Vorwdrts, the
social-democratic paper of Berlin. He called himself a
Socialist, but that did not prevent him from accepting in-
vitations to dine with the Crown Prince. The snake-like
Kalkschmidt, whose malicious articles had only one object
— to besmirch the reputation of France and its army —
belonged to the Frankfurter Zeitung {Frankfort Gazette).
His articles were no more successful with the inhabitants of
the invaded regions than the naive argumentation of the
Swiss Colonel Egli.

Herr Professor Doktor Wegener was the delegate of the
Kolnische Zeitung {Cologne Gazette) at G.H.Q. He did not
mix much with his colleagues, whom he found vastly inferior
to a man of his erudite knowledge. He was almost always
seen alone, and his fellow-journalists heartily detested
him.

The murderer of Von Buntzen's dog, George Queri, was
the correspondent of the Berliner Tagehlatt {The Berlin
Daily), a radical opposition paper, which was not in good
odour at Court. He is at present in Munich. Finally, there
was Herr Doktor Osborn, who was attached to the spiteful
Vossische Zeitung {Voss Gazette). \

As for the other joumaUsts, Kieser, Hegeler, Meyer, Zechlin
and Diesfurth, they belonged to various journals at Munich,

175

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Dresden, Stuttgart and Carlsruhe, and were practically
unknown.

The reader will not be astonished to hear that these heroes
were awarded the Iron Cross. Their docility in obeying the
orders of the Military Press Bureau had well earned them
this high distinction.

176

CHAPTER XVI

THE INFAMOUS " GAZETTE DES ARDENNES," AND THE
RENEGADE PREVOST

An amusing poster. — The " Gift " of the invaded regions. — A Franco- Boche
paper is imposed upon us. — An excellent past for an embusqu6. — Ritt-
meister Schnitzer. — A Frenchman from the other side of the Rhine. — The
respect for private property. — "Wanted: a French journalist for
the Gazette des Ardennes." — The reply of the French journalist. —
The first German edition. — A Boche who objects to being called a bar-
barian.— A publisher of pious works. — In front of the house of Derniires
Cartouches, and behind the tricolour. — The lamentations of Tesche-
macher. — Incompetent journalists. — Prdvost appears on the scene. —
The Boche journalists expected war. — Significant incidents at Fand
and Hamburg. — " We shall be in Paris on August 20th." — A Reichstag
Deputy discovered to be a spy and shot. — " Fair Fatma." — " Lie down,
Pr6vost." — An Alsatian who wants to remain German. — The Boche of
Moosch. — Doktor Pr6vost. — " Fair Fatma, a dramatist in the service
of Germany." — Provost at Paris. — He remains a German, notwith-
standing.— The friend of Karl Eugen Schmidt. — Fear of Guy de Cassagnac,
Bourson and Hansi. — The hypocrisy of the renegade. — The traitor at
hand. — Schnitzer's man. — A parricide. — The fafade changes : a French
sign. — An obedient pupil. — A precious ally in the German political
offensive. — Shunned like the plague. — Naturalized as a Bavarian. —
" Herr Leutnant Pr6vost." — Smitten with remorse.

IN 1 91 7, the infamous Boche newspaper, which claimed
to form French opinion in the occupied districts, had
put up illustrated posters ; posters, be it added, without any
artistic grace. French and Belgian prisoners of war read
attentively a newspaper bearing the title of Gazette des
Ardennes, and the following inscription : " All French and
Belgian prisoners read the Gazette des Ardennes."

Some anonymous humorist, at the sight of this abomina-
tion, had deemed it advisable to paste a German chemist's
label over the poster : Gift (Poison).

177 12

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

This sly wit had summed up in a word the character of
this Boche paper, whose object was to poison the minds of
the French. Only this method of poisoning, as in the case of
Mithridate, brought about just the reverse of its object,
for the poison, which was intended to drug the minds of
our compatriots, became quite harmless through being
administered in gradual doses.

The Gazette des Ardennes was the first step in the German
political offensive, which was to continue later on the other
side of the front, in the shape of active Press propaganda,
pamphlets and other defeatist manifestations.

The local papers had stopped publishing, and the well-
known Paris papers could no longer reach the occupied
districts. Moreover, it was impossible to produce a French
newspaper under the occupation, for Headquarters would
have required from its editors passive obedience to German
orders. The severest prohibitions, the most outrageous
threats, were directed against the Press. Anyone who had a
French paper in his possession was liable to punishment, under
the laws of espionage, and a large number of our compatriots
experienced the hardships of confinement for having obtained
the Paris newspapers without taking precautions to hide
them from the active search of the secret police. In spite of
the almost insurmountable obstacles, however, French papers
filtered through to the population, and in critical times brought
the consolation of the French language. The only trouble
was that good news was not always fresh, and that the latest
dispatches were generally several weeks old.

In view of the absence of any organ for the information
of the French in the occupied districts, the Staff perceived
the importance of founding a newspaper, which should pro-
pagate the lies of the ultra- Rhenish Press, and present political
and mihtary news in a light favourable to Germany, no matter
how events might shape in reality.

The Press was always a formidable weapon in its hands,
and the distribution of papers was not confined to the ordinary
public, with the various sheets from Berlin, Cologne or Frank-
fort, whose war correspondents, as we have seen in the pre-
ceding chapter, were obediently supposed to write the articles

178

The Infamous ** Gazette des Ardennes "

ordered by the Military Press Bureau at Headquarters, and
showed themselves to be conscientious and well-disciplined
soldiers. This propaganda was also carried on amongst the
soldiers, and each army possessed its special newspaper, in
which moral was warmed to a white-heat in view of the
slaughter to come. The organ of the Crown Prince's Army
was called the Westfront, and appeared a few days before
the offensives of 1918.

The chief military organ was the Armee Zeitung {Journal
of the Army), which appeared at Charleville. In order to
produce it, the printing works of M. Anciaux were requisi-
tioned, and although this owner refused to hand over his
machines, the threat of a long term of imprisonment, in
addition to a huge fine, obliged him to submit.

The Armee Zeitung was a small sheet, half the usual
newspaper size, and was printed in German. It published the
German communiques, some reviews of the great Boche
victories and a few deeds of valour by the Feldgrauen. This
ephemeral publication, which was distributed over the whole
front, did not last long. It made way for other army journals,
which we have alluded to above.

But these publications did not accomplish the object which
the Staff had in mind. They did not reach the civil popula-
tion, which, in the main, was ignorant of German, and could
not relish the humbug in the Kolnische or Francfurter Zeitung.
It was at this moment, when Headquarters was installed at
Charleville, that the creation of the Gazette des Ardennes was
decided on.

Rittmeister of the Reserve Schnitzer, Adjutant of the
Second-in-Command and Lieutenant-Colonel von Hahnke
were entrusted with the production of the new paper.

Schnitzer was bom at Mannheim (Grand-Duchy of Baden),
and came from Darmstadt. He was Rittmeister in a Dragoon
regiment, garrisoning that city. He had been a coffee mer-
chant in Rotterdam, and was well known in the ports of
Antwerp, Bordeaux and Havre, especially in Havre, where,
he said, he made frequent and lengthy stays. His great
ambition was to ape the French officers, whose slendemess
and elegance he believed he possessed. His travels in France

179 13*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

had given him a certain familiarity with our language, and
slang and certain low catch-phrases, which he did not always
bring in happily. Brutal, like all Germans, he had made
himself detested by horsewhipping some young men who had
failed to salute him, by insulting the people, who feared to
speak to him, and by persecuting all honest folk, especially
honest women, who refused to submit to his whims. Although
he always made a show of indomitable bravery, it was in fear
and trembling that he set out to make his short stays at the
front, or, rather, in the vicinity of the front, for he took good
care to keep away from the danger zone, where a shell or a
bullet might injure his precious skin.

With his passion for luxury, he had settled down in a very
spacious house in the Avenue de la Gare, for which he pro-
fessed but little respect. Not only had he made it the usual
scene of his debauches, but he plundered it shamelessly to
boot.

The reader will understand that, under these circumstances,
he found G.H.Q. a vastly more pleasant place to stay in than
the trenches.

That is why he specially welcomed the offer to found a
Boche journal printed in French. The position of an
embusque just suited his temperament. But the matter did
not end with merely undertaking to create a French paper ;
it had to be edited, and although he spoke our language fairly
fluently, he was not well enough versed in its subtleties to
deceive the reader about its origin. It was necessary to find
French editors at any price.

We must ask the reader's permission to mention here a
personal fact, which we think it useful to stress, in order to
bring out the mentality of the Boche.

On October 27th, 1914, Rittmeister Schnitzer, booted and
spurred, with a riding crop in his hand, appeared in the Muni-
cipal Council Chamber, at the Charleville Town Hall, in order
to inform the municipality of the German authorities' desire
to publish a newspaper in French, devoted to giving the
German communiques and local news for the benefit of the
inhabitants. For this paper, he said, he required an editor,
or, rather, an adapter, whose task would be to put into French

180

The Infamous '* Gazette des Ardennes "

the translations made by himself, who would be the manager
of the journal.

He asked, in the presence of our colleagues, if there was
not a certain Domelier, who, at the outbreak of war, was
editing a French paper, the Defiche des Ardennes. On re-
ceiving an answer in the affirmative, Schnitzer laid bare the
object of his visit. What was wanted was a collaborator
for a French newspaper, and the German authorities, who
knew us to be a newspaper man, had asked us to take up the
editorship of this organ.

Of course we refused the invitation. And then Schnitzer,
like a true Boche, reckoned that by conjuring up the vision
of self-interest, he could bring us to accept his favourable
terms, and he proposed a very attractive salary. He met
with a refusal still more determined and categorical.

The dapper officer, whose violent temper was now getting
the better of him, could stand it no longer. In haughty tones
he cried out : "So you refuse, sir. Very well. We shall
see whether you will not accept." It was an undisguised
threat, and Schnitzer left the town hall, banging the doors
behind him.

Next he approached our fellow journalist, M. Charles Puel,
secretary to the editorial staff of the Petit Ardennais, and
then M. Aristide Lenel, director of the Socialiste Ardennais
and municipal councillor, but he had no more success with
them than he had with us. Adjutant von Hahnke did not
know French journalists, but he may have learnt the force
of the sacred union from those he met at Charleville.

Weary of the chase, the founder of the new journal got
into touch with an insurance agent, and former professor,
M. Georges, who gave a similar reply. But this unfortunate
gentleman paid for his courageous refusal, and paid dearly.
Some time later he was convicted of having several Paris
papers in his possession, amongst them L'Echo de Paris, and
of sending letters to his family in uninvaded France. He
was accused of espionage and sentenced to twelve years' hard
labour. This martyr was not to see the day of liberation for
his country, for we learnt that he had died from grief and
misery in prison a few days before the Armistice.

i8i

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

And so Schnitzer could not count on the support of the
local press. He decided to edit the Gazette independently
and to associate with himself two non-coms, from the Kom-
mandantur, called Gaspari and Teschemacher, who, like
himself, spoke French fairly correctly and thought they could
write it adequately. The first number of the Gazette des
Ardennes appeared on November ist, 1914. The edition
consisted of 4,000 copies. It had the same format and type
as the Armee Zeitung and was also printed at the requisitioned
works of M. Anciaux. Like the Armee Zeitung, the Gazette
des Ardennes, which began as a weekly, published the German
Staff communique. The rest of the paper was made up of
reviews of events — and in what a style ! Praises of the
German nation and the slogan of " Deutschland iiber AUes,"
and articles showing the intellectual inferiority of the French.
This first Gazette invariably concluded with coarse insults
against the French Press, and a regular protest against the
epithets " Boche " and " Barbarian " which were being
fastened on to the Germans.

However, notwithstanding its form, which Gaspari tried to
keep correct, the mentality of the Boche revealed itself in
every word, and the public did not fall into the clumsy trap
which had been prepared for it. The Gazette did not sell.

The edition never reached 6,000 copies, even including
the returns : it was a fiasco.

What kind of people, by the way, were the accomplices of
Rittmeister Schnitzer ?

Gaspari (born in the neighbourhood of Hanover) was
manager of a chemical products works in Berlin, who, it was
said, had married a Frenchwoman. The tale went that he
had stayed for some time in France as well as Italy and had per-
fected himself in our language. Big, heavy, with the features
of a pig, he was a perfect type of the Pan-German brute.

The word barbarian used to exasperate him, and every time
he heard the expression, he went into mad fits of fury. This
epithet was the leitmotiv of his everlasting refrain : "It
is not we who are the barbarians." He had made himself
detested by everybody on account of his intolerable pride and
self-satisfaction.

182

The Infamous ** Gazette des Ardennes "

His colleague Teschemacher was more skilful and adaptable.
He had been a bookseller and publisher at Treves. As a
prot^g6 of Cardinal Hartmann, the notorious Archbishop of
Cologne, who had paid for the expenses of his education, he
had studied, so he told us, at the boarding-school in Momignies
(Belgium) . According to his account, every year Teschemacher
used to make the pilgrimage to Bazeilles with the other pupils
of the school, and, under the Tricolour of the French flag,
salute the dead of 1870, and visit the house of Dernieres
Cariouches.

As he was a member of the school band, he played the
" Marseillaise " in front of the crypt, and marched through the
streets of Charleville to the strains of the " Sambre-et-Meuse,"
trumpeting " The Salute to the Colours " before the National
Monument in the city, which was stolen by the Barbarians in
1918.

Did he tell the truth when he made himself out to be an
old boy of Momignies ? It is hardly probable, for the head
master of the school, who did not particularly care to have
had such an undesirable pupil, stated in writing that he had
never belonged to the school, and that they had not been able
to find his name in the school records. One thing is obvious :
Teschemacher had certainly studied in France ; his compara-
tively polished manners and his education proved it. The
firm of Teschemacher used to publish classical works in
German and French and did a certain amount of business in
France and Belgium. The war was even a subject of regret
for him ; his turnover would suffer as a result of it !

Teschemacher did not use the violent methods of his friend
Gaspari. He did not employ the authoritative tone which
pleased this latter gentleman. His thin voice was more
caressing, his manners more insinuating. He tried to make
his way into families by doing little services, and in his con-
versation he took good care not to irritate patriotic sus-
ceptibilities ; but all these efforts came to grief before the
clear-sightedness of those whose confidence he sought.

Better instruments had to be found if the ineffectiveness
and failure of Headquarters' enterprise were not to be ad-
mitted. There was only one way to improve the situation, by

183

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

changing the editorial staff and adapting its methods to
French customs. The difficulty was to find the wretch who
would accept the infamous task of poisoning occupied France.

But Schnitzel had such a man handy. Prevost, the
renegade, was waiting for his cue. He arrived towards the
beginning of 19 15. He was not unknown to us.

The International Congress of the Press was held in 1914,
at Copenhagen. It lasted from June 8th to 15th. Even at
that date tendencies were clearly defined. The journilists
of the Entente and of the Central Powers adopted separate
positions. We recall an event, which, although it has no
connection with the infamous Gazette, has an importance
of its own, and we think it our duty to report it in the interests
of the history of the war.

On June i8th some of the representatives at the congress
happened to be at Fano, a little island situated on the West
Coast of Jutland, a popular Danish seaside resort, close to
which the famous naval battle of Skager-Rack took place,
when " Copusse's " fleet tasted the bitterness of defeat, which
its Admiralty camouflaged into decisive victory for the benefit
of the German Michel.

After lunch the journalists were in the lounge of the Hydro,
and French, British, Belgians, Italians, Russians and Portu-
guese were chatting with each other, while the Germans,
Austrians, Turks and Bulgarians formed a group apart.

At this moment a Budapest journalist passed by and
remarked to our face :

" Here are the French beginning to talk about revenge."

As we called his attention to the fact that it was not proper
to speak of revenge in friendly professional gatherings, the
Hungarian brutally replied :

" You're wrong, and in less than two months you'll have
reason to talk about it."

Now, the murder of the Archduke and Heir-Apparent
Franz-Ferdinand at Sarajevo, the pretext for the Austro-
Serbian war, was only committed on June 29th, that is, eleven
days after this conversation. As we have seen, the eventuality
of an imminent war was already present in the mind of the
Central Powers' Press.

184

The Infamous " Gazette des Ardennes **

Another incident of the same kind occurred at the same place,
on the same occasion. Another journalist at the congress,
M. Armand Segaud, a talented painter of military subjects, was
also present at Copenhagen, and there made the acquaintance of
Provost. M. Segaud, after the activities of the congress,
had taken advantage of his stay in Scandinavia to conclude
his journey by a visit to Norway and Sweden. On his return,
he met Prevost at Copenhagen, who gave him a recommen-
dation to a friend at Hamburg.

The travellers passed through the great naval base of Kiel,
and visited the Navy docks. M. Segaud wanted to take
some photos of the docks, but his guide prevented him with
a gesture of displeasure, reminding him that it was forbidden
to take photographs which might jeopardize the national
defence of Germany.

On reaching Hamburg, the French painter was taken by
Prevost's friend, a man by the name of Hermann Laube, to
all the popular resorts of the place. Naturally, the two
conversed, and M. Segaud asked his companion if he knew
Paris.

" No," replied Laube, " but we shall be going there shortly."

Laube took his guest to the Trocadero, a pleasure resort
in the great German port, and champagne was opened in the
company of the young viveurs of the city. One of them
cried : " This German champagne is not as good as the cham-
pagne of France — that is true. But, wait a bit : we shall
be drinking it before long."

Then the conversation turned to Paris. It evoked the
same old chorus :

" We shall be coming to see you soon in Paris."

" When will that be ? " said M. Segaud, who was far from
thinking about war.

" About August 20th," they replied in unison.

Our fellow countryman left Hamburg, and Laube promised
to return him the visit.

The Boche kept his promise, came to Paris a few days before
the diplomatic crisis and visited the military painter's studio,
promising that on his next visit he would bring his Dragoon's
uniform, with helmet, sabre and top-boots. In the mean-

185

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

time, he told how his father owned a factory at Aubervilliers,
30, Rue Saint-Denis, in partnership with another Boche by the
name of Rosenthaler. Laube Senior was also a Deputy in the
Reichstag, and used to visit Paris every fortnight. His son
Hermann had come to Paris without telling him about it,
and could not stay more than a couple of days. And, as a
matter of fact, on the i8th a telegram came calling urgently
for his return. The German mobilization was secretly under
way. Laube Senior remained in Paris, in order, as he said,
to wind up his affairs ; but he evidently had another mission,
for we were told that on the first day of the mobilization he
was caught just as he was going to blow up the railway bridge
at Saint-Denis. The tale went that he was even shot for his
attempt.

This last incident goes to show that, notwithstanding the
declarations of the Gazette des Ardennes, war had been decided
on several months previously in Germany, and that Prevost,
at Copenhagen, was a German agent trailing the French
journalists, who did not mix much with their colleagues from
the other side of the Rhine. Prevost had wormed his way
into the ranks of the French Press, where he had immediately
drawn attention by his obsequiousness towards the prominent
members of the profession. And certainly the figure of this
fat little fellow, skipping about like a fish, cutting capers as he
walked, and always ready to oblige, was a familiar one. His
queer behaviour had immediately aroused comment, and he
was soon nicknamed " Fair Fatma."

He cultivated the prominent journalists more than anyone.
Messrs. Jean Aj albert, the learned manager of the National
Works at Beauvais, and Albert Wilm, formerly Deputy for
Levallois, to mention only two, must remember him well,
for he was always at their heels like a little dog.

He became such a nuisance that Messrs. Aj albert and Wilm
were obliged to hint that he had better stop speaking to
them — so dubious did his manner seem. One incident had
impressed them particularly.

The German railways had refused the visitors to the congress
the same facilities for travelling that had been granted by aU
the other companies, French, Danish, Swedish, or Norwegian.

186

The Infamous ** Gazette des Ardennes "

The French journalists mentioned this to some Boche col-
leagues, in the presence of Provost, and Provost was most
obliging, for, at the end of the journey, he brought free passes
on condition that the journalists returned home by way of
the Leipzig and Cologne exhibitions.

The renegade, who used to wear a large red-white-and-
blue ribbon in his buttonhole, was very proud of being a
member of the French delegation. He did not miss a single
occasion of showing himself off, and a photograph in the
Monde lUustre of that date shows him in the front row, facing
the camera, in front of the monument to the Princess Wal-
demar, daughter of the Due de Chartres, before which the
French Press had laid a wreath of flowers tied with a ribbon
in the national, colours.

He used to boast loudly of his Alsatian origin, but he made
himself the champion of a Franco-German entente. According
to him, France could not hope to resist Germany, which could
crush it when it wanted. And so it was better to be friends
with fair-haired Germania than undergo the shame of another
1870. And, finally, he was voluble in his sarcasm for those
Frenchmen who maintained that there could never be a com-
promise on the Alsace-Lorraine question. These provinces,
said Prevost, were absolutely German, and did not wish to
become French again.

Apart from all this, he worshipped France and loved to
brag about his high-placed friends in Paris. His behaviour
was so outrageous that more than once he had to be reminded
of the laws of decency and good breeding.

Some months after we saw his plump form in the streets of
CharleviUe, cutting capers and obsequious as usual, but this
time he was not in the company of literary or political nota-
bilities. He seemed to prefer the society of German officers.

This little fellow, with his bilious complexion, his sidelong,
shifty look, was the same Prevost who had been the delegate
of the Paris Committee of Associated Foreign Correspondents
at the Congress of Copenhagen ; the same Prevost who,
in December, 1915, came to take over the publication of the
vile Gazette des Ardennes.

Several French papers have made the mistake of stating

187

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

that the renegade Provost was born at Saint-Quentin ; others
declared that he had taken out naturalization papers before
the war and worked on the staff of some newspapers in the
east of France.

Nothing of the kind. This miserable creature never
belonged to any paper, nor to any association in the Depart-
ments on our Eastern frontier.

Provost was born at Moosch, near Saint-Amarin, where his
father was still living when the French army occupied that
attractive region of the Vosges. Prevost is a traitor, and a
traitor of the deepest dye, for he was not an Alsatian, and,
therefore, not a German subject, when he applied for Bavarian
citizenship. He had been accepted again as a French citizen.
In this way he had been able to send his venomous Paris
correspondence to the Miinchengr Neueste Nachrichten, without
fear of being expelled. This fact had been brought to the
attention of the public before the war, notably in the November,
1913, number of that fine review, Les Marches de I' Est (page 93).

That is why, if he had been accepted as a French national,
he is liable for the crime of high treason. His naturalization
as a Bavarian only dates from 1917, and his appearance in the
Gazette des Ardennes from December, 1914.

We do not wish to probe into the feelings of the father of
this miserable creature. We know that he suffered horribly
on account of his son's treachery, for he comes of old Alsatian
stock, and not only has he relatives in the French army, but
he also sent his son to the school at Belfort.

However, if the Boche-to-be received his secondary educa
tion at a French school, he took his university course at
Munich, where he probably graduated as some kind of doctor —
a very easy achievement in Germany — for in Boche circles
he was always addressed as " Herr Doctor Pr6vost."

People had made up their minds about him in Strassburg,
A well-known citizen draws this hardly flattering portrait :
" This gentleman was considered in Strassburg circles to be
a nondescript and a charlatan. You would always see him
hobnobbing with Germans. His wife, a certain Anita, he
had picked up in a low-down German restaurant, where she
used to sing with a troupe of Tyrolese girls. She died of

188

The Infamous ** Gazette des Ardennes

»»

poisoning at Munich. Provost must have passed through
days of hardship. His family had broken with him altogether.
His father was absolutely French in his opinions. He made
his bread and butter by reporting ; later, he passed himself
off as a champion of French ideas in Alsace-Lorraine, which
was enough to sell his pamphlets. Later, he interested him-
self specially in the education of girls by nuns, which he
attacked, accusing these latter of being French at heart.
Those who had known Prevost, superficial and lazy as he was,
though capable of great facility when anything interested
him for the moment, were rather surprised to see him tricked
out with the title of ' Doctor.' According to his own version,
he owed this distinction to Professor Hugo Brentano.

" At Strassburg Prevost had tried the drama, and produced
some colourless and artificial pieces in collaboration with his
student-friend, Hans Karl Abel, son of a German forester,
who died in Germany, and of an Alsatian woman (from
Requewihr). This Mr. Abel was responsible for most of the
propaganda with which Switzerland was bombarded, with a
view to enlisting the sympathies of neutrals and Alsatians in
Switzerland for the German cause.

" During the war Prevost had disappeared completely from
view. But when it was found out shortly after what kind of
work he was engaged on, nobody was surprised, for it was
well known that he was utterly lacking in self-respect, in
character, in everything which distinguishes Alsatian character,
except, perhaps, the ability to express himself in two lan-
guages— a sign, in his case, of rather doubtful tendencies.
No one would be surprised if Prevost were to publish to-morrow
a declaration of faith, informing the world that, at bottom, he
had really been serving France all the time — in the service
of Germany."

After working on the staff of several Bavarian papers and
writing some cautious articles in Alsatian organs, he migrated
to Paris some ten years ago, as correspondent for the Miin-
chener Neueste Nachrichten {The Latest News of Munich).

He took rooms in 24, Rue Norwins, in the XVIIIth Arron-
dissement.

Once he was in Paris, his genius for intrigue got the better

189

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

of him again. He succeeded in worming his way into political
and parliamentary circles, and tried to insinuate himself into
the antechambers of the French newspaper offices. When he
became a member of the Association of Foreign Correspondents,
he soon secured a place on the committee.

However, in spite of his shameless manoeuvres to obtain
standing with the French Press, in spite of his protestations
of loyalty as an Alsatian, and his affection for France, he
frequented all the pre-war Boche resorts. There he became
an active worker for Pan-Germanism, and with his pen
prepared the ground for the invasion of France.

Amongst his friends was Karl Eugen Schmidt, the Paris
correspondent of a Pan-German Strassburg paper, the Strass-
burger Post, who showed his gratitude to his French colleagues
by flinging mud at our country in the columns of his paper.
The reader may remember how the late Guy de Cassagnac
sent him his witnesses, and how, in his fear, the coward
managed to avoid a duel by putting the frontier between
himself and his adversary.

Rene Prevost was one of his witnesses, and, as such, was
obliged to sign a document certifying that his principal was
not present to settle accounts.

Karl Eugen Schmidt had also directed base insults against
Alsace and the Alsatians. Our brave Strassburg colleague,
M. Paul Bourson, editor of the Nouvelliste d' Alsace-Lorraine
of Colmar, correspondent of the Matin, and President of the
Association of the Strassburg Press, whose Francophil attitude
led to his confinement in the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein, and
the Colmar draughtsman, Hansi, who have been rewarded
by the Cross of Honour for their long sufferings, tried to obtain
satisfaction. But, as with Guy de Cassagnac, Karl Eugen
did not wait for his adversaries, and his chief witness, Prevost,
was obliged to admit the disappearance of his principal and
friend once again.

Always underhand and hypocritical in his methods, the
renegade did not hesitate to sign in July, 1914, when the
Caillaux trial was in progress, a protest of the Association of
Foreign Correspondents in regard to the disgraceful campaign
carried on by the Boche correspondents against a country

190

The Infamous ** Gazette des Ardennes "

which was giving them such open hospitality. Provost was
clever enough to run with the hare and hunt with the hounds.

The Paris representative of the Miinchener Neueste Nach-
richten also contributed, though not for long, to the Express,
a newspaper in French, which was published at Mulhouse.

In this way he paved the way for an entry into the Alsatian
press, where he intended to play the part of agent provocateur.

The Express is a highly-respected paper at Mulhouse. Its
editor, M. Bader, a Swiss subject, has always maintained a
correct attitude, in conformity with Alsatian opinion.

However, if we are to go by certain local information,
M. Bader was thinking of retiring from the management of
the paper, and it was whispered that the Strassburg Govern-
ment was going to take it over and make it an official organ,
written in French. After M. Bader's retirement, it would have
been a predecessor to the Gazette des Ardennes.

The new editor, of course, would have to be a disreputable
character, who would not shrink from any kind of work, even
the most shameless, and Prevost was just the man that was
wanted. That is why, the tale goes, he was picked out, and
would have accepted the proposition which was put before
him if war had not broken out. French-language newspapers
were then prohibited in Alsace and Lorraine, and the Express
ceased to appear, together with its confiscated contemporaries.

The traitor waited for another opportunity to serve Ger-
many : it was not long before it appeared.

The campaign had begun. The frontiers of the North and
North-East had been crossed, and the Ardennes were com-
pletely cut off from the civilized world. At this point we
lose trace of Ren6 Prevost. Did he stay on for a while in
Paris, or did he make for Germany or Switzerland immediately
on the declaration of war ? We cannot tell. We understand,
however, that he corresponded regularly with uninvaded
France through the intermediary of a French prisoner. We
have even been assured that he managed to penetrate into
France during the war. There is nothing impossible about
it, for officers from Headquarters, and a Boche police-woman,
Marie-Louise Gamier, contrived to do the same.
Whatever Provost did between the declaration of the war

191

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

and the day he started on the GazeUe is not very important,
after all. He had sold himself to the Boches, and had only
to obey. That is what he did, when Rittmeister Schnitzer,
recognizing the ineffectiveness of the Gaspari-Teschemacher
editorship, asked for an all-round man, with more knowledge
of French journalism than his two Teuton compatriots.

It was a lucky day for the German Staff when it took on
Provost. The Celtic origin of his father's ancestors, the
French education which he received in early youth in Paris,
in the Alsatian milieu where he was born, at school and with
his relatives in France — all this had opened his eyes to French
refinement and elegance.

It must be admitted that he wrote correctly ; his articles
had a certain lightness of touch which is characteristic of our
Press. But the University of Munich had moulded his mind
after the pattern of Boche mentality, with its hypocrisy, its
falseness, and its love of distorting the truth in favour of
German superiority, and, as a great French review very justly
remarked, with its marked partiality for hair-splitting and
sophistry. It may be said of him, that though he wrote
French fairly well, he always thought in German. His prose
did not have the ponderous massiveness of the interminable
sentences of German prose, but his arguments bore the mark
of that proud and windy rhetoric characteristic of ultra-
Rhenish philosophy. On this subject we are in agreement
with our colleague, M. Eugene Thebault, who devoted a
number of the Revue des Deux Mondes to the infamous GazeUe.
" This outcast of journalism, this scribbler ready for any
meanness, had only one sincere emotion — and a monstrous
one it was : his ingratitude towards his real country, his
hatred for his native land, which he always concealed beneath
a show of sympathy, in a language which the invaded popula-
tion could read, but which their staunch patriotism could never
understand.

" Instead of a coarse hempen cord, this parricide used a
silken cord to throttle France.

" With his advent the fagade changed : the sign over the
shop might deceive the customer, but the firm was the same.
Schnitzer continued to be the nominal head of the establish-

192

The Infamous ** Gazette des Ardennes '*

ment, and Gaspari and Teschemacher departmental chiefs.
Rene Prevost was simply the employ^ who was instructed to
stick French labels on the goods that were ' made in Ger-
many,' so as to deceive the customers of the occupied regions."

However, it must not be thought that the journalist-viper
enjoyed the splendid independence of French journalists on
his paper. Freedom was even more of a stranger in the
outrageous Gazette than in the German Press. His part was
that of a good student of philosophy, who was given subjects
to write about. His exercises were submitted to the Censor,
for the Franco-Boche sheet was also subject to the caprices
of Lady Anastasia, and the Herr Censor Professor would
return it after correction with the fair copy.

Provost was nothing but an excellent writing machine,
entrusted with the task of faithfully reproducing the opinions
of the Chancellory or the Staff.

It was he who wrote the leaders, with a certain amount of
skill, it must be admitted, publishing his articles sometimes
without any signature, as if they were those of the editorial
staff, sometimes under the pseudonym of an American citizen,
or an English patriot, or a Frenchwoman in the occupied
districts, or a far-seeing prisoner of war.

He skilfully avoided all arguments which might recoil on
Germany, and presented the political and military acts of the
Entente as detrimental to the interests of the Allied peoples.
The good apostle wept for the misfortunes of Belgium and
France, which he loved above himself, and whose terrible
future, as a result of the mistakes of their Governments, he
foresaw. If we were to believe him, the submission of these
two countries to a victorious Germany — the only possible
result — would be the beginning of another Golden Age for us.

And so Provost, the renegade, was a useful ally in the
German political offensive in the occupied areas, which, how-
ever, never succeeded in disturbing the unwavering confidence
of the invaded regions in the ultimate triumph of France.

The physical appearance of the Gazette was French, but no
one fell into the trap. However, although everyone saw
through the knavery of the writer, there were ignorant people
who insisted on giving him credit for his qualities as a

193 13

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

journalist, and in this they often went too far, for Provost was
never considered to be anything more than a mediocre pub-
licist by the bulk of the French Intelligentia.

After all, it was not very hard for him to pose as an important
politician in a country where all opposition and replies were
strictly prohibited.

Almost immediately on his arrival at Charleville, Prevost,
whose complacency and conceit knew no bounds, tried to
make friends with the French, but the reception he met with
discouraged him. It was counter to our native loyalty and
sincerity to receive a traitor and a renegade. He was never
able to shake a friendly hand ; indeed, it was hard to keep
oneself from spitting at him. Even the German war cor-
respondents, who, as a rule, were not very particular about
the choice of their friends, avoided him whenever they could,
and, except for his colleagues of the Gazette and his table-
companions at the " Salon des Families," which was turned
into a military club, he had to be content with the company
of the Alsatian immigrant, Scheuermann, whom we have
aheady introduced to the reader in the course of these pages.

Rene Prevost's situation became falser every day. He did
not disguise the fact. He was also aware that in spite of her
gigantic efforts in the field, Germany would end by being
defeated, and Alsace and Lorraine would become French once
again.

Now, after this treachery, he coiild not own his real nation-
ality, for in that case the course of justice would have been
able to put him up against a wall in Vincennes. That is why
he applied for Bavarian citizenship. It was granted him
under the date of January ist, 1918, so that on December 31st,
1917, he was to be seen marching up and down the Place
de la Gare in the uniform of a Bavarian lieutenant, just as
a repatriation train was about to leave for free France.

Since then the renegade has probably gone in fear and
trembling of well-deserved punishment, for he changed
visibly, and when he left Charleville on October 24th, for
Frankfort-on-the-Main, where the publication and printing
of the Gazette had been transferred, he was only the shadofw
of his former self.

194

CHAPTER XVIIJ

THE POISON LABORATORY

The beginnings of the infamous Gazette — What's bred in the bone . . . —
The big drum. — Pr6vost has a look round. — Changed in form but the
same at bottom. — Speculation in misfortune. — Crocodile tears. — Busi-
ness is business. — Slight deviations from the truth. — Tender solicitude
for refugees. — Invention of the local news column. — A " latest news "
which is not the latest. — The public does not bite, and an unparalleled
scheme to make it do so. — The Gazette of the liars. — Progress reduced
to its right perspective. — The Gazette removes. — Matter that is easy to
procure. — Concealed malice. — One way of settling with the " Associa-
tion of Men of Letters." — Victims of the war. — Factory thieves. — The
" Album of the Great War." — English barbarity and Boche culture. —
The Illustrated Gazette. — Circulation secrets. — The brave Boches ! — Wezel
comes on the scene again. — The composition of the various numbers. —
The deportations from the north. — The way favourable testimonials
were obtained. — A burglar of Ubraries and a plagiarist of poems. — The
Gazette Almanack. — To demoralize the English, Americans and Russians.

THE first number of the Gazette des Ardennes is dated
November ist, 1914. Four thousand copies were
printed. The editorial staff was purely German and the
reader perceived this fact in the very first sentence. Schnitzer
and Gaspari could not throw off the old habits in spite of all
the knowledge of the French language that they claimed.
Boche turns of speech and inversions swarmed in their sen-
tences, the lightness of which was enough to make the biggest
blockhead in the Kaiser's Army green with envy. According
to its founders the need for the Gazette was making itself
felt in the occupied regions, and this need is clearly exposed
by a statement of the paper's principles inserted in the first
number.

i^ 13*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

" TO THE POPULATION

" The desire often rightly expressed by the population of
the departments occupied by the German Army for news
from abroad has in itself prompted the creation of this news-
paper.

" Owing to the regrettable and unjustifiable departure,
at the commencement of hostilities, of certain persons who
could have collaborated with us in our task, we have been
obliged to defer its publication until now.

" To-day all serious obstacles seem to have been over-
come and we have decided to publish this first number.

" To facilitate its distribution as far as possible, we hope
we may rely upon the military authorities and the goodwill
of the public.

" The war news which will appear in these columns will
be taken from the official messages of the Wolff Bureau, and
of the German G.H.Q., which can be considered absolutely
correct and trustworthy.

" Apart from these telegrams, the paper will reproduce
extracts from the most recent German, French and English
papers. We shall also publish news from neutral publica-
tions, such as those of Switzerland and Holland.

" The Gazette des Ardennes will rigorously abstain from
inserting any false news such as is so frequently retailed
and with which certain newspapers are so often filled.

" Above all, we must avoid an ink-and-paper war, which
in some cases is worse than a pitched battle where enemies
defend themselves man to man according to the laws of war-
fare and the traditions of nations.

" Whilst some can prove the truth of their information
by facts which they themselves have witnessed, there are,
nevertheless, certain organizers in this gigantic struggle
which, finding themselves well protected and giving the
heaviest part of the work to their allies and vassal troops
from Asia and Africa, scatter abroad false news which the
public readily believes, but against which it is well to be
on one's guard.

196

The Poison Laboratory

" We shall reproduce the precise facts, and not imaginary
facts, for although it is human to believe what one hopes
for, it is necessary to find out the truth, whatever it may be.

" The sole aim of this newspaper is, therefore, to make
known the course of events in all sincerity, and we hope that
we shall be doing useful work thereby."

The first five numbers were produced without Pr6vost's
collaboration. His first article did not appear until No. 6,
on the 13th of December, 1914 ; its title was : Allemands
et Frangais (Germans and French), and was nothing but a
tissue of gross insults directed against the press of our country.

Prevost brought with him to the Gazette his professional
experience. At first glance, the little paper did not attract
the eye ; it had a paltry look. He studied the local papers,
and after examining several of them adopted the same form,
the same type and the same make-up as a weekly paper printed
by M. Anciaux. The border was identically the same. Only,
the word Gazette was substituted for the title.

The large size Gazette des Ardennes appeared on April 2nd,
1915, being the thirty-fifth issue of the paper.

The new Gazette did not arouse much curiosity. In spite
of its French appearance, and although the leading articles
were adroitly camouflaged with hypocritical sympathy for
poor France, which was so unhappy under her government,
and, moreover, the unfortunate victim of the machiavellian
machinations of perfidious Albion, it did not sell.

Then the traitor had an inspiration.

The occupied regions of France were cut off from the rest
of the world. The population could get neither letters nor
papers from the rest of France except under the severest
penalties. Parents who had no news about their mobilized
sons were tormented by anxiety. Any information about
the fate of their poilus would certainly be a means of selling
the Boche rag. It could be done, and the editor was equal
to the occasion. He obtained permission to pubhsh the
names of the prisoners of war and their lists.

The circulation increased, and in a few weeks it rose from
4,000 copies to 14,000.

197

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

The publication of these lists had two good results ; j&rstly,
to reassure all families thus concerned ; secondly, to prove
the knavery of the Boche. The first list appeared in No. 35,
April 2nd, 1915. It opened with an appeal to the French
population, printed in big letters, that ran as follows :

" The French Government continues its efforts to deceive
the people, the whole world and possibly itself as to the real
state of affairs. It is inventing victories which were never
won ; it is hiding losses which have been incontestably
inflicted.

" This tendency was most plainly manifest on the occasion
of the first exchange of invalid prisoners . . . when the
French Government concealed the convoys of seriously
wounded men, in order to keep the public in ignorance of
many events which have hitherto been concealed and distorted.

" The same game is being carried on with regard to the
prisoners of war.

"And all this, because the vanity of the French Government
will not allow it to make this plain, straightforward admission :
we have lost 250,000 prisoners in German hands, regardless of
other losses.

" Well and good. We shall try to repair this negligence
on the part of the French Government, which dare not confess
the truth to the people who are sacrificing their sons for
official policy.

" To this end we shall begin to-day the publication of the
list of the 250,000 French prisoners of war who are in Ger-
many. This will later be followed by a list of French officers
and men buried on the field of battle in occupied territory
by German troops, and of those who have died in German
hospitals.

" In undertaking this task, it is our wish to give to the
French population an explanation of the facts which is as
imperative as any humanitarian duty."

And, since the commercial factor was not to be excluded,
a supplement containing the lists was sold at the rate of
ten centimes a number with supplement, and five centimes
the supplement alone. Nevertheless, the aim was not
achieved, for a large number of persons bought the lists only,

198

The Poison Laboratory

and did not ask for the real Gazette. This is why the last
supplement made its appearance with No. 88 on Oct. 3rd,

1915-

In order to swell the number of French prisoners and to
produce an exaggerated and false total, names of many
prisoners were given several times over. It happened that
we found in one list the name of a colonial infantry officer of
high rank, who was included in several camps as heutenant-
colonel, lieutenant, sergeant and corporal.

Better still, officers who were still valiantly doing their
duty at the front were reported as captured. The Echo
de Paris exposed this fraud by publishing a letter which
M. Maurice Barr^s had received from a poilu. This letter
stated that a German aviator had dropped some copies of
the Gazette. The poilu wrote :

" Imagine our amazement ! A colossal list of French
prisoners ... a large number of officers, especially colonials !
And among them our captain, who has not left us since the
beginning of the war and who is actually in command of our
sector, facing the Bavarians ! "

This letter aroused the fury of M. Provost, who proceeded
to vent his wrath upon M. Barr^s (his bete noire) and the
Echo de Paris in No. 66 of the Gazette, July i8th, 1915.

M. Maurice Barrds was next accused of having invented
every word of this letter in the interests of the good cause.

That traitor de Moosch also tried to use this publication
to demoralize the invaded territory. He conceived the idea
of marking with an asterisk all prisoners who belonged to
the occupied regions, and among those latter he included
various parts of uninvaded France, such as Beauvais, Com-
pi^gne, Amiens, Meaux and even — Paris and Cherbourg.

The French Press did not hesitate to point out this dirty
trick. The result was bad temper on the part of this criminal
journalist, who, as an excuse, was content to revile the French
papers in No. 100, Oct. 31st, 1915, calling them " authors
of such a monstrosity, and quite capable of such minor per-
fidies." He blamed the mistake on the compositors.

Other manoeuvres were also adopted to attract the public.
After the publication of the hsts of prisoners and soldiers

199

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

buried in the occupied territories, the good apostle thought of
steahng from those local papers which had left the locahty
and were being published in Paris, such as le Bulletin
Ardennais and I'Ardennais, and of publishing the information
concerning the well-being of relations on the other side of
the front. This trick was ingenious enough, because corre-
spondence between the two parts of France was strictly for-
bidden, and both communications addressed to prisoners
and the twenty-word messages were most irregular. The
Gazette was therefore read for news from the Mother-country.
The last straw was messages from repatriates and refugees
who had arrived in Switzerland or their new exile, and an-
nounced that they were well, which was all that they were
allowed to state.

However, the sale of the paper progressed but slowly.
So, in No. 123, Dec. 24th, 1915, " to respond to the oft-
expressed wish of the Gazette's readers in the occupied area,"
Provost started the " local news " column, which contained
at first only news of a purely local character, such as civilian
movements, the condition of inhabitants, stories of the in-
vasion in which the kindness of the German soldiers was
made out to be proverbial. Gradually the pacifist campaign
insinuated itself into the section, and the Toques, Huberts,
Dauphins and other Leroys devoted themselves to it with all
their heart.

The paper's make-up did not undergo any change until
Sept. 3rd, 1916, when the first agricultural section made
its appearance under the title of " Farmer's Corner ; " it
contained various pieces of advice to people who knew their
job better than the Munich doctor, and who were not obliged
to follow them, since their horses, cattle, stock and land had
been commandeered ; in short, they were already compelled
by the Kommandantur to work for the King of Prussia by
cultivating their land for the benefit of the German Army.

Then a " Latest News " appeared for the first time on
Sept. 3rd, 1916 ; but it was latest news only in name. It
consisted of cuttings from the telegrams in the Cologne Gazette,
which were favourable to Germany and unpleasant to the
Entente^and the people of the invaded districts. They were

200

The Poison Laboratory

always tendencious in character, and more often than not
they lied.

In spite of all these efforts and a " Fashions Column from
Berlin via Brussels," the sale did not increase to any great
extent. So G.H.Q. ordered the distribution of the paper
by force if necessary. A number of orders were issued to
the Kommandanturs. The communes were to buy a certain
number of copies in proportion to the number of inhabitants.
It is true that the mayors who were thus put under an obliga-
tion to distribute the infamous newspaper got round the
difficulty. They bought the papers but destroyed them on
arrival. Newspaper-sellers were requisitioned, especially
children. At first these latter had their revenge, for when-
ever they were going along the streets of Charleville, and
were certain of not being understood by the German police,
they would shout at the top of their voices : "La Gazette
des Menteurs " (The Liars' Gazette).

This commendable frankness often brought down upon
its authors correction in the form of a horsewhipping admin-
istered by that brute Schnitzer.

Besides being sold in the occupied areas, this paper was
also dispatched by aeroplane, balloon and special projectiles
to the French troops on the front, to neutral countries, chiefly
Denmark, Holland, Switzerland and Spain, so that it might
trickle through into uninvaded France — and it was also
bought by Germans and German libraries for collection
purposes.

The circulation increased. If we can believe the Gazette,
No. 100, Oct. 31st, 1915, the occasion of its first anniversary,
*' it began with a circulation of 4,000 ; but with No. 3 the
edition reached 17,000 ; of No. 10, 25,000 were printed. At
the end of March, 1915, No. 34 had a circulation of 38,000,
a figure which was doubled by April ist as a result of the
publication of the first hst of prisoners. On Nov. ist, 1915,
the circulation was 82,000."

After No. 274, Oct. 7th, 1916, the paper's title-page bears
the number of the circulation : 130,000.

No. 289, Nov. 2nd, 1916 : 135,000.

No. 313, Dec. 14th, 1916 : 140,000.

201

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

No. 324, Jan. 3rd, 1917 : 150,000.

No. 341, Feb. 3rd, 1917 : 160,000.

No. 478, Oct. 20th, 1917 : 168,000.

No, 482, Oct. 27th, 1917 : 175,000.
We must not forget that the Gazette has several times
been taxed with and proved to be lying. But let us suppose
that the figures given by the paper are correct, and discuss
them on that basis :

Deduct 8,000 copies kept in reserve each isaue.

„ 20,000 copies for the front and German collections.

„ 25,000 copies for neutrals.

„ 5,000 copies pulped up again.

Total 58,000, in round figures 60,000.

Thus there remain about 115,000 copies to be dropped by
aviators, to be distributed to prisoners of war and the inhabi-
tants of the occupied districts. In all probability the sale
in the north and north-east of France and in Belgium did
not exceed 50,000, which we must admit is large enough.

At first each copy had been sold at five centimes, but after
July 1st, 1917, the price was raised to five pfennigs : the
paper shortage was raging in Germany as well as everywhere
else.

The Gazette first appeared twice a week, then three times
a week after Oct. 6th, 1915. From April 7th, 1916, to Jan.
4th, 1918, the G.H.Q. journal was issued daily except Mon-
day. It should be added that from Oct. 27th, 1917, onwards,
it contained only two pages, except on Sundays, when there
were four.

As a result of the development of this depressing organ,
the Anciaux Press soon became insufficient for its production.
The editorial department, which was installed at the Kom-
mandantur of G.H.Q., where Schnitzer was stiU Adjutant,
and Gaspari and Teschemacher both secretaries, was trans-
ferred to the offices of the Nancy Bank, and it stayed there
until the whole collection moved to Frankfort. The com-

202

The Poison Laboratory

posing rooms were established at the publishing offices of
I' U sine, belonging to our colleague, Camille Didier, which
possessed a completely new set of linotype machines ; and
the paper was printed at the offices of the Petit Ardennais,

This involuntary collaboration in the production of the
notorious news-sheet, since our colleagues were not present
to offer any opposition, cost them dear. The choice material
that they had was taken to Germany and replaced by
machinery stolen elsewhere. Thus M. Georges Corneau found
in his offices a new printing press, stolen from Brussels,
Roubaix and Lille, and among other things, the great stereo-
typing machine of the Reveil du Nord. A railed track con-
nected with the tramway lines facilitated the delivery of paper.

Trained workmen were requisitioned by force, prisoners
were brought back from Germany, and they were compelled
to proceed under strict supervision to set up and print this
ignoble work of French demoralization.

The paper itself consisted of the leading article, generally
written by Provost, but also by French collaborators, either
prisoners of war or inhabitants of the occupied territories,
who signed their infamies with an assumed name or some
fantastic title. The pen of Regis Huart, alias the Colonial
official. Toque, was most recognizable, and those of Hubert,
Dauphin, R61, and the various collaborators from the
prisoners' camp.

After the leading article came the official German and
Austro-Hungarian communiques, followed by the French and
English taken from the Echo de Paris. Very often there were
articles from the Boche General Staff on the operations, either
exalting some success, or transforming a serious defeat into a
great victory, or an incontestable rearguard success.

Gaspari took charge of the news cuttings, the information
for the families of refugees and repatriates, and the " local
news."

The foul Gazette was constantly flinging mud at the great
newspapers of the Parisian Press, and particularly the Echo
de Paris, but it was obliged to admit that it took news from
the latter. On the other hand, it was all honey for the
defaitiste journalists and deputies, and described them as its

203

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

only serious, conscientious and honest colleagues, and as
true, far-seeing patriots.

The printing of the French communiques provides an
example of Boche hypocrisy. Under the pretext of wanting
to take them from the French papers, the Gazette copied
them from the Echo de Paris, thus making them six and
sometimes eight days late. The very important wireless
station on the Berteaucourt plateau, however, received them
twice daily. This was one way of inoculating the reader's
mind with the demoralizing lies and poison of the Boche com-
muniques, since it was not possible to compare them with the
French reports at the time. Eight days later such comparison
was almost out of the question.

After the military section came the news cuttings from
England and France ; then a chronicle of the war, into which
every piece of tendencious information that was detrimental
to the Allies was inserted ; then the list of the prisoners of
war and diverse news items.

Before it was devoted to advertisements, the fourth page
was crammed with " the Paris Bourse " and " Financial
News ; " " Local News ; " " Anecdotes " (stories from Paris) ;
" The Nonsense Pigeon-hole " (quotations from Parisian news-
papers) ; " The War Calendar," " As the French See It," and
" Latest News." The feuilletons were inserted at the bottom
of pages one and three. According to M. Eugene Thibault,
Prevost, who had a certain amount of culture, chose them from
the Revue des Deux Mondes with a sort of superficial eclecticism
which concealed quite a cunning method of procedure.

Among these feuilletons were la Guerre qui vient, by F.
Delaisi ; une Histoire de Parisien, by Alfred Capus ; les
Prisonniers, by Maupassant ; Marion Jean, by Colette
Yver ; Edgar Poe's le Crime de la Rue Morgue ; la Guerre
Fatale, by Colonel Driant (whose photograph appeared in
the Gazette, as well as one of the cross erected on the spot
where the heroic Deputy for Nancy was buried) ; la Victoire,
by the late Paul Acker ; le Sous-marin le " Vengeur," by
Pierre Mael ; le Tambour de Rouquevaire, by Paul Arene ;
Prosper Merimee's Colomba, and others.

It is not surprising to find that this odious Franco-Boche

204

The Poison Laboratory

organ neglected to make the usual arrangements with the
Societe des Gens de Lettres while it was thus pilfering our
best authors.

Boche journalists also tried their hand at French literature,
and the Gazette published Un Roman d Lille, by a certain
Paul Oscar Hcecker, in which a seductive Teuton officer is
naturally the hero of the romance, and a pleasing Lille woman
his ready victim.

One heading : " War Victims among the Civilian Popu-
lation of the Occupied Territories," was intended to excite
the hatred of the people against the Allies and their airmen,
who were bombarding important military points ; but it did
not succeed in doing so. The inhabitants were well aware
that the necessities of war forced our aviators to this grievous
but necessary work, and that the majority of the victims were
hit by projectiles from the German barrage.

At first, the Gazette des Ardennes paid no attention to
publicity, but in 1917 it tried to set up an advertising bureau,
which never had any French clients. This contrivance was,
however, required in order to fill the fourth page, which
was short of subject matter. The box of lies was not in-
exhaustible. The strike on the part of the advertisers did
not embarrass the Paprzicki-Gassmann management, how-
ever ; it simply turned to the Boche advertising agency,
Rudolf Morse, at Frankfort. The advertising service began
on Oct. 6th, 1917, and from that moment onwards industrial
firms and motor manufacturers appeared cheek by jowl
with the Munich breweries and tooth-paste dealers on the
fourth page of the paper. There were displayed in big letters
the names of the most eminent thieves who had looted the
factories of the invaded areas, and seized the stolen goods,
in order to sell them back to the real owners the day after
Peace was signed. Mannesmann Brothers, of Morocco and
Diisseldorf, and Roechhng Brothers, of Ludwigshafen, on the
Rhine, were among the Gazette's best clients. Now, one of
the Roechlings was arrested in Rhenish Prussia by the French
authorities, and is awaiting the penalty of his misdeeds in
the mihtary prison at Amiens.
A newspaper, however inexact its information might be,

205

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

was not enough for G.H.Q.'s propaganda service. The latter
desired to convince the reader by pictures as well. The
German illustrated and comic papers had no circulation
among the French public. An album, I' Album de la Grande
Guerre, had been published in French, but it had had only
middhng success. In every point, however, it had fully
corresponded to the intentions of G.H.Q. Boche soldiers
and their allies were always rushing forward to the attack,
or pursuing the retreating enemy, and the Entente's soldiers
were always shown as prisoners of war. The French and
the British were accused of the direst infamies. Photographs
were given to prove that the French used dum-dum bullets.
Sections of bullets showed the incision in the nickel casing,
but the ignorant photographer had forgotten to efface from
his negative a label which was stuck on one box and bore
the device : Show cartridges.

Views of ruins were given. Some were caused by French
or English artillery, and in these the churches were a mere
heap of stones. In the others, the churches, respected by
the Germans, were always intact. Thus the inhabitants were
able to compare the condition of the Catholic church of Vimy
with that of Rethel. But the Album de la Grande Guerre
took care to forget to state that Vimy had been the scene
of bloody fighting, whilst the town of Rethel, undefended
and void of troops as it was, had been burnt in dastardly
fashion by the Barbarians on Sept. ist, 1914.

This publication reproduced quite faithfully the intentions
of the Kaiser's General Staff, but the price was too high,
60 or 75 pfennig, and was beyond the reach of most purses.
The Gazette made a modest effort by publishing a few illus-
trated supplements on the occasion of Christmas, 1914, New
Year, 1915, March and Easter, 1915. They were called
" special editions of the Gazette des Ardennes " and sought to
arouse the public's pity for the Jewish victims of Russian
barbarism by photographs of pogroms and to reassure it by
views of prisoners' camps where our poor soldiers were, accord-
ing to the Boches, better off than at home.

This effort became the Gazette des Ardennes {edition illustree)
on Aug. and, 1915.

206

The Poison Laboratory

Tescheraacher, who was an editor of religious publications,
was considered to know something about editions de luxe.
So he was put in charge of the illustrated section. At first
it was a monthly, then a bi-monthly until September, 1917,
and finally became a tri-monthly up to the death of the Gazette
illustree on Oct. nth, 1918. It was pubhshed by Rudolf
Mowe at Frankfort-on-Main, and contained eight pages.

In March, 1917, the management claimed that the circu-
lation of the illustrated section was 100,000. It was sold at
15 centimes to begin with, 20 centimes in October, 1917,
and 20 pfennig (25 centimes) from July, 1918, onwards. We
have not been able to check the figures for the circulation,
because the Gazette illustree was printed in Germany. There
is reason to doubt them, however, if we take the following
letter into account :

" Generalstab des Feldheeres. " G.H.Q.

" Abt. III. b6 West. " Nov. 5. 1916.

" Gazette des Ardennes.

" Etappen-Kdtr. Bazeilles. — 3 Inspektion.
(Translation)

" Section III. b6 is informed that the number of illustrated
editions in your Kommandantur is less than that of the ordinary
editions of the Gazette des Ardennes.

" The conciliatory tone and the wealth of illustrations have
made access to the French population particularly easy, so
that wherever the sale is properly regulated it is possible to
sell as many editions illustrees as ordinary editions of the Gazette.

" The Section, therefore, begs you, through this communi-
cation, to take in hand the distribution of the illustrees, and
to this end it places a gratuitous number at your disposal.
You are invited to inform us how many free copies will be
wanted.

" The edition illustree will now appear regularly twice a
month, on the ist and the i6th. The cost price is 12 centimes
and the retail 15 centimes.

" A.B.

" SCHNITZER,

" Rittmeister."
*>7

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

An examination of a few numbers will give an idea of the
value of this illustrated propaganda.

Number 7, Nov, 1915, is devoted to the residence of the
Germans in France. A piece of verse indicates the part
played by the brotherly Feldgrauen in looking after the wife
of the mobilized Frenchman and tilling his field, but it ends
with this threat :

Franfais, pourtant si tu m'assailles,
Mort k toi, ennemi ! h6ros !
Mais le soir, apr^s la bataille,
J'irai prier sur ton tombeau.

(Frenchman, if you assail me, then death to you, enemy ! hero ! But
in the evening, after the battle, I shall go and pray at your graveside.)

An allegorical drawing reveals a German soldier sitting
at the door of a cottage nursing a child on his knee, whilst
his comrades are sowing and tilling the fields.

Above this there is a photograph of Dr. Wezel, the Kaiser's
physician and tenant of the house with the big number 16,
sitting in the midst of a group of orphans, and it bears
the superscription : "A German army surgeon, who is
managing a French civilian hospital, in the midst of his little
prot^g^s."

The second page contained a picture of the unveiling cere-
mony of the monument erected in the German cemetery at
Vouziers and a photograph of the grotesque and trivial monu-
ment at Charleville cemetery.

The third page has an article containing the impressions
of a prisoner, who of course likes the Boches ; and also pic-
tures of " Joffre addressing French soldiers wearing their
new helmets," and " a heavy French gun in action screened
from airmen." Further, there are some views of French
and Enghsh trenches, a meeting between President Poincare
and King Albert at the Belgian G.H.Q., and portraits of
Generals Manchand, Dubail and Sarrail.

The fourth and fifth pages contain " life in the prisoners
of war camps," where officers and soldiers are as happy as
kings. The sixth page is devoted to Germany and has views

208

The Poison Laboratory

of Willebadsburg, Marienberg, Miinden in Hanover and the
castle of Wilhelmshohe, where Napoleon III. was interned.
In the middle of the page, the Burg of the HohenzoUems
rears its savage silhouette.

The last page deals with the British. A few pages of the
Memorial de Sainte-HeUne, a poem on Joan of Arc scourging
perfidious England, and a caricature by Jean Weber on the
Boer prisoner camps, remind one that our prisoners have
also experienced the sufferings of the. barbed wire cages and
that their tormentors are past masters of barbarity. At
the end there is a photograph of the Avenue de la Gare at
Charleville, showing two newsboys shouting : " Read the
Gazette ! The Gazette des Ardennes ! "

Number 20, Oct. ist, 1916, is devoted to the " eviction
of the population of Lille into the country, with nine photo-
graphs showing evicted persons at work on the land."

" Owing to the shortage of food caused by England's hunger-
blockade, there is only an insufficient quantity of food coming
from Germany for the inhabitants of the occupied parts of
France. Consequently, if the High Command wants to ensure
the feeding of the population of Northern France for any
emergency that may arise, it must take energetic measures.
It has been realized that the most efficacious measure was
to evict a section of the population of the towns. As an
appeal for volunteers met with no response, nothing remained
but to enrol by force those sections of the population suited
for the work."

The French Government has no right to protest, for " the
measures taken by the military authority in occupied territory
appear to be perfectly justified, with regard to the rights of civi-
lians, by Article 43 of the Hague Convention, concerning
the laws and customs of war on land."

The nine photographs are of some selected smiling young
persons, rake in hand, who do not seem at all ill-pleased with
their fate, and the Gazette describes these photographs of
these willing women as " overwhelming proofs."

Schnitzer had conceived an ingenious plan to secure these
overwhelming proofs. It should be judged by the following
copy of a note sent to the Bazeilles Kommandantur :

209 X4

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

" Generalstab des Feldheeres. " G.H.Q.

" Abt. III. 6b West. " Aug. 15th, 1916.

" Gazette des Ardennes.

" An die Mob. Etappen-Kdtr. 2. XII,
Bazeilles.
" (Zum Schreiben B.B. 6952 v. 11-8-16.)
" The list received from Bazeilles is adjourned to this
communication with a request for verification when the
persons named have arrived at the places indicated : the
names will be published in the Gazette forthwith :

" Owing to the excitement aroused among the French
by the Lille deportations, it seems advisable that the deported
persons should themselves address their request for publication
to the management of the G. d. A. through the agency of the
Kommandantur, and that they should state at the same
time how they are, as regards their deportation, work and
moral, so that this may he a contradictory reply to the incitements
of the French papers.

" There ought to be some persons among those deported
who will be ready to undertake this. If so, you are requested
to demand this statement from each person, although in any
case it should be borne in mind that the end in view should
not be known by them.

" A.B. (by order) :
(Signed) " Schnitzer,

" Rittmeister."

The third page reproduces the reception of Hindenburg
and Ludendorff by the Crown Prince at Charleville station
in September, 191 6, when they were visiting the Western Front.
Then, just as in almost every other number, pictures of con-
voys of prisoners, monuments and tombs, views of villages
destroyed by Allied fire, and in this issue views of the old
Seraglio at Constantinople. A Dutch cartoon completes the
list of illustrations. A Dutch girl is showing an English
sailor his reflection in a mirror, and saying : " Protector of
little nations, I appeal to you against this man ! "

In several numbers, Teschemacher has burgled libraries
and stolen poems from the works of Ardenne poets ; he has

210

The Poison Laboratory

published these in the most shameless fashion, accompanied
by drawings by H. Ernst.

Number 82, Oct. nth, "1918, is the last of the series. The
rout is already setting in among the Kaiser's armies, and
trunks have to be packed for the flight to Frankfort. It is
pitched in a much lower key than the others.

The first page has a charcoal drawing of an Ardenne land-
scape. The second has pictures of the tombs of British
airmen, surrounded by Belgian soldiers in their helmets with
movable visors. The third has photographs of repatriation
trains. The fourth depicts German anti-aircraft defences,
the humane treatment meted out to prisoners, and the presenta-
tion to Foch of his marshal's baton ; then lower down, the
visit of the Hetman of the Ukraine to G.H.Q., and finally
some harmless cartoons copied from Parisian humorists.

No more scenes of war, no more German victories. It is
the end !

To round off its work, the Gazette published the Almanack
de la Gazette des Ardennes at the end of every year. The
aim of this was dictated by the same old refrain. The Germans
are not barbarians. They did not want the war. The English
are the real enemies of France, ever since the capture of
Calais. Therefore it is necessary to combine to drive them
off. Just as in the paper itself, the Feldgrauen are made out
to be good fathers to French children, and the prisoners of
war are the objects of all possible homely attentions on the
part of their gaolers.

The French and Belgian prisoners of war had the Gazette
des Ardennes to give them all the depression that was necessary.
It was not the same with the English, Americans and Russians,
who did not know any French.

The Generalstah wanted to bring the same influence to
bear on their moral, and Schnitzer published The War Chronicle,
" an illustrated paper for the British." The pubUshers of
the Edition Illustree at Frankfort issued America in Europe,
which was intended for the Yankees, and the firm of Gaspari,
of Berlin (undoubtedly a relation of Gaspari of Charleville)
printed a Russian paper for the Muscovites. Finally the
Baltische illustrirte Zeitmng was substituted for the Gazette

2n 14*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Illustree in Poland and the Baltic Provinces. It proceeded
from the same press as the French edition.

These various systems of distribution constituted the base
of operations for the defeatist campaign waged by G.H.Q. in
occupied territory and neutral countries. It collapsed as
lamentably as Ludendorff's, for the reptile sheet published
by Schnitzer and Prevost was always considered a tissue of
falsehoods and was always treated by its French vendors
as well as its buyers as a Gazette des menteurs.

21^

CHAPTER XVIII

THE gazette's CAMPAIGNS

An instrument of demoralization. — Victories underlined for public notice. —
Luck turns : defensive victories and rearguard successes. — The Gazette's
friends. — Pr6vost's pet paper. — A confidential letter which reaches
the wrong address. — M. Delcass6 to M. Joseph Caillaux. — A great French-
man.— Memories of Agadir. — France through the Gazette's spectacles. —
Paris to blame. — England the cause of the war. — Appeal to the Poilus
de France. — A reply to General P6tain. — Peaceful Germany. — Revela-
tions of Belgian diplomats. — A danger to Europe and Belgium. — Russia
accuses. — Caught in the act of lying. — The wolf and the lamb. — Pr6vost
sums up. — A piteous peroration. — Foch's reply. — Why William violated
Belgium's neutraUty. — England's object. — Beware of British egoism. —
They will keep Calais. — The pirates' threat. — The occupied regions will
die of hunger first. — The civihzing and moralizing force of the submarine
campaign. — The rights of the violated small nations. — The Gazette
and Alsace-Lorraine. — Statements by two renegades. — A very com-
promised constituency. — A forced confession : Alsace-Lorraine has
remained French. — The French have bombarded Rheims. — French
atrocities. — Miss Cavell and Mata Hari. — Pr6vost as economist. —
The excommunicated socialist patriots. — The kick of the ass.

THE first duty of the abominable Gazette was to try to
demoralize the masses by representing events in a light
which was constantly favourable to Germany even when
the military situation compelled her army to take up rear
positions. It was assisted in this task by G.H.Q., who had
the official German communique translated into French and
placarded up by the printing-house in the Avenue de la Gare.
It underUned in red all advances and captures of places or
territory, and in blue all captures of prisoners, guns or other
material. On the other hand, when the news was not so
reassuring the communiquis were posted up reluctantly and

213

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

tardily ; but the hypocrisy and the lying of the Boches were
stronger than their common sense, for at the very moment of
Ludendorff' s greatest defeat, the communique stated, to the
great amusement of the people of the occupied territories, that
the invincible army was continuing to win victories during its
retirement, but that they were defensive victories, rearguard
successes, and that the Kaiser's troops were methodically
withdrawing to prepared positions without the enemy being
aware of this fact. The Feldgrauen themselves shrugged their
shoulders and towards the end launched out into bitter re-
proaches against their chiefs and William. The almost
divine respect for the Kaiser began to disappear ; discipline
was dying.

The patriotic French papers were the object of an almost
savage hatred on the part of this renegade ; only the defeatist
press found favour with it and earned its sympathy. Extracts
from the Bonnet Rouge, the Pays, la Bataille, the Journal du
Peuple, la Verite and others had the honours of the first page,
side by side with Prevost's filth, and were treated as the
only serious newspapers. The papers which were most quoted
among the foreign press were the Manchester Guardian, and
La Feuille, I'lndependance Helvetique, la Nation, la Guerre-
mondiale of Geneva ; the Germanophile papers of Basle,
Berne and Ziirich; the Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Kurier of
Rotterdam, Politiken of Copenhagen, and a number of Swedish
papers. Le Bonnet Rouge was the French newspaper preferred
by Prevost and he quoted innumerable articles from the
defeatist organ. He gave particular attention to the cen-
sored articles and reproduced them without any excisions,
so that the French people in the occupied territory ended by
nicknaming the Bonnet Rouge the Gazette des Ardennes de
Paris, and the Boche G.H.Q. newspaper le Bonnet Rouge de
Charleville.

A wrongly-addressed envelope enables us to confirm the
relations existing between the two traitorous newspapers.
An envelope bearing the Paris postmark, 4 o'clock, June nth, 1916,
was delivered to us instead of to the " Gazette." It contained
" the text of articles by the editor, M. Miguel Aimer ey da, which
had been suppressed by the French censorship in the issues

214

The Gazette's Campaigns

of the ' Bonnet Rouge ' of June yth and gih, 1916, and show what
is prohibited by M. Briand's censorship." Copies of the articles
were attached to the note and contained :

1. Aprds le bdillon, of Miguel Almereyda, against the

censorship ;

2. Remplagons, dealing with manoeuvres against the Briand

ministry ;

3. Pour la paix, a. Swiss appeal for peace, signed E. Guggi

and A. Sauter.

The Gazette was demoralizing in the highest degree, for it
only quoted the scandalous sessions in which the Kienthalist
deputies were the object of their colleagues' scorn and in
which other deputies launched attacks on the Government.
According to Prevost, Messrs. Alexandre Blanc, Raffin-Dugeus,
Brizon, Cachin, Mayeras and Jean Longuet were the only
spokesmen of French thought. The Almereyda, Bolo, Duval,
Turmel, Lenoir, Malvy and Caillaux affairs were the subject
of bitter campaigns by the Franco-Boche rag, but the way
in which these were conducted decided pubUc opinion and
increased the confidence of the occupied areas in M. Clemenceau.
Only sympathetic articles and depositions which were favour-
able to the accused were reproduced. In Number 75 of the
Gazette, August 19, 1915, the paper was already putting the
responsibility for the war on M. Delcass^ and acknowledging
M. Joseph Caillaux to be a great man.

" . . . M. Delcasse resigns. But his system has not
resigned, for radicalism has not been able to produce a great
leader who could unite home and foreign policy.

" A few years later an attempt was outlined. This came
from M. Caillaux, who had to open the conversation after
Agadir, when the silence was broken in rather disagreeable
fashion. He was a radical, not in the Delcass6 manner, but
thoroughly radical, one of the young men of the party. Was
it going to be possible to come to an understanding on the
Morocco question, perhaps even beyond it ?

" It was only a beginning, a first word, an almost timid
essay. Was the Entente with Germany supplementing
other Ententes going to be effected ? But then another
radical, one of the old men of the party, overthrows M. Caillaux.

215

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

Did M. Clemenceau, who saw 1870, betray over and beyond
his party the secret idea of the country on this day ? Was
not an entente with Germany wanted at the bottom of their
hearts ?

" What that overthrower of ministries, M. Clemenceau,
too passionate as he is to be a far-seeing poHtician, did that
day was only to add a new trophy to his collection. His
action was wholly to the advantage of the anti-German
diplomacy, which was forging ahead from one thing to another,
bringing militarism, nationalism and ultimately — the war."

The secondary objects of G.H.Q. were to depress the
population of the invaded territories by revealing a France
that was not confident of the issue of the war, a people crying
out for peace, a disunited parliament and a blind government
which had driven the army into inevitable defeat and the
country to the final catastrophe in order to save the politicians
in power. The world was assured by the former Paris corre-
spondent of the Miinchener Neueste Nachrichien that it was
Paris who had wanted the war.

" It has been said that Napoleon was France's cavalier,
but that his love for her was cruel and pitiless and that he
spurred her into the abyss. The same can be said of Paris.
It is always Paris that drags the provinces further than they
want to go. . . .And it is Paris that, reckless to the point of
folly and drunk with glory, allowed diplomacy to bring matters
to war. The provinces wanted peace ! Thus they were
amazed when war broke out. Simple in mind and nature,
they could not follow the entanglement of diplomacy. But
it was too late to react. As they considered themselves
innocent, they had but one idea : ' Since I am not to blame,
it must be Germany.' Wrong, poor provincial France !

" To-day, it is the provinces that are invaded by the war.
Paris, on the contrary, is spared, and replies to the plaintive
cries with : ' Not yet ! Come on ! Let us go on ! . . .
Peace will come at the end.' The provinces will labour long
and patiently to rebuild a France. But one day perhaps
they will understand the capital's responsibility, and say
under their breath : ' How she has made us suffer ! ' "

{La Diplomatic fatale, No. 75, Aug. 19, 1915.)
216

The Gazette's Campaigns

Its other object, and its chief one, is to justify Germany
before the civilized world by trjang to put upon the Entente
the responsibility for the war and to prove that France was
driven to the war by England.

The responsibility for the war ! The Gazette devotes a
multitude of articles to this grave question which is so critical
for the Government that it sets out to defend. It feels that
its cause is a bad one, and that the most that could be done
was to confound pubHc opinion so that the latter would be
deceived by its sophistries and unable to distinguish the
truth. It is impossible for us to reproduce all the arguments
brought forward by the Alsatian traitor ; a library would
not be sufficient for this purpose. We shall, therefore, restrict
ourselves to publishing some extracts from a special number
[Edition SpSciale, No. 2), which was dropped by aeroplanes
over the French lines in the spring of 1917. It bears a large-
letter title : " Aux poilus de France," and it sums up all
Provost's articles.

Schnitzer's subordinate drew up this long statement as a
reply to a little catechism written by General P6tain, for the
use of the " Poilus de France," which " claims to answer
in a paternal way the main questions that most trouble the
soldier's conscience."

"In substance," General Petain says, "it was Germany
who wanted war ; she alone prepared for it in Europe, It
is she who is continuing it in order to realize her exorbitant
claims to world dominion ; she is the obstacle to peace."

Thus General Petain. Let us see what history has to
say in reply :

" If Germany wanted war she would not have waited for
the moment when her ' aggression ' would necessarily bring
down upon her the three great powers of Europe. One cannot
understand why she did not profit by one of the numerous favour-
able occasions which presented themselves for her to crush one after
the other her adversaries which are now leagued together."

Yes, but the renegade forgets to add that Germany did not
profit by one of these numerous favourable occasions because
the reorganization of her army was not yet completed, because
her field artillery, with its 77-m. gun, and her heavy artillery

217

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

had not yet been reformed so as to reply to our dangerous
75, and because the credits of the new army law which was to
ensure the numerical sup>eriority of the German Army over
the French had not yet been voted by the Reichstag.

The Gcneralstab's writer continues : " Here we have evi-
dently a delicate matter. If the poilu was inquisitive, he would
ask his General for permission to read at his leisure certain
diplomatic documents of the highest interest, the authors
of which could not be open to suspicion since they are now
the friends and allies of France. But the Paris Government
and its censorship have taken care that the French people
should be ignorant of the existence of these diplomatic docu-
ments whidi have been drawn up during the course of the
last ten years by the Belgian plenipotentiaries at Paris, London
and Berlin. The perusal of these testimonies from impartial
and informed spectators of the anti-German policy of the
Triple Entente would, indeed, greatly complicate the ' moral-
izing ' task of General P^tain.

" For these Belgian statesmen would show suffering France
that it was not Germany but her own politicians who concocted,
behind her back, this personal and irresponsible policy which
was hatched in the mj'sterious retreats of secret and irre-
sponsible diplomacy, and which rendered the conflict in-
evitable.

" Germany was pacifically inclined. She only asked to be
allowed to live and develop her strong and legitimate vitality."

But if, according to the Gazette, Germany was pacifically
inclined, this was not the case with the Triple Entente.

** In the face of this peaceful r61e played by Germany and
her allies, let us examine the more and more disquieting
and provoking attitude of the Triple Entente, the issue of the
Franco-Russian alliance, which already contained the germs
of all the fatal development of the chauvinistic and revengeful
tendencies on the one hand and the Pan-Slav aspirations on
the other.

" In its fateful, definitive form this Entente was the work
of English intrigue, which succeeded skilfully in exploiting
against Germany the old rancour of France and the more
recent antagonism of Muscovite imperialism.

tz8

The Gazette*8 Campaigns

" Again, it is the Belgian ministers at Paris, London and
Berlin who give us a particularly impartial and exact review
of this policy which was becoming more and more provoking,
and more and more threatening to peace. . . .

" Baron Greinde writes in his report of Dec. 6th, 1911 : * //
is the Entente Cordiale that has reawakened in France the idea
of revenge which was hitherto stilled. From it, too, proceeds
the anxiety and uneasiness with which Europe has been strug-
gling for the last seven years.' "

Belgium is not the only one to make accusation. Ru9^
joins with her. On Feb. 15th, 1915, the naturalized Bavarian
declares that " on the evening of July 31st, the French Govern-
ment did not yet know that Russia had ordered the general
mobilization in the night of July 30-3X. The French am-
bassador therefore — incredible though it may seem ! — had
not informed his Government, so that Germany's counter
mobilization was known sooner in Paris and could thus be
presented to the French public as a German threat. From all
evidence it seems that we have here unreported complicity
which will be established by history."

This is a gross lie, told to deceive the neutrals and to dis-
concert, for the moment, the French of the invaded regions,
since the Parisians read on July 30th in the Press that Nicho-
las II.'s ukase called to the colours the reservists of 23 whole
governments and 71 districts of 14 other governments.

After reviewing the opinion of the French and Russian
Presses at the outbreak of war and during the hostilities,
this pen-driver de Moosch appends the following com-
ments :

" Thus the French Government precipitated its people into
this terrible war for the Panslavism of SuchomUnov and his
colleagues.

" The French Government win never be able to give the lie
to all these witnesses ! But it is endeavouring to hide the
terrible truth from the people. The day it comes to light,
in spite of all these efforts, will only bring a more terrible
awakening ! "

The fable of the wolf and the lamb is always seasonable
for Pan-Germanism !

2x9

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

All this time, according to the edition for the " Poilus,"
Germany remained on the defensive.

" It is well known that before the war, Germany, so-called
militarist, maintained an active army which was proportion-
ately far less strong than that of France, and that her mihtary
expenditure was lower than France's. But the ' militarist '
French Governments refused to admit the logical consequences
of the growth of the German population, and decided to impose
the three years' mihtary service upon the country."

After these overwhelming charges, entitled les Origines
de la Guerre, Prevost, as counsel for G.H.Q., sums up as
follows :

(a) The policy of encirclement which was pursued
against Germany would excuse her before history, even if
she had let loose the war. When a nation finds itself sur-
rounded thus by enemies who assume a more and more threat-
ening aspect towards the free development of her forces and
faculties, could it be really surprising if this nation attempted
by one sudden effort to set itself free ? Could it be said that
this nation was alone the " aggressor," and the others its
innocent victims ?

(6) " Urged on by her nationahsts, France has always
rejected the hand of friendship that the German people and
its Emperor stretched out to her for forty-three years. ' ' France
preferred to remain faithful to her pledges. If she had re-
flected, like Bethmann-Hollweg, that solemn treaties are only
scraps of paper, she would not have gone to war with Germany,
and would have been free to let the latter crush Russia and
then turn on us.

(i) Belgium's neutrality was violated only because the
Entente was prepared to \iolate it.

{e) Finally England's hypocrisy, for whom Belgium's
neutrality was only the motive with which she covered her
war against Germany, is the chief author of the drama.

{/) Germany wants peace. The Entente opposes it.
Peaceful Germany " has declared, in agreement with her
allies, that she did not aspire to crush anybody, and that her

220

The Gazette's Campaigns

propositions would be such as would form the basis of a durable
peace and entente between the nations."

(Of course, she takes good care not to disclose them.)
In conclusion, the Boche defender cries in a piteous perora-
tion : " What is left (the day after the refusal to listen to the
deceitful proposals of Boche diplomacy) but the fear of the
rulers of the Entente, who tremble at the thought that if the
day of peace does not bring them the absolution of impossible
victory it will begin the trial of their terrible responsibilities
before the tribunal of their peoples ? "

We shall not trouble to refute such poor arguments. Foch
took it upon himself, together with the " Poilus de France,"
to make a more eloquent reply in the name of our country.

William can amuse himself in the depths of his Dutch retreat
by looking over the whole series of the infamous Gazette
and meditating upon its results.

In order to condone the violation of Belgian neutrality
the wicked Alsatian had to bring aU the cunning of his Franco-
Boche wit into play.

Another special edition of Dec. 12th, 1914, explains that the
violation of Belgium was necessitated by the discovery of the
military Convention drawn up by the Belgian Chief of Staff
and the British military attach^ at Brussels, according to which
England promised to send an army of 160,000 men in the event
of Germany passing through Belgian territory to attack France.
No. 9, Dec. 27th, 1914, deals with the fateful role played
by Belgium in this war. It states : " We know : (i) That
Belgium had secret military agreements with England ;
(2) That the French General Staff (authorized of course by
the Belgian Government) surveyed all places and the organiza-
tion of all fortified places in time of peace ; that the instruc-
tions for the defence of Namur, Liege, etc., were elaborated
by both Governments in common. All these measures were
directed against Germany.

" Since she was aware of all these machinations, therefore,
it was Germany's absolute duty, unless she wanted to perish
voluntarily, to forestall France. AU the outcry about the viola-
tion of Belgian ' neutrality ' is, therefore, out of place.

" After these preUminaries, let us first examine the events

221

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

which happened at the beginning of hostilities with France.
The Germans did not want to attack Belgium ; they asked
the Belgian Government for permission for their army to cross
the country and formally promised to pay for all damage
and loss of any kind. These demands and promises were,
moreover, renewed after the fall of Liege.

" Belgium, pledged as she was by the known conventions, bluntly
refused and declared that a state of war would exist the moment
a foot was set across her frontier.

" It goes without saying that Belgium would never have com-
mitted this act of imprudence, if she had not been in possession
of definite guarantees from England. This country then
seized this fine opportunity to declare war on Germany, a
war that had been premeditated and prepared for a long
time past.

"... The march of events corresponded perfectly with
England's expectations, for she was delighted to have an ideal
opportunity of fishing in troubled waters. ..."

It can be seen that it is not at all diihcult for Prevost to get
round difficulties. Every time his Germanic employer
commits a new crime, he. has a ready reply with which to
justify it : " England is to blame."

Ah ! Poor England ! She was often dragged into it all.
For Provost hoped thus to rouse the hatred of the people
of the invaded areas for our loyal allies. He never succeeded.
Each thrust crumpled up against the robust common sense
of the French of the north and north-east.

" England's object is as clear as day " (No. 146, Feb. i6th,
1916). "The liberation of Belgium? Oh, no! There is
not one English newspaper which would dare to write that
seriously now. The object of England, the primary and
^ decisive cause of this terrible war, is to destroy the industrial
strength and the commercial prosperity of Germany. If
there is one fact beyond the shadow of a doubt, it is this English
ambition, which was foreseen and foretold before the war
by a great number of French economists and politicians,
confirmed in all the official reports of the Belgian ministers
in London and Berlin, and finally ^admitted during the war
by Enghsh speakers and journalists.

222

The Gazette's Campaigns

" England promises her allies that when peace comes she
will safeguard their interests to the detriment of Germany,
Do her allies ask how she will behave towards them ? Do they
really believe that the egoistic EngHshman, who will himself
be hard hit by the war, will dream for one instant of sacri-
ficing for them what he is able to save of his own prosperity ?

" And do not let us forget that England's allies will always
have before them Germany's armies and those of her allies.
It is with them that the reckoning will have to be settled."

This reckoning is all settled, and it is the Almanach de la
Gazette des Ardennes for the year 1917 that informs us of it.
They will keep the French coasts.

" Calais was occupied by the English at the beginning of
the present war. They have gradually reinforced the forti-
fications on the land side and transformed the forts, to which
natives are forbidden access. Besides, Lord Balfour's words
to Churchill are familiar : ' As long as we hold Calais, we can
console ourselves for the loss of Antwerp.' As a matter of
fact, it is said that Calais has passed almost completely under
English control.

" The French Government put a question to the British
to ask whether Calais and the French territory occupied by
British troops would be definitely evacuated after peace was
concluded. The answer, far from being in the affirmative,
has been vague and far from satisfactory."

Did not the Kaiser say shortly after his arrival in Charle-
ville that the French would be glad of Germany's help after
the war to drive the EngUsh out of Dunkirk, Calais, Boulogne
and Havre ?

Sometimes the jeremiads turn to threats. Mr. Churchill,
the English Navy Minister, was interviewed by a correspondent
of the Matin and declared tliat " the blockade of Germany
would not be slackened until Germany had been brought
to discretion ; and even if France and Russia abandoned
the war, England would continue it to the end."

" England treats us like a besieged fortress " (No. 22, Feb. 15,
1915). " Well, we must fight with all available means against
her knavish tricks, and England will also be a besieged fortress
to us.

223

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

" England must be harmed by every possible means. Her
food-supply by ocean and land must be annihilated.

" As for Germany, it is her duty to defend herself to the
last extremity. No German wants to strangle himself to
please the British ! Besides, Messrs. Churchill and Co. have
not seriously reflected upon the simple results of these tactics.
Let this be borne in mind : there are about 600,000 prisoners
of war in Germany, apart from civilians. . . . Besides, the
territories occupied by the Germans number nearly fourteen
million inhabitants. And if famine should make itself felt
one day, it is clear that enemy subjects would be the first to suffer,
for no German will die of hunger whilst these former have any-
thing to eat.

" But it is true that there are no English in the occupied
territories who run this risk ! We had almost forgotten that."

Tirpitz was already preparing his satanic plan of the sub-
marine campaign.

Germany sincerely believed that she would thus force Eng-
land to her knees.

The infamous Gazette utters a cry of triumph and joy. The
pirates may murder at their leisure, for the traitor makes out,
in No. 355, Feb. 27, 1917, that the submarine war is not immoral.

"... England means to impose upon Europe the continua-
tion of the carnage, an indefinite prolongation of the miseries
of war, which her egoism had hitherto spared us. On the other
hand, it is the obligation of the German submarines to cut
short this war by striking British mercantile interests in a vital
spot. They do not mean to annihilate whatever may be in
question. On the day when they will have put upon England
Mr. Churchill's famous muzzle, their task will be accomplished
for the greater prosperity of the old European continent.

" Compare these two objects — the German and the English.
Which of the two is immoral ? "

It is not Germany that has violated Belgium's neutraHty.
It is England that is treading under foot the rights of small
nations. She violates Greek neutrality by preventing King
Constantine from becoming one of William's agents and from
transforming his kingdom into a vast Boche barracks. She
violates Holland's and Sweden's neutrality by preventing these

224

The Gazette's Campaigns

two countries from carrying on a contraband of American
food for Germany's benefit.

The horrible paper also sheds hypocritical tears over those
peoples enslaved by Russia, and unfortunate Ireland, but it
has no pity for the Armenian martyrs, or for Alsace-Lorraine,
who has groaned for forty-five years under the persecutions of
her torturers.

On the contrary, according to the renegade who is at home
in such matters, since he comes of old Alsatian stock, Alsace
and Lorraine have never been so happy as under Boche domina-
tion, and only ask to be allowed to remain German. He calls
to his rescue two renegades like himself. Dr. Hoeffel, president
of the Alsace-Lorraine Senate, and Dr. Ricklin, president of
the Strassburg Diet, both of whom have made speeches which
were printed in the Voix d' Alsace-Lorraine (No. 419, June 23,
1917).

Dr. Hoeffel cries : " We were incorporated in the German

i Empire by a perfectly regular treaty. This peace-treaty

' is an act of international law, which has created a definitive

law and has bound Alsace-Lorraine to the German Empire

permanently.

" Under the aegis of this empire, we have enjoyed in the
fullest measure the benefits of peace for forty-three years. . . .
Fate restored us to Germany in 1871. We are closely united
to her economically as well as by blood and language. And
we are penetrated by the conviction that Alsace-Lorraine
can only hope for a prosperous and peaceful future through
her union with the German Empire, to which we are loyally
attached."

Do not forget that the Alsatian Senate did not proceed from
any voting. It was appointed directly by the Kaiser.

Dr. Ricklin, Provost's friend, said Amen. He, too, touches
on the subject in his speech to the Second Chamber and makes
the following declaration :

"... This is why I consider it a duty to my conscience
to declare here that the people of Alsace-Lorraine repudiates
with all its energy the idea that this terrible carnage should
continue for their sake. This people desires nothing else than
to develop and prosper from an intellectual, economic and

225 15

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

constitutional point of view in its indissoluble union with the
German Empire, preserving meanwhile their lawful peculiari-
ties.

" The valiant sons of our country at the front, our hope,
are fighting and dying not merely for the safety and the future
of the German Empire. They are fighting for the full equality
of their little country among the federated states of Germany.
" Your applause, gentlemen, proves to me that I have just
expressed your inmost convictions, and it is in this sense that
we cry : ' Alsace-Lorraine, the German Empire, the German
Emperor — long may they live ! '"

" We shall not add anything to these eloquent speeches,"
the felon concludes. He could have added, however, that
some time before the war Abbe Winterer's successor had gone
over to the enemy and that his position in the Altkirch district
was very compromised, for the inhabitants regarded him as
a thorough Boche.

Nevertheless, the Teuton loyalism of the two presidents
of the Strassburg parliament did not extend to the people,
and an Alsatian confesses this fact in No. 653, June 14th,
1918 (" Pour I'Alsace-Lorraine ").
We shall quote the end of the article :
" . . . It is very comprehensible that a certain amount of
discontent should arise in this Alsace-Lorraine, which is only
a step or two away from the theatre of war, and compulsorily
subjected to the military control of the Unes of communication
areas. There have certainly been some mistakes. Then the
Alsatian character has a well-known tendency to make oppo-
sition, and certain elements have given this full rein, forgetting
the gravity of the hour, which could not admit of the innocent
whims of times of peace. Thus rigorous measures were the
result. But would it be right to base upon a passing bad
temper a decision affecting the ultimate fate of the country ?
Would a plebiscite taken at this critical moment reflect the real
soul of the country? No, it is not fitting to use or rather
to abuse the fits and starts of a people's temper at such an
agitated epoch. This would mean giving free rein to chance.
But one does not gamble with a nation ! And if a vote of the
people of Alsace-Lorraine is seriously wanted^ then a, stipula-

226

The Gazette's Campaigns

tion would have to be made for this vote to be taken every
ten years.

" Yes, such is the foundation of our character, and if we
voted every ten years, the world would get some surprises,
and would see some changes of mind that would be rather
comic."

This Alsatian is forecasting the reception of our poilus by
our liberated brethren, and foretelling the words uttered by
President Poincar^ in response to the enthusiastic welcome
of Metz, Strassburg, Colmar and Mulhouse : " There is the
plebiscite ! "

In the same way the Gazette treated other matters, in which
Germany was always right and the Entente always wrong.

The articles on the destruction of Rheims Cathedral by the
Barbarians, on the pretext that machine guns had been
posted on the towers, and that the bombardment " was a
reply to the bombardment by French artillery of a number
of towns and places behind the German front . . ."; and those
articles on the benevolent treatment of prisoners of war,
when we could see the martyrdom of our unfortunate com-
patriots in the camps near us, all reinforced the conviction
which everybody had formed that the infamous paper was
lying.

The filthy rag even had the audacity to state that the
wounded and prisoners taken by the French were martyrized,
and it published various articles on this subject which were
just as fantastic as they were false.

" The French generals even " (writes the Gazette, Nov.
29th, 1917) " do not shrink from brutal treatment of prisoners
in order to extort military information from them." An N.C.O.,

F , declares on oath, March 15th, 1916, that he fell into

the hands of the Friench, grievously wounded, but was made
to follow the coltunn on foot.

A general, whose name is not given on purpose, cross-ques-
tions him, and as he refuses to speak, he is insulted by the
officer, who threatens to have him shot.

And the Gazette concludes :

" Here is a French general who is not ashamed to make
use of such methods to drive a German soldier to violate his

«a7 15*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

oath of loyalty to the colours and to induce him to betray
his country ! "

On Jan. 5th, 1915, a German Staff major, also anony-
mous, and also in the service of the Red Cross, the better to
stress French barbarity, was subjected to ill-treatment. If we
can believe Gaspari, he drew up a report which ends as follows :

" This treatment was not the result of bad organization,
but of calculated brutality. By treating us like this, the
French want to give the inhabitants of the localities we pass
through the impression of * starved and demoralized
Boches.' "

" We cannot doubt," adds the editor, " the authenticity
of the facts related in this Red Cross officer's report (who
was sent back to Germany in the exchange of prisoners),
for almost every day the German military authorities receive
reports of this kind concerning the ill-treatment meted out
in France to German prisoners, even wounded men."

After such accusations, it is very difficult to speak in France
about the treatment inflicted on our prisoners.

The murder of Miss Cavell, however, caused him some
embarrassment. He hastened with alacrity to seize upon the
execution of Mata Hari, the Dutch dancer, who betrayed the
nation that had offered her hospitality and wealth, and in
No. 445, Aug. 14th, 1917, Prevost violently attacks M. Abel
Hermant, who had demonstrated in the Figaro that the
sentence passed by the Paris court-martial was profoundly
just and necessary.

But the renegade replies to M. Abel Hermant by repro-
ducing a certain passage from a Dutch periodical, Toekomzt,
July 2ist, which makes out that the execution of Miss Cavell
was not a murder : " A person who abuses her nurse's habit
to deceive the confidence placed in her, and to enable several
hundreds of soldiers to fight the Germans, in whose midst she
lived in perfect safety and liberty, does not deserve to be
exalted. . . ."

And Prevost concludes his diatribe against the " academic
houlevardier " [sic] with : " But the most elementary honesty
should have prevented you, M. Abel Hermant, and your
Parisian comrades — ever ready to adapt their chameleonic

23,8

The Gazette's Campaigns

convictions to circumstances — from trembling with this false
and misplaced indignation."

Financial and political questions did not leave the Bavaro-
Alsatian journalist cold. Germany's economic condition is
admirable ; the Entente's is on the point of foundering in
disaster and bankruptcy ; the mark is rising, the franc is
falling, the pound is depreciating, and soon the dollar will
have no currency in neutral banks. Why strive for an im-
possible victory when Germany occupies the richest industrial
provinces of France, and when, with inexhaustible generosity,
she is quite prepared to sell back to the factories of the north,
the Ardennes and the east all the materials that she has stolen
from them ?

The Socialists are the subject of the solicitude of the General
Staff's militarists. Why not listen to the invitations of the
German Socialists to hold a conference at Stockholm. Well
done, the Kienthalist French deputies, the defeatist press,
of the Bonnet Rouge variety, who testify to a practical and
far-seeing patriotism !

But the truly French Socialists turned a deaf ear. There-
fore, they are the enemies of their own country, since they
want to continue the war. It is Provost's duty to let them
know that Ludendorff is not pleased with them, and to give
them good advice.

" Make a beginning, French Socialists, by liberating France
from this nationalist poUcy, and from this ' bourgeois im-
perialism,' which have made your bleeding people their
instrument and their victim.

" How dare you write that ' you vouch for what you
will do ' to oblige the Allied Governments to keep to
your principles at the conclusion of peace ? You, whose
spokesman, Gustav Herve, editor of the prophetic Guerre qui
vient, has gone over with lock, stock, barrel, drums and
trumpets, into the camp of those people whose hateful machina-
tions he used to denounce ! You who allowed your great
Jaur^s to he assassinated in dastardly fashion, and permitted
the guilty parties to remain unpunished !
hv, " And^after all your proofs of perfect impotence, you want
the German people, even if it agrees not to doubt your good

229

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

faith, to consider you equal to opposing the plans of annihila-
tion, which have been notoriously contrived against its exist-
ence and its future ? " (No. 477, October i8th, 1917).

The matter at issue was the Socialist Congress at Bordeaux,
which produced the split between the Majority and the Minority
— " the members of this minority " which is ceaselessly growing,
which does not intend blindly to submit any longer, and whose
left wing is formed by the hard and fast pacifists representing
the tendency of the Socialist congresses of Zimmerwald and
Kienthal ; and these thoroughgoing pacifists are recom-
mended to his readers by the General Staff's agent : " Messrs.
Jean Longuet, Rappoport, Pressamane, Brizon, Raffin-Dugens,
etc."

As for the " Governmental " Socialists, such as Sembat,
Renaudel and Albert Thomas, they were simply regarded as
vulgar nationalists.

S30

CHAPTER XIX

THE GREAT OFFENSIVES

(Foch V. Ludendorff)

Plans for attack on Verdun. — The moderation of a German communiqui. —
The favourite critiques of the traitor. — Awaiting the capitulation of
Verdun. — The reward of defeat. — Foch is not dead. — France has no more
men. — An unimportant success. — The recapture of Douaumont is of no
importance. — Like Caesar's. — OflEensive against the Chemin des Dames. —
The Crown Prince's birthday. — A catastrophic (?) success. — Germany
raises her head again. — Nothing can resist the line of brass. — The decep-
tion of a single command. — Let us await the verdict of the future. —
In praise of the Crown Prince. — Nothing can resist the German army. —
Prdvost admits the exaggeration of the Journal du Peuple. — The Com-
pi6gne offensive. — A first deception. — The last spring of the hunted
beast. — American help the nightmare of the Gazette. — Mr. Wilson insulted.
— War fever in the United States. — The true Americans are the cannibals.
— The American army is not an army. — A liar to the last. — A voluntary
retreat. — Foch is always beaten. — The last prophecy of Colonel Egli. —
The tone changes : Pity that doesn't ring true. — The swan's song. —
Nicholas II. v. M. Poincard. — The claims of a captured metallurgist.
— Belgian democrats and Russian patriots again. — The defeatists. —
If France had desired peace. — M. Clemenceau speaks. — Peace, please,
for poor Germany.

IN November, 1915, trains of vast length, crammed with
troops and materiel, began to run ceaselessly night and day
from all directions to the eastern Argonne and the Woevre
plateau, from the north via Liart and Hirson, from Germany
and Belgium via Givet, from Champagne via Mohon, from
Lorraine via Longuyon. Falkenhayn was preparing the
great Verdun offensive, the fall of which fortress was intended
to refurbish the temporarily tarnished military prestige of the
Crown Prince and open the road to Paris.

231

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

These preparations were carried on in the greatest secrecy,
and the Gazette did not breathe a word of what was to happen.

The 24th of February, 1916, saw the opening of the attack
and the first successes of the Crown Prince's army. The
journal of the Generalstab showed moderation as to details.
It confined itself to reproducing, without comment, the
official communiques with all their moderation, as, for example,
the report of the capture of Fort Douaumont, which ran
thus :

" G.H.Q., February i6th, 1916.
" The strong fort of Douaumont, which forms the north-east
pillar of the principal line of permanent fortifications of
Verdun, was taken by assault yesterday afternoon by the
24th Brandenburg Infantry. The fort is firmly held by the
Germans."

During the first period of the offensive the strategists of
the Gazette abstained from all comment. They confined
themselves to reproducing the articles in the French Press,
especially when these reflected anxiety ; they carefully avoided
publishing any expressions of hope. The critiques of General
N in Le Bonnet Rouge were generally given first place.

Sometimes Swiss Germanophiles discussed the figures of
the German losses, which they claimed were light, contrary
to the opinion of their French colleagues.

The Gazette was holding itself in and keeping its hymn of
victory for the capitulation of Verdun.

The German advance suffered a check, and, to console his
son for his ill-luck, the genial Kaiser conferred on him the
order Pour le Merite as a reward for his successes before
Verdun. It was then found necessary to restrain the joy of
the inhabitants of the occupied area and reply to the French
newspapers, which announced the failure of Falkenhayn's
plan.

Foch, on his side, launched an offensive on the Somme
in conjunction with the English army. France, then, is not
yet dead. The Field Greys, exhausted by their effort on the
Meuse, regard with horror fresh battles, followed by fresh

232

The Great Offensives

hecatombs. So their moral must be stiffened, and our con-
fidence in the English army which is supporting our illustrious
chief must be destroyed.

It was necessary to intervene. Our country, according
to the Gazette, could not endure the new superhuman effort
required of our soldiers. The confession that France has
reached the extreme limit of possible sacrifice has come out of the
secret domain of Government anxiety to affirm itself in the
public eye.

" Our readers know that we are not in the habit of pro-
phesying. But it is stating a simple fact to say that the only
appreciable progress realized by the first assault of the
attacking army is not the work of the English.

" It must be noticed that with the methods employed by
our allies, it is always possible to destroy and submerge the
enemy's first line of trenches.

"... Will the French, who believed that the hour had
come for the big English push, the push which, according to
the pro-Government Herve himself, ' the whole of France is
following with trembling expectation,' allow themselves to
be deluded once more when they learn — if they ever do learn
it ! — that the English, who began by occupying three-quarters
of the front of attack, have just shortened their line, aban-
doning a good ten kilometres to the French troops ? " (No.
223, July loth, 1916).

In October, 1916, it is the French who are attacking at
Verdun, They have swept over the German lines ; Fort
Douaumont is retaken, and our poilus are advancing vic-
toriously on their old positions of February. That is of no
importance compared with events in Rumania.

" The French push, north of Verdun " [Succ^s et Victoires,
No. 287, October 29th, 1917), " culminating in the recapture
of Fort Douaumont, set on fire and evacuated by the Germans,
constitutes a successful secondary operation, and is a local
success that no one will seek to underrate. It is a moral
rather than a strategic success, which the French Press will

233

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

contrive to emphasize, especially at the moment, when it
will be desirable to divert public attention from the great
military events which are pursuing their course in Rumania,
and also, doubtless, on the Somme, where the great allied
offensive has not succeeded in breaking the enemy's line of
resistance. ..."

And that is how defeats are turned into victories !

It is equally necessary to exalt the good qualities of the
Boche soldier, whom this naturalized Bavarian compares with
CcBsar's men (No. 337, January 25th, 1917) :

"... Caesar's soldiers, who ate bread made of straw in
the trenches of Durazzo, were so devoted to their chief that
they fought without pay, living in a fraternal communism
of suffering and hope. And when they had suffered cruelly,
they crushed under their hardened fists and by the moral
force of their souls immuned to war the brilliant army of
Pompey.

" Some men are broken by hardship ; others hardship
exalts and strengthens.

" Among these were the Romans of Caesax, '

The Germans of Hindenburg too ! "

Since then the Allies have continued their successes, and
Hindenburg is forced to shorten his front and fall back on
Saint-Quentin ; the Aisne offensive is begun, but " the valour
of the German troops has frustrated the grandly conceived
and well-prepared plans of General Nivelle ; they have fallen
back on the position prepared for them.

" And this hour when the guns roar louder than ever, and
when the fate of armies is in the balance, may be the decisive
hour of this great war. Leaders and men stand united in one
single destiny, that of their country, and this patriotism of
a whole people, facing danger erect, with flashing eye and
proud soul, adds its solemn gravity to the vernal joy of the
birthday of Crown Prince William, whose armies, shoulder
to shoulder, have victoriously held back for thirty-three

234

The Great Offensives

months, in a long and bitter struggle, the numerical superiority
of a valiant foe striving with all the fire of a consuming
patriotism to reconquer his invaded soil " (No. 393, May 6th,
1917).

In conclusion, the French offensives of the Aisne and in
Champagne are considered as equivalent to a great German
victory.

" Altogether they have suffered a catastrophic check. All
the French statements, intended to calm the French people
and deceive the neutrals, cannot alter the fact that the French
and British attempts to break through have completely failed,
and have brought no appreciable result when one considers
the vast objectives they had in view " (June 21st, 1917).

After the failure of Russia, Germany again raised her head.
The offensives on the French front are over. The results are
known. Calais is about to fall ; Paris will not hold out
long. It can be imagined how Prevost's pen, and especially
that of the military bureau, ran over the paper. Nothing
can resist the rampart of brass formed by the German army,
the steel arms of Ludendorff's invincible warriors.

But the results of the March offensive on the Somme had
prompted the Entente Governments to create a single com-
mand of the Allied armies, and they had chosen General Foch
for this position of trust.

This didn't suit the Boche General Staff. Through the
accommodating Pr6vost they at once began to jeer clumsily
at the decision of the inter-Allied Council :

" General Foch," says this scribbling reptile in No. 608,
April 20th, 1918, " the supreme hope of the Entente, is a
successful soldier, who showed his capacity in 1916 as Com-
mander-in-Chief of the French armies in the Battle of the
Somme. . . .

" Will he succeed where Joffre, Nivelle, P6tain have failed
in turn ? Let us await the verdict of the future." (Provost
is getting prudent.)

335

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

The English, according to him, did not accept this choice
without reserve, and Ludendorff' s tool tries to prove this by
publishing extracts from certain English newspapers opposed
to unity of command.

Of course, the Gazette set up against Foch the illustrious
military reputation of the Crown Prince, the hero of La
Friture. It seizes the opportunity of his Highness's thirty-
seventh birthday for this. We find this article in No. 621,
May 5th, 1918 :

" In the annals of this long and bitter struggle against a
brave enemy, superior in numbers and in materiel, the armies
grouped under the command (???) of Crown Prince William
have held for more than three and a half years a place of
honour. Soldiers of the Argonne and Champagne, who will
ever tell the epic of your deeds of arms ? All who have had
the opportunity of seeing you chatting with your chief,
looking straight into his bright eyes, have felt the breath of
that friendly simplicity, that beautiful camaraderie which
the Imperial Prince diffuses around him and which clings to
the folds of your flags under the May sky.

" And certainly, if from the Elysian heights the piercing
eye of the great Frederic looks down on this prince, who is to
inherit the crown he so gloriously wore, he who understood
these things as few have understood them, will feel the wind
of victory disturbing the air of this spring of 1918. . . ."

The events from March to June, 1918, are described in the
true Provost manner. Nothing can resist the onrush of the
Germans ; the British army is completely routed, and the
French divisions, hastily thrown into the battle, are powerless
to stem the tumultuous torrent which the genius of Foch and
the intervention of America have failed to dam. Mr. Wilson,
the apostle of right and civilization (this is the ironical descrip-
tion of the President of the United States), is repeatedly
ridiculed, and General Pershing's army is described as a
collection of men dressed as soldiers, who will be unable to
save England and France from the final debacle.

Nevertheless, the failure of the June offensive at Com-

236

The Great Offensives

piSgne, which was a very great German defeat — for Luden-
dorff' s plan was virtually frustrated on the Matz — embarrasses
Provost. The reader must be deceived. As the German
communiques allow the truth to be read between the lines
and revive hopes, it is necessary to sow mistrust. The former
correspondent of the Dernieres nouvelles de Munich can find
nothing better than the reproduction of French articles that
have appeared before this great failure was known.

" As the French newspapers," says the Gazette of June 13th,
1918, " only reach us after several days' delay, our readers
will here find a retrospective, and perhaps for that reason
all the more striking, review of the situation. Events follow
one another with dizzy rapidity. At the moment of writing,
the Germans have attacked, with what result is already known,
near Noyon, and the battle at Soissons and Rheims is already
over. This battle the French Press calls ' the Battle of Paris,'
a name inspired partly with the intention of exaggerating the
enemy's objective in order to make it more easy to make out that
he has been finally held up, partly from fear. Yes, fear had been
reigning in Paris for some days when the importance of the
German attack west of Soissons became known. . . , Judge
for yourselves. ..."

And the editor's scissors mutilated a number of newspapers,
bringing together cleverly and skilfully combining parts of
sentences. Among them is the Journal du Peuple, of June ist.
Malevolent as he is, this renegade notes that the impassioned
attacks of this paper on M. Clemenceau have an ill effect on
the occupied country ; he puts his readers on their guard by
adding that : " Le Journal du Peuple is rushing into a bold
and, it seems to us, premature campaign against the President
of the Council."

But to counteract the articles of that section of the Press
which is regarded in the Avenue de la Gare as Chauvinist
and pro-revenge, and which affirms that in spite of everything
the enemy will not break through, he concludes by saying :

" We think it useful to point out that from now onwards
the point of view from which the French Press has judged this

237

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

series of operations now being carried through might easily
be refuted by the facts. One event follows another, and
any one of these may completely change the immediate or
ultimate effect of those which went before."

Indeed, the hour of Germany's defeat had already struck !

In the issue of the following June 20th, No. 659, the General
Staff felt the necessity of administering a cold douche to
the confidence of the inhabitants of the occupied area.

The following was received from the German front :

" The great success of our armies between Montdidier and
Noyon has shown that the Germans are capable of breaking
through the most firmly defended front, even when it has
been prepared for the attack. . . .

" , . . In their order of the day the French leaders ordered
their men to hold their positions to the last man. In spite
of this, the new German offensive was completely successful.

" After his memorable defeat of June nth, the enemy
resolved, on the following day, to renew the attack in great
strength, supported by large numbers of Tanks. After severe
fighting he was thrown back with losses. . . . The fruitless
attacks of the French have considerably augmented the
bloody losses they have already suffered," . . .

But the Generalstdb omits to mention that the Crown Prince,
who had already packed his boxes ready to occupy the Castle
of Compiegne, came back, after his failure, to take up his
quarters once more in the Villa Renaudin, where he was to
remain until his flight into Holland.

According to information obtained from authoritative sources
at G.H.Q., the German offensives were the Kaiser's supreme
effort to force a decisive success before American help was
brought to bear. The defection of the Russian army made it
possible to bring to the Western Front sufficient reinforce-
ments to justify a swift and vigorous offensive, which was to
force the Entente to sue for peace. Moreuil was the first
disappointment ; the Compiegne defensive proved such an
overwhelming German defeat, that Ludendorff's plans were

238

The Great Offensives

completely upset. Finally, according to this same authorita-
tive source, the Champagne offensive was the last spring of
the hard-pressed beast, which intended to rend its enemy or
perish under his blows. The second alternative was realized.

Meanwhile the United States was working a miracle : her
fleets of transports were unceasingly pouring out men and
guns, and soon the ocean of our countless armies (quoted from
a speech at a distribution of prizes to school children) in the
occupied area was submerging the quicksands of barbarism.

What a nightmare American help was to the Kaiser !
What a sphinx was Wilson to the Imperial Chancellory !

The Gazette des Ardennes reflects exactly the thoughts of
the Government and the High Command. To begin with,
Prevost tries flattery when the President of the United States,
on December 22nd, 1916, sent to the belligerent Powers a
Note, in which " he insists, before everything else, on ending
the present war."

" At this moment," according to the Gazette of December
30th, 1916, No. 322 {L'idee genereuse), " the voice of the Pre-
sident is a generous voice whose sincere loyalty no one will
dare to doubt."

Soon the tone changes, Mr. Wilson's ideas don't suit the
ambitious plans of William II. ; the submarines have sunk
American ships and murdered citizens of free America, who is
asking for explanations. The " sincere loyalty " of the
eminent statesman becomes suspect. " He thinks he is
going to conduct the choir of neutrals (March 4th, 1917).
He had already sent them a Note asking them to follow him ;
already he had raised his conductor's baton. But when he
looked around him, to his astonishment there was no one
there. In any case, Mr. Wilson must be laughing on the
wrong side of his face.

" As he is a great philosopher, he will not faU to reflect on
the causes of this diplomatic fiasco.

" The League of Nations will have no moral autlwrity.

'* You have missed the opportune moment, Mr. Wilson !
You are too late ! "

239

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

In September, 1917, the Alsatian, who has asked for his
Bavarian naturahzation papers, grows violent, sometimes
coarse :

" There was a time when Mr. Wilson posed as an indepen-
dent and honest man. At that time he was seeking the votes
of the American people, the majority of whom he knew to
be in favour of peace.

" To-day he seems to have forgotten his promises. By
wedding himself to the Entente cause, to save the com-
promised interests of a powerful financial clique, Mr. Wilson
has found himself forced to assume responsibility for their
repertory of hollow phrases and worn-out lies ! What a down-
fall for a philosopher ! Our readers know that we are not
prejudiced against Mr. Wilson. We have courteously
accepted statements in which he posed as the apostle of a
peace of conciliation.

"It is not our judgment that has changed since, it is Mr.
Wilson's attitude ! Since he has thrown down the mask,
how could we continue to regard him as the ' arbiter ' he used
to profess to be ? To-day Mr. Wilson pours out accusations
in and out of season, and the exasperated tone of his philippics
reveals in itself the weakness of the cause he has insisted on
espousing after frivolously confusing it " {Le Compere de
M. Wilson, No. 456, September 8th, 1917).

■ Mr. Wilson is not supported by the nation. An American
tells us this in the Gazette of September 9th, 1917, No. 457
{L' enthousiasme guerrier des Etats-Unis) :

"... After reading the American newspapers, one gathers
that Mr. Wilson's war is not in the least a war of the American
people. There is no enthusiasm for the ' crusade ' preached
by Wilson and Roosevelt.

" No, the American State, which has shown the greatest
enthusiasm for Mr. Wilson's policy, and which, for that
reason, must be considered the pillar of patriotism, civiliza-
tion and humanity — is Hawaii ! . . . The descendants of the
cannibals who killed and ate Captain Cook, these ' Americans '

240

The Great Offensives

of yesterday, since they have only been annexed about fifteen
years, these islanders, who, because of the colour of their
skin, are deeply scorned by every white American, they are
the true, the good, the only Americans after the heart of Messrs.
Wilson and Roosevelt."

"A Frenchman" goes one better than " An American."
After grossly insulting the " protagonists of the French idea,
whose names are Barres, Lavedan and Richepin," this crazed
correspondent of the Gazette expresses himself as follows :

" Don't come insulting reason and humanity by calling
an abominable alliance neutrality,

" All who read this quotation will, as I have done, imme-
diately apply it to the man who to-day governs the United
States of America more tyrannically than any despot, the
man who in his pride thinks himself the arbiter of the world's
destinies : I mean Mr. Wilson.

" This man, who gets up on the other side of the earth and
has the audacity to dictate laws to foreign nations, this blood-
thirsty fanatic, who finds that the slaughter has not lasted
long enough, but that a few hundred thousand more innocent
people must be killed so that, not his ideas, but his prejudices
may triumph, this tool of plutocrats who imagines that the
strings by which he is worked are in his own hands, this is
the mask beneath which he hides from us his real face, and
this mask, Chateaubriand has been careful to tell us, covers
injustice and hypocrisy " (" Thoughts on Mr. Wilson, by A
Frenchman," No. 468, October 2nd, 1917).

The League of Nations does not find favour in the eyes
of " la Belle Fatma." " This league, of which Wilson and
Barres dream, would only be one more instrument for bringing
about, in the guise of reparation, the economic ruin and
political bondage of Germany " (October 19th, 1917).

The faithful collaborator of the accommodating agent of
Boche G.H.Q. calms their fears of L'Aide amiricaine (No. 428,
July 8th, 1917) :

241 16

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

"... As a matter of fact, the rulers of France and England
know very well that the hope of effective military help from
the United States is absolutely vain. . . . They are making
play with the inmiense armies that Mr. Wilson is sending from
America.

"... As a matter of fact, during these five months the
United States have been satisfied with giving financial assist-
ance. This does not greatly affect the situation.

" The idea of sending millions of her sons to be maimed
and killed in Europe does not attract her in the least.

" I am not speaking of the insurmountable difficulty of
sending such an army at a time when the Allies have not
enough ships for their most pressing needs. Even if these
difficulties of transport did not exist, I venture to prophesy,
from my knowledge of my countrymen, that we shall never
send a real American army to Europe, and that any hope
founded on such an army will only serve to increase the dis-
appointment of the French people."

This article gave the wit of the Avenue de la Gare a chance
to jeer clumsily at the arrival of the first regiments, for he
added as a postscript :

" This article was written before the arrival of the first
American contingent in France. Our readers know that a
show battalion has been quartered at the Palais des Exposi-
tions (Paris, Champs-Elysees). — Le Red."

The inspiration of "An American " is inexhaustible. A
month later he " hatches " a new article on " The American
Troops in France" (No. 444, August nth, 1917). The
Americans cannot stand being ordered about, so they have
no discipline.

The American army, which went on swelling the ranks of
the Entente, was not the only thorn in the side of Hindenburg
and Ludendorff. Foch had stopped the spring of the beast at
bay, and he was beginning to drive him back to his lair before
the force of his repeated death-dealing blows. It was still,
however, necessary to lie and to deceive the German people

242

The Great Offensives

to the last. The tool of G.H.Q. was charged with this arduous
task.

This was a task after his own heart.

The infamous Gazette had all the audacity and all the faults
which are particularly characteristic of the Boche. Cunning,
lying and arrogance have always been his strong points. No
one knew so well as the Gazette how to twist the truth. As it
had shown itself arrogant and implacable when the fortune
of war seemed to favour Hindenburg and Ludendorff, beside
whom Napoleon was nothing but a drummer-boy, so now,
when the tide of fortune turned, it contrived to twist the
truth in favour of the German command.

As we have seen, Prevost had managed to disguise the
events of June, and transform into an important success a
check which, as the General Staff itself confessed, constituted
a serious defeat.

How, then, was he to set about announcing to his readers
the shattering results of Foch's counter-offensive ?

A certain uneasiness becomes noticeable when he comes to
prophesy the final •'/ictory of Bochedom. Prevost makes
reservations, and the American intervention pains him.
Nevertheless, like a child passing through a wood at night and
singing as loud as he can to drown the fear that grips him,
he clutches at the statement of a Socialist Deputy in the
French Chamber, when the plan of calling up the 1920 class
was under discussion, to say in the Gazette of August 9th :

" If the French Government was as sure of the efficacy of
American help as it pretends to be, it would wait for this to
materialize and spare France the new sacrifices that are being
called for.

" But it is realized that, even if the Americans arrive in
force, it will take them a long time to become an army. Mean-
while the German army is there, stronger than ever since it got
rid of the Russian menace.

" The generaUssimo, Foch, must know that it will take the
Americans a long time — whatever their individual qualities
may be — to form themselves into a military organization
capable of replacing in the scale the other chosen, trained and
countless army that Czarist Russia had placed at the service of

243 i6*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

the Entente, and which has crumpled under the blows of the
German army."

This Franco-Anglo-American army, however, at which
the noble Prevost sneers, is continuing its victorious advance.
He can't deny it ; but, according to him, if the Boches are
falling back it is because they choose to do so.

" This German withdrawal was, moreover, not unforeseen
(No. 701, 9th August, 1918). Informed circles knew about it
some time ago. The German command has always remained
master of its own movements ; it keeps the initiative, and,
whereas the German troops are getting nearer to their base and
are shortening their lines of communication, the situation is
becoming less favourable to the enemy.

" The German command is awaiting the enemy in a more
favourable position, on a shorter front, with a reinforced army
and with better communications. It has retained liberty of
movement. . . .

"... The German withdrawal is merely a tactical move,
which is only of local importance, for the victorious offensive
of 27th May last, which was pressed as far as the Marne, was
not intended to pass the Vesle. The ground which the German
army has just yielded, was, therefore, only the surplus gain
of a victory which surpassed all expectations."

And the Gazette accused the French journalists of misleading
the pubhc !

On 24th August it declared that " those who thought the
German army defeated have been cruelly deceived.

"... Foch's offensive, cleverly prepared and ably carried
out, has produced partial results which we should not think
of depreciating, without, however, attaining its strategic
objective. . . .

" . . . . The least one can say is that the great offensive of
Marshal Foch has failed no less than all the preceding attempts
to break through the German front. This front, which no
effort has been able to break, do they really hope to break it
to-day or to-morrow, even with the help of the negro army

244

The Great Offensives

from America, which could never replace the countless hordes
of inexhaustible Russia ? "

In October the advance of the Entente armies takes a pro-
digious leap forward. The Hindenburg Line, which was never
to be crossed, is broken ; they cross the Suippe and enter the
department of the Ardennes, hitherto completely occupied.
The Gazette is not to be beaten. Marshal Foch hoped to bring
off a decisive victory.

" And, moreover, the impossibihty of breaking through the
German front seems once more clearly demonstrated by the
series of checks to the various efforts of the last three months.
It seems certain then, that the fifth winter, now approaching,
will see the front become rigid again without the attainment
of the military decision sought by Marshal Foch, Once again
this great and decisive victory has eluded the Allied com-
mand " (No. 747, 3rd October, 1918).

Finally, on nth October (No. 754), when Cambrai and Saint-
Quentin have fallen into our hands, when the French army is
marching on the Aisne and the despised American army, after
flattening the Saint-Mihiel salient, is making appreciable
progress in the Argonne, the amateur strategist Prevost brings
in the notorious military critic of the Bund of Berne and the
Easier Nachrichten of Bale, the ineffable Colonel Egli, in the
pay of the Boche G.H.Q.

" More than ever," according to Provost, " the French and
British communiques are edited with a ^^iew to deliberate propa-
ganda. . . . From every point of view they are exaggerated.
It is necessary to get the right perspective. . . ."

The inimitable professor of tactics therefore declares in all
seriousness that :

"... A visit that he has just paid to the Western Front
has given him the impression that the German High Command
is far from having played all its trumps ; its tactics consist in
restraining and wearing out the enemy's strength, while hus-
banding as far as possible that of Germany."

After that date the mouthpiece of G.H.Q. grows tearful.
He bewails :

245

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

"... the accumulating destruction which could have been
avoided for the most part, if the nations had responded
to the peace proposals put forward time and again by
Germany.

" For two years we should have been living in peace ! We
should have spared the lives of several million men ; and Saint-
Quentin, Peronne, Noyon, Montdidier, Lens, Cambrai would
not have been destroyed."

But the mad dog still shows his fangs ; Prevost still
threatens.

" Where will the work of destruction stop ?

" To the towns already mentioned must we add Lille, Tour-
coing, Roubaix, Laon, Mezieres, Charleville, Sedan ? Or will
it be possible to spare them the horrors of war ? . . ." {La
Tragedie Quotidienne, No. 758, i6th October, 1918).

He makes one last attempt on 20th October, 1918 ; but this
time his instnmient is out of tune, he strikes a false note in a
supreme insult against the French Press.

We quote from Recit de Bataille (No 762) :

" So, when the joumaHsts are writing that the resistance is
broken, the * poilus ' and the * Yanks ' can only shrug their
shoulders ; they cannot help saying that these scribblers need
only take part for a moment in the battle, for their writing to
assume a truer tone. Behind the rampart (no longer of brass)
which forms the German front, the German troops are falling
back on new positions. Must these, too, he defended ? If so,
we can rely confidently, as for the defence of the others, on the
valour of the troops, who will add one more heroic page to the
history of the war."

It is no longer a hymn of victory ; it is the swan's song.

Finally, one month to the day after the prognostications of
the fabulous Colonel Egli, the Government of Max of Baden,
in order to avoid the capitulation of the invincible Hindenburg's
invincible army, accepted the conditions of armistice proposed
by Foch, and the divine Kaiser and the peerless Crown Prince
were begging hospitaUty from the Queen of Holland.
"^In spite of these childish rodomontades, by which the
renegade sought to transform French victories into German
successes, the Liars' Gazette did not cease to bleat in favour of

246

The Great Offensives

peace. There was no pacifist movement that was not echoed
in its columns, no calumny that it did not invent to represent
France as the author of the war, still thirsting for carnage, still
insatiable for blood.

In No. 717 (29th August, 1918) it even drags in the Czar,
reproducing from a Zurich review declarations against M.
Poincar6, said to have been made by Nicholas II.

" / am working for the peace of Europe," the victim of the
Bolsheviks is alleged to have said, on the occasion of the
President's last visit to Russia ; " Poincar6 is working for the
recapture of Alsace and Lorraine."

And the dethroned sovereign is supposed to have added :

" Poincare's arrogance is a menace to peace."

In the same number, M. Clemenceau is abused by a " Parisian
mechanic, taken from a factory and made prisoner."

This fellow — who posed as the representative of a society of
metal-workers, congratulated himself on having freed himself
from the Tiger's claws and was enjoying the amenities of
Boche hospitality — calls on " the bloodthirsty old man, who,
with the collaboration of England, has made himself a dictator,
to use his talents, if he has any, to bring about a reconcilia-
tion of the nations and to suppress discord and enmity. . . .

The treacherous lunatic, signing himself " Saint- Just,"
played his part in the pacifist concert, with a series of articles
headed : " Defeatism. The Entente refuses peace."

" It is for such reasons as these that Germany, unable to
wait any longer, had recourse to the most formidable offensive
that has ever been waged on any theatre of war.

" Meanwhile, the defeatist pack, unleashed with lashing
whips, bays death to the enemy, to valiant Germany. He is
fighting for his life ! And you, leaders of France, what are you
fighting for ? The defeatism of the Victoire Integrate " (13th
June, 1918).

On 17th October President Wilson is put against the wall.
He is not ridiculed, he is flattered.

" To-day he has an unparalleled opportunity for proving the
loftiness of his conscience and the sincerity of his principles.
As for the German people, they too will know how to behave.
Once they are rebuffed and once they realize that it is their vary

047

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

life and honour that is being attacked, they will find renewed
strength for a great revulsion of their unconquerable energy."

Some days before, on the receipt of the rejection of Austria's
peace proposals, the Gazette of 25th September, in an article
called " Refus de causer " expectorated its venomous deceit.

Commenting on an article of the official Austrian Fremden-
hlatt, it writes :

" To refuse to listen to the voice of peace, that is the true,
the only confession of weakness. If the Entente was so sure
of victory why should she tremble before the prospect of a
frank discussion, binding to nothing, but helping to focus
things? . . ."

Prevost then called on M. Clemenceau to act :

" Yes, Monsieur Clemenceau ! The battered world awaits
the solution of the great struggle that rends it."

The last numbers of October had become a mere beggar's
whine, asking for " Peace, please, for love of poor Germany ! "

The victories of Marshal Foch and his heroic poilus supplied
an eloquent answer.

348

CHAPTER XX

THE END OF THE DRAMA

The rule of the Lines of Communication Inspection. — The sincerity of Heyde-
breck. — The exploits of the looters. — Porcher. — The caddishness of a
thief. — Domiciliary searches. — The requisitioners and their " leetle
pusiness." — Art treasures as bad debts. — Brotherhood in arms as
understood by the Boche. — A drawing-room becomes a bcirber's shop
and a dining-room a canteen. — Copper first, then bells, organs, art
treasures and statues. — Men and women requisitioned. — Slaves and
convicts. — Enemies of morality. — Treatment of girls. — Crime and
lise-majesti. — The flag the forerunner of victory. — Arrival of the exiles.
— The incendiaries. — Germany's agony. — The defence of the Meuse. —
" Keep calm." — A vigorous method of ensuring calm. — Mining works
of art. — Final instructions. — The military police harnessed to carts. —
Everything is blown up. — G.H.Q.'s pledge. — The last Boche leaves. —
Arrival of the first poilu. — Greeting the aeroplanes. — Deliverance. —
Still Barbarians. — How G.H.Q. kept its word. — Bombardment of un-
fortified and ungarrisoned towns. — The hospitals bombarded. — Mdzi^res
hospital set on fire, — The attack on Belair. — The Armistice. — We've got
them I

WITH the Gazette des Ardennes disappeared, on the 25th
October, 1918, the last traces of G.H.Q. , which had
virtually left Charleville on i6th August, 1916, and officially
in February, 1917. After 1917 the administration was in the
hands of the terrible Inspectorate of Lines of Communications
of the First Army. The earlier Kommandantur had exercised
a certain moderation in their relations with the civilian popula-
tion, but under Lieutenant-General von Heydebreck, of sinister
memory, the inhabitants of the district of the old G.H.Q.,
and especially the communal organizations, tasted the hard-
ship of Boche oppression. We cannot set down in detail the

249

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

endless persecutions that the three tovms suffered, a volume
would not suffice.

During the presence of the Kaiser the chief thefts, apart
from the pillaging of cellars and furniture, were those of
factory material by Krupp, Mannesmann, Roechhng and Co.
A special department of the War Ministry helped them in
their work of plunder and regularized under the guise of
requisition the official thieving. The manufacturers from
beyond the Rhine inspected the factories, chose the machinery
to be removed, and on the following day the representative
of the War Ministry, Porcher, came to take it over for imme-
diate transport. These plunderings were conducted ruthlessly,
and, once emptied, the factory presented a most forlorn
aspect : a fire or a bombardment would have done less damage
to the building. Sometimes the thieves indulged in friendly
little jokes. One day an officer came to remove the material
and copper from the works of Hardy-Capitaine-Crepel & Co. at
Nouzon. The owner, M. Leon Crepel, mayor of the town and
an estimable patriot who always showed a firm front to the
Kommandantur and the different German services, was present
at this criminal exhibition and could not restrain his
indignation.

The thief pretended to be sorry for him and in a soothing
tone said : "I understand your feeUngs, monsieur. Unfor-
tunately it is not in my power to do anything for you. I
receive orders and I am forced to obey. Alas ! It is war !
But don't worry, we will send them back soon."

As he went out he shouted with an insolent roar of laughter :
" In the form of shells, Monsieur le Maire, in the form of
shells ! "

And to think that M. Crepel was unable to hit this cad !
Such an action would have cost him too dear.

Thenceforward, under the L. of C. Inspection, of which
Count Arnim was the servile tool and Lieutenant Lohr
the savage representative, persecution made rapid strides.
The rifling of cellars was redoubled and private houses were
searched for any little wine, metal and furniture that might
be left.

The requisitioning of copper was announced by a notice

250

The End of the Drama

which the municipality refused to post ; it was forced to
obey. The inhabitants were to bring all copper to a stated
depot, where they were to receive a ridiculous remuneration.
As may be imagined, practically nobody responded. The
Kommandantur were annoyed, and, since the French appeared
ill-disposed to work against their country, very well ! the
requisition service would remove the copper from their
houses. Many hid their copper, a great number threw it
into the river, but, in spite of everything, some copper articles
remained that could not be moved or seemed likely to be spared.
They trusted in the declaration of the Kommandantur that
bronze or metal articles " of a purely artistic nature " would
be exempt from requisition.

This was an impudent display of Boche cynicism. German
Jews were charged with the work and lodged and fed, by
German orders, at the expense of the town. According to
them, nothing was of a purely artistic nature. Everything
was classified as decorative or commercial art and conse-
quently requisitionable. They were taken in wagons to
the depot where the game was carefully organized. Articles
of common metal were broken up at once, others were put on
one side and were sent intact to Germany to be sold. This
" leetle pusiness " was thus justified. Splendid Barhediennes,
beautiful antique goblets were lifted and paid for with a
voucher for a few sous. In 1918 not even a voucher was given.
In addition patriotic offenders were punished with stiff fines
which went to swell the war chest of William II.

The quarters of French officers were the scene of nameless
scandals. Insignia of the Legion of Honour were torn from
their frames and trampled underfoot. The drawing-room
of Colonel Choisy, of the 91st regiment, was turned into a
barber's shop and his dining-room into a canteen. Widows,
whose husbands had fallen on the field of honour, were subjected
to outrageous annoyance. Like the Conventions of the
Hague and Geneva, the sacred pact of brotherhood in arms
was shamelessly trampled on.

Then came the requisitioning of church bells, organ-pipes,
art treasures. Mattresses were taken not only from the
hale and well but also from the aged and people in hospital ;

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

bedding had to be taken to a depot and was replaced by
infected straw mattresses crawling with vermin.

All males between twelve and sixty-five, who could possibly
be mobilized, discharged soldiers, cripples, invalids, it was
all the same, were compelled to do forced labour with a dis-
crimination which proved the barbarity of their persecutors.
Factory hands were put to work in the fields and farm-labourers
at the furnaces or smelting works. The liberal professions
were condemned to the hardest tasks ; the very children
were taken from their homes and sent to within a few kilo-
metres behind the front to gather the fruit for jam-making.

The women, regardless of their moral or social condition,
soon followed the men. All the unfortunate women between
thirteen and sixty were compelled to perform the work of
convicts, felling trees in the forests, making roads and laying
railways or carrying loads from the market, unloading trains
or boat -loads of coal or stone. Young girls of good family
or education were sent almost up to the firing-line, where
they had to associate with prostitutes. They carried out
faithfully the German Staff's devilish plan, which was to
destroy everywhere labour, land, cleanliness, the home, the
family, morality.

The Staff was faithfully seconded by the infamous labour-
bureaux. Captains Patushka and Pfulfe were the presiding
devils at the Bureau central de I'lnspection, Lieutenant
Zimmermann and his secretary, a lean brigand called d'lstel,
being the heroes of the bureau de I'Etafe. Not only did they
jibe with their coarse jests at the misfortune of these poor
creatures, but at the least movement they ill-treated and tor-
tured them at will.

The towns themselves suffered their persecutions. The
statues and public monuments were taken down without
warning. This last act roused indignation. On 7th April,
1 918, a figure of a little Italian beggar was placed on the
patriotic monument raised to the memory of the Ardennais
who died for their country during the war of 1870-71. This
childishness, which would only have raised a smile in a
French officer, was a crime against the Carolopolitains.

They contrived to make it a crime of lese-majeste.

252

The End of the Drama

A few months before, a humorist had posted up a caricature
of V Assiette de Beurre representing the Kaiser, a broken sword
in his hand, standing near some barrels, on which was written
" dry powder " and this legend : " Take care, William, if
you try so hard to dry your powder it may blow you up ! "

Some time afterwards another mischievous wit cut out from
the infamous Gazette a cartoon showing M. Clemenceau as an
executioner shouting : " Whose turn next ? " The anonymous
wit had added : " William's ! "

This was an attack on the honour of the respectable monarch ;
the incident of the little Italian was taken as a protest against
the requisitioning of metals. The Municipal Commission was
made responsible for finding the criminals. It refused and a
fine of 10,000 marks was inflicted on the town.

On the following 14th July another unknown person placed
a splendid French flag on the roof of the new artiller}^ barracks
which dominated the town. Again the Municipal Commission
was ordered to find the offender ; again it refused : fine, 30,000
marks.

Meanwhile the situation was changing rapidly. The Ger-
mans could no longer hide their defeat and retreat. The
convoys of refugees from the front, sad processions of homeless
people who, after a last look at the home in which their father
had died, their children been born, had seen it pillaged and set
on fire by the enemy, were arriving in thousands, bringing
away only what they could carry. The German convoys were
retreating in disorder ; the German army was at the last
gasp. The first thing they did was to remove the men between
eighteen and fifty-five and intern them in a school. But
victory was already hovering over us, we no longer feared
the German threats ; the " Marseillaise " rang out from every
throat and no order could silence the singers. Lohr, the
adjutant of the Kommandatur, ordered a platoon to advance
with loaded rifles. This was on the ist November. Very
opportunely an army order set the captives at liberty ; they
paraded the streets shouting : " Vive la France ! " No one
dared suppress them. Arnim was beginning to get frightened.

Prisoners of war from the camps were streaming in from all
directions and making for Belgium. It made one's heart

253

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

ache to see these poor wretches, without clothing and without
boots, begging for food ; they were all dying of starvation.

The Kommandatur could no longer hide the disaster and had
to make preparations for departure.

Earlier, when the Germans intended to hold the line of the
Meuse, the inhabitants of places on the right bank of the
river were forced to cross to the left bank, and this was the
case with the part of Mezieres on that bank. They also
wanted to clear Charleville, but the inhabitants, intending
to welcome the French troops whatever happened, flatly
refused.

After this deliverance comes nearer ; the guns roar unceas-
ingly, the German communiques grow more and more signifi-
cant : the Aisne is crossed and despair comes over the faces
of the officers. Now no one doubts any longer that in a very
few days the French will be at our doors.

On 4th November, Count Arnim summons the mayors of
Charleville and Mohon, reveals the situation and begs them to
keep the population calm. To ensure this he posts at the
same time the following notice :

" The municipality has been asked to inform the public
that collecting in the streets and any demonstrations on the
part of the masculine population must be avoided at all costs.

" Offenders will be punished with the utmost severity."

On 5th November another order :

" By order of the Kommandatur of Lines of Communication,
the population is informed that, after 7 a.m. on the 7th Novem-
ber, the inhabitants must not leave their houses. They
may only go out in cases of absolute necessity, for example :
to fetch food or to fetch the doctor, or on the service of the
miUtary and municipal authorities.

" It is also illegal to stand in the streets or in the squares ;
no more than two persons must go out together for the
purposes mentioned above.

" The population are advised to keep absolutely calm while
the troops are passing.

254

The End of the Drama

"It is strictly forbidden for anyone to enter a house not
his own ; anyone caught removing furniture or anything at
all will be severely punished.

" Any offence against the above regulations may involve
a minimum penalty of three months ' imprisonment ' or even,
in serious cases, death."

In addition, four guns are placed at the four exits of the
Place Ducale in case of a demonstration.

The schools are opened ; the priests may celebrate mass —
the Boche ministers no longer interfere with their work —
but without appealing to the people to attend ; funerals may
take place as usual, but only members of the family are au-
thorized to attend ; the reserves of supplies are distributed
so that, in case of bombardment, or evacuation, everyone
shall be sure of his supply of food.

Then the Germans mine the railways, all works of art and the
Charleville station. The municipality, in view of these prepara-
tions, asks Count Arnim that the inhabitants may be warned
in advance of the time when these are to be blown up. He
replies that it is not possible to grant this request, as the
order may arrive suddenly in the night, and there will be no
time to warn the parts of the town that are in danger.

A third order dealing with the prohibition of appearing in
the streets reached the town hall. During the passing of
the troops doors and shutters must be hermetically closed and
no civilian may be in the streets on the line of march.

Hostages are arrested to guarantee the observation of the
military regulations.

At last, on the 7th, the town receives final instructions
from the Kommandatur of Lines of Communication, as follows :

" By order of the Kommandatur of Lines of Communication,
the contents of the following notice are to be made known to
the population :

" If the negotiations entered into with the French Govern-
ment are broken off, the fighting will be continued.

" In this case the military authorities do not intend to clear
the population from the towns to send them into Belgium :
the population will remain in their homes.

255

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

" As soon as the German troops have withdrawn and when
the fighting comes near the town, persons armed with a white
flag should go to meet the French patrols.

" The authorities of the town will take care to place white
flags on the churches and high buildings of the town.

" These orders will be communicated to the French Com-
mander-in-Chief.

" The population is urged to reserve a certain quantity of
provisions and in all circumstances to preserve absolute calm.

" G.H.Q., 7th November, 1918.

(Signed) " Count Arnim,

" Major and O.C."

On the same day the Crown Prince handed over the keys
of the Villa Renaudin and took the road into exile, followed,
on the next day, at 3 p.m., by the Kommandatur and military
police, who, having had stolen from them the only horse
that remained to them, were obliged to harness themselves
to the carriage to remove their baggage.

Arnim sent his last order, that all houses within a radius
of three hundred metres of the railway should be evacuated,
to avoid possible accidents from the blowing up of bridges,
stations and railway-lines.

This was the last act of the tragedy before the final
apotheosis !

The whole day, while the guns roared within a short radius,
chiefly from the direction of Sedan, the sound of numerous
explosions came from the Hirson railway ; the permanent
way was blown up at intervals of fifty metres, hurling to great
distances rails, stones and bolts.

In the direction of Tournes, formidable detonations were
heard. It was a munitions train that the German looters
had blown up. The whole night these infernal noises were
heard in Charleville, and the horizon glared with the light of
the fires.

The 9th November was a memorable date, for on that
day the French troops of the armies of Guillaumat and
Gouraud took possession of Charleville and Mezieres, and

25c.

The End of the Drama

brought them once more under the direct administration of
the Motherland.

At 7 a.m. the O.C. of the troops left in Charleville (a battery
of field artillery) informed the municipality that the French
were near the town, and that it would be wise to fly the white
flag. At the same time a note arrived from the High Com-
mand, announcing that the German Government had informed
the French Government by wireless that the German army
would refrain from firing on Mezieres and Charleville for a
period of forty-eight hours, provided that the French troops
did not enter these towns. This cessation of fire to commence
at 10 a.m. on November 9th.

Under these circumstances the Commission decided to send
M. Paul Gailly, Vice-President of the Municipal Commission,
and the author of these lines, as bearers of the white flag to
the French Commander-in-Chief, to commimicate to him
the intentions of the German Command.

They had scarcely left the outskirts of the town when
they were greeted by a squadron of French aeroplanes, valiant
birds of France, coming, heedless of the hail of German shell,
to announce to the inhabitants the arrival of the poilus.

After a halt of a few minutes at La Bellevue du Nord, to
await the safe-conduct, which had been forgotten, the two
representatives were preparing to continue their journey,
when a scout of the 14th Regiment of Hussars appeared at
fiill gallop on the Tournes road, and received from M. Gailly
the German order for transmission to the French Command.
It was an unforgettable moment. The good trooper was
literally buried under hastily gathered flowers ; the flags
appeared from their hiding-places, and everyone wept for joy.
Shortly afterwards a patrol of the same regiment arrived
under an N.C.O., Quartermaster-Sergeant Duprat, who went
on to Charleville, where he got into touch with the Municipal
Commission. It was 10.40 (French time), an historic minute !

Immediately the whole town came out to greet them,
shouting " Vive la France ! " In less time than it takes
to write it, the National colours burst out from every house.

This patrol was followed by a reconnoitring party, under
Captain Jubault, who posted pickets near the artillery barracks,

257 17

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

in the riding school of which the Kaiser had installed his
chapel, and where a plaster eagle spread its wings, and a
party of cavalry of the 4th Squadron, 14th Hussars. The
last German had left the municipal area at 11. 10 (10,15 French
time).

Throughout the day Charleville was as animated as on
the great festival days, joy at deliverance beamed in every
face.

At 6 p.m. the 2nd Battalion, 117th Infantry Regiment,
took over the town : this was the reply to the German Govern-
ment.

The Germans would not have been worthy of their reputa-
tion as barbarians if they had left the town without ravaging
and destro5dng. In the morning of the 9th they had blown
up the Mezieres citadel, the tunnel, the railway-bridges, the
aqueducts and the station at Charleville. The damage was
appalling ; it was a scene of absolute desolation, all the more
monstrous, as, in their fury, they had destroyed works that
were of no military value.

But their exploits did not stop there ! In spite of the formal
pledges of G.H.Q., Von Mudra's brigands dishonoured them-
selves once more, by bombarding, on November loth, the
open towns of Charleville and Mezieres. When the bombard-
ment opened, the 2nd Battalion, 117th Infantry Regiment,
had been holding since the previous evening the outposts of
La Villette-Belair. The whole night was disturbed by the
roaring of cannon and the crackling of machine guns.

The morning of the loth was quiet ; the population, given
over to joy at their return to the great French family, were
walking about the streets in great numbers, when, at 11.30,
as the people were leaving high mass, the German batteries
in the village of Aiglemont, on the Bertaucourt plateau, and
at Saint-Laurent, opened a heavy fire which at first impressed
nobody.

But at noon some of the shells which had been whistling
over the town burst in several streets, demolishing some
houses and killing four of the occupants. Five heavy shells
fell on the civil hospital, and caused very serious damage.
Once more the Huns were trampling the Geneva Convention

258

The End of the Drama

under foot. They cannot deny that the Hotel-Dieu was their
objective, for, before the building was struck, seven shots
were fired in that direction : five overreached the mark,
two fell short, and the original five fell right on the huge
building.

All day and all night the bombardment continued, but in
the afternoon it was much more violent at Mezi^res than at
Charleville, where, however, the fire was concentrated for a
long time on the part of the town situated between the station
and Mezi^res.

The unfortunate city, so battered in 1870, was not spared
in 1918 ; the Faubourg d'Arches, Mezi^res-Centre, with the
Hotel de Ville and the old church, an historic moniunent,
were partly destroyed. The Faubourg de Pierre received the
full shock of the vandals' exasperation, and the M^zieres
Hospital was furiously bombarded. The shells set fire to the
building, and the wretched patients and old people, as at
Charleville, were carried into the cellars. The Saint-Louis
Hospital is in ruins. The town archives of M6zieres, the
treasury and accountant's offices, and that of the syndicate
for municipal relief, which had been transferred there after
the evacuation of the mairie, no longer exist.

The bombardment continued throughout the night ; towards
eight o'clock in the morning, November nth, it slackened
considerably, and about ten o'clock, ceased altogether ; the
Boches had accepted the Armistice conditions, which was
equivalent to an unconditional surrender.

The inhabitants of Charleville and M^zi^res deserve special
mention for the calm and collected way in which they behaved
during these days of agony.

A proof of civic courage was shown by more than five
hundred people attending, at 2 p.m., on November loth,
the funeral of two poilus, who had died of their wounds and
were buried while French fighting planes performed military
honours and the German shells were falling on the town.

Meanwhile, the 117th occupied Belair. Their orders
were to keep touch with the enemy, to clear the woods of
hidden machine guns, to cross the Mouse and to take Hill 221.

259 17*

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

The front held by this regiment stretched from Mezieres to
La Havetiere wood. Colonel Verignon, the O.C, had an
anxious task, for, taken by an enfilading fire, he had to face
the difficulties of a dangerous crossing, followed by the climb-
ing of a steep slope. The Boches bombarded the village of
Belair with asphyxiating shells, and set fire to six houses.

The fighting did not last long, and the losses, fortunately,
were light : one man killed and several wounded. The losses
of the 20th Battalion of Chasseurs, who had reinforced the
117th early in the evening, were more serious. The fighting
lasted seventeen hours, and did not end until 11. 9 a.m., on
the order of the General Officer commanding the Army, who
put an end to this violent engagement.

At ten o'clock a second order reached the corps commanders,
telling them to remain in their positions and encamp.

The Armistice was an accomplished fact !

A great sigh of relief rose from every breast : the war was
over, victory was won.

The German Empire, established at Sedan in 1870, crumbled
into shame in 1918, also at Sedan.

Petain had been right : we had got them !

260

CHAPTER XXI
CONCLUSION

THE MORAL OF THE FRENCH POPULATION
IN THE OCCUPIED AREA

WHAT of the moral of the French population in the
invaded territory during the long months of the
German occupation, which seemed as though it would never
end ?

Certainly the Boche did all he could to depress our spirits,
and weakness or faltering would have been almost excusable
if the strength and energy to support suffering had become a
little worn under the development of current events !

Indeed, everything appeared to combine to weaken the
patriotism that reigned in every soul. Cut off as we were
from all news from outside, unable to communicate with free
France or with relatives who had remained on the other side
of the front, the enemy had in his hands all the strongest
cards for influencing public opinion, and he did not fail to
use them.

From the first the occupation helped to spread erroneous
information. The officers and men, in their conversation,
obeyed the orders of the General Staff, to predict the in-
vincibility of the Kaiser's armies and the certainty of their
inevitable victory. The continual passing to and fro of
troops between the Eastern and Western Fronts was not
calculated to reassure the timorous; lying reports of the
operations and their results were intended to put fear into
the stoutest hearts, and the German Press, fed from the secret

261

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

funds of the reptiles' treasury, aimed at sowing fear and
disappointment, by repeated offensives of the pen.

The official communiques, which daily published reports
of events, signed by Ludendorff, and the propaganda of the
Gazette des Ardennes, had cleverly grasped the threads of
the machiavellian scheme of the High Command to drive the
masses to despair.

Well, in spite of these repeated assaults, the moral stood
firm and unshaken ; confidence and hope never forsook us.
Yes, behind the German lines, as on the inviolate soil of
France, everyone desired peace, but not the peace that the
German diplomacy and General Staff proposed. Before
everything else, we wanted the victory of Right, Liberty and
Civilization, won by the Entente, and the peace that would
follow such a victory. Those who took this message to their
country were the authorized and sincere mouthpieces of our
unfortunate compatriots bent beneath the yoke of the Bar-
barians, and the honourable senator, M. Touron, who carried
it to the tribune of Parliament, accomplished a sacred duty
in telling the truth. Even the pessimists among us, whom
we called the " Ca va mal " (" Things are going badly "), and
who always looked on the blackest side of the situation and
could see no end to the nightmare, would not admit that the
war could end without a victory for the Allies, and a peace
dictated by them. The moral was excellent, and the Frank-
furter Zeitung quoted it as an example to its readers, appealing
to them to follow the example of these Frenchmen groaning
under the rigours of enemy administration, yet showing no
weakness. How was it possible to continue to hold out
against the facts as they were presented by the Boche offensive
of deception ? How was it that we did not lose heart when
reverses overwhelmed poor Rumania, and Italy was tem-
porarily shaken ? How did we avoid giving way to despair
when tottering Russia signed the peace of Brest-Litowsk,
freeing for the Western Front the countless divisions of
Hindenburg's old army ? How was it that we did not lose
confidence when the serried masses of the Huns of to-day
threatened Amiens, Calais, Paris ? It was because patriotism
worked miracles such as were manifested in the most critical

262

The Moral of the French Population

periods of our history ! Because we had an ineradicable faith
in inherent justice, in the victory of Right and Humanity,
in the logical triumph of Civilization over Barbarism. Nothing
could destroy these immutable hopes, for something in-
expressible and vague told each one of us, deep down in his
soul, that sweet and beautiful France could not be conquered,
that eternal France could never die, and that, as injustice is
not a Divine law, we should finally be avenged against our
tormentors. Deep hatred kept alive the sacred fire.

But how did we contrive to keep burning this sacred fire
of confidence and hope ? This was the task, and let us admit
it was an easy one, of those who had shouldered the heavy
burden of leadership or who had a certain influence over the
populace. No one shirked this urgent duty, and even when
the future lowered blacker and blacker with the uncertainty
of victory, not one inhabitant of the occupied area would
admit for a single instant that defeat was even possible.
With us the sacred union which had been proclaimed from
the tribune of the Chamber was no empty word. All poUtical
opinions and reUgious faiths were united in a common love
of France and a common hatred of the invader.

The first victory of the Mame was the event that filled our
hearts with a confidence which remained ready to break out
at any moment. It was not known with any certainty in
occupied France until the last days of 1914. The gunfire,
which since September 12th had been getting nearer, had
told us that the Germans had been held and pushed back,
but we were ignorant of the importance and result of this
gigantic battle of two vast armies, one of which had decided
to force a decision, and received a fatal check, from which it
never recovered for the rest of the war. We learned the real
story of the Mame of 1914 from an article in Le Temps, which
reached us six weeks after its publication. After that there
was no more doubting : from the moment when the Germans,
after their tremendous march on the heels of a hurried retreat,
were beaten, nothing could stop the impetus of our troops,
and the foreigner would eventually be thrown out of France.

" The Mame ! " Victory ! Deliverance ! These were the
subject of every conversation. Long before the historic

263

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

words of P^tain, we liked to repeat to each other : " They
can do what they Hke, we shall get them ! "

" We shall get them ! " was the daily refrain that accom-
panied the postponement of our hopes. Every year we
looked forward to deliverance in the spring or autumn, and,
every year, June and October passed without the realization
of our desire, but also without the slightest wavering in our
faith in victory.

And yet, at the beginning, we were without any definite
news ; the story-tellers had a great time. We knew they
were unauthentic, but in spite of that, they were readily
accepted, for they produced a comforting mirage.

How many times did we hear of the taking of Constanti-
nople, Colmar, Metz or Strassburg ! Someone had happened to
be near the board when the sensational communique was
posted, but they were careful to add that the bulletin had
been taken down again at once. No one believed it, but
everyone said : " If only it were true ! " and we felt happy
for a while.

Fantastic dispatch-riders arrived from all directions ; and
always with news of great victories over the Germans of the
following type.

This was a dispatch brought from Fourmies on October
14th, 1914 ; it reached us on October 19th, and was said to
be taken from Le Temps of the 12th of that month :

" Battles in the north and on the Aisne.

" These battles have ended in an Allied success.

" There are 200,000 prisoners taken and 50 guns ; 200,000
casualties and two ammunition trains fallen into our hands.

" The enemy is retreating on Namur and Waterloo. The
main army (the German right wing) is falling back hurriedly
on Mons. A junction has been effected between the Belgians
and the other Allies at Toumai, Grammont and Roubaix.

" The French are occuppng Tournai ; the British, Valen-
ciennes.

" William leaves G.H.Q., and orders a retreat on Waterloo.

" Twenty thousand Hindoos have joined the French before
Verdun."

264

The Moral of the French Population

This document will not bear examination, but we read it
all the same with interest. It must be admitted, too, that
all the information that reached us was not as fantastic as
this. Wireless messages were received during the whole
period of the occupation, and a few discreet and privileged
persons were able to follow the course of events through the
French bulletins, and that in spite of the regulations, the
inquiries and the searches of the German miUtary police.

The French and Swiss newspapers were also a great help
in maintaining the moral. The Germans, however, had taken
all possible measures to prevent them from filtering through.
They were read all the same. They arrived, sometimes by
aeroplane or balloons, sometimes by the agents of the In-
telligence Department on special service, and sometimes
through German leakage. Orderlies and secretaries of officers
on the General Staff or at Imperial Headquarters, tempted
by a bribe, or more often with food, brought them secretly
and took them back a few hours later. The terrible secret
police, so carefully protected against spies, and the Gazette
des Ardennes itself, were not immune from this leakage, and
Bauer or Schnitzer never realized that he was aiding French
propaganda in occupied country. Those who were fortunate
enough to participate in these benefits were not egoists, and
they saw to it that they were shared with their rehablc fellow
citizens. For our own part, we did our best to spread the
news, and when things were critical, to combat the lies of the
Press and the German communiques. We were fortunate enough
to receive fairly often, secretly, of course, copies of French
newspapers, chiefly L'Echo de Paris, Le Temps, Le Matin,
Le Petit Parisien, L' Homme Libre, La Victoire and Le Journal
de Geneve. We used to make a resum6 of the telegrams and
leading articles, of which we made several copies with a type-
writer. This r^sum^, L'Edition Jaune (because it was written
on yellow paper), was given to several people, who learned it
by heart, so as to be able to repeat it to their friends, and
destroyed it as soon as their lesson was learned. It was not
La Libre Belgique of Brussels, and the surveillance of the G.F.P.
was too strict for such a scheme to be attempted.

That is how we were able to keep our friends informed.

265

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

What a debt of gratitude we owe to the French journalists,
who helped us to unmask the Boche and never to despair,
especially during the agonizing times of Verdun, and from
March to July, 1918. Commandant de Civrieux, Lieutenant-
Colonel Rousset, General de Lacroix, Gustave Iderve, gave us
incalculable help, as did Maurice Barres, General Cherfils
and Marcel Hutin, whose reliable information in L'Echo
de Paris, and sober and documentary reviews of the military
situation, have strengthened the faith of the inhabitants in
the ultimate victory. All have deserved well of occupied
France, All have roused the fury of the Gazette : " For us
this was a nomination to the order of La Patrie ! "

The prisoners who passed through after every offensive
and stopped for a few minutes at Charleville station helped
to sustain our hopes. Unknown to the Boches, the manager
of the station buffet, an Alsatian patriot, M. Clement Karles-
kind, who was a prisoner in his buffet, had succeeded in estab-
lishing a system of communication with the ojSicers who
edited the German lies, and was able to re-establish the truth.
All were unanimous that there was no cause for anxiety, and
that in the end we should get them. His courageous
patriotism brought him into serious trouble. Hated by
Bauer, he was subjected to repeated searches, was nearly
implicated in several serious cases of espionage, and finally
was sent as a hostage to Russia, to the mart5n:s' camp at
Miljegany, near Wilna. This external propaganda, which
brought us the fresh air of France, untainted by the defeatist
campaign, of which we knew practically nothing, enabled us
to hold out. The internal propaganda did the rest.

How was this worked ? In the first place, by private con-
versation, in which everyone tried to stimulate the courage
of those who appeared to be weakening, either in private
houses or in the few cafes that remained open, among others
the " Grande Taveme," the citadel of French resistance, whose
proprietors, two proud Alsatian women from Strassburg (the
husband had been mobilized and was a prisoner of war), were
punished by being expelled from their establishment in 1917,
when the place was taken over by a Boche casino.

Then by public speech, by the mimicipal administration

266

The Moral of the French Population

at the funerals of our soldiers who had died of wounds in
German hospitals or from ill-treatment by their tormentors,
and by the clergy in their sermons, or in the patriotic songs
which they taught the children, and which became to us songs
of hope and hymns of victory.

At the cemetery we did not hesitate to expound, in the
presence of the inspectors sent by the secret poUce to watch
us, love of France, the cult of the flag and the heroism of our
troops. In school, the speeches at the distribution of prizes
helped to keep alive the patriotism of the children and their
faith in the victorious epilogue of the drama.

That is how the inhabitants of the occupied area flaunted
their patriotism and their joy in the face of the barbarian.
In the churches the priests displayed the same ardour, and
the panegyrics of Joan of Arc, at the annual feast day of the
national saint, furnished opportunities for comforting dis-
courses. In 1918, the Abbe Bihery, an eloquent preacher,
who every Sunday infused into the souls of his congregation
his own confident ardour, had the ingenious idea of sub-
stituting all the orders of the day of Joffre, P^tain and Foch,
and the speeches of MM. Poincar^ and Clemenceau, for the
proclamations of the good Lorraine to her soldiers. The
police agents present did not understand : the preacher had
replaced the German names by Enghsh ones, Hindenburg
by Talbot, and Ludendorff by Richmond.

The celebration of the national festival of the 14th July,
which took the form of a solemn service dedicated to the
memory of French and Allied soldiers who had died for their
country, and was annoimced by the following official notice :

" R^publique Fran^aise,
" F^te nationale du 14 Juillet,"

also contributed to strengthen our courage.

These were not the only means by which the French in the
occupied area were fortified in their confident resistance.
The Germans themselves, incredible though it may seem, were
of great assistance in keeping our moral firm.

The Boches on their side, principally the private soldiers,

267

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

indulged in confidences in which they described the distress of
their famihes and their horror of going to the front. The
time was long past when they were marching nach Paris,
and when they said : " Guerre bientot finie, France kaput "
("War soon over, all up with France"). Their victorious
offensives did not inspire them with much enthusiasm, and
after every check they did not conceal their discouragement.
The prospect of returning to the fighting line, where they
feared more than anything else our aeroplanes, caused them
irrepressible horror : they did not hide their feelings.

An exhortation from Cardinal Hartmann, Archbishop of
Cologne, in Lent, 1916, did not dim our visions of victory.
The Boche prelate, exhorting the Kaiser's warriors to keep
up their courage in battle, said truly : " Not that we doubt
the victorious issue of the war ! Oh, no ! We have faith in
God, in our Right and in our brave soldiers."

He bewailed, however, the heavy losses which were afflict-
ing the German army and bringing mourning into the families,
" in which there was not a loved husband, a father, a brother,
a fiance, a relative, a friend, who had not shed his blood in
the furious battles or in the narrow trenches, struggling while
they bled, for the palm of victory for our Prince and the
German Fatherland . . . for God has taken care of us, who
have not_ rushed criminally into this war, hut who, against a
whole world of enemies, have to accept an unjust and forced war,
for the liberty and existence of the Fatherland. With God !
That is the cry with which our Emperor has been forced to draw
the sword."

Such platitudes as this, even when coming from a German
prince of the Roman Church, were not calculated to move us :
we were used to them. But the Archbishop thundered against
the morals of virtuous Germany, whom he exhorted " not to
hinder by her sins the complete and early victory of our just
cause."

"... You, the relatives, and especially you wives of our
soldiers, are you circumspect in your behaviour ? Are you
keeping a vigilant eye and a firm hand on the education and
upbringing of your children, whose father is at the war, or
perhaps has fallen and will never return ? How many com-

268

The Moral of the French Population

plaints have been heard during this war about a definite lack
of culture in our young people ! . . ."

But already his Eminence of Cologne was exhorting his
flock to resignation ; the shortage of food was beginning to
make itself felt. We were very doubtful about it ourselves,
but this confirmation from high quarters pleased us, for de-
moralization was beginning to set in among the Germanic race.
... And now another point, my people ! The war is
imposing on us many inconveniences, limitations and priva-
tions. But what are these sacrifices compared with those of
our brave troops, out there in the trenches, on the long battle
front in a foreign land ?

"... And certain of us are discouraged, ready to give in :
and in their letters to us some soldiers are said to have despaired as
some have certainly already done unknowingly, to the great delight
of our enemies. No. Don't let us make heavy our soldiers'
hearts. The stake is enormous ; it is the existence and the
liberty of our Fatherland. For that no sacrifice is too great :
it behoves us to save from the world conflagration, lit by
our enemies, for a better future, the sacred German culture
which has bloomed in the simlight of Christianity."

Was there not indeed something in this address to encourage
us to wait and keep us patient ?

The official German bulletins and the infamous GazeUe
itself, far from depressing us, revived our hopes. We had
learned to read the communiques of G.H.Q., and to read
into them the truth they did not dare to express. The longer
the text, the more high-sounding the phrases, the worse was
their situation. We did not allow ourselves to be deceived
by defensive victories or rearguard successes. When the
bulletin indulged in phenomenal lists of prisoners, guns and
material captured, we guessed that the Field Grey was at the
end of his tether, and the advance held up ; when they held
up, as an example, the heroism of particular regiments, giving
the names of their provinces, we told ourselves that the troops
were weakening, and that it was necessary to rekindle their
enthusiasm ; when the flying men indulged in hecatombs of
Allied aeroplanes, we imderstood that there was deception to
be covered.

269

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

The Gazette no longer had any hold on the credulity of its
readers. It had been so often caught in the act of lying
that people had ceased to believe its enormities, and the name
of The Liars' Gazette, given to it by its own news vendors,
had been definitely confirmed by public opinion. Prevost
did not understand his public. He was clumsy and had a
heavy touch. His malevolent and coarse attacks on the
French Press had turned people against him. When he replied
to the Paris newspapers, when he reproduced accounts of the
tumultuous scenes in the Chamber, to exalt the Jean Longuets,
the Marcel Cachins, the Brizons and Alexander Blancs, he
was obliged to publish extracts from our great papers, or to
quote the interruptions of patriotic deputies or the statements
of members of the Government. Then our attention was
drawn to the French word and the obscenities of the polemist,
or the harlequinades of our Bolsheviks were received with
scorn. Prevost made us admire Barres, and Mayeras or
Raffin-Dugens made us love Clemenceau, Foch and Petain.
The renegade did us a good turn while he was hoping, with
his facile pen, to depress or demoralize us.

At last 1918 was the reward of our clear-sighted constancy.
At last a very authoritative voice, which had conducted a
very exhaustive inquiry in Germany, as a result of the dis-
turbances in Berlin at the end of 1917, told us : " Bear
carefully in mind the serious words I am going to tell you.
I have come from Berlin, I have seen, I know — for I have
had every opportunity of seeing and knowing. Whatever
happens, whatever may be the result of the approaching
offensives and the German advance, the war will be over by the
end of next October. The nation is at the end of its resources
and won't hear of war nor of another winter, any more than
the troops at the front, and if the Emperor or G.H.Q. want
to continue the struggle, very well ! The Emperor will be
dethroned, and a revolution proclaimed." Prophetic words,
which were to be realized on the nth November following.

Every new offensive depressed the troops, who were
gradually realizing that it was impossible to settle with the
formidable coalition of the Entente, and that they were allow-
ing themselves to be killed uselessly for the King of Prussia.

270

The Moral of the French Population

After the failure of the Compiegne offensive their discourage-
ment knew no bounds. They refused to return to the front,
preferring to desert. Desertion developed on a large scale.
Openly, in full daylight, the men proposed to the civilians
that they should buy their equipment, boots and kit, for an
absurd sum. The corridors became depots for cartridges
and accoutrements. Every day caps, rifles and haversacks
were picked up in the streets and public squares. Rifles
and steel helmets were thrown from the passing trains. The
prisons, to which the military police had added other build-
ings commandeered for the purpose, were too small to hold
the deserters. On pretext of mercy, they had to be released
and sent back to their companies ; but, as they had already
deserted their post to avoid fighting any more, the Kaiser's
faithful soldiers deserted again. Even officers were arrested
for the same offence. In August a " kolossal " battue was
organized in the outskirts of Charleville and the neighbouring
forests : nearly 800 deserters were caught. In short, dis-
organization spread through every rank ! But it was at the
end of October that the debacle came to a head.

The German army was in full retreat. They were falling
back on the Meuse. The roads were blocked with a confusion
of every arm of the service fleeing in disorder. Men were
harnessed to the transport wagons ; in view of the lack of
horses, hundreds of soldiers were pushing wheel-barrows —
forming an endless procession. Infantry, artillery, herds of
cattle, ambulances, ammunition wagons, streamed along
pell-mell. The guns were dragged by two horses, which the
drivers unharnessed, abandoning their gun on the road and
making off toward Belgium ; whole squadrons threw away
their arms and broke their ranks. It was a rout in all its
horror ! We could see that the troops refused to fight any
more and were at the mercy of our poilus. So, when we
learned that the Armistice had been signed, if we felt relief
at the end of all our miseries, if we rejoiced at the cessation
of slaughter, which saved the inhabitants of the Meuse valley
from certain destruction, our satisfaction was veiled with a
slight regret when wc realized that Hindenburg's hordes were
escaping from Foch's brilliantly conceived trap.

27Z

Behind the Scenes at German Headquarters

A few days more of offensive and the proud German army,
caught in the merciless pincers of the Enteric, would have
capitulated unconditionally. In that case, Germany, de-
finitely crushed, would not have been able to raise her head
again as she is doing at the present moment. One consola-
tion, however, relieved our bitterness : the German Empire,
born in 1870, as a result of the disaster of Sedan, had come to
a miserable end, before this same Sedan !

In their generous anxiety to stop the flow of blood and
the heaping up of destruction, were our great statesmen right
or wrong ? The future will show.

In any case, as a result of this Armistice, Germany, in
spite of everything, is incapable of offering serious resistance.
We must take advantage of her impotence. If she had
been victorious she would have impose*^ her peace conditions
with implacable rigour. We who have lived among them
more than four years, and know their disciplined mentality,
know how they respect force. We have had personal experi-
ence, and can say, without vanity, that, if we have escaped
much annoyance, even though we were justly suspected by
the German police, and were strictly watched, it is because
we managed to maintain before them an attitude of absolute
firmness, without overstepping the limits of correct behaviour
and our definite rights.

This indulgence, small though it may be, is a proof of the
weakness of the hypocritical and cunning German. His
policy is made up of procrastination and lies. Let us not be
deceived, and let us remember the old proverb : " Poignez
vilain, il vous oindra ; oignez vilain, il vous poindra." (" Hurt
a knave and he will flatter 3^ou : flatter him and he wiU hurt
you.")

It is the only way to make a lasting peace with this beast
of prey.

The German can only be kept peaceful by fear : he only
obeys the whip !

THE END

Printed at The Chapel River Press, Kingston, Smrey.

Cl /

'-•»«.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY

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