A BELGIAN COLONY.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 258, 4 December 1914, Page 4

A BELGIAN COLONY.

The story of a colony of Belgian refugees in an English village is interestingly told by a correspondent of the Sydney "Telegraph," who writes from Kenley (Surrey, England) under date October 1. It is not an unqualified success. To quote:— MESDAMES ANTWERP' AND LOTJVAIN. The cannot be termed an unqualified success. The people are evidently '' mal assortits.'' That is to say, the committee does not seem to have used sufficient discretion in choosing families who would be likely to assimilate. There is a family from Antwerp —a man, his wife, and a daughter of 14. They fled to England because they were afraid of the Zeppelins. The good lady and her sou and daughter from Louvain, who really had their house burned over their heads, and lost everything they possessed, resent the intrusion of • the Antwerpians, because, as she says—and I cannot help thinking, rightly—they might have stayed where they were when they had their home intact and food to eat, and have left the charity of the English people to bo bestowed upon those who were really homeless and destitute. '-■

Madame "Louvain" has made no mystery of her sentiments. Therefore, relations are somewhat strained between her and Madame '' Antwerp.'' Then there are a brother and sister from Brussels, both good looking, and evidently inclined to put on "side," because they have come from the capital. This is bitterly resented by the provincial ladies and their spouses, so that the young people from Brussels are rather isolated. But, at any rate, they do their share of the work, which is more than Madame "Antwerp" does. She did make her bed, and it was evidently such an event of importance in her eyes that we were all invited to go to her room and inspect her handiwork. Madame "Louvain" does all thevcooking for the entire community, the other ladies condescending to give her advice and a little help, in the way of peeling potatoes, stringing beans, etc. •Madame "Louvain" is a cheery, active soul, and a good cook, too. Poor thing, I hope her labours will give her a chance of forgetting her sorrows for a time. Her daughter, a pale, anaemiclooking girl of 17, sits sewing in the garden all day. As yet, she refuses to be comforted for the loss of her home and friends. She has found nothing so far in Eugland to compensate her for all she has lost. Shortly she, with Mademoiselle *' Antwerp,'' will be sent to school, and I hope the K young people will treat them well, and help them to forget, if possible. A DISTURBING ELEMENT. . There is, however, among the com-

munity one really disturbing element, and one which must be got rid of by some means or other. This.is a young man who, deprived of his means of living in Belgium, fled with the refugees to hospitable England. He is not a Belgian. His father, it appears, was a Greek, his mother a Russian, but he has lived most'of his life in Belgium. This young man did the cooking until Madame "Louvain" appeared, but he has had to be ousted from the kitchen, because it was discovered that he was appropriating all the eggs, milk, and butter for his own consumption. He had these things securely locked away in a cupboard, which had to be burst open before they could be rescued. Monsieur le Grec. Busse assumed a very high-handed attitude from the start. He demanded quantities of vegetables and fruit, which we others in K. are unable to afford ourselves. He wanted a- quart of milk a day, a fire in his room all the time. In fact, this undesirable refugee required luxuries which even well-to-do people are denying themselves in these times. Mr Greek-Russian took himself off in a huff one day—it was hoped for good, but unfortunately he returned next night, a more'disturbing element than ever. A new home will be found for him soon, and his place given to a more desirable and a more genuine refugee. However sympathetic, one may feel towards, these people, one cannot help being amused by these little episodes. The colony generally reminds me of a P. & O. ship after the Indian passengers have come aboard. It is as full. of cliques, and each fresh arrival is looked upon with the same disdain and suspicion. However, we are doing pur bestto make life easy and agreeable for these unfortunates. Can- only hope that in time they will settle down and help themselves and each other, and bear their common sorrow with the same fortitude and resignation their compatriots are showing elsewhere. They all hope and look forward to returning to their country some day, when the invaders shall have been conquered. And they hope, too, to be able to rebuild and restore their shattered homes —although, alas! they can never bring to life again the dear ones who have laid down their lives in the hopeless defence they so bravely made.