THE HUNS IN POLAND.

Press, Volume LI, Issue 15301, 14 June 1915, Page 9

THE HUNS IN POLAND.

LETTER FROM A GERMAN SOLDIER.

(SPECIALLY WRITTEN TOR "TSt TRESS.") (By Mits Jcman Cn-VKDE.) BERXE, April 12. A member of the Swiss Parliament has just received from a German eoldier who has beon in Hindenbeurg's army, and lias now returned to Berlin maimed for life, a letter telling how the deliverers of Poland behave in the occupied territory- • I Rm indebted to him for allowing mc to make uso of a letter which speaks for itself. The writer begins by remarking that a great many Germans who entirely lost their mental balance owing to the war fever really did believe that the Polos would joyfully roeeivo them-as their deliverers from the Russian yoke, and that they would even "make a revolution" in order to facilitate thc conquest of their country by tho "Nibeluiigen heroes.?' When this acclamation and revolution did'not take jSlaec, there was groat disappointment, not to say disgust, felt by the German military party, who expressed their poor opinion op tho Poles in no measured terms. It never occurred to "the chosen people."' (the German writer's own expression) that, although the Poles heforo tho war may havo hated the foreign rulo of llussia, they ha to that of Prussia thrice as much. The Germans wholly forget, he says, ''that in tho districts of Poland subject to Prussia the persecution of tho Polish nationality has been carried on by methods so despicable aud refined as could only hare been used by an utterly unscrupulous Government influenced by no humanitarian consideration whatsoever." They forget how Polish school children were tortured by their Germanising teachers because they would not pray in German, and forget, also, tho frightful outburst of indignation to which, this gave rise on the part of the parents who were cruelly punished for their intervention. They forget that thousands of Polish peasants were driven from their little plots of land by the Settlement Committee., and that they are prevented' from piftting up homesteads on. their own land to a R to compel them to go elsewhere. They forget that Polish workmen have been forbidden by law to use the Polish language at public meetings, and they actually imagined that the Poles would forget all this persecution and receive the Germanisers with open arms, turning their hacks on the Hussificators.

"But," adds'thix outspoken German soldier, "'as no people in the world could be perversa enough to long for tho Prussian Volte, the Germans feel disappointed, and rail at the Polos." In tiio districts of Poland by Russia, no one, we are assured, feels any sympathy for Germany, but in those district* ruled since the outbreak of war by Germany something not unlike sympathy for* IJussia is becoming manifest. "That the country (Poland) i.s suffering unspeakably from the war is certain. Conditions hero are considerably worse even than in Belgium and Northern France, because the fighting armies havo repeatedly advanced and retreated, .and in co doing have purposely and t-ystcmatically devastated the country, in which "work the German troops particularly distinguished themselves. When in' November last they retreated before the Russian attack, they destroyed with German thoroughness everything they couid destroy, in order to make pursuit difficult for the Russians. Not only wero the main roads made impassible, but in a broad belt of country to right and left of them every village nnd every homestead was burned to the ground, even the forests having been set on fire. Wherever encounters took place, entire localities disappeared from the nice of the earth, and a great stretch of country has been turned into a wilderness."' The writer accuses -some of his comrades of thinking it their duty to fan tho enthusiasm for war in order that the fields of prance and Belgium may continued, to »>e laid waste, and the homesteads of the chosen people snared ftinre German troops, ho continued' have occupied a large, portion of Poland, the country has been «vst<**mati'\-tllv plundered. Not only must it feed the German troops, not oniv is ovci .-thing required for the army requisitioned, but

enormous quantities of raw material and foodstuffs are taken from their owners nnd sent to Germany— for instance, from the mining districts, wool and cotton from the manutacturing districts of Ivalsch and Lodz, su*"nr from t!m beet-growing country, but more especially flour, cereals', and potatoes. "It is direct. . shameless robbery. for the owners receive no payment,'but are compelled by force to hand over their supplies and given in return so-called requisition receipts or which no one knows when and % whero they will be paid.'' The consequence of this systematic plunder is. of course, that the population is threatened with famine. Tho territory in Herman occupation is for tho most part fertile, but thickly peopled, nnd unable to produce sufficient i'ood for its requirements, so that much corn is usually imported from llussia. The American Committee offered to render assistance as it >« doing in Belgium, but, taught- by experience, laid down tho <*or.diti*>tis that the foodstuffs imported should be distributed under its control, and that rwnnisitions must absolutely cease—conditions which yon Hindenburg de-lined. Consequently the German authorities still continue plundering uc:d looting irvorvthing which comes -into their claws," and millions of human beings are being threatened with starvation owing to the proceedings of the diifuscrs ol "Kulnir." When the authorities resort to such methods of robbery it is not surprising that private soldiers should do likewise, and according to the writer of this letter ihey extort prorisious and everything else from tho peasants by all manner of means, even going tho length of desecrating churches, defiling altars, and violating women.