A FURY OF REVENGE

Grey River Argus, 18 June 1915, Page 7

A FURY OF REVENGE

PRISONERS OP WAR SLAUGHTERED

BKPRJSAL FOR BELGIANS' : EXPLOIT The fierce fighting cf a week or so ago at Driegrnchtp/i (south of Dixlnudc) lias inflamed Bolgo-German hatred to tho highest degree A frightful ; example of German vengpfulness has just been reported (says the correspondent of the London "Chronicle," writing at the end of April.) As you may remember, the Belgians, who had crossed to the right bank of the Yser, were surprised at night, and <mo regiment — the Ist Chasseurs — suffered heavily in killed, wounded, and prisoners. A tremendous effort was , thereupon made by King Albert's Army, and finally the Germans were driv en back to their old lines, leaving 600 dead on the field of battle. Taught by experience, the Belgians organised a system of night patrols to guard against surprises. Four days ago one of these patrols fell upon sonic German sentries and killed them all; as, indeed, it was their duty to do, or, otherwise, the alarm would have been given to the enemy. The whole affair was a regular and characteristic episode of the nocturnal warfare that goes on every night along the whole line of trenches from Switzerland to the sea; such incidents, of course, afford no shadow of excuse for reprisals. Yet one hns to reckon with the German mantality and the unconquerable fear that the Kaiser's soldiers have for cold steel in any form, whether it is the bayonet or the dagger. Cold-Blooded Massacre. When, next, morning the relief party found their comrades lying dead at the foot of their trench parapets, and witl plain evidence of their having been kill ed by cold steel, their fury and panic was hardly to be described, and the German commanders determined to make an example that might prevent sentries frcm being dealt with in this fashion in future. Using some incident or other as a pro text, they had a certain number of Belgian prisoners put to death who had been captured in the lighting at Driegruchten. The number of those "ex. edited" was far greater than that of the sentries who had been surprised by the Belgian according to all the rules of war. The news of this new outrage against the rights of nations, international law, and common humanity was brought into the Belgian lines by a soldier who had succeeded in escaping. All the prisoners of war that have been killed belonged to the Ist Chasseurs. The names of several of them are know^n, though I am not yet able to give you the exact number of the victims.