FRANCE.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume IV, Issue 239, 23 September 1914, Page 5

FRANCE.

REMEMBER REIMS.

GERMANY’S GREAT CRIME. A TALE OF WANTON DESTRUCTION. BIG BUILDINGS TARGETS FOR SHELLS. London. Sept. 21. The '‘Daily Mail’s” correspondent, states that the Reims lire started on Saturday afternoon. At- least 500 shells .fell between early morning and sunset, and par. of the city several hundred yards square was ignited till street after street was full of lurid, blazing houses and shops. .Meanwhile the battery on the hill at Nogent J’Abbesse made the cathedral a deliberate mark. Shell after shell smashed its way into the old masonry ami an avalanche of stonework thundered down into the streets. Subsequently the scaffolding at the east end of the cathedral ignited and burning splinters fell on the roof. The whole of the old oak timbers caught and soon the nave and transepts wore roaring furnaces. The flames leapt to the towers on the western end and blazing pieces of carved woodwork crashed to the floor, where the Germans had accumulated great piles of straw when they were intending to use the cathedral as a hospital. These ignited and devoured the panelling of the altars and confessional. The German wounded would have, been buriied 10 death Gut for the: French doctors. As the Germans' we.-c carried out the crowd bowled «itii u«ieuntrolk-.'*>le passion, amt iliei'e v.cre shouts of "A moi;.”

Some of the soldiers among the crowd, levelled their rilles, bid Abbe .Andrieux sprang forward helwvea the muzzles and the wounded, ami said: "Don’t fire; you will make yourselves as guilty as they." When the day dawned, the famous mwnuiieni was only an empty shell. The bombardment of Reims was continued cm Monday. Only a few walls of the cathedral are standing. The. Hotel de Ville, museum and other official buildings were almost competely destroyed. The Germans intentionally directed their artillery at the -principal buildings. Several inhabitants were killed. During the bombardment of the cathedra] the Germans killed a number of their own wounded, who were being tended with the French wounded in the hope that flying the Red Cross might save the cathedral. ITALY STIRRED TO THE DEPTHS. — ) Rome. Sept. 21. The bombardment of Reims Cathedral has sent a thrill throughout' Italy. I The ‘ Giornale dTtalia” describes it as a useless act of barbarism, a lunatic outburst of wounded vanity and cursed pride. |

THE KAISER SHOULD BE PROUD. London, .Sept, 21. The “Times.” in a leader on the destruction of Reims Cathedral, savs that the Kaiser has outdone the infamous crime against Louvain. DELIBERATE FIRE ON THE CATHEDRAL. HUNDREDS "OF CIVILIANS KILLED. (Received 23, P.O a.m.) London, Sept. 22. Scarcely a house around Reims cathedral is undamaged. The statue of Joan of Arc in front of the cathedral is not. damaged. Whenever the French artillery became aggressive the Germans shelled the cathedral. It is estimated that between 3(io and 500 civilians have perished.

’MAURICE BARRES' COMMENT. humblest french soldier , PREFERRED. TO WORTHIEST WORKS OF ART j (Received 23, 9.55 a.m.) I Paris, Sept. 22. 1 Mr. Mau nee Barros, member of the' French. Academy and well-known author, commenting on the destruction of Reims Cathedral, said “It is | satisfactory that no shells fell on our battalions. At the present, moment i we prefer the humblest French infanI tryinan to the worthiest works of art. .’these we will re-create. The essen- ; rial thing is that our Nation remains. ! This is the only renlv of our artists ; and patriots 'to ' Ahis execrable j deed." CIVILISATION PLUNGED BACK. TO THE DAYS OF ATTILA. (Received 23, 9.55 a.m.) Rome, Sept. 22. The Pope expressed horror at the destruction of Reims Cathedral, and remarked that it was .-.e.'ircel.v credible in the 20th cent my that we should be plunged buck to the days ,of Attila, King- of the Hiin< ■ J Attila has been called the kJcourgp ot (red' from the cruel i destruction caused by his armies.] EYE-WITNESS’ STORY. NEVER TO BE FORGOTTEN SCENE. SISTERS OF MERCY SLAIN. (Received 23. Noon). London, .Sept. 22. An eye-witness at Reims states that shells killed several German I wounded in the Cathedral. * Four Sisters of Mercv lav dead on the floor. Notwithstanding the entry of shell, women knelt round in prayer, apparently beseeching the intercession of Joan of Arc, whose statue within the Cathedral, like that outside, is unharmed. A shell reduced the statue of the Virgin to dust. The clergy remained within the building comforting the frightened i people until the fire .started. i The belfry fell with a tremendous i crash, and presently the building re- • seinbled -a gigantic set-piece of fireworks.

It is estimated that the German visitation has caused £4.000.000 damage.

AFRICAN REINFORCEMENTS

Paris, Sept. 21. M. Millerand, Minister for War, is dispatching heavy reinforce.ments. A large body of Turcos and Senegalese have entrained at Bordeaux for a destination unspecified. WAR'S WASTAGE. Paris,. Sept.. 21. Every evening trains crammed with wounded crawl back from the front, thirty coaches composing a t rain, packed fuller than excu-i von trains. The worst cases are lucky if they can lie at full length. PARIS NOTES Thirty dum-dums have been extracted from wounded troops. This is a teetotal war as far as the Allies are concerned, while the trail of the Germans is marked by myriads of empty bottles. BURYING THE DEAD. IN THE METZ DISTRICT. (Received 23, 9.0 a.m.) London Sept. 22. A large number of civilians in Metz district are burying the dead. It is estimated they have buried 1000 bodies of French ami English and 3000 Germans. PARIS RESTLESS. “TIMES” AND “SYDNEY SUN” SERVICES. (Received 23, 9.0 a.m.) London, Sept. 22. Paris is becoming restless at the delay of Government in returning from Bordeaux.