THE GERMAN PLAN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15748, 24 October 1914, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE GERMAN PLAN.

DEPORTING THE FRENCH.

A DEGENERATE RACE.

GOOD ENOUGH FOR AMERICA.

jAx interesting account is given by Pro- ! fessor Pierre Delbet, of the Paris Faculty of Medicine, of the visit be made to his ! mother, who is 77 years old, and resides alone in a little village on the Grand Morui River, recently in the heart of the region where the Carman army, under General • Kluck, was operating. I Mm. Delbet's villa has a small wooden 'bridge across the river, connecting her courtyard with a. flower and vegetable garden on the north bank of the stream. A few days ago French engineers blew up the two public bridges of the village, but 1 loft intact the little wooden private bridge. Early next morning the Germans arrived. i Smashing open the gates of the villa, a j soldier pointed a revolver at the vener- ] able woman's bead, and a young German general, highly distinguished in appearance land speaking French perfectly, who was ; commanding a division of the Prussian Guard Corps, said, very politely, and adjusting his eyeglass to his left eye as he spoke: , '• Madam, you will doubtless let ns cross [the river by your private garden bridge'.'" I " 1 cannot prevent you, sir, from doing I so," replied the old lady; "but I warn ■you that the bridge is not strong." I "Ah, we will see to that!" said the ! general. ; In a few minutes German artificers had added trusses to the bridge, nuking it , solid. Then the general put 30 soldier's «n the bridge, making them all jump on the structure in unison. After this test I , the general ordered his troops to march I 1 a< ross. j With a great show of courtesy the gene- i ral liad two comfortable armchairs placed' jin the courtyard, and, by an invitation l 'having the character of a command, do- ! ! sired Mine. Pel bet to take a seat with him ' ' and watch the defile (a sort of review) of i ; his troops. | His cavalry went over tho bridge three . j abreast, but when a Uhlan accidentally i knocked do.vn with his lance an American I bison's head, a hunting trophy given to . the professor by one of his pupils, the : 1 general reprimanded the careless trooper, ' and ordered the cavalry to defile two . abreast. j ; During this passage of troops, lasting '. 'seven hours, from 11.30 a.m. to 6.30 p.m., I : the general scrutinised his men through his j ; eyeglass, .and had tea and toast made by [ his servant. The following extraordinary : conversation ensued between him and the : venerable Mnie. Delbet: — | I " Madam, when you become a German ! ! subject, as certainly will be the case, you ; . i will be very proud to have seen my troops pass over your bridge. Moreover, I will , I have a fine? bronze tablet screwed over your , i gateway to commemorate the event." i i When Mme. Delbet, protested against ! ! the idea of becoming a German, the gene- ; . ral gave a vigorous twist to his eyeglass, j , and said : | ' t " Why. madam, that's already settled, I j You cannot defend yourselves." Oh, I : I know all about <ne talk of your friends i |th« English, and your friends the Rus-1 : sians. But the English, they are very ! i well on the ocean, but on land they are ; .of no account whatever! As for the"Rus- 1 j sians, they don't even know what an army ! i is!" " i Mme. Delbet remarked that she had I heard the Russians had improved since i their war with the Japanese. "Well, perhaps a little," returned the German : " but, believe me, they have I no army. There remains your French. But you, yourself, madam, who belong to j a medical family, must be quite well aware that the French are an utterly degenerate I iace. You have come to an end. I will j let you into a secret, and tell von what j we have decided Jo do, and this is our ultimatum, the text of which I have, myself read. We intend to preserve the best of your men— is to say, the least degenerate—and marry them to well 'selected strong, healthy North German girls and these couples perhaps mav have fine, ! | useful children. As to the other French- I | men and French women, we are going to j send them all across the Atlantic to North and South America." sJff* «f neral ,?«a» afterward left with his staff, after politely saluting Mme. Delbet and saying: ' "I am going to Paris, where I hope you will command my services if I can be of any use to you, madam." So saying, he mounted his bay charger I and trotted away at the head of his staff' | leaving three officers and a small detachi ment in the village. | A few days later a German automobile | passed through the village at very high ! speed A sentry discharged a rifle as a , signal, and the detachment in the village j at once retired. ° j Half an hour later the same division of j the Prussian Guard as Mme. Delbet had I seen recrossed the Grand Morin in the op- | posit* direction, closely pressed by British I and French dragoons and two battalions of British infantry, who came over the throe bridges that the Germans did not have time to destroy.