“YES—THEY ARE PIGS!”

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XLI, Issue 11400, 20 November 1917, Page 8

“YES—THEY ARE PIGS!”

FEKCHMAN'S RUINED HOUR. COFFINS RANSACKED BY GERMANS. The territory recovered from the Germans is at best a ghastly sight, but there sre some who have to boar an added burden of misery in viewing the ruins. They are the French men and women who come “home” to the battle area lift or the Bodies have been driven away. A pathetic return of this kind occurred at Thiepval a few (Ivys ago, says a correspondent of the New York Tribonuno. The nobleman who owned the chateau, which stood right on the plateau of Thiepval and overlooked the river t’ncre, obtained permission from the authorities to visit his home. Lie was warned not to expect to see anything of tho beautiful house, because ■ Thiepval had been under heavy bombardment for many months. After losing friends, and relatives in the war, ho felt that lie could stand tho shock of seeing his homo in ruins. What happened to him has hap- , poned to many thousands of others. They had been prepared hy descriptions and hy pictures to expect after desolation, hut when they saw the horror of reality they found it far worse than they had imagined. Tho Marquis of Thiepval came up tho familiar road from Albert through the ruins of villages, each one of which used to be a familiar landmark. As he neared the village lie began to scan tho horizon for the turrets and chimneys ox his chateau, hut they were not to ho seen. He looked more closely for wails and windows, but thorn was no sign. Finally, ks ho left his motor and began to Climb over tho shell holes and craters on the hill, lie prayed that the foundation stones at least might ho left. NOT A SINGLE STONE LEFT. Suddenly his guide stopped and said “Here. ” The broken-hearted man looked about him. “Here?” lie repeated dully. “Here? The chateau, here?” The guide nodded his head —yes. The Marquis looked about him. It was more than destruction. Elsewhere in France towns have been battered so that, no stones are left together, hut hero no single stone remains. Walls, doors, chimneys, everything which was once the chateau, had been battered into one lingo ugly ho.ap of dust. In tho heap lay stocks of German rifles, clips of cartridges, bits of equipment. But of human habitation there was not a vestige. Tho old man was stupefied. “It is boro tho chateau?” ho asked again. “But no. It cannot he. How do you know it is bore?” he asked, looking around at all tho hillside. It seemed impossible to distinguish one spot from another. “I will show you how we know, said the guide, and led tiro way down a slight descent, ps they descended tho marquis caught sight of a huge piece of wrought iron. He caught his breath. “It is the grill from tho chute-u gate ”he said, and stopped to finger it sadly. “Yes 1 am convinced now. ”

Presently tho guide, a militiry police officer, stopped by what seemed to ho the entrance of a dugout. “Perhaps you would rath *r not go in,'” he said. “It is tho burial vault —and the Hun has been hero. ” Tho old man drew himself up and s'dd firmly: “I can hear to see anything now. ” They went in. Lying near the entrance of the vault was a comparatively new coffin, made of the vaults’ oak doors, torn from their hinges, lu it, still partially uncovered, lay a German corpse, and against the coffin leaned the coffin slab, with the name carefully cut in tho wood. Tho words, in German, were still faintly decipherable:— Mere lies tho body of Tho Count von Horhnand, of the Regiment. Killed at Thiopval, , 1910. “Tiny did not have time to liyisb, ” paid the guide. “We got them Out r„tiler stmdeniy at the end. But they had time for this ” He pointed to tho coffins which stood around' the walls.

The marquis looked, and saw that every one of the old coffins had been broken Into and robbed. While tire Gomans were carefully preparing a grave for one of their own men they were just as carefully ravaging the ancient graves of their enemies. “ A double advantage, ” said the marquis.' ‘‘Yes —they arc pigs. Let us go. ”