Part 30

The food supply of the country is being rapidly exhausted and there is urgent need for importations. The public knows little about the situation, but a serious shortage threatens and we must have a considerable stock from abroad. The Brussels committee has raised a goodly sum of money and hopes to get food from Holland and England to meet present needs. Similar committees are being formed in other cities, and they, too, will require food from abroad. The local committee has asked Shaler to go to Holland and from there to England to purchase as much food as possible, make arrangements for sending it across the frontier and investigate the chances of getting future supplies. The German authorities have given assurances that they will not requisition any of the supplies imported for the use of the civil population. They are to issue placards signed by the Military Governor ordering the military authorities to respect our purchases. These placards are to be affixed to the cars and barges bringing in the supplies and we are inclined to believe that they will be effective.

After hurried preparation Shaler got away this afternoon with young Couchman by way of Liege. I went out to lunch with him and see him off. It is not an easy task he has ahead, but he went to it with a good heart.

Yesterday evening the Minister had an interview with Baron von der Lancken about the question of my making a statement as to what I saw at Louvain. I naturally am very reluctant to be brought into the affair, but the Germans have been very insistent, and finally von der Lancken said that he was confident that if he could talk with me for a few minutes he could arrange the matter to the satisfaction of everybody. He asked that I go to see him at the Ministry at half past six. I hurried home and dressed for dinner, so as to be able to go straight to Mrs. Z.'s, and then run over to the Ministry on the minute. The office of von der Lancken was dark and empty. I waited in the chilly corridors for twenty minutes and then went my way.

This morning one of his minions was here on another matter and I took occasion to mention the fact that he had not been there when I called. He came right back with the statement that they had come back from the field particularly early, on my account, and had waited for me in vain for nearly an hour. I assured them that I had been there on the minute and had been in the office, and that there was no one there. Mystery! By way of clinching it I said that the office was dark as the tomb. Then a ray of light struck the German, and he said: "Oh, I see, you came at half past six, Belgian time! Of course von der Lancken expected you at half past six, German time!!!" When he asked me when I would call I felt inclined to set eleven in the morning and then wander over at three in the afternoon, with the statement that, of course, I did everything according to New York time.

I had an hour's talk with von der Lancken about noon, and finally got off without testifying, which is a great comfort to me. He knew from their own troops that I had been in Louvain during the fighting, and had already reported that to Berlin. I finally prevailed upon him to let it go at that.

After we had settled our business, von der Lancken talked to me for half an hour or so about the war in general. He said they had just received a telegram that Reims is in flames, cathedral and all. It is a terrible thing to think of, and I suppose may turn out to be another Louvain before we get through. Von der Lancken explained it on the ground that French troops had come up and occupied the town, and that it was necessary to take it by storm--that troops could never operate against a position of that sort until artillery had cleared the way. I don't know just how far that sort of an explanation explains.

The Germans got out an affiche of news this morning, stating that "les troupes Allemands ont fait des progres sur certains points." It does not sound very enthusiastic.

People coming in from Mons and Charleroi yesterday and to-day say that the German rear guard has fallen back on villages near those places and ordered the inhabitants to leave; the idea evidently being that they are preparing to resist any further advance of the allies.

After lunch, Baron de Menten de Horne was brought into the Legation again. The Germans seem anxious to get rid of him, and have finally turned him loose. I cannot very well make out their object in setting him free without getting a German officer in exchange, but they were keen to get him off their hands and wanted us to take cognisance of the fact that they had accorded him his liberty. This we have done. I shall be curious to see whether there is any sequel to this case.

Late this afternoon we got a telegram from the Consul at Liege, stating that Shaler and Couchman had been arrested in that city because they were carrying private letters to be posted when they got to England. They had taken a certain number of letters, all of them open and containing nothing but information as to the welfare of individuals here. They were on a mission of interest to the German authorities--getting foodstuffs to prevent a famine here. The Minister got off an urgent telegram to the Consul to get to work and have them released, and also saw von der Lancken about it, with the result that the wires are hot. I hope to hear to-night that they are free. These are parlous times to be travelling with correspondence.

I may have to get away any minute for Antwerp, to see if we cannot arrange to get flour down here for the city. There is enough for only a few days now, and there will be trouble when the bread gives out.

We have now been charged with Japanese interests; that makes six Legations we have to look after.

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Wednesday.--Late yesterday afternoon I got a note from Princess P---- de B----, asking me to go to see her. I got away from my toil and troubles at seven, and went up to find out what was the matter. The old lady was in a terrible state. A member of her immediate family married the Duke of ----, a German who has always lived here a great deal. At the beginning of the war, things got so hot for any one with any German taint that they cleared out. For the last few days, German officers have been coming to the house in uniform asking to see the Princess. The servants have stood them off with the statement that she was out, but she cannot keep that up indefinitely. They are undoubtedly anxious to see her, in order to give her some messages from the ----'s, some of her other relatives in Germany; but if it gets around town that she is receiving officers in uniform the town will be up in arms, and the lady's life would be made miserable whenever the Germans do get out. She wanted me to start right away for Antwerp and take her along, so that she could send her intendant around afterward to say that she was away on a journey, and could not see the officers who had been sent to see her. I laboured with her, and convinced her that the best thing was to be absolutely frank. She is going to send her intendant around to see von der Lancken, and explain to him frankly the embarrassment to which she would be subjected by having to receive officers at her home. I am sure that Lancken will realise the difficult situation the old lady is in, and will find some way of calling his people off.

Went down to the Palace and had dinner with Pousette and Bulle and Cavalcanti, who were full of such news as there is floating around the town. There is a growing impression that the Germans do intend to invest Antwerp, and the Belgians are apparently getting ready for that contingency--by inundating a lot more of the country outside the ring of forts.

At noon, day before yesterday, I found a man with a copy of the London Times, and carried it in my overcoat pocket to the Palace Hotel when I went there to lunch. Last night, a lot of German civil officials were sitting at a table near by and holding forth in loud tones on the punishment that should be meted out to people who had forbidden newspapers in their possession. The most vehement one of the lot expressed great indignation that the Amerikanischer Legationsrath had been seen in that very restaurant the day before with an English newspaper in his overcoat pocket. Pretty good spy you have, Fritz.

A telegram has just been received from Liege, saying that Shaler and Couchman have been released and are on their way to Holland. A Dutch messenger was in after lunch, and told me that he had seen the two men at headquarters yesterday afternoon, and that they were far from happy. He said he did not blame them, as the Germans are dealing out summary justice to anybody who falls into their hands that they do not take a fancy to.

A.B. has been after me for a couple of days to take her up to the chateau near Louvain, where Countess R. is left alone with twenty-eight German officers quartered on her. A man cousin was sent up to defend her, but was so badly frightened that he spent all his time in the cellar and finally ran away and came back to Brussels. Now she wants to go up to the rescue, and stay there. I have asked von der Lancken for a pass, and shall try to take her up to-morrow. She certainly has good nerve, but I am not sure how much protection she would be able to afford.

The supply of flour is getting pretty well used up, and I may have to clear out to-morrow afternoon or the next day to go to Antwerp and negotiate to have some supplies sent down for the relief of the civil population. The Government has volunteered to do this, if the Germans would promise that the food would not be requisitioned for the troops. We have been given these assurances, and it only remains for me to go up and complete the arrangements.

When the Minister came back from Louvain he went over to headquarters and talked about the subject of my trip to Antwerp. He has been nervous about each of my trips and has worried a lot more about it than I have, but when he saw von der Lancken, that worthy made things worse by saying that there was artillery ready to begin business in every part of the country I was to traverse and that it would be a very dangerous trip. Now, the Minister is making superhuman efforts to find some other way to get the letters and papers through to Antwerp.

A note has just come in from Princess P. de Z----, to say that she followed my advice, and that everything has been settled with the German authorities to her complete satisfaction. She is now easy in her mind.

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September 25th.--I spent all day yesterday sitting on the edge of my chair waiting for a decision about my leaving for Antwerp, and by dark I was a fit candidate for an asylum. At five o'clock the Minister went around to see von der Lancken to get the laisser-passer. It was then suggested that a letter could be sent around by way of Berlin and The Hague. It would take a week or ten days to get an answer that way. Then we argued the matter out again from the beginning, and after a quarter of an hour of joint debate I went over to see von der Lancken and press for the laisser-passer. He was in a conseil de guerre, but I had him pulled out and put it up to him. He said it was then too late to get anything last night, but that he would attend to it to-day. I am now sitting on the same old edge of my chair waiting for action, so that I can get away. I think that the trip by Namur, Liege and Maestricht, which is the route prescribed, is a lot safer than the other two trips I have made to Antwerp, which really were risky performances. Most of this trip will be in peaceful Holland and I do not contemplate any sort of trouble along the way.

By way of being ready I got passes from the Dutch Legation and the Burgomaster yesterday afternoon, and now all I have to do is take the German Passierschein in my hand and start.

Yesterday evening I dined at the M.'s. Just the two of them and their daughter, who is married to a French officer. As is the case everywhere else, they talk nothing but war, and are most rabid. They have a daughter in Germany, but she does not seem to enter into their calculations, and all their thoughts are for France and Belgium. Their son, who is in the Belgian cavalry, has just got his corporal's stripes for gallantry in action. The old gentleman is bursting with pride. During the evening another old chap came in with a letter from his son, who is in young M.'s regiment; he had some very nice things to say about the young man's behaviour, and there was a great popular rejoicing.

The London Times came in during the evening, and there was a great revamping of war maps to correspond with the latest movement of troops. The daughter keeps the maps up to date, and does it very well, having picked up some training from her husband. She has different coloured lines for each day's progress and it is easy to see at a glance just how the positions compare for any given times.

This morning the Germans have big placards up all over town, trying to explain their action in burning Reims Cathedral. They are doing a lot of explaining these days.

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