Part 45

She has herself admitted that she concealed in her house French and English soldiers, as well as Belgians of military age, all desirous of proceeding to the front. She has also admitted having furnished these soldiers with the money necessary for their journey to France, and having facilitated their departure from Belgium by providing them with guides, who enabled them to cross the Dutch frontier secretly.

Miss Cavell's defense is in the hands of the advocate Braun, who, I may add, is already in touch with the competent German authorities.

In view of the fact that the Department of the Governor-General, as a matter of principle, does not allow accused persons to have any interviews whatever, I much regret my inability to procure for M. de Leval permission to visit Miss Cavell as long as she is in solitary confinement.

Under the provisions of international law the American Minister could take no action while the case was before the courts. It is an elementary rule that the forms of a trial must be gone through without interference from any source. If, when the sentence has been rendered, it appears that there has been a denial of justice, the case may be taken up diplomatically, with a view to securing real justice. Thus in the early stages of the case the American Minister was helpless to interfere. All that he could do while the case was before the courts was to watch the procedure carefully and be prepared with a full knowledge of the facts to see that a fair trial was granted.

Maitre de Leval communicated with Mr. Braun, who said that he had been prevented from pleading before the court on behalf of Miss Cavell, but had asked his friend and colleague, Mr. Kirschen, to take up the case. Maitre de Leval then communicated with Mr. Kirschen, and learned from him that lawyers defending prisoners before German military courts were not allowed to see their clients before the trial and were shown none of the documents of the prosecution. It was thus manifestly impossible to prepare any defense save in the presence of the court and during the progress of the trial. Maitre de Leval, who from the beginning to the end of the case showed a most serious and chivalrous concern for the welfare of the accused, then told Mr. Kirschen that he would endeavour to be present at the trial in order to watch the case. Mr. Kirschen dissuaded him from attending the trial on the ground that it would only serve to harm Miss Cavell rather than help her; that the judges would resent the presence of a representative of the American Legation. Although it seems unbelievable that any man of judicial mind would resent the presence of another bent solely on watching the course of justice, Mr. Kirschen's advice was confirmed by other Belgian lawyers who had defended prisoners before the German military courts and spoke with the authority of experience. Mr. Kirschen promised, however, to keep Maitre de Leval fully posted as to all the developments of the case and the facts brought out in the course of the trial.

PROCLAMATION

Le Tribunal de Conseil de Guerre Imperial Allemand siegent a Bruxelles a prononce les condamnations suivantes:

Condamne a mort pour trahison en bande organise:

Edith CAVAELL, Institutrice a Bruxelles. Philippe BANCQ, Architecte a Bruxelles. Jeanne de BELLEVILLE, de Montignies. Louise THUILIEZ, Professeur a Lille. Louis SEVERIN, Pharmacien a Bruxelles. Albert LIBIEZ, Avocat a Mons.

Pour le meme motif, ont ete condamnes a quince ans de travaux forces:

Hermann CAPIAU, Ingenieur a Wasmes.--Ada BODART, a Bruxelles--Georges DERVEAU, Pharmacien a Paturages.--Mary de Croy, a Bellignies.

Dans la meme seance, le Conseil de Guerre a prononce contre dix-sept autres accuses de trahison envers les Armees Imperiales, des comdamnations de travaux forces et de prison variant entre deux ans et huit ans.

En ce qui concerne BANCQ et Edith CAVELL, le jugement a deja recu pleine execution.

Le General Gouverneur de Bruxelles porte ces faits a la connaissance de public pour qu'ils servent d'avertissement.

Translation:

The Imperial German Court Martial sitting at Brussels has pronounced the following sentence:

Condemned to death for treason committed as an organized band:

Edith Cavell, teacher, of Brussels. Philippe Bancq, Architect, of Brussels. Jeanne de Belleville, of Montignies. Louise Thuilier, Teacher, of Lille. Louis Severin, druggist, of Brussels. Albert Libiez, lawyer, of Mons.

For the same offense the following are condemned to fifteen years of hard labor:

Hermann Capiau, engineer, of Wasmes--Ada Bodart, of Brussels--Georges Derveau, druggist, of Paturages--Mary de Croy, of Bellignies.

At the same session the Court Martial has pronounced sentences of hard labor and of imprisonment, varying from two to eight years, against seventeen others accused of treason against the Imperial Armies.

As regards Bancq and Edith Cavell, the sentence has already been fully carried out.

The Governor-General brings these facts to the attention of the public in order that they may serve as a warning.]

The trial began on Thursday, October 7th, and ended the following day.

On Sunday afternoon the Legation learned from persons who had been present at the trial some of the facts.

It seems that Miss Cavell was prosecuted for having helped English and French soldiers, as well as Belgian young men, to cross the frontier into Holland in order that they might get over to England. She had made a signed statement admitting the truth of these charges and had further made public acknowledgment in court. She frankly admitted that not only had she helped the soldiers to cross the frontier but that some of them had written her from England thanking her for her assistance. This last admission made the case more serious for her because if it had been proven only that she had helped men to cross the frontier into Holland, she could have been sentenced only for a violation of the passport regulations, and not for the "crime" of assisting soldiers to reach a country at war with Germany.

Miss Cavell was tried under Paragraph 58 of the German Military Code, which says:

Any person who, with the intention of aiding the hostile Power or causing harm to German or allied troops, is guilty of one of the crimes of Paragraph 90 of the German Penal Code, will be sentenced to death for treason.