“ It is nothing but fanaticism to expect very much from humanity when it has forgotten how to wage war. For the present we know of no other means whereby the rough energy of the camp, the deep impersonal hatred, the cold-bloodedness of murder with a good conscience, the general ardour of the system in the destruction of the enemy ... ”

“ Germans who have saved money, show that you have saved, not only for yourselves, but also for the Fatherland. German corporations, companies, savings banks, and all institutions which have blossomed and grown up under the powerful protection of the Empire, repay the Empire with your gratitude in this hour of fate. German banks and bankers, show what your brilliant organization and your influence on your customers are able to produce. ”

“ And all this gigantic distribution has grown during the two years that have passed since his cartoons were first exhibited in London. It is a record that has never yet been equalled. What is the secret of this man’s appeal to men and women in all stations of life, to people of every creed and nationality? In Europe nearly all, and in America a great many, of the leading writers and thinkers have acclaimed the genius of Raemaekers, but none have been able to tell us why it is that his pictures appeal with equal intensity to the Briton, the Latin, the Slav, and the American. ”

“ This represents not merely piracy, but piracy on a vaster scale of murder than old-time pirates ever practiced. This is the warfare which destroyed Louvain and Dinant and hundreds of men, women, and children in Belgium. It is a warfare against innocent men, women, and children traveling on the ocean, and our own fellow-countrymen and countrywomen, who are among the sufferers.
It seems inconceivable that we can refrain from taking action in this matter, for we owe it not only to humanity, but to our own national self-respect. ”

“ Parents who had already given their sons, wives who had given husbands, were strengthened in their resignation and comforted in their sorrow; those who yet had the sacrifice to make were fortified in their resolve. As I have said, the cumulative effect of these hundred and fifty cartoons on the emotions of a people just awakening to and suffering from the desperate realities of the war was almost overwhelming, and many a man and woman quivered and cried under this pitiless revelation of the stupendous suffering that had been and was yet to be. ”

“ Great Britain hates war, and no nation enters more reluctantly upon its horrible and devastating operations; but at the same time no nation, when it is driven to war by the machinations of its foes who desire to filch from it or from its co-champions of liberty any portion of their inherited freedom, is more resolved to see the matter through, at whatever cost, to a successful issue. ”

“ Their outlines are laid down in the German war book. They are part of the system in which Germany has been scientifically trained. It is the essence of that system to make such a hell of countries where their armies set foot that any terms she may offer will seem like heaven to the people whose bodies she has defiled and whose minds she has broken of set purpose and intention. ”

“ Everything else we must forget from this moment, and remember only this: to be Italians, to love all Italy with the same faith and fervor. The forces of all must be cemented into one single heart; only one single will must guide all toward the wished for end; and force, and art, and will must find their expression one, alive, and heroic in the army and navy of Italy and in the august leader who conducts them toward the destiny of the new history. ”

“ At length he could remain in doubt no longer, and quietly slipped over the frontier to verify for himself the truth or falsehood of the accusations that had already made Germany guilty of the foulest crimes ever perpetrated in the name of war since the dawn of civilization.
What he actually saw with his own eyes he does not tell. But a hundred of his early cartoons bear witness to the burning impression made upon his soul. ”

“ A writer in the Boston Transcript perhaps comes nearest to the truth. He says: “The mantle of Dante has fallen upon Raemaekers; he leads the conscience of the world to-day through an inferno of wrong.”
This world-wide recognition is conclusive testimony to the universality of his genius. Raemaekers appeals to all mankind. The value of his contribution to the cause of civilization in this war lies in the fact that he has seen and depicted with the directness and clarity of genius the truth that the issue is joined between the forces of evil and good. ”

“ All mankind bears witness to-day that there is no crime, no cruelty, no abomination that the mind of man can conceive which the German has not perpetrated, is not perpetrating, and will not perpetrate if he is allowed to go on. ”

“ For him there are no other considerations, no qualifications, no compromises. He has but one enemy, and that is the destroyer of peace and civilization; he has but one hero, and that is the defender of them. ”

“ There is very strong reason to suspect that young girls were carried off to the trenches by licentious German soldiery, and there abused by hordes of savage and licentious men. People in hiding in the cellars of houses have heard the voices of women in the hands of German soldiers crying all night long until death or stupor ended their agonies. ”

“ Rightly or wrongly, we have in the past devoted our energies and our intelligence, not to preparations for war, but to that social progress which makes for the happiness and contentment of the mass of our people. ”

“ The exhibition was carried from London to the principal English and Scottish cities, and thence to Paris. Everywhere the story was the same. Crowds flocked to see and heed the artist’s fiery records; statesmen, soldiers, artists did him honor. In London he was received by the Prime Minister and the artistic and learned societies; in Paris he was made a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor and given a reception at the Sorbonne—the highest purely intellectual honor that can be bestowed upon any man. France, equally with England, acclaimed him as the new champion of humanity. ”

“ England is playing a perfectly shameful rôle in this war. Even though France were allied to Russia by an unfortunate treaty, England was not so allied! But England, who has ever been jealous of the industrial development of our country, used the violation of our treaty of neutrality with Belgium, which was incurred only in dire need and which was yielded openly and honestly in the Reichstag by the Chancellor, as a pretext to declare war against us. ”

“ During the three months of invasion, more than 21,000 houses had been burnt down in five alone of the nine provinces of Belgium, and a far greater number pillaged—more than 16,000, for instance, in the single Province of Brabant. Of the civilian population, between 5,000 and 6,000 men, women, and children had been massacred, some singly and some in batches, some by clean killing and some after lingering tortures, some in frenzy and some in cold blood, but all with the object of terrorization and with that result. ”

“ Our thoughts naturally turn to the splendid efforts of the Oversea Dominions and India, who, from the earliest days of the war, have ranged themselves side by side with the Mother Country. The prepared armed forces of India were the first to take the field, closely followed by the gallant Canadians—who are now fighting alongside their British and French comrades in Flanders. ”

“ Our function is ended when we have stated what the evidence establishes, but we may be permitted to express our belief that these disclosures will not have been made in vain if they touch and rouse the conscience of mankind, and we venture to hope that as soon as the present war is over the nations of the world in council will consider what means can be provided and sanctions devised to prevent the recurrence of such horrors as our generation is now witnessing. ”

“ I can only say that the supply of war material at the present moment and for the next two or three months is causing me very serious anxiety, and I wish all those engaged in the manufacture and supply of these stores to realize that it is absolutely essential not only that the arrears in the deliveries of our munitions of war should be wiped off, but that the output of every round of ammunition is of the utmost importance and has a large influence on our operations in the field. ”

“ The waters around Great Britain and Ireland, including the whole English Channel, are declared a war zone on and after February 18, 1915.
Every enemy merchant ship found in this war zone will be destroyed, even if it is impossible to avert dangers which threaten the crew and passengers.
Also neutral ships in the war zone are in danger, as in consequence of the misuse of neutral flags ordered by the British Government on January 31, and in view of the hazards of naval warfare, it cannot always be avoided that attacks meant for enemy ships endanger neutral ships. ”

“ The Germans seem to have expected an easy passage. The Belgian population, never dreaming of an attack, were startled and stupefied.
From the very beginning of the operations the civilian population of the villages lying upon the line of the German advance were made to experience the extreme horrors of war. “On the 4th of August,” says one witness, “at Herve I saw at about 2 o’clock in the afternoon, near the station, five Uhlans; these were the first German troops I had seen. They were followed by a German officer and some soldiers in a motor car. ”

“ Furniture is thrown into the street, pictures are riddled with bullets and pierced by sword cuts, municipal registers burnt, the contents of shops scattered on the floor, drawers rifled, live stock slaughtered and carcasses left to rot in the fields. ”

“ And this, no doubt, is the reason why other nations imagine that we, as a nation of shopkeepers, are too indolent and apathetic to fight for and maintain these priceless liberties won by the men who laid the foundation of our vast empire. ”

“ In many groups were to be seen old, old people, grandfathers and grandmothers of a family, and these in their shaking frailty and terror, which they could not withstand, were the more pitiable objects in the great gathering of stricken townsfolk. ”

“ The municipal Government of Liège remind their fellow citizens, and all staying within the city, that international law most strictly forbids civilians to commit hostilities against the German soldiers occupying the country.
Every attack on German troops by others than the military in uniform not only exposes those who may be guilty to be shot summarily, but will also bring terrible consequences on the leading citizens of Liège now detained in the citadel as hostages by the commander of the German troops. ”

“ In the innocent exalted island kingdom many a fellow is already striking; why should not even the recruit strike, who is also beginning to get a glimmer of the truth that there are no props in the ocean waves? ”

“ To sum up, the German General Staff has placed upon its record since the beginning of the campaign—apart from the failure of its great plan, which aimed at the crushing of France in a few weeks—seven defeats of high significance, namely, the defeat of the sudden attack on Nancy, the defeat of the rapid march on Paris, the defeat of the envelopement of our left in August, the defeat of the same envelopement in November, the defeat of the attempt to break through our centre in September, the defeat of the coast attack on Dunkirk and Calais, and the defeat of the attack on Ypres. ”

“ Cases of petty larceny by German soldiers appear to be innumerable; they take whatever seizes their fancy, and leave the towns they evacuate laden like pedlars. Empty ammunition wagons were drawn up in front of private houses and filled with their contents for despatch to Germany.
I have had the reports of local commissions of police placed before me, and they show that in smaller villages like those of Caestre and Merris, with a population of about 1,500 souls or less, pillaging to the extent of £4,000 and £6,000 was committed by the German troops. ”

“ In each of these great Dominions new and large contingents are being prepared, while South Africa, not content with the successful conclusion of the arduous campaign in South-West Africa, is now offering large forces to engage the enemy in the main theatre of war. ”

“ Belgian Gov. Commission’s Report.
[Pg 21]
[Pg 22]
BERNHARDISM: “It’s all right. If I hadn’t done it someone else might”
As regards private property, respect among German troops simply does not exist. By the universal testimony of every British officer and soldier I have interrogated the progress of the German troops is like a plague of locusts over the land. What they can not carry off they destroy. ”

“ That the rules and usages of war were frequently broken, particularly by the using of civilians, including women and children, as a shield for advancing forces exposed to fire, to a less degree by killing the wounded and prisoners, and in the frequent abuse of the Red Cross and the white flag. ”

“ Neither Serbia nor Russia, despite a long and costly war, is hated. Italy, however, or rather those Italian would be politicians and business men who offer violence to the majority of peaceful Italian people, are so unutterably hated with the most profound honesty that this war can produce.
The Frankfurter Zeitung, May 25, 1915.
[Pg 171]
[Pg 172]
THE LATIN SISTERS Italy: “Indeed she is my sister”
Giuseppe Garibaldi with a corps of Italian soldiers went to the defense of the French Republic in the war of 1870 against the Prussians, performing heroic deeds at Dijon worthy of an epopee. ”

“ We beseech all residents of the municipality to guard the highest interests of all the inhabitants and of those who are hostages of the German Army, and not to commit any assault on the soldiers of this army. ”