I went around to see the young man's sister, and sent her off to have a look at him at headquarters, where he is being well treated. It is a joy to be able to do some of these little errands. Nobody can realize the amount of bitter sorrow there is in this country—we cannot realize it ourselves, but now and then a wave of it rises up to confront and overwhelm us.
Miss T——, an American owning a school here, was in late this afternoon to complain of the behaviour of a couple of officers and gentlemen who did her the honour of calling upon her. They came swaggering in, asked whether a certain German girl had attended the school and demanded her portrait. On being refused, they became nasty and finally so overawed the two women who were there alone that they found some snap shots and handed over a couple of them. Then they demanded a post card with a picture of the school, wrote a message to the girl, and tried to compel the two women to sign it. They flatly refused, and, in a rage, the elder German tore up the card, threw it at Miss T——, flung down the photographs and stamped out of the house, slamming the doors.
The Minister is going over to see the military authorities in the morning and make some remarks that they will not forget in a hurry. The puppies ought to be horsewhipped.
September 18th.—Repressive measures are getting stronger and more severe. The Germans have now ordered the Belgians to take down their flags. Lüttwitz, the Military Governor, has posted an Avis on the subject which is worth reproducing in full.
The population of Brussels, understanding well its own interests, has generally, since the arrival of the German troops, maintained order and quiet. For this reason, I have not yet forbidden the display of Belgian flags, which is regarded as a provocation by the German troops living in or passing through Brussels. Purely in order to avoid having our troops led to acting on their own initiative, I now call upon houseowners to take down their Belgian flags.
The Military Government, in putting this measure into effect, has not the slightest intention of wounding the susceptibilities and dignity of the citizens. It is intended solely to protect the citizens against harm.
Brussels, September 16, 1914.
Baron von Lüttwitz.
General and Governor.