Belfort—Many hundreds of Alsatians are joining the French Army with great enthusiasm, also many Italian Swiss. A large number of Alsace-Lorrainers are waiting near the frontier with a view of crossing it at a favorable opportunity to fight on the French side.
Such absurdity in the face of the unbroken unanimity of the entire German people and despite the manifest enthusiasm of the Alsace-Lorrainers for the German cause!
Equally stupid and made up for incurably credulous readers is an official report of the French War Ministry—not a private rumor, be it noted, but an official communication. It says:
A young Frenchman reports under oath that he was arrested, along with several other Frenchmen, at the railway station in Lörrach while on the homeward journey from Baden; and they were led through the whole city under a military escort. One of the Frenchmen shouted, "Hurrah for France," and was at once shot down. Three others who protested against this suffered the same fate; and so did a fifth man who thereupon had called the Germans murderers. The rest of the Frenchmen, proceeding to Switzerland by rail, heard shots fired in the adjoining compartment; they discovered that two Italians had been shot by Germans because one had protested against the opening of the window, and another had jostled a German.
Does such stuff call for any refutation at all?
A typical example of how it is sought to work upon public opinion by means of systematic lying is afforded by the capture of Liége.
The fact is that this Belgian stronghold, along with its forts, which contained a garrison of 20,000 men, was taken by storm on Aug. 7 by the German troops, who fought with unparalleled bravery, and that 3,000 to 4,000 Belgian prisoners of war are already on their way to Germany.
Yet on Aug. 9—two days after the fall of Liége—a dispatch was still sent to the Dutch press, saying: "The Liége forts are still in Belgian hands."
And on Aug. 8, thirty-six hours after the fall of Liége—a dispatch was sent from Paris to the newspapers of Rome, saying:
The Germans lost 20,000 men at Liége and asked for an armistice of twenty-four hours. Liége has not yet fallen. The English landed 100,000 men at Antwerp, who were received with jubilation by the population. President Poincaré, upon the proposal of Doumergue, the Minister of War, conferred on the City of Liége the cross of the Legion of Honor.