And mailèd Mars, he blest us—but his blessing was most to me!
"God Punish England, Brother"
A New Hymn of Germany's Gospel of Hatred
[From Public Opinion, London, Feb. 5, 1915.]
The amazing outburst of hatred against England in Germany is responsible for a new form of greeting which has displaced the conventional formulas of salutation and farewell: "God punish England!" ("Gott strafe England!") is the form of address, to which the reply is: "May God punish her!" ("Gott mög'es strafen!")
"This extraordinary formula," says The Mail, "which is now being used all over Germany, is celebrated in a set of verses by Herr Hochstetter in a recent number of the well-known German weekly, Lustige Blätter. In its way this poem is as remarkable as Herr Ernst Lissauer's famous 'Hymn of Hate.'"
Among the prayers at Bruges Cathedral on the Kaiser's birthday was this German chant of hate, "God Punish England!"