Protests Against
Deporting Belgians
NEW YORK, Dec. 27. — Cardinal
Mercier's protest against the deporta
tion of Belgians to Germany, only brief
excerpts of which came in the cable
dispatches, has been received here by
the Associated Press in its full text,
^ as follows:
Malines, Nov. 7.—Every day the
military authorities deport from Bel
gium into Germany thousands of in
offensive citizens to oblige them there
to perform forced labor.
"As early as October 19 we sent to
the governor general a protest, a copy
of which was handed to the represen
tatives of the Holy See, of Spain, the
United States and Holland, in Brus
sels, but the governor general replied
to it that nothing could be done.
"At the time of our protestations,
the orders of the occupying power
threatened only the unemployed; to
day every able-bodied man is carried
off, pell-mell, assembled in freight
cars and carried off to unknown parts
like a herd of slaves. The enemy pro
ceeds by regions. Vague rumors had
come to our ears that arrests had been
made in Tournau, Ghent and Alost,
but we were not aware of the condi
tions under which they had been made.
Between October 24 and November 2,
it occurred in the region of Mons,
Quievrain, Saint Guislain, Jemappes,
In bunches of 800 to 1,200 men a day.
The next, and the following days, it
occurred in the Arrondissment of Ni
velles. Here is a speciment of the an
nouncement concerning the proceed
ings:
“ ‘By order of the kreischef every
male person over 17 years old shall
present himself, Place Saint Paul, in
Nivelle8, on November 8, 1916, at 8
o’clock (Belgian time), 9 o’clock (cen
tral time), bringing with him is iden
tification card and eventually his card
from the Meldeamt.
“ ‘Only small hand baggage is per
mitted.
“ ‘Those not presenting themselves
will be forcibly deported into Germany
and will besides be liable to a heavy
fine and to long imprisonment.
“ ‘Ecclesiastics, physicians, lawyers
and teachers are exempt from this
order.
‘“The mayors will be held respon
sible for the proper execution of this
order, which must be brought imme
diately to the knowledge of the in
habitants.’
"Between the announcement and the
deportation there is an interval of
only 24 hours.
"Under pretext of public works to
be performed on Belgian soil, the oc
cupying power had attempted to ob
tain from the communities the lists
of working men out of work. Most
of the communities proudly refused.
“Three decrees from the general
government prepared the way for the
execution which is in force today.
“Under date of August 15, 1915, a
first decree Imposes, under penalty of
imprisonment and fine, forced work
on the idle, but adds that the work is
to be executed in Belgium, and that
non-compliance will be adjudged by
Belgian tribunals.
“A second decree, dated May 2, 1916,
*cnci vro iuu jiftUL ui me uerman au
thorities to supply work to the Idle,
and threatens a fine of three years'
imprisonment and 20,000 marks im
posable on anybody executing or or
dering to be executed work not ap
proved by the general government.
"Under the same decree, the right
to judge infractions which had re
mained with the Belgian tribunals,
passes from Belgian tribunals to Ger
man tribunals.
"A third decree, dated May 13, 1916,
‘authorizes the governors, the mili
tary commanders and the chiefs of
Arrondissements to order that the un
employed be conducted by force to the
places where they must work.' This
was already forcible working, although
in Belgium.
"Now it is no longer a question of
forcible working in Belgium, but in
r Germany, and for the benefit of the
Germans.
"To give an appearance of plausibil
ity to these violent measures, the oc
cupying power insisted in the German
press, both in Germany and Belgium,
on these two pretexts: the unem
ployed constitute a danger to the pub
lic order and a burden on offflcial
benevolence.
“To this we replied in a letter ad
dressed to the governor general and
to the head of the political depart
ment, on October 16, as follows:
" ‘You are well aware that public
order is in nowise threatened and
that all influences, moral and civil,
would support you spontaneously were
it in danger.
" ‘That unemployed are not a bur
den on official benevolence, it is not
from your hands that they receive as
sistance.'
"In his reply the governor general
no longer urges these two first con
siderations, but he alleges that ‘doles
to the unemployed from whatever
source they may come at present, must
finally be a charge upon our finances,
and that it is the duty of a good ad
ministrator to lighten such charges;'
be adds that ‘prolonged unemployment
would cause our workmen to lose their
technical proficiency and that in the
time of peace to come they would be
useless to industry.'
“True, there were other ways In
which our finances might have been
protected. We might have been spared
those war levies which have now
reached the sum of one billion francs,
and are still mounting up at the rate
of forty millions a month; we might
have been spared those requisitions
In kind, which amount to several thou
sands of millions, and are exhaust
ing us.
“There are other ways of providing
for the maintenance of professional
skill among our work people, such as
leaving to Belgian industry Its machin
ery and accessories, its raw materials
and its manufactured goods, which
have passed from Belgium to Ger
many. And it is neither to the quar
ries nor to the lim kilns to which the
Germans themselves declare they will
send our unemployed, that our spec
lalists will go to complete their pro
fessional education.
“The naked truth is that every de
ported workman Is another soldier for
the German army. He will take the
place of a German workman, who will
be made into a soldier. Thus the sit
uation which we denounce to the civ
llibed world may be reduced to these
terms: Four hundred thousand work
men have been thrown out of work by
no fault of their own, and largely on
account of the regime of the occupa
tion. Sons, husbands and fathers of
families, they bear their unhappy lot
without murmuring, respectful of pub
lic order; national solidarity provides
their most pressing wants; by dint
of unselfish thrift and self-denial they
escape extreme destitution, and they
await with dignity and in a mutual
affection which our national sorrows
have intensified, the end of our com
mon ordeal.
“Groups of soldiers introduced them
selves forcibly in the homes of these
people, tearing the young people out
of the arms of their parents, the hus
band from his wife, the father from
his children, at tho point of the bayo
net they block the entrances to the
homes preventing wives and mothers
from rushing out to say a last farewell
to them; they align the captives in
groups of forty or fifty and push them
forcibly into freight cars; the locomo
tive is under pressure, and as son as
a train load is ready an officer gives
the signal and they depart. Thus an
other thousand Belgians reduced to
slavery, without previous trial, con
demned to the penalty which comes
next in cruelty to the death penalty;
deportation. They don't know how
long their exile is going to last, neither
do they know where they are going.
All they know is that their work will
benefit the enemy. Several of them
have been brought to sign —by coer
cion or by threats — an engagement
which they dare to call ‘voluntry.’
“While they certainly take the un
employed, they also take a large num
ber — in the proportion of one-quar
ter for the arrondlssement of Mons—
riT m An U'hn worn novur nil! r.f tr.ii-l
and belonging to diversified profes
slons — butchers, bakers, tailors,
brewery workers, electricians, farm
ers; they even take the youngest men,
college and university students, or
young men from other high schools.
"This in spite of the fact that two
high authorities of the German em
pire had formally guaranteed the lib
erty of our compatriots.
“The day after the capitulation of
Antwerp, the frightened populace
asked itself what would become of the
Belgians of military age, or those
which would arrive at that age before
the end of the siege. Baron von Heu
ne, military governor of Antwerp, au
thorized me to reassure in his name
the frightened parents. However, as
rumors were running that in Antwerp,
Liege, Namur and Charleroi, young
men had been seized and forcibly car
ried off to Germany, I asked Governor
von Huene to confirm to me in writ
ing the verbal guarantees which he
hud given me. He replied that the
rumors pertaining to deportations
were without foundation, and he gave
me without hesitancy the written de
claration which was read on Sunday.
October 18, 1914, in ail the parochcial
churches of the Arrondissement of
Antwerp: 'Young men need not fear
of being carried off to Germany,
either for enrollment in the army or
for forcible employment.’
"Immediately after the arrival of
Baron von der Goltz in the capacity
of governor general at Brussels, I
went to ask him to ratify the guaran
tees given by Governor von Huene to
the province of Antwerp, extending
them to the whole country without any
time limit. The governor general re
tained my petition in order to con
sider it at his leisure. The following
day he was good enough to come in
person to Malines to express his ap
proval, and in the presence of two
aides-de-camp and of my private sec
retary, to confirm the promise that the
liberty of the Belgian citizeus would
be respected.
"In my letter or October 16 last to
Baron von Biasing, after reminding
him of the undertaking given by bis
r
predecessor, I concluded: ‘Your ex
cellency will understand how painful
the burden of responsibility I should
have Incurred towards families would
be if the confidence they placed in
you through me and at my earnest en
treaty should be so lamentably dis
appointed.'
“The governor general replied: ‘The
employment of the Bolglan unem
ployed in Germany, which has only
been Initiated after two years of war,
differs essentially from the" captivity
of men fit for military service. More
over, the measure is not related to
the conduct of the war properly speak
ing, but it is determined by social and
economic causes.’
“As if the word of an honest man
was terminable at the end of a year
or two! As if the declaration con
firmed in 1914 did not explicitly ex
clude both military operations and
forced labor! As if, in fine, every
Belgian workman who takes the place
of a German workman, did not enable
the latter to fill a gap in the German
army!
“We, the shepherds of these sheep
who are torn from us by brutal force,
full of anguish, at the thought of the
moral and religious isolation, in which
they are about to languish, impotent
witnesses of the grief and terror in
the numerous homes shattered or
threatened, appeal to all souls, believ
ers of unbelievers in allied countries.
In neutral countries, and even in ene
my countries, who have a respect for
human dignity.
“When Cardinal Lavigerie remarked
on his enslavery campaign Pope Leo
XIII, as he blessed his mission, re
marked: "Opinion is more than ever
the queen of the world. It is on this
you muBt work. You will only con
quer by means of opinion.’
“ \f a tr HImIma Tv__i j . _ ■ •
- — - . W..uv,uv.c UClgll IU
inspire all who have any authority,
all who are masters of speech and pen,
to rally around our humble Belgian
flag for the abolition of European
slavery.
May human conscience triumph
over all sophisms and remain stead
fastly faithful to the great precept of
St. Ambrose: Honor above every
thing! Nihil praeferendum hon
estati!
In the name of the Belgian bishops.
H J. CARDINAL MERCIER,
Archbishop of Malines.”
-♦
Ultraviolet rays are being used to
sterilize vaccine virus by German
scientists.
--
The Chilean government will send
an agent to study the paper making
industry and processes in the United
States and Canada.
■-*
Apparatus featured by electrically
heated rollers has been invented for
creasing men’s trousers without re
moval from wearers.
-•
Big assortment of ladies’ embroi
dered handkerchiefs just received at
Clayson's. Drop in and see them.
--:o:
Elaborate preparations are being
made by the Cordova Volunteer Fire
Department for its annual masquerade
ball, to be held at Eagle Hall on Sat
urday night, December 30. An excel
lent orchestra has been engaged, the
hall will be appropriately decorated,
the floor put in excellent shape and
everybody supplied with an abundance
of serpentine. The admission has
been fixed at one dollar a couple.
This is to be strictly a masquerade
affair, and those who are not masked
will have to sit on the side lines, as
the floor will be reserved for the par
ticipants in the contests for the prizes,
who must be in costume and masked.
Speaking of prizes, there will be many
of them, and all have an intrinsic
value. The local business men have
responded liberally, and the commit
tee announces that the following con
tributions have been made, and also
to whom the prizes will be awarded:
LIST OF PRIZES FOR LADIES.
Best Dressed Lady — First prize,
silk umbrella, donated by Mrs. Kate
Best Dressed Lady — Second prize,
one electric flat iron, donated by the
Cordova Power Co.
Most Original Costume—Silk waist,
donated by Will Clay son.
Best Sustained Character — First
prize, manicure set, donated by Nor
thern Drug Co.
Best Sustained Character — Second
prize, one pillow cover, donated by E.
A. Hegg
Most Comical Character — First
prise, one box perfume, donated by
Cordova Drug Co.
Most Comical Character — s«cond
prize, one cake, donated by Boss
Bakery.
Best Group — First prize, dinner
party for four, Slater's Restaurant.
Best Group — Second prize, |5.00
cash, donated by Alaska S. S. Co.
Best Topsy — One sack flour, do
nated by Co-operative Trading Co.
Best Dressed Fire Lady — Cut glass
salt and pepper, donated by Ben Os
born.
Special Prize (option of Judges) —
Electric coffee percolator, donated by
Northwestern tlardware Co.
MEN'S PRIZES.
Best Dressed Man — First prize, bas
ket of wine, donated by Alaskan Hotel.
Best Dressed Man — Second prize,
One box of Monopoles, donated by the
Northern saloon.
Most Original Costume — First
prize, bath robe, donated by Blum,
O’Neill Co.
Best Sustained Character — First
prize, half ton of coal, donated by the
Alaska Transfer Co.
Best Sustained Character — Second
prize, one box cigars, donated by
Thompson & Murphy.
Most Comical Character — First
prize, one hat, donated by Finkelstein
& Sapiro.
Most Comical Character — Second
prize. One flash light, donated by John
Rawson.
Best Group — First prize, dinner for
four, Fred's Place.
Best Group — Second prize, two
bottles of Cliquot, donated by O'Brien
& Simpson.
Best Tramp — One meerschaum
pipe, donated by Horseshoe Liquor
Co.
Best Fireman — One humidor, do
nated by Cordova House.
Best Hebrew Character — One side
bacon, donated by Northern Meat
Market.
Special Prize (option of judges) —
One basket wine, donated by Thomas
Davis.
-«
TOWN OF CORDOVA.
Municipal Taxes.
Town taxes are now due and pay
iL. A . _ . ..
' vv' iv> ” ii ucaouiti, II. I.
O’Neill, at his office.
Said taxes will be delinquent on
the second Monday in February, 1917,
at the hour of 6 o’clock p. m. Upon
all unpaid taxes after that time a pen
alty of five per cent will ve collected.
H. I. O'NEILL,
Town Treasurer.
-«
Ladies’ silk hosiery, in all the deli
cate shades, are the latest offering at
Clay son's.
Sheldon
AUTO STAGE LINE
(living an all year auto ser
vice between C'hitina and Fair
banks, Alaska.
Enquire about them at (’hitina
Hotel, Ohitina, Alaska, before
making reservations elsewhere.
' I
M. C, Thompson H. C. Murphy
The MECCA
Thompson A Murphy, Props
Dealers in
WINES, LIQUORS AND
CIGARS
Phons 107.
Teach Your Boy the Value of a I
Bank Account.
STAHT your boy oft right in the battle of life. Deposit
something to his credit in the bank. If he is working for
a salary, ask him to place something aside weekly. If he
is in business, show him the importance of keeping a
goodly balance in bank. There s no telling when an opportunity
may present itself whereby a little ready cash may be the fouu
^ dation of a fortune. We do all kinds of bunking.
THE FIRST BANK OF CORDOVA
3-a
SUBSCRIBE FOR THE
DAILY TIMES.
DELIVERED BY CARRIER,
*1.00 PER MONTH.
3-a
MEET ME AT
The HORSESHOE
POPULAR RECREATION PLACE
Where W'e Can Always Find Our
Friends.
Finest Billiard and Pool Tables In
Alaska.
BEST GRADES OF STANDARD
BRANDS OF CIGARS.
^———IIII ■ ■■ I ————•%
Manhattan Hote 1
R. W. FERRELL, Prop.
Electric Lighted. Hot Water. Turkish and Tub
Baths.
OPPOSITE CORDOVA GRILL, CORDOVA, ALASKA.
PHONE 99
' """ 111 ..— "
| Alaskan Hotel I
THE HOUSE OF COMFORT
THE BEST EQUIPPED HOTEL
I N A L A S K A
Hot and Cold Water, Electric Bells, Electric
Lights, Steam Heat, Suites With Bath.
Bar in Connection £
§ s
ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Proprlteor* ART CLONINGER
| CORDOVA, .... ALASKA |
! / / the woman who receives
her guests under the soft light of elec
tricity looks her best and knowing
this feels at her best. No other light
is so adaptable to artistic arrangement
or more convenient adjustment. If
your home is not equipped for and
k with electricity iet us show you wuy
■ you should have it so at once.
Cordova Power
Company
LIGHTS WATER PHONES POWER
Office: FIRST STREET.
I $
Copper River &
Northwestern Ry.
EFFECTIVE MAY 1, 1916.
Three Trains Weekly Between Cordova and Chitina. j|
Four Trains Weekly Between Chitina and Kennecott. |j
% Leave Cordova, Second Street Depot, on Mondays, Thurs
days and Saturdays.
£E Leave Chitina for Cordova Sundays, Tuesdays and |
j§ Fridays.
| Leave Chitina for Kennecott Sundays, Tuesdays, Thurs- !;!;
days and Fridays.
y Leave Kennecott for Chitina Mondays, Wednesdays, j|
ii Thursdays and Saturdays.
The above schedule subject to change without notice. jS
Dining Gar In Connection With all Regular Peasenger Trains Be- &
tween Cordova and Chitina.
Freight received from 9 A. M. to 5 P. M.
Tickets on sale at Depot or up-town office, Alaska i£
I Steamship Company building
Caleb Corser W. E. Brown
Superintendent Cordova Agent §:
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X:.* •WWAV.VAVW.V,VAV/.V.V/.%V.VAV.V/AV.V.V,V.WA%VA%V.W.%V.W.V • • *|.l I
| Foos Gas Engines 1
& 4 to 500 Horse Power
§ %
General Electric Motors §;
Roebling Tramways
Pelton Water Wheels
Chicago Oil Engines and Compressors
Regal Boat Engines
i %
| Harmon Machinery Co Inc |
Oxy-Acetylene Welding.
CORDOVA, ALASKA
When Ordering Beer
— —INSIST ON.=
Rainier Pale
1 - 1
I. ... ■ .. ....
Sixty Steam Heated Rooms Eletric Lighted
Hot and Cold Water in Every Room
With or Without Bath.
Cordova House
H. C. ROSS, Proprietor.
/ - V%
. Headquarters for Railroad and Mining Men \
•p Satisfaction Guranteed
f Rates Reasonable \