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Show .Destruction of Statues Symbolizes Hatred of Alsace-Lorraine for Tyrannical Rule of Huns Reunion of Country With France Means Vast Development De-velopment of Empire. . y !C tr.meit plena mundl." "When, during the past ivcr-U, . troops of the, French nation, vith representatives of allied arrnteS, led a triumphal entry Into :Ifctz, the bristling bastion of Lorraine, Lor-raine, or.o ct the few remaining landmarks land-marks trilling of recent German occupation occupa-tion wis a massive carved figure of former Kaiser "U'ilhelm H. This figure, in original ra.t, was a part nf a ktouj. ot" historic German rulers, William Wil-liam I and I-Yederifk III beirp the others. )'or many years tin's group formed a fan-tastin fan-tastin and fcTotesque picture on the western west-ern facade of the Metz esuhedial. William Wil-liam I was represented astride a pranc-intr pranc-intr Meed, Frederick lit standing erect and pointing a menacing finger In the direction direc-tion of Paris. Tho figure of William - U ia fdiown in characteristic studied warlike P?c, fully caparisoned in military splen-jTr, splen-jTr, -with riffht hand stiff at his side and ""cident-d warfed loft resting upon the hilt of his sword, his face registering-grim registering-grim determination. w In flic riotous events that followed Im mediately in the wake of the signing of an armistice between the allies and Germany Ger-many tho populace of Metz unhor.sed the ftatu.j rr ihe first "William, and, with a rope cast j hnut the peek of Frederick, pulled the latter from his pedestal. Both figures were roughly handled afterwards, "V and some say they have been almost ut-" ut-" Icily demolished. Destroyers Stayed. Tho destroying hand of the angry body v.aa stayed when the statue of Holland's famed refugee was reached. Proud and disdainful, heavily shocked brows droop-' droop-' ing ominously over deep-set gray eyes ! and niustachios Impiously pointing heav enward, the statue still stands as though daring the on-coming victors. Olher means have been employed by Lorraine's people in display of disdain and dislike for the German warjord-refu-geo. They have manacled the hands of the statue with a heavy iron chain and have attached thereto the above inscription inscrip-tion written in letters that can be read af'ir off. The word-symbol, breathing a contempt n nd ha t red harbored though repressed under Prussian yoke for well-nigh a half century, addresses itself in biting satire lo the fate which has reached out a long arm and clutched by tho throat the de-spoiler de-spoiler of a world he aimed to subjugate subju-gate and rule. "So the glory of the world passes away." When Marshal Petatn, French general and hero of tho world war, in command of the triumphal entry of Metz. rode into the foi tress at the head of French troops and at the side of military representatives rep-resentatives of allied armies, no stop was made at the cathedral, and only cursory heed was paid the desecrated German figures. The march of the victorious forces continued until the statue of ifar- ALSACE-LORRAINE and the country adjacent to it affected by the armistice. The people of Alsace-Lorraine form the very backbone of industrial France. Iron, steel, potash, chemicals, cottons and woolens are some of the industries. Although Germany discouraged industrial growth, such cities as Muelbausen, Kolmar, Metz, S trass-burg trass-burg have become great centers. The map is a copy of a German print and all the names are spelled in German save Alsace and Lorraine, which are changed by The Tribune artist. I |