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Show Port of Yera Criz Is Ordered Closed Rotterdam, Aug. SI Survivors ot tho sacking of Louvnln who camo to the office of tho International News Servlco he's today all tell the same story ot the calculated terrorism ot tho German troops directed against tho cntlro population, evidently as a part of their molltary tactics. Tho threats they' made were1" not often carried out, howovo'r, 6xcopt In cxtromo cases. Wnen'tho Inhabitants wero known to have firearms In Qiolr houses tho German soldiers hivurla-bly hivurla-bly applied "their iibses" to the muz" ,zlo ot tho gun br roVoivcr toltfetpet bj' tho' smell wuctit'or'tho 'firearm ha'd been recently' hsed. If'lfio teat showed show-ed that such was 'the case, It was' assumed thai tho weapon had becfr used against tho Invaders and the ouncr was Immediately taken out to tho public square, where bunches of thorn wero publicly shot. The punishment was raado as public pub-lic as possible as a warping. Thcso Bummary executions caused tho wildest wild-est panic among tho population whe bellovcd that a general massacre was i progressing. Men not found with weapons were put through a system ot mentnl torment, tor-ment, which none can ever forget. They wero separated from their fam lllcs and compelled to walk through tho streets with their hands In the nlr. They wero locked up all night In railroad stations or barracks without with-out food or water and told that thoy would be shot in tho morning. Priests were allowed to go to them to take their confessions during tho nigh) and In tho morning, still without l'cod, they wero again herded through tho streets with their hands up at tho point ot a baj'onot. ' Ono survivor told tho correspondent of the International News Service that when they wero led to tho public square thoy wero told they wero about to bo executed but could take their choice as. to whether thoy wore to bo blindfolded and shot facing tho firing squad or If thoy preferred thoy might Bit over a trench with thelij back to tho firing squad. After hundreds of Inhabitants had suffered all tho agony ot death thoy wero told that tho German command er had spared their lives and that tho Germans never Inflicted death on Innocent noncombatnnts, but for every ev-ery German shot In tho streots thereafter there-after at lenst ten citizens would be executed. They bad bettor see to It, thero fore, that tholr fellow citizens obeyed the German orders. Women w ere In many cases 'herded Into cars and packed oft to some other place, apparently for no otnor purposo than to break up their families fam-ilies and to spread universal terror. Individual soldiers behaved wltb grois brutality to tho women In many cases. |
