A young Frenchman reports under oath that he was arrested, along with several other Frenchmen, at the railway station in Loerrach 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 Liege.

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 Liege—­a dispatch was still sent to the Dutch press, saying:  “The Liege forts are still in Belgian hands.”

And on Aug. 8, thirty-six hours after the fall of Liege—­a dispatch was sent from Paris to the newspapers of Rome, saying: 

The Germans lost 20,000 men at Liege and asked for an armistice of twenty-four hours.  Liege has not yet fallen.  The English landed 100,000 men at Antwerp, who were received with jubilation by the population.  President Poincare, upon the proposal of Doumergue, the Minister of War, conferred on the City of Liege the cross of the Legion of Honor.

Another newspaper reported as follows:  “The King of England sent a congratulatory dispatch to the King of Belgium upon his victory at Liege; seven German regiments were slain.”

At Paris itself a note of the French War Ministry—­published on the evening of Aug. 7, Liege having fallen in the early morning of that day—­mentions the resistance of Liege and says that the forts are still holding out; that the Germans who had entered the city on Thursday by passing between the forts had evacuated it on Friday; and that the Belgian division that went to the assistance of the city had therefore not even made an attack.  The official note concludes from all this that the resistance of the Belgians was seriously disturbing the plan of the Germans, who were building hopes upon a rapid success.

And four full days after the capture of Liege the French Minister at Berne reported officially:  “Liege has not yet been taken; the German troops were repulsed.”

At Copenhagen the following dispatches were published:  “The English and French troops had effected a junction with the Belgian Army and had entered Liege and made many German prisoners, among them a nephew of the German Kaiser.”