The Germans have decreed German time, which is one hour different from that of London, but the Belgian people refuse to set over their watches and clocks.  The Belgian railroad system is different from that of the Germans,—­left-handed tracks and a different system of signalling.  The Belgians refuse to do the bidding of the Germans and operate the railroads.  The Germans must move the trains themselves.

The Germans do not hate the Belgians.  They simply pity them, that they were so shortsighted as not to accept German gold for right of passage through the country.  The German hate is reserved entirely for the English above all people on the surface of the globe.  In Belgium 200 marks reward is offered for the capture of any Englishman found in that domain.

The latest response to Bernhardi’s book, “England the Vassal of Germany,” is Kipling’s poem in the King Albert book issued December 16 to augment the Belgian Relief Fund.  I clip two verses:—­

  They traded with the careless earth,
    And good return it gave;
  They plotted by their neighbor’s hearth
    The means to make him slave.

  When all was readied to their hand
    They loosed their hidden sword
  And utterly laid waste a land
    Their oath was pledged to guard.

After the German Kaiser sounded the battle sentiment of Europe by sending the warship “Panther” to Agadir three years ago in violation of the treaty of Algeciras, it was intimated by the French and the English that Belgian neutrality might be in danger; also that the Lord and the Allies helped those who help themselves.

Therefore, a bill was introduced in Belgium’s Capital providing for the raising of an army of 600,000 men where before were 46,000 and a war footing of 147,000.  The leader of the Catholic party opposed the programme, declaring that Belgian neutrality was guaranteed by Germany, France, and England.  A compromise was effected by which an army of less than half this number was authorized.

When on Sunday evening, August 2d, at 7 P.M., the German ultimatum was handed to Belgium, she was given twelve hours or until morning to declare whether or not the country would be surrendered to the free passage of the German war battalions.  Belgium had then an army of 200,000 men; 60,000 volunteers sprang to arms, and that 260,000 was the maximum Belgian army that attempted to withstand the millions of Germany’s armed forces.  Even these were not effectively placed.  The 30,000 men at the frontier were not sufficient to permit of any effective sorties to protect the approaches to the Liege fortifications.  It was a forlorn hope from a military standpoint, but for three weeks the Belgians with shrinking forces held in check the war power of Germany.  Every week help was expected from the Allies, but no help came, for no country in Europe outside of Germany and Austria had any expectation of war.