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1-1
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. No distribution allowed without express authorization.
Solutions
Financial Accounting An Introduction to
Concepts, Methods and Uses Weil 14th
Edition Solutions Manual
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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS ACTIVITIES AND
OVERVIEW OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND
THE REPORTING PROCESS
Questions, Exercises, and Problems: Answers and Solutions
1.1 The first question at the end of each chapter asks the student to review
the important terms and concepts discussed in the chapter. Students may
wish to consult the glossary at the end of the book in addition to the
definitions and discussions in the chapter.
1.2 Setting Goals and Strategies: Although a charitable organization must
obtain sufficient resources to fund its operations, it would not pursue
profits or wealth increases as goals. A charitable organization would direct
its efforts toward providing services to its constituencies.
Financing: A charitable organization may obtain some or all of its
financing from donations (contributions). A charitable organization does
not issue common stock or other forms of shareholders’ equity, nor does it
have retained earnings.
Investing: Similar to business firms, charitable organizations acquire
productive capacity (for example, buildings) to carry out their activities.
Operations: A charitable organization might prepare financial statements
that compare inflows (for example, contributions) with outflows. While
these statements might appear similar to income statements, there would

1-1
Solutions
be no calculation of net income because the purpose of the charitable
organization is to provide services to its constituents, not seek profits.
1.3 The balance sheet shows assets, liabilities and, shareholders’ equity as of
a specific date (the balance sheet date), similar to a snapshot. The income
statement and statement of cash flows report changes in assets and
liabilities over a period of time, similar to a motion picture.

1.4 The auditor evaluates the accounting system, including its ability to
record transactions properly and its operational effectiveness, and also
determines whether the financial reports prepared by the firm’s managers
conform to the requirements of the applicable authoritative guidance. The
auditor provides an audit opinion that reflects his professional
conclusions. For most publicly traded firms in the U.S. the auditor also
provides a separate opinion on the effectiveness of the firm’s internal
controls over financial reporting.
1.5 Management, under the oversight of the firm’s governing board, prepares
the financial statements.
1.6 Employees and suppliers of goods such as raw materials or merchandise
often provide the services or goods before they are paid. The firm has the
benefit of consuming or using the goods or services before it transfers cash
to the employees and suppliers. The length of the financing period is the
number of days between when the employees and suppliers provide goods
and services and when the firm pays cash to those employees and suppliers.
1.7 Accounts receivable represent amounts owed by customers for goods and
services they have already received. The customer, therefore, has the
benefit of the goods and services before it pays cash. The length of the
financing period is the number of days between when the customer
receives the goods and services and when the customer pays cash to the
seller of those goods and services.
1.8 Both kinds of capacity represent investments in long-lived assets, with
useful lives (or service lives) that can extend for several or many years.
They differ in that land, buildings, and equipment represent physical
capital, while patents and licenses represent intangible or intellectual
capital.
1.9 A calendar year ends on December 31. A fiscal year ends on a date that is
determined by the firm, perhaps based on its business model (for example,
many retailers choose a fiscal year end that is close to the end of January).
A firm can choose the calendar year as its fiscal year, and many do. Both
calendar years and fiscal years have 12 months.
1.10 Most firms report the amounts in their financial statements using the
currency of the country where they are incorporated and conduct most of
their business activities. Some firms use a different currency.
Solutions 1-2

1.11 A current item is expected to result in a cash receipt (assets such as accounts
receivable) or a cash payment (liabilities such as accounts payable) within
approximately one year or less. A noncurrent item is expected to generate
cash over periods longer than a year (assets, such as factory buildings that
will be used to produce goods for sale over many years) or use cash over
periods longer than a year (liabilities such as long term debt). Users of
financial statements would likely be interested in this distinction because
the distinction provides information about short- term cash flows
separately from long-term cash flows.
1.12 Historical amounts reflect the amounts at which items entered the firm’s
balance sheet, for example, the acquisition cost of inventory. Historical
amounts reflect economic conditions at the time the firm obtained assets
or obtained financing. Current amounts reflect values at the balance sheet
date, so they reflect current economic conditions. For example, the
historical amount for inventory is the amount the firm paid to obtain the
inventory, and the current amount for inventory is the amount for which
the firm could replace the inventory today.
1.13 An income statement connects two successive balance sheets through its
effect on retained earnings. Net income that is not paid to shareholders as
dividends increases retained earnings. A statement of cash flows connects
two successive balance sheets because it explains the change in cash (a
balance sheet account) from operating, financing, and investing activities.
The statement of cash flows also shows the relation between net income
and cash flows from operations, and changes in assets and liabilities that
involve cash flows.
1.14 The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is the government
agency that enforces the securities laws of the United States, including
those that apply to financial reporting. The Financial Accounting
Standards Board (FASB) is the private-sector financial accounting
standard setter in the United States. The International Accounting
Standards Board (IASB) is a private-sector financial accounting standard
setter that promulgates accounting standards. More than 100 countries
require or permit the use of IFRS, or standards based on or adapted from
IFRS, for some or all firms in those countries. Neither the FASB nor the
IASB has any enforcement powers.
1.15 U.S. GAAP must be used by U.S. SEC registrants and may be used by other
firms as well. International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) may be
used by non-U.S. firms that list and trade their securities in the United
States, and these firms may also use U.S. GAAP.
1-3 Solutions

1.16 The purpose of the IASB’s and FASB’s conceptual frameworks is to guide
standard-setting decisions of the two Boards. For example, the conceptual
framework specifies the purpose of financial reporting and the qualitative
characteristics of financial information that would serve that purpose.
FASB and IASB board members use this conceptual structure as they
consider solutions to accounting issues.
1.17 The accrual basis of accounting is based on assets and liabilities, not on
cash receipts and disbursements. It provides a better basis for measuring
performance because it is based on revenues (inflows of assets from
customers), not cash receipts from customers, and on expenses (outflows of
assets from generating revenues), not cash payments. It matches revenues
with the costs associated with earning those revenues and is not sensitive
to the timing of expenditures.
1.18 (Palmer Coldgate, a consumer products firm; understanding the balance
sheet.) (amounts in millions of US$)
a. Property, plant, and equipment, net = $3,015.2 million.
b. Noncurrent assets = $6,493.5 (= $3,015.2 + $2,272.0 + $844.8 +
$361.5).
c. Long-term debt = $3,221.9 million.
d. Current assets – Current liabilities = $3,618.5 – $3,162.7 = $455.8
million.
e. Yes, the firm has been profitable since its inception. We know this
because its Retained Earnings, $10,627.5 million, is positive. The
firm may have had a loss in one or more prior years; cumulatively, it
has had positive income.
f. Total Liabilities/Total Assets = $7,825.8/$10,112.0 = 77.4%.
g. Total Assets = Total Liabilities + Shareholders’ Equity
$10,112.0 = $7,825.8 + $2,286.2
Solutions 1-4

1.19 (Capcion, a paper and packaging firm; understanding the income
statement.) (amounts in thousands of euros)
a. Cost of goods sold = €1,331,292.1 thousand.
b. Selling and distribution expenses = €172,033.4 thousand.
c. Gross margin percentage = 23.4% (= €405,667.1/€1,736,959.2).
d. Operating profit = €169,418.2 thousand.
Profit before tax = €170,863.9 thousand.
Difference equals €1,445.7 thousand (= €169,418.2 – €170,863.9). The
items that constitute this difference are nonoperating sources of income
(expense).
e. Effective tax rate = €54,289.9/€170,863.9 = 31.8%.
f. Profit = €116,574.0 thousand.
1.20 (Seller Redbud, a retailer; understanding the statement of cash flows.)
(amounts in thousands of US$)
a. Cash inflow from operating activities = $614,536 thousand.
b. Cash inflow from investing activities = $101,698 thousand.
c. Cash used in financing activities = $705,531 thousand outflow.
d. Net cash flow equals $10,703 thousand (= $614,536 + $101,698 –
$705,531).
e. Change in cash balance equals $10,703 thousand (= $224,084 –
$213,381). The increase was attributable to the net cash inflow
during the year of the same amount, $10,703 thousand.
1-5 Solutions

1.21 (EuroTel, a communications firm; balance sheet relations.) (amounts in
millions of euros [€])
Share-
Current Noncurrent Current Noncurrent holders’
Assets + Assets = Liabilities + Liabilities + Equity
€20,000 + €29,402 = €15,849 + ? + €17,154
Noncurrent liabilities total €16,399 million.
1.22 (GoldRan, a mining company; balance sheet relations.) (amounts in
millions of South African rand [R])
Share-
Current Noncurrent Current Noncurrent holders’
Assets + Assets = Liabilities + Liabilities + Equity
R6,085.1 + R49,329.8 = R4,360.1 + R13,948.4 + ?
Shareholders’ equity = R37,106.4 million.
1.23 (GrandRider, an automotive manufacturer; income statement relations.)
(amounts in millions of pounds sterling)
Sales ............................................................................................. £ 7,435
Less Cost of Sales........................................................................ (6,003)
Gross Margin................................................................................ 1,432
Less Other Operating Expenses .................................................. (918)
Loss on Sale of Business ............................................................. (2)
Net Financing Income .................................................................. 221
Profit Before Taxes ...................................................................... 733
Less Tax Expense......................................................................... (133)
Net Income ................................................................................... £ 600
Solutions 1-6

(AutoCo, an automotive manufacturer; income statement
(amounts in millions of US$)
relations.)
Sales ............................................................................................ $ 207,349
Cost of Sales ............................................................................... (164,682)
Other Operating Expenses.......................................................... (50,335)
Net Financing Income ................................................................. 5,690
Net Loss ...................................................................................... $ (1,978)
1.24
1.25 (Veldt, a South African firm; retained earnings relations) (amounts in
millions of South African rand [R])
Retained Retained
Earnings Earnings
at End of Income Dividends = at End of
2012 + for 2013 – Declared 2013
R4,640.9 + R2,362.5 – ? = R5,872.4
Dividends declared = R1,131.0 million.
1.26 (Delvico, an Indian firm; retained earnings relations.) (amounts in
millions of Indian rupees [Rs])
Retained Retained
Earnings Earnings
Start of Net Dividends = End of
Year + Income – Declared Year
Rs26,575 + ? – Rs3,544 = Rs70,463
Net income for the year was Rs47,432 million.
1.27 (BargainPurchase, a retailer; cash flow relations.) (amounts in millions of
US$)
Cash at Cash Flow Cash Flow Cash Flow Cash at
Start from from from End of
of Year + Operations + Investing + Financing = Year
$813 + $4,125 + $(6,195) + $3,707 = ?
Cash at end of year = $2,450 million.
1-7 Solutions

1.28 (Buenco, an Argentinean firm; cash flow relations.) (amounts in millions
of Argentinean pesos [Ps])
Cash at Cash Flow Cash Flow Cash Flow Cash at
End of from from from End of
Year + Operations + Investing + Financing = Year
Ps32,673 + Ps427,182 + ? + Ps(21,806) = Ps101,198
The net cash outflow for investing for the year = Ps(336,851) million.
1.29 (Kenton Limited; preparation of simple balance sheet; current and
noncurrent classifications.) (amounts in pounds sterling)
January 31,
2013
Assets
Cash.............................................................................................. £ 2,000
Inventory ...................................................................................... 12,000
Prepaid Rent ................................................................................ 24,000
Total Current Assets ............................................................... 38,000
Prepaid Rent ................................................................................ 24,000
Total Noncurrent Assets ......................................................... 24,000
Total Assets ............................................................................. £ 62,000
Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity
Accounts Payable ......................................................................... £ 12,000
Total Current Liabilities......................................................... 12,000
Total Noncurrent Liabilities ................................................... —
Total Liabilities....................................................................... 12,000
Common Stock ............................................................................. 50,000
Total Shareholders’ Equity...................................................... 50,000
Total Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity ............................ £ 62,000
Solutions 1-8

1.30 (Heckle Group; preparation of simple balance sheet; current and
noncurrent classifications.) (amounts in euros)
June 30,
2013
Assets
Cash........................................................................................... € 720,000
Total Current Assets ............................................................ 720,000
Property, Plant, and Equipment............................................... 600,000
Patent........................................................................................ 120,000
Total Noncurrent Assets ...................................................... 720,000
Total Assets .......................................................................... €1,440,000
Accounts Payable ...................................................................... € 120,000
Total Current Liabilities...................................................... 120,000
Note Payable............................................................................. 400,000
Total Noncurrent Liabilities ................................................ 400,000
Total Liabilities.................................................................... 520,000
Common Stock .......................................................................... 920,000
Total Shareholders’ Equity................................................... 920,000
Total Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity ......................... €1,440,000
1.31 (Hewston, a manufacturing firm; accrual versus cash basis of accounting.)
(amounts in US$)
a. Net Income = Sales Revenue – Expenses
= $66,387 million– $62,313 million = $4,074 million.
Net Cash Flow = Cash Inflows – Cash Outflows
= $65,995 million– $56,411 million = $9,584 million.
b. Cash collections may be less than revenues for at least two reasons.
First, customers may have purchased on credit and have not yet paid.
Second, the firm may have collected cash from customers who
purchased on credit last year, but cash collections remain less than
cash collected on new credit sales.
c. Cash payments may be less than expenses for at least two reasons.
First, the firm may have received goods and services from suppliers,
but not yet paid for those items (i.e., the amounts are to be paid in the
1-9 Solutions

1.31 c. continued.
next year). Second, the firm may have accrued expenses this year that
will be paid in cash in future periods; an example would be the accrual
of interest expense on a bond that will be paid the next year.
1.32 (DairyLamb, a New Zealand firm; accrual versus cash basis of accounting.)
(amounts in millions of New Zealand dollars)
Calculation of net income:
Revenue ....................................................................................... $ 13,882
Cost of Goods Sold ...................................................................... (11,671)
Interest and Other Expenses ...................................................... (2,113)
Income Before Taxes ................................................................... 98
Tax Expense ................................................................................ (67)
Net Income .................................................................................. $ 31
Calculation of net cash flow:
Cash Receipts from Customers.................................................. $ 13,894
Miscellaneous Cash Receipts..................................................... 102
Total Cash Receipts............................................................. 13,996
Cash Payments to Employees and Creditors ............................ (5,947)
Cash Payments to Milk Suppliers............................................. (6,261)
Cash Payments for Interest Costs ............................................. (402)
Cash Payments for Taxes........................................................... (64)
Total Cash Payments .......................................................... (12,674)
Net Cash Flow ............................................................................ $ 1,322
1.33 (ComputerCo, a Singapore manufacturer; balance sheet relations.)
(amounts in millions of Singapore dollars [$])
The missing items appear in boldface type.
Assets
2013 2012
Current Assets........................................................ $ 170,879 $ 170,234
Noncurrent Assets .................................................. 28,945 17,368
Total Assets ........................................................ $ 199,824 $ 187,602
Solutions 1-10

1.33 continued.
Current Liabilities.................................................. $ 139,941 $ 126,853
Noncurrent Liabilities ............................................ 7,010 7,028
Total Liabilities.................................................. 146,951 133,881
Shareholders’ Equity............................................... 52,873 53,721
Total Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity ....... $ 199,824 $ 187,602
1.34 (SinoTwelve, a Chinese manufacturer; balance sheet relations.) (amounts
in thousands of US$)
2013 2012
Assets
Current Assets..................................................... $ 4,705,366 $ 3,062,449
Noncurrent Assets ............................................... 2,494,481 2,388,389
Total Assets ..................................................... $ 7,199,847 $ 5,450,838
Current Liabilities............................................... $ 4,488,461 $ 3,527,504
Noncurrent Liabilities ......................................... 1,098,123 789,058
Total Liabilities............................................... 5,586,584 4,316,562
Shareholders’ Equity............................................ 1,613,263 1,134,276
Total Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity .... $ 7,199,847 $ 5,450,838
1.35 (EastonHome, a consumer products manufacturer; income statement
relations.) (amounts in millions of US$)
2013 2012 2011
Sales .............................................................. $ 13,790 $ 12,238 $ 11,397
Cost of Goods Sold ........................................ (6,042) (5,536) (5,192)
Selling and Administrative Expenses.......... (4,973) (4,355) (3,921)
Other (Income) Expense ................................ (121) (186) (69)
Interest Expense, Net ................................... (157) (159) (136)
Income Tax Expense...................................... (759) (648) (728)
Net Income .................................................... $ 1,738 $ 1,354 $ 1,351
1-11 Solutions

Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content

citizens were ever more faithful to the Belgian cause than those of
Brussels.
There was shouting enough in the streets and on the boulevards;
here hawkers tried to sell maps of the Fortress of Antwerp; there
women and girls offered scarf-pins with the portrait of Burgomaster
Max. Everybody had such a pin, and I soon sported one too, for only
then did these lady-sellers leave me alone.
The German proclamations in Brussels were nearly as numerous as
the Max pins. They showered them during the last days on the town,
the one more insolent than the other. After reading those things, a
proclamation by Burgomaster Max affected me beneficially,
whenever I could find one amongst the mass of other bills posted on
the walls. Such a document testified to a grand soul and a firm
character, which vindicated courageously the rights of the oppressed
people.
In the streets and in the cafés I saw a great many marines who had
taken part in the fights near Antwerp and were sent to Brussels for a
few days' rest. It was remarkable that so many of them who had
only lately looked death in the face, thought that they could not
amuse themselves better than by mixing with girls of the worst
description. Although I cannot, of course, always believe what
soldiers, fresh back from a fight, assert in their over-excited
condition, I assumed that I might conclude that things went badly
with the defence of Antwerp.
A trip from Brussels to the scene of the fight convinced me still
more. I passed some time with the artillery which had already
silenced Waelhem, and was now used against the other defences.
The sight of such an action was less interesting than one might
think, as I could not get to the places where the infantry were
storming. Only the thunder of all these guns overwhelmed and gave
me an idea of the terror that was created.
From Antwerp, which I could see clearly from the positions of the
artillery near Waelhem, high columns of smoke rose up from the

Belgian artillery, which was harassing the German positions.
Here I also saw in action one of the 30·5 cm. Austrian howitzers
mentioned before. The clumsy monster was constantly being
shunted on a rail forward and backward, and at long intervals sent a
gigantic projectile to the threatened quarters. The sound was terrific,
and the pressure of the air made people at a great distance tremble
on the ground. The Austrian artillerists were still equipped as if they
had to fight in a rough, mountainous country; the soles of their
shoes were all over covered with hobnails.
The Red Cross Service was well arranged, the wounded were
transported regularly, a large number of motor-cars being used.
All soldiers and officers took the siege of the great fortress calmly,
convinced that at the most it would be able to hold out for very few
days. Reliable information soon gave me the same impression,
although I had wished it might have been quite different. When I
left the scene of the fight all the forts from Waelhem to St.
Cathérine-Waver had been silenced and in the hands of the
Germans, who would soon attack the inner circle of forts.
In Brussels the people seemed to be of a different opinion. German
reports about successes obtained were simply not believed, and
people persisted in their opinion that Antwerp would be invincible.
The more reports of victories the Germans posted on the walls, the
more excited people became, and palmed off upon each other all
sorts of victories of the Allies.
At the Café Quatre Bras, near Tervueren, the innkeeper told me that
the Germans had asked the Netherland Government for permission
to place a 42 cm. on Netherland territory in order to be able to shell
Antwerp also from that side, but that the Netherland Government
had refused. I tried as hard as possible to explain to the man that all
stories of such requests were mere gossip. When more and more
people entered the café I withdrew into a corner. They were all very
excited, and some of them had drunk more than was good for them.
They related with violent gesticulations that the Allies had

surrounded Brussels and might be expected to enter the town at any
moment, that all was over with the Germans, and so on. Shouts of
"Vive la Belgique!" and "Vive notre roi!" sounded until suddenly I
drew their attention. They looked me up and down critically, and one
of them asked:
"Who are you?"
"A Netherland journalist, who is trying to get news for his paper."
"What, a Netherlander!—a Netherlander! All traitors! You are helping
the Germans, but we are not afraid of either German or
Netherlander."
They crowded threateningly round me, getting more and more
excited.
I saw that I must act, and jumped on a chair.
"What," I exclaimed, "you dare to say that the Netherlanders act
with the Germans? No, shall I tell you something? The Germans
have asked the Netherland Government for permission to place a 42
cm. gun on their territory to shell Antwerp from that side, but the
Netherland Government have refused."
"Lies, gossip."
"Lies, gossip? Ask the proprietor."
"Yes, men, what the gentleman says is true."
The rest was lost to me, for the men crowded round the innkeeper,
who now aired his knowledge about the occurrence and evidently
spoke with true conviction. At the end of the conversation they took
their tankards from the bar, and shouted and cried: "Ah, well, if that
is so, vive la Hollande! vive la Belgique! vive notre roi!" Suddenly we
were the best of friends.
In Louvain people would not believe that Antwerp was on the point
of surrendering, and persisted in the opinion that the fortress would
hold out much longer, and was in a better position than ever before.

The German officers at the commander's office were elated in
consequence of the reports received, and also told me that Antwerp
would not be able to hold out for more than two days. They also
tried to explain this to the people in the hall who were waiting for
their passports. I followed the conversation, but not very closely, and
one of the officers explained on a map what he asserted. Willy-nilly,
because they had to get their passports, the waiting people listened
to him. Suddenly I heard him say: "And after all we might have
surrounded Antwerp also on the north by crossing Netherland
territory, as we did when we invaded Belgium."
Those words gave me a shock, for I had heard that German officers
always tried to encourage the Belgians in their wrong opinion about
the alleged violation of Netherland neutrality, but I had not been
able to believe it. With an innocent face I asked the officer:
"Where did the Germans cross Netherland territory?"
"Near Maastricht. You know where Maastricht is?"
And he summoned me to look at the map, where he pointed out to
me where Maastricht was.
"Hullo!" I said, "but in those days I was in and about Maastricht, but
I never noticed anything of it."
"And yet it is so. Are you perhaps a Netherlander?"
"Oh yes, I am a Netherland journalist."
"Is that so? I beg your pardon, but won't you come with me? I
suppose that you want a passport. I will take you to the
commander."
He was quite upset, and evidently thought that the best plan was to
muzzle me by taking me away from the others as quickly as
possible.
I asked and got the commander's permission to travel to Liège by
military train, and from there to The Netherlands, not only for
myself, but also for a Netherland girl of nine years, whose parents in

Amsterdam had repeatedly and persistently asked me to see
whether there would be any possibility of letting their little girl come
back from a Louvain boarding-school. The Sisters with whom she
was let her go with me when I showed them a letter from her father.
That child had already seen a good deal! The Sisters had fled with
all the children at the time of the conflagration, and hidden
themselves for days in a farm in the neighbourhood.
During the last days hundreds of lads had left Louvain for The
Netherlands, and the migration went on throughout the whole
occupied part of Belgium. It was the exodus of the levies of 1914
and 1915, who had been called up, and many of whom had been
sent to Germany as prisoners. The Germans themselves had not a
little furthered the flight of these crowds; by proclamations they had
warned the lads not to try to escape, for otherwise all of the levies
of '14 and '15 would be taken prisoners, and the parents of the
fugitives would be punished. At Heverlee and Louvain the lads of
both levies had to present themselves every Friday at this station.
The consequence was that the following Friday not one single boy of
those levies was to be found in either place.
No more wounded were taken to the hospitals of Louvain, as it had
been decided to send them straight on to Germany for the present;
yet there were many wounded men who were being nursed there
already, and the doctors had their hands full attending to the
wounded who passed the town. Dr. Noyons told me that the
previous Sunday a train with 600 wounded had arrived from
Northern France, and he and his assistants had been requested
"just" to dress the wounds again of some of them. The condition of
these unfortunate men must have been awful; not one had a
dressing less than eight days old. Most of them had had it on much
longer, and then these were merely emergency dressings. They were
laid on straw in cattle trucks, many of them even in filth, and
infection had worsened their condition to a great extent. Dr. Noyons
and his colleagues tried to give the poor fellows as much relief as
possible, but as a matter of course they could not do very much
during a short stay at a station.

The general condition of the town was not calmer during these last
days. New hostages were taken continually, and generally, as before,
they were clerics, in consequence of which the religious services
were in a continual muddle, and sometimes on Sundays no Holy
Mass could be said. Burgomaster Nerinx had now posted
proclamations in which he called for volunteers to serve as
temporary hostages, instead of the priests, during the hours of
religious service. As if it were office work they mentioned: "The
service begins in the afternoon at ... o'clock and will end after ...
days at ... o'clock."
It was self-evident that very few were keen to offer themselves as
temporary substitutes for the clerics.
I have, happily, not seen much of the distressing flight of the
Antwerp population, as I happened to be at Liège when the fortress
fell into German hands. I went to Zundert viâ Maastricht and Breda,
in order to go to the conquered fortress from that Netherland
frontier-town, north-east of Antwerp.
A good many refugees were on their way to The Netherlands, but
the bulk of the crowd had passed before my visit along the long road
which I walked now in the opposite direction. I did not arrive in
Antwerp before nightfall and was then very tired. The town was
dark, dismal, and deserted, and only German soldiers went about in
the streets, apparently looking in vain for a shop or café where they
might find some diversion. I myself, exhausted by a walk of twenty-
five miles, sauntered along, constantly looking for some place or
other to pass the night. Not a shop or hotel was open, and yet my
stomach was craving for food, my body for rest. At last I met a
policeman and told him of my difficulty.
"Yes, sir," he answered, "that will be difficult enough. Everybody has
fled, even my own wife and children. I remained because I thought
it was my duty, and now I have been tramping through the streets
already for over twenty-four hours, without being relieved. It seems
that by far the greater number of my colleagues fled also."

"Don't you think you could find me some hotel, or private people
who might put me up?"
"I am very much afraid I shan't be able, but come along, and we'll
try together."
So we went from street to street, without any result. He rang the
bell at many houses where he knew that acquaintances lived, but
always in vain, and at last the kind man had to give it up.
I went on by myself, and arrived at last in a street where I noticed a
light in a house. When I came near, I stood opposite a small café,
with "Lodgings" over the door. I was hardly able to go on, and did
not care whether it was "lodgings" or "hotel," if I could only get in
somewhere.
But I did not stop long, for after a good look round it seemed the
best to try and get away as quickly as possible, and in that I
succeeded. One understands, however, that it was a terrific
disappointment for a man so tired to leave again after thinking that
he had at last found a place for rest. At length I found an hotel near
the Central Station.
Antwerp had suffered from the horror of war. The bombardment had
destroyed many beautiful quarters almost entirely, and even
damaged badly a number of hospitals. Of course the loss of many
lives had to be deplored.
The next day I had the pleasure of an interview with Cardinal
Mercier, whose residence in Antwerp I had been able to find out at
last. A wealthy lady had offered his Eminence her grand house. In
one of the rooms I waited for the arrival of the cardinal, the
Metropolitan of the Belgian Church Provinces, who, both as a prelate
and a patriot, had been tried so sorely in this war, which ravaged
both his university town and his episcopal town. Although he was
exceedingly busy, his Eminence had the kindness to grant me an
audience.
As I was still musing about the tragedy of this venerable personality
in these hard days of war, the door was opened suddenly and his

spare figure stood before me. It was a moment full of emotion, and
perhaps I might not have recovered myself so quickly if the kind
prelate had not met me with so much kindness.
After his Eminence had allowed me to kiss his ring, he asked me to
sit down. I had now a good opportunity to notice how grief dwelt on
his entirely spiritualised face, in its frame of white hair. But his
extraordinary kindness in intercourse did not leave him for one
moment.
In connection with the summons, which had been sent in the name
of the archdiocese to De Tijd, and had been proclaimed in all the
churches of Antwerp in the morning, his Eminence insisted that it
should be printed in its entirety, as very many priests had taken
refuge in The Netherlands, whose help was pressingly wanted in the
arch-diocese in many of the parishes.
And he went on to say that he desired especially, most fervently the
return of the fled population.
"Really, in all sincerity," he said, "no danger need be feared. I should
be very grateful if the newspapers in The Netherlands would draw
attention to the following promises which the German authorities
gave me, and authorised me to make in their name:—
"1. The young men need not fear that they will be taken to
Germany in order to serve in the German army, or be compelled
to do any work.
"2. Should the police regulations be infringed anywhere by some
individuals, the authorities will find the guilty parties and punish
them, without attributing the guilt to the entire population.
"3. The German and Belgian authorities will do everything in
their power to prevent scarcity of food."
"Your Eminence may permit me to remark that the second clause
especially is very important and much more comforting than a
previous declaration of the Imperial Governor, that owing to
occasional mistakes he cannot prevent the innocent population from

having to suffer with those who are guilty. May I ask, has this
favourable result been obtained by your personal intervention?"
"That is to say ... yes. I have suggested these measures and they
have been consented to. I hope that they may induce all the
refugees in The Netherlands to return at once. A press bureau in
your country has circulated the report that I too had planned to fly.
There was no truth in it at all. It was my duty not to leave my
people, is not that so? The shepherd must stay with his sheep, the
vicars must do the same, and those who went away must therefore
come back."
"Your Eminence visited Malines last Tuesday, I have been told. I may
perhaps ask how you found the condition of the cathedral and the
town?"
The cardinal's face was overclouded suddenly, and quietly he
answered:
"Pardon me, it is perhaps better not to say a word about that for the
moment. We are living through difficult times."
I understood and respected the restraint of the Belgian primate, who
went on then:
"Tuesday of next week I hope to be at Malines again, and on the
20th of this month the administrative service of the archdiocese will
be reinstalled."
"Then you will stay again at the episcopal palace, your Eminence?"
"Yes, certainly. It will take time of course, but the damage done to
the St. Rombout church and the palace is not irreparable; the church
has suffered very much, the spire is less damaged."
"Much will be needed to repair what has been damaged in this
unfortunate country."
"Yes, yes. An immense amount will be necessary. We are about to
form committees; but so much is needed. In England they are also

forming committees, and I have received money already from
England, Scotland, and Ireland, and The Netherlands...."
For a moment he gave way to emotion. He hesitated for a few
seconds, and I saw tears in his eyes. He then went on with a
trembling voice:
"The Netherlands is a generous country. How grateful, how
immensely grateful am I to the Netherland people for what they
have done for poor refugees. I cannot sufficiently express my
gratitude. I have received reports from priests who came back, and I
am deeply moved by them. They told me how at Roosendaal the
Netherland soldiers gave all their bread to the refugees, knowing
well that for some time they themselves would not get any other.
No! I can never be sufficiently grateful for such sacrifices. And
Catholics and non-Catholics all joined in it. That is beautiful, very,
very beautiful."
"Your Eminence, what The Netherlands did for the poor Belgians
came from the heart of the people, and I know for certain that the
Catholics will be eager to contribute to the rebuilding of the
destroyed churches and houses."
"The Netherlands has done already so much, but if it would come to
the assistance of our unfortunate people also in this way it would
greatly gladden the archiepiscopal government, who will be only too
happy to accept gifts in these difficult times; and perhaps the Right
Reverend Netherland bishops may be willing to send the gifts for this
purpose to us. We might then distribute those gifts among the
parishes in the country which have suffered most."
"Well, in any case, your Eminence, I promise to bring it to the
knowledge of the Catholics in The Netherlands, and you may rely
upon their readiness. But now I will not take more of your valuable
time, which you give so zealously to the poor and the unfortunate. I
thank you very much for having granted me this audience."
"It was in the interests of our suffering country, and we are those
who ought to be grateful. May I insist once more that you ask our

refugees to come back to Antwerp and don't omit to state the three
favourable regulations...."
His Eminence then got up, kindly offered me his hand, the ring on
which I kissed, and escorted me to the door in the amiable, simple
way of which I shall retain the memory for ever.
I can see now once more how little Germans care about the given
word. They asked and obtained from Cardinal Mercier his co-
operation to incite the population to return, but the cardinal, always
anxious to safeguard his compatriots, made conditions to which they
consented.
The first of them was that no young man should be taken to
Germany, or compelled to work. Now how many lads are not already
in Germany, how many have not been compelled, especially in both
the Flanders, to do work for the Germans? And were not loyal
people who refused to do it imprisoned? Yes! Did not these violators
of law and right proclaim that all appeal to international agreements
would be useless? "We shall no longer punish a whole population for
the deeds of individuals," they also promised Cardinal Mercier. But
many communities have had fines and taxes imposed upon them in
consequence of the offence of one individual.
And although they also promised to do everything in their power to
prevent lack of food in Belgium, they have bled to death the
unfortunate country by continuous impositions and taxes, and
thrown many into poverty and misery.
Yes, in the most scandalous manner they have violated the promises
which the Germans gave Cardinal Mercier. But what signifies a word
if treaties are only "scraps of paper?"

Financial Accounting An Introduction to Concepts, Methods and Uses Weil 14th Edition Solutions Manual

CHAPTER XV
THE ILL-TREATMENT OF BRITISH
WOUNDED
I RETURNED from Louvain by military train. This one had had a most
adventurous journey before it reached Louvain. It had left Cambrai
in North France three days before, always going slowly and making
long stops, to spare the seriously wounded at least a little. I
estimated that in my train over 2,000 wounded had been loaded in a
long, dismal procession of wagons. Most of them had not had their
bandages renewed for a fortnight, and were still wearing the first
emergency dressing; all came from the neighbourhood of Arras.
A little to the north of this town many had been lying wounded in
the trenches for over eight days, without being able to get their
wounds bandaged. They had to admit the success of the French field
artillery, which produced a most serious effect.
The Germans all agreed that their right wing lacked artillery. The
German soldiers who fell there were all killed in their trenches by the
falling bombs, there was not sufficient field artillery to answer this
murderous fire efficiently, and they could not do anything with their
rifles against the invisible enemy. The artillery fire of the French was
most serious from the 1st to the 4th of October, and during those
days the German trenches must have been a real hell. On October
4th a general "sauve qui peut" began from the trenches.
But the shell-fire of the French overtook them then, as they were
retreating, while many others were killed by bombs from French
aeroplanes, which were in action in great numbers. The retreat had
not stopped before the Germans arrived in Cambray, where the
thousands of wounded could at last be put in long trains and sent to
Aix-la-Chapelle. A great many bombs from aeroplanes also hit these

trains and killed a great many; my own train was everywhere
pierced by fragments of those bombs. Within the carriages it was
unendurable; the wounded men and their malodorous bandages had
occupied them such a long time that the atmosphere was simply
insupportable. Happily there was a corridor, where I stood all the
time, with the little girl, in the company of some German military
men who were sent home, not on account of wounds, but because
of internal complaints.
Very slowly the huge monster sauntered along, stopping and waiting
everywhere to allow long trains with fresh troops to pass. These
came straight from Germany, with the youngest levies and
volunteers who had just finished their drill. These had decorated
their trains all over with green boughs and outside painted all sorts
of caricatures, from which especially King George had to suffer
much. Then one read "To Paris, to England," and similar hopeful
devices.
When their train approached ours they looked out of the windows,
or opened the doors, and waved and greeted and shouted at the top
of their voices.
But as soon as these "tender-foots" came alongside our train and
were not met with the same impetuous enthusiasm as they
displayed themselves, but, on the contrary, saw sick, discouraged,
exhausted faces gazing at them distressedly, their boisterousness
suddenly extinguished, and a nervous, terrified expression pursed up
their mouths. And the trains were already at some distance from
each other before the young soldiers remembered that they ought to
shout and to wave to those who had already done so much for the
Fatherland.
We arrived at Landen, a place between Tirlemont and Waremme,
where we had a stop of forty minutes, in order to feed the wounded.
Soup was served from large washing-tubs, and I and my small
companion were also offered some of this soldiers' food. When I had
finished my meal, and walked up and down the platform in order to
stretch my legs, my attention was drawn to an uproar in front of one

of the last wagons. I went there, and shall not forget what I saw as
long as I live; I wish that I had never seen it.
Amongst some Frenchmen, three British soldiers, seriously wounded,
were lying on some straw. They looked distressed, and I thought
that their condition was critical. I was told that these men had not
had any food for five days, and now there stood in front of the open
wagon doors two to three hundred German soldiers, partly slightly
wounded, who were well able to walk, partly German soldiers of the
Landen garrison, who had been told off for distributing the soup.
These two to three hundred men raged and jeered at those three
unfortunate, heavily wounded British soldiers, who had not eaten for
five days, and lay groaning helplessly on some dirty straw in a cattle-
truck. The steaming tubs with hot soup were shown them, and these
Germans shouted at them: "You want to eat, swine, swine; you
ought to be killed! Beat them to death!—beat them to death! Here,
that's what you ought to get!"
As they spoke these last words they aimed their rifles at the
unfortunate, bleeding, helpless, and hungry creatures. Others spat
on their clothes and in their faces, and the enraged Germans foamed
at the mouth.
With weak eyes, eyes telling of approaching death, one of them
gazed at these cruel torturers, or looked hungrily at the steaming
soup; the two others had turned their heads on one side and closed
their eyes. But at last also the third turned off his head and closed
his eyes, sighing and groaning. In the meantime the Germans went
on threatening them, blurting out all sorts of filthy abuse, spitting or
threatening them with their rifles, while others were laughing and
enjoying the helplessness of those three.
I stood still, dumb, aghast, unable to utter a word. Then I went to a
sergeant who was also looking on and laughing; and, trembling all
over, I said:
"What is happening here is frightful; those men are also human
beings, who had to do their duty as much as you!"

I couldn't say more, my voice stuck in my throat.
And what was his answer?
"What? Do their duty? No, they are swine—paid swine; they get
money for their dirty work, the swine!"
I did not answer. I could not. Silently I looked a little longer at the
beastly scene, only sorry that I was not a giant who, with one strong
hand, might restrain the roughs, and refresh with the other the
burning, feverish lips of the wretched men.
What distressed me most was that among those two to three
hundred soldiers in front of that open cattle-truck was not one man
who wanted to take the part of these unfortunate British; no, not
one!
When I reported the occurrence in De Tijd, I was fully conscious of
the frightful accusation implied by my information; but I am
prepared to confirm with the most sacred oaths that nothing in this
accusation is untrue or exaggerated.
I was not afraid of an inquiry, but asked for it as a matter of fact, by
writing in my report:—
"And if the German authorities intend to institute a serious and
impartial inquiry, then I give them the following particulars:
"It happened at Landen on Friday, October 9th, in the train with
wounded which arrived there from Brussels at about noon,
when food was being distributed."
The German authorities have indeed made inquiries about the
matter; I shall deal with that in the next chapter.
What happened at Landen made a very deep impression upon me; it
shocked me more than all the terrible things which I had seen
during the war and all the dangers which I went through. When the
train went on again, and the soldiers began to speak to me once
more, I was unable to utter a word and sat there musing.

Before I witnessed this terrible event at Landen some Germans in
the train had already told me that they simply killed the British
whom they made prisoners. Others assured me that such a thing did
not happen in their division, but one asserted that by his company
alone already twenty-six had been killed. I did not believe them
then, and thought that they were better than they made themselves
out, but after having witnessed that scene at Landen ...!
One hour before the arrival at Liège the engine of our train dashed
into another, and got so badly damaged that all the water from our
engine ran away. This caused a delay of another two hours, so that
we did not arrive at Liège before dusk, and could not think of
reaching The Netherlands that day.
I took the little Amsterdam girl to my niece in the convent of the
Sisters of Mercy, and went to an hotel myself. A German newspaper,
bought at a bookstall, gave in gigantic type the information that
Antwerp might fall at any moment, and a recently posted bulletin
brought the feared-for news. But the people of Liège could not, and
would not believe it.
I had expected it and believed the reports, but it hurt all the same. I
had had intercourse with German soldiers almost exclusively; but
that gave me a much better opportunity for observing their conduct,
which roused in me a deep sympathy for the poor, oppressed
Belgian people. That was why I was so sorry to hear of the fall of
Antwerp, although I was not discouraged. Right would triumph, and
the day come when the Belgian nation would shake off the foreign
yoke of tyranny, and repair in peace and prosperity, under the
sagacious rule of their king, what barbarians destroyed and pulled
down.
The next day I got to The Netherlands with my small protégée, after
a tiring walk from Herstal to Eysden, where we could take the train
to Maastricht. Here the father of the little girl came to meet his
daughter, and took her to Amsterdam, to her "Mummy," of whom
she had been speaking during the whole journey with so much
longing.

Only now did I hear what had happened to the village of Lanaeken
after I had seen the German preparations in Tongres for action
against the little Belgian army that was still about in the north-
eastern part of the country. The greater part of Lanaeken had been
destroyed by shelling, and of course a great many innocent victims
had fallen in consequence.
By destroying the life and possessions of peaceful civilians the
Germans—who always boast so much about their military honour—
gave unconscious expression to their awe of the fearless heroes who
still stood their ground to the north of Liège, whilst the Germans
were still besieging Antwerp.
I have mentioned already that the German authorities had ordered a
so-called inquiry about what happened at Landen. As the result of
this inquiry the press of all neutral countries had the following two
official communications wired to them:—
"Berlin, November 10th. (E. B.).—A correspondent of De Tijd in
Amsterdam has told a number of details about the so-called bad
treatment of British wounded at the station of Landen,
according to which the British had been left without food or
drink, had been spit in their faces, and our soldiers were alleged
to have aimed their rifles at them. The German Government had
instituted a thorough inquiry into this matter and publish the
result: 'The entire allegation of the correspondent is untrue.
None of the details is covered by the facts. The British have not
been beaten nor pushed nor spit at, but on the contrary warm
food was offered them, which was accepted by all except two.
Store-inspector Huebner and the landwehr-soldier Krueger have
testified to this."
"Berlin, November 10th. (W. B.) Official.—The Norddeutsche
Allgemeine Zeitung writes: 'The daily newspaper, De Tijd, issued
at Amsterdam, published on October 16th a report from a war
correspondent at Maastricht, in which he asserted that on

October 9th a train in which more than two thousand wounded
were transported, arrived at the station at Landen in Belgium
between Tirlemont and Waremme. Here it was said that a stop
had taken place of forty minutes in which to provide the
wounded with food. Walking up and down the platform the
reporter pretends to have seen two to three hundred German
soldiers, slightly wounded men and men of the garrison of
Landen, furiously abuse three seriously wounded British, who
were lying in one of the last carriages of the train. They showed
mugs full of steaming soup to the hungry British, whom they
left lying there miserable from starvation. They were also said to
have aimed their rifles at them, laughing roughly, and to have
spit on them.
"'These allegations of the reporter of De Tijd caused the
authorities to institute inquiries, and the following is now stated
with regard to the alleged events:
"'On October 9th no train with two thousand wounded arrived at
the station of Landen, but only small transports whose number
can be checked accurately by the lists of wounded. Rioting by
two to three hundred soldiers near a carriage could not take
place, as the station guard was instructed to keep free a path
along the train. There is, moreover, always an officer of the
station-guard present, when a train with wounded leaves. It is
impossible that the soldiers could have aimed their rifles at the
British, as the men who get their food in the dining-hall, as also
the serving military personnel, are always unarmed. Other
soldiers are not admitted to the station. The British have neither
been beaten, nor stabbed, nor spit at; on the contrary plates full
of hot soup have been offered them which were refused by two
of them. This has been confirmed by the declarations of people
who were present.'"
Of course I did not withhold my answer, pilloried the hardly serious
inquiry of the Germans, and published immediately an extensive
contradiction in De Tijd. I quote the following from it:—

"Only about a month after the publication of my story about
what happened at Landen, the German Government and
military authorities considered that the time had come to
contradict it, after ordering an inquiry which in reality cannot be
called an inquiry at all. From their communiqués it is clear that
some soldiers were heard who probably were privy to the act,
and in any case benefited by a denial of the villainy committed
at Landen. That is to say, men who were counsel in their own
cause, and who were believed the sooner because their
declarations were desirable for the support of German credit.
But it does not appear from these communiqués that the
German authorities also examined the wounded who were
present, nor the two Netherlanders who travelled by that train:
the young Miss de Bruin, from Amsterdam, and the present
writer, as also the civilian witnesses at Landen. In opposition to
the evidence of Stores-inspector Huebner and the landwehr-
soldier Krueger, of which evidence it has not been stated that
they gave it on oath, I declare myself prepared and willing, if a
complete and impartial inquiry be instituted, to declare upon
oath either to a properly qualified committee in The Netherlands
or in Germany, or to a thereto-appointed arbiter, the following:
"'1. On Friday, the ninth of October, at noon, I stopped at
Landen about forty minutes after arriving from Louvain in a
terribly long train of passenger carriages and goods vans, with
approximately two thousand wounded. (This estimate may be
wrong to the extent of a couple of hundred, but that does not
matter.) During this time the wounded were fed.
"'I saw how two to three hundred German soldiers, part of them
slightly wounded, who were well able to walk, partly soldiers of
the Landen garrison, who crowded about the open doors of one
of the last wagons, raging and jeering against three seriously
wounded British soldiers, about whom their French fellow-
passengers told me that they had had nothing to eat for five
days. The wounded were called "swine," were spit at, and some
rifles were aimed at them. When I told a sergeant that it was a

disgusting scene, he answered: "These British swine, they get
paid for their filthy work." He alluded to the pay which the
British volunteers receive because they enlist as mercenaries,
Britain having no compulsory general military service. Before I
witnessed this awful thing at Landen, Germans in the train had
already told me that they simply killed any British whom they
made prisoners. Others said that such a thing did not happen in
their division, but one man contended that by his company
already twenty-six had been killed. I did not believe them, and
thought that they were better than they pretended to be.
"'2. The soup had been offered to the British, but two refused to
take it, says the German Government. Yes, it was offered these
wretched people, but, as I have said already, the German
soldiers kept the steaming soup before them, shouting at them:
"You want to eat, you swine!—you swine! you ought to be
killed! This is what you may have!" And as they said the latter
they aimed their rifles at the unfortunate men, whilst others
who were not armed lifted up their fists and threatened them,
or spat at them.
"'In my report about the occurrence I had not even exposed in
all its harshness the treatment dealt out to the French soldiers.
For they too were not offered plates of soup, but only the mugs
were filled, forming part of their equipment. And there were
many who put out these mugs as if supplicating to have them
filled once more; as that was not done they constantly put the
empty mug to their mouth to try and lick off any remaining
drops that might have stuck to its side. Some Germans said:
"Yes, the French may have something, for they are soldiers, but
those three there, well, they are paid swine."
"'3. I published the facts and insisted upon an impartial inquiry,
in order to prevent, if possible, that only guilty soldiers should
be heard should a complaint about the occurrence be lodged
with the highest military authority.

"'Instead of facing such an impartial inquiry with an examination
of all available witnesses and punishment of the guilty, the
German government finds the courage only to call me, a month
after the event, "a liar," and the whole story a fairy-tale!
"'If the German government had come somewhat earlier with
their contradiction, it might have been possible to cite another
witness, for—I have not reported that at first—among those
who were present there was a civilian, an inhabitant of Landen,
who also looked with anger at the cruel scene, and expressed
his indignation when he could no longer restrain himself. But
then there was a general outcry of:
"'"What is this civilian doing here?" The young man could not
explain his presence satisfactorily, and a couple of soldiers got
hold of him, and, in the literal sense of the word, threw him
away. When he waited at a short distance a little longer, with an
angry face, one of the soldiers ran at him, threatening him with
his bayonet. I might have been able to find that young man at
the time, but now, a month later, this will be much more
difficult. There was also another group of civilians packed as
densely as herrings in a cattle-truck on another line; they must
have seen the beastly occurrence as well.
"'I might quote another small detail. Before the train arrived at
Landen I had had a very pleasant chat in the corridor with a
German soldier, who seemed tolerably humane and civilised,
even in his talk. After the departure from Landen I again got
into conversation with him, and did not fail to express my
indignation; and then he gave me the following reply: "Oh well,
one must think of the position of our soldiers, who have been
for days in the trenches under the murderous fire of the enemy.
Later on they will themselves repent for what has happened."
Perhaps the German government may be able to discover who
that soldier is, if I add that he went home for good because he
was suffering from heart-disease.

"'And then there is something else. The brakesman of the
wagon in which I travelled was a man who had enlisted only a
couple of weeks ago as a volunteer for the service on the
railways, and, if I remember correctly, hailed from Hamburg. He
belonged to a Trades Union which had already once made a trip
to Amsterdam and Rotterdam, and was for instance able to tell
me that Krasnapolsky at Amsterdam was a large hotel. I also
spoke to that man about what had happened, because I
thought I had noticed that he was more human, but he too
gave me the cynical answer: "Oh well, the French may have
something to eat, they fight also for their country, but not those
British, they only fight because that is their profession."
"'4. With regard to the arms of the German soldiers, it is true
that the wounded men had none with them, but I have
distinctly stated that the crowd consisted of soldiers who
belonged to the lightly wounded and of soldiers belonging to
the Landen garrison. These latter had been told off to guard the
station and the platforms and maintain order. It is possible that
they had also to prevent the wounded from moving about on
the platforms, but in that case they did not stick to their task,
because everybody was free to go where he liked, and I myself
did the same. That these guards did not guard anything at all at
the moment is proved by the fact that the above-mentioned
civilian was able to come near the riot, although he had to pass
a number of platforms. That the soldiers belonged to the
Landen garrison and had to do sentry-go is proved by the fact
that they had their bayonets on their rifles.
"'Finally, the contention that no riot could have taken place
because the soldiers were fed in the dining-hall is entirely
incorrect. That dining-hall was nothing but a shed entirely open
at the front, in which there were a few seats. There the slightly
wounded soldiers were fed first, and when they had supplied
those, food was taken to the seriously wounded, who had to
stop in the train, as also to myself and my little companion. The
slightly wounded and the soldiers of the guard walked off with

the distributors of the soup along the train in order to have a
chat with their comrades in it. In that way they also came to the
British when the wagon-door had been opened. It will be
evident that I observed closely and retained in my memory all
that had happened there and in the neighbourhood.
"'5. My pertinent declarations are now opposed by the German
official contradiction; but how weak is the argument! I have
already pointed out that only comrades of the accused men
have been heard, but not the accuser, nor, as is evident, the
victims, nor other witnesses. There is more: "Crowding of two
to three hundred soldiers near a wagon cannot occur"—thus
says the communiqué—"because the station-guard's duty is to
keep free the path along the train." Does anyone understand
the weakness of this contradiction? It is as if one should say: "It
is impossible that anything has been stolen in a town because it
is the duty of the police to guard it." "Moreover there is also
always an officer of the station-guard present at the departure
of a train of wounded," the communiqué proceeds. But again I
ask: What does this prove? It is a fact that this officer, if he was
present, did not prevent what happened. "It is impossible that
the soldiers aimed their rifles at the British, because the men
who get their food in the dining-hall, and those of the military
who distribute it, are always unarmed; no other soldiers are
admitted to the station." I see that the German government
simply quote the military regulations, and from them determine
the facts. They cannot realise that it might be possible for their
regulations not to be obeyed always.
"'6. I am convinced that on the whole the treatment of the
wounded was generous and exemplary. But it is also a fact that
the terrible hatred of the Germans against the British,
encouraged by their military authorities (one has to think of the
proclamation of Prince Rupert of Bavaria) and their scandalous
comic papers, which disgust even decent Germans, induce to
extravagances such as I witnessed at Landen. Did not a German
officer explain to an editor of the Algemeen Handelsolad

(evening issue of October 18th): "The unwritten order is to
make everywhere as many French and as few English prisoners
as possible; we don't try to wound, but to kill the British."'"
I think that my answer left nothing to be desired for plainness, and
Germany cannot have derived much pleasure from its official
contradiction. Moreover, the editor of De Tijd had also made
inquiries from the little girl whom I escorted from Louvain on the day
of the occurrence at Landen, and although I admit at once that not
too great a value can be attached to the evidence of a girl of nine, I
insert here what the editor wrote about that interview:—
"Our editor has moreover interviewed young Miss Antoinette de
Bruijn here, whom our correspondent brought from Louvain to
Maastricht. In the presence of her mother she told how she had
been in a train full of wounded, that there were armed soldiers
on the platform, and that some wounded soldiers had been
teased by offering them steaming soup which was not given to
them. The father of this girl, Mr. de Bruijn, also assured us that
when he met his daughter at Maastricht, our correspondent, Mr.
Mokveld, was still very much under the impression of what he
had witnessed."
My contradiction became known in Germany, and it was an eye-
opener to a great many people there. The editor of De Tijd received
many letters from that country, and printed some of them with the
name of the writer added. From these it seems that even there it
was acknowledged in some circles that the German inquiry had been
extremely one-sided, and that it would have been wiser to admit
what had happened at Landen, and punish the culprits.
The only purpose of my publication was to convince everybody of
this, and thereby prevent the repetition of such a scandalous scene.

CHAPTER XVI
ON THE YSER
From the pretty town of Sluys in the Netherland part of Flanders I
made a good many trips to the Belgian coastal regions and the Yser,
the little river that will always be named in history, because there
came the end of the German advance, and there the Belgian army
displayed all its power, fighting with the courage of lions in defence
of the last bit of their native soil.
Yes, Sluys will always live in my memory. How well have been
received the thousands of Belgians who went there for shelter and
how much misery have I seen relieved by the effectual mutual help
of the Belgians and that of the civil and military Netherland
authorities. The burgomaster in particular seemed to be the right
man in the right place, and it was chiefly due to his sagacity that
everything went so regularly in that small town, which had to
maintain the proportionately greatest number of refugees.
In Sluys I also got to know by friendly intercourse the character of
the Belgians, so open, so straightforward, and so bright.
From this town I got the best connections with the West of Belgium,
and as a rule I always made my first visit to ancient and pretty
Bruges, which was constantly strongly occupied by the Germans. In
front of the well-known Halls two small guns had been mounted,
threatening the market-square. The same was the case in front of
the Palace of Justice, where the commander's office was established.
The Government buildings in the market were entirely occupied by
the naval staff of Admiral von Schroeder, and dozens of sailors were
sitting in the offices, working at their typewriting machines.
Soldiers came from and went back to the Yser, which river I saw
three times during the fierce fighting.

The first time when the Germans had only been there for about ten
days, and huge masses were sent to the scene of battle, because
they had decided to break through at any cost.
Along the coast the German line did not reach far beyond
Mariakerke, where a big German flag on a high dune indicated their
most advanced front. Thanks to the consent of a couple of officers I
was allowed to push on to the front lines, and did this in spite of the
danger from bursting shrapnel. The wounded had to walk back from
there to Ostend, very often suffering the most trying pains, because,
according to what they told me, the Red Cross Service was not able
to help them all. They were very dissatisfied on account of the waste
of human life by which the attacks were accompanied, and some
made bitter remarks about the staff which seemed to be mad,
constantly sending new troops into the murderous fire with such
evident callousness.
I have been able to assist a good many of these unfortunate people
by bandaging the wounds with the dressing they gave me, or getting
some water for them from some house in the neighbourhood; and
one, who had fallen down exhausted by pain, I carried into a house.
I had more trouble with a wretch who, being heavily wounded in
both legs, lay on the top of a dune beyond Mariakerke. He was quite
alone, and when he discovered me his eyes glistened, full of hope.
He told me of his agonies, and beseeched me to take him to a house
or an ambulance. However much I should have liked to do that, it
was impossible in the circumstances in which I found myself.
Nowhere, even in the farthest distance, was a house to be seen, and
I tried to explain the position to him. But he turned a deaf ear to all
my exhortations, and insisted that I should help him. It was a painful
business, for I could not do the impossible. So I promised him, and
took my oath that I should warn the first ambulance I met, and see
to it that they came and fetched him.
I went away urging him to maintain his courage for the time being,
but he had scarcely noticed that I was about to go, when his eyes
began to gleam and to roll in his head; then he took his rifle, which

was lying by his side, and I, seeing his intention, ran down the dune
as quickly as possible, whilst I heard the well-known click-clack
behind me; the man had fired two bullets at me....
I must not take that sort of thing amiss. Who knew with how much
pain and how long he had been lying there, facing death, but fearing
it too. At last someone came near, and he put all his hope in that
man, but a hope that vanished. Yes, I can quite understand that a
man in those conditions goes mad.
I was not able to stay long at Mariakerke, but succeeded, by going
in an easterly direction, to get near Leke, where the fight was also in
full swing, and where evidently the same command had been
issued: "Advance at any cost." The German artillery stood south of
Leke, but I succeeded in pushing on to a hill near the road, where I
could see the columns of smoke of the Belgian artillery and the
clouds of dust which the German shrapnel threw up.
The Germans advanced in a formation which I had never seen yet.
The men went at the double-quick in closed ranks three abreast,
each of the threefold files marching at a small distance from the
other.
They stormed the Belgian lines with lowered bayonets. The Belgians
quietly allowed them to come near, but as soon as they were at a
certain distance from the trenches they wished to take, I heard the
rattle of the mitrailleuses, and the thunder of the guns. The storming
soldiers then disappeared in a fog of smoke and dust, in which I saw
their shadows fall and stagger. This went on for about ten minutes,
and then they came back in complete disorder, still followed by the
hostile bullets and shrapnel.
A period of calm followed, but not for long, for again and again new
attacks were made.
I myself was not very safe either, for frequently bursting shells fell
near me. I therefore thought it safer to cross to a farm-house a
hundred yards farther on, where I might find shelter. Before I got
there an officer of a passing division took me violently by the arm

and asked who I was and what I was doing there? His eyes glittered
savagely, and he as well as his men seemed to be fearfully excited.
I said in a few words who I was, and showed one of my German
permits. He had scarcely seen the many German stamps on it when
he let me go and went on with his men. I then pinned on my coat
two permits which had the greatest number of stamps, and in
consequence had no further trouble.
From the garret-window of the farm-house I followed the fierce
battle for another half-hour, and saw that the Germans suffered
enormous losses, but achieved no gains. At last I had to leave this
place too, because shells fell again quite near to the house. I stayed
another ten minutes near an ambulance, where they were quite
unable to attend to the numerous wounded men. Most of them got
an emergency dressing, and were advised to go higher up and try to
get better attention there.
The battle I saw that day on the Yser was the beginning of the
trench-war in that district. Many Belgian troops had dug themselves
in, and later on this system was extended, in consequence of which
the Belgian line there became impregnable.
In those days German Headquarters gave continuously the
thoughtless order: "To Calais, to Calais," and the Staff considered no
difficulties, calculated no sacrifices, in order to achieve success.
What these frenzied orders have cost in human lives History will tell
later on.
As soon as the Germans were near the coast they began to fortify it
most formidably, in order to prevent eventual attempts at landing by
hostile troops. Guns were soon mounted in the dunes, as I noticed
during a trip which I made along the coast on Sunday, October 25th.
Heyst was occupied by a small division of marines, although a few
days before the garrison had been larger, but on Saturday evening
all soldiers along the coast had been alarmed, and most of them

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