country. We ourselves regret it; but it was a military necessity. We
could do nothing else. If the Belgians put on uniforms and enroll as
soldiers and fight us openly, we shall capture them if we can; we shall
kill them if we must; but in all cases we shall treat them as honorable
enemies, fighting under the rules of civilized warfare.

"But this shooting from ambush by civilians; this murdering of our
people in the night--that we cannot endure. We have made a rule that if
shots are fired by a civilian from a house then we shall burn that
house; and we shall kill that man and all the other men in that house
whom we suspect of harboring him or aiding him.

"We make no attempt to disguise our methods of reprisal. We are willing
for the world to know it; and it is not because I wish to cover up or
hide any of our actions from your eyes, and from the eyes of the
American people, that I am refusing you passes for your return to
Brussels to-day. But, you see, our men have been terribly excited by
these crimes of the Belgian populace, and in their excitement they might
make serious mistakes.

"Our troops are under splendid discipline, as you may have seen already
for yourselves. And I assure you the Germans are not a bloodthirsty or a
drunken or a barbarous people; but in every army there are fools and,
what is worse, in every army there are brutes. You are strangers; and
if you passed along the road to-day some of our more ignorant men,
seeing that you were not natives and suspecting your motives, might harm
you. There might be some stupid, angry common soldier, some over-
zealous under officer--you understand me, do you not, gentlemen?

"So you will please remain here quietly, having nothing to do with any