will hold the communal authorities responsible and the population will
have only itself to blame if the great liberties granted to it until
now are suspended." This clumsy declaration is signed by
Lieutenant-General Graf von Westcarp. And to think that, even now,
Governor von Bissing perseveres in maintaining that no military work has
ever been asked or will ever be asked from the Belgian workers! As the
French proverb says: "On n'est jamais trahi que par les siens." [4]

But, like the man who marries his mistress after the birth of the first
child, the Governor General was thinking of "regularising the
situation." He knew that his attitude was illegal. He decided,
therefore, to concoct a few decrees in order to legalize it in the eyes
of the world. He had, you see, to save appearances. You cannot get on
with no law at all. It might shock neutrals. So, if you break all the
articles of the Hague Convention one by one, like so many sticks, the
only thing to do is to manufacture some fresh regulations to replace
them. And everything will again be for the best in the best of worlds.

That is where German subtlety comes in. You must not do things rashly,
at once. Like a skilful dramatist, you must prepare the public to take
in a situation. There is a true artistic touch in the way this General
of Cavalry succeeds in gradually legalizing illegality.

In a first decree, dated August 10th, 1915, a fortnight after his last
pledge, Governor von Bissing promises from fourteen days' to six months'
imprisonment to anyone dependent on public charity who refuses to
undertake work "without a sufficient reason" and a fine of £500 or a
year's imprisonment to anyone who encourages refusal to work by the
granting of relief. Notice that the accomplice is punished more heavily
than the principal culprit. The idea is clearly to deprive every striker