THRIFTY DUTCHMEN TURNED
INTO DESPERADOES BY
Genuine Shock Has Come to Those Who in Old Days Admired Indus­
trious Hollander Whose Only Occupation Now Is in
Deeds of Daring and Robbery— Country Is
Now Paradise for Thieves.
The Hague.— To those who knew
the Hollander before the w ar ns it
quiet, well-behaved, thrifty and Indus­
trious soul, content to pursue the even
tenor of his wuy and sticking religi­
ously to orderliness and good behav­
ior, his transformation since the sign­
ing of the armistice last November
will come as a genuine shock.
Crime, In the pre-war days, was at
Its minimum In Holland. H er stand­
ing army of some 00,000 w as com­
posed of young men who served their
allotted time In the military service
of their country with the minimum of
grumbling, returning cheerfully to the
Plow, or the dulry, or the fisheries, ns
soon ns their term of army service
w as over.
helmlna do it.” The plow did not ap­
peal nearly so mueli as the light field
equipment along the frontier.
The
long hikes along the towpnths were
not nearly so attractive ns the short
stretches between sentry posts on the
border
between
Holland's
enstern
provinces nnd the Westplmllan or
Prussian country.
It was found a
hard matter to get the Hollander back
Into a civilian Job, not because the Job
was not there but because the erst­
while thrifty Dutchman no longer
cared for the Job.
m
Fopd Shortage a Cause.
For many months now life fo r the
law-abiding Dutchman and bis family
has been nnythlng but a paradise and
the shortage of food has been but n
small matter In the grand total of this
general unhappiness.
Except for an ever watchful eye on
her frontier, Hollund lived a calm,
contented existence, turning out her
The prlnclpnl thing tlmt has been
world-famous cheeses and her per­
haps, more Infamous gins, her citizens worrying Holland bus been the bur­
secure In the feeling that theirs was glar. who has since before the Christ­
a land where the law was observed, mas holidays become a sort of nation­
where their chattels were safe even al Institution, like the cheese nnd the
though their front doors remained un­ gin. Acts of violence are of dally. In
locked and where the Infrequent of­ fact, of hourly, occurrence In the
fender ngnlnst the pennl code could country districts as well ns In the
not hope to get ills full iinine'ln the cities. Not alone must doors be se­
papers, much less his photograph with curely locked nnd bolted at night, but
If during the daytime the household­
a pretty border around It.
Today nil this Is changed. From a er turns his back to look over his
land of safety Holland has been trans­ chickens In the bnrnynrd without first
formed Into a land of danger nnd the closing his front door he will most
Hollander— that Is, he who is repre­ likely return to the "pronk kamer”
sented In the ranks o f the plow boy, (p arlor) only to find every article of
the driver of the horse or donkey Intrinsic value hns disappeared.
The theft of silverware, Jewelry,
along the tow pntli, the churner of the
butter and. the cream, the farm hand clothes nnd even pots nnd pans from
or the miller’s assistant— hns been the kitchen Is reported to the police
transformed Into n shiftless, lazy, dis­ In every town nnd hamlet on an nver-
orderly ne’er-do-well, whose principal 'nge o f once every hour during the 2-1
hours of the day. The flow of com­
occupation Is burglary!
plaints Is so stendy that In most
It Is a New Crime.
places one man Is assigned to do noth­
Burglary in Holland was not n usual
ing hut record these reports of bur­
crime in the gpre-wnr days. That fact
glaries.
makes the present wave of lawless­
While, of course, It would be unfair
ness all the more striking. The gront
to say that every one of the demobil­
truth that has dawned upon the coun­
ized soldiers hns turned burglar after
try Is that the 800,Otto Hollanders who
receiving his discharge from the army,
have been doing military service ns
it Is safe to say that onc-Jmlf of the
non-combatants since tne beginning of
800,000 troops has turned Its atten­
the war have come to bate work and
tion to either burglary, petty or grand
to bate having to provide for their
larceny or highway robbery ns a
own living, after enjoying food, cloth­
means to keep the w olf from the door
ing and shelter at government expense
without an undue amount of physical
for nearly five years.
exertion.
When Holland mobilized her young
’flu* visitor In Holland, although he.
manhood, middle-aged manhood nnd
Is still much In the minority because
full-grown manhood during the first
of
the passport
restrictions,
hns
six months of the war, when there
lenrned to keep Ids hand an his w al­
was momentary danger of Qermnny
let pocket nnd Ids fingers firmly
suddenly getting it Into her disordered
around the end of a stout cane when­
brain to invade and despoil the Neth­
ever he ventures out Into the street
erlands ns well as Belgium, the Hutch
or nlong a country path, once Hol­
government provided for the support
land’s delight and the safest prome­
o f the families of the soldiers whom
nade In the wide world.
she mobilized ns well ns for the sup­
Daring Highway Robberies.
port of the soldiers themselves.
In her well-ordered house, Holland
could not see 800,000 families In want
because 800,000 male supporters were
taken for the defense of the father­
land. She provided tfils support as
punctiliously and as carefully as she
provided for the thousands of Belgian
and French refugees, who hnve lived
on the country’s bounty from the day
o f the slogo of Antwerp to the day
that Marshal Foch handed his foun­
tain pen to the Qermun nrmlstiee com­
missioners nnd said: "Sign I”
W ith the demobilization that began
during the latter days of last Novem­
ber the discharged soldiers fottpd It
Irksome to resume their duties ns fam­
ily providers Instead of “letting W il-
HAS MANY DECORATIONS
The “kwajongems,” who used to
stand In proper awe of the well-
dressed man or woman In the public
thoroughfares of the city, now openly
nnd brazenly snatch at watch chulns,
Indies’ hags or pocket hooks that are
carried In the hands by the ladies.
Nine times In ton the culprit mhnnges
to make n clean getaway In the crowd
of sympathetic ruffians, who gather
quickly at the first sign of disorder
In the street.
Children sent to the stores by their
mothers are often the vlrtlms of the
thieves, who take away their pennies,
nnd market baskets on the way to the
expectant housewives very often go
astray and ultimately reach the dens
COMEr TO HELP THE GIRL SCOUTS
General Sir Robert Bnden-Powell, founder of the boy scout organisation,
Is here from Knglnnd to help the girl scouts, which organisation did such
w onderful w o rk In England during the war. In the group, left to right, Mrs.
A rthur O. Choate, commissioner of Manhattan council of girl scouts; Sir
Robert Buden-Powell S « d Lady Baden l ’owell ; Mrs. Juliette Low, president
and founder of the Girl Scouts of America.
1— German financial delegates after a meeting with allied representatives In Versailles. 2— Anti-Wilson demon-
jtrntlon In Rome over the Flume question. 8— French child at the entrance of her subterranean home in the ruined
Ustrlct of France.
GENERAL LERO Y UPTON
Gen. Leroy Upton, who recently re­
turned from France, has received the
distinguished service cross and medal,
the erolx de guerre with two palms,
and the cross of the Order of St.
Michael nhd St. George, for distin­
guished service in the war.
'of the underworld, now a real menace
In the economic nnd civic life of the
Netherlands.
The sume spirit of disregard o f the
conventions that obtains throughout
the country, as fnr ns the rights of
others is concerned, obtains in the na­
tion’s parliament— the Stnaten Gen-
eraal. Ultra-bolshevistic members oc­
cupy sents In the lower chamber and
openly advocate doctrines which, a
year before the w ar began In 1914,
would not hnve been listened to by any
self-respecting Dutchman. The self-re­
specting Dutchman must listen to
these doctrines now, for they are
prenched on every street corner, from
the forums nnd fcom the platform of
the governing body, whenever the
radical wing gets a chance to give
voice to Its sentiments.
Blocked at the Frontier.
The government does everything hu­
manly possible to prevent the Influx of
the rndlcnl element from Germany
and every day dozens of would-be in­
truders, be they bolshevlst or Sparti-
cus, nre turned back at the frontier
with the ndinonltlon to go East. But
many slip through, with the result
that this formerly quiet, orderly land
Is fnst being poisoned by the seed of
violence thnt has been planted In Its
fertile soil from the very day that the
ono-tlme kaiser entered the country as
a refugee and the one-time crown
prince took up his Involuntary abode
on the Island of Wlerlngen.
There Is enough of the regular army
left to prevent any serious concerted
movement by the forces of the mal­
contents, especially as they are not
organized and no leader hns yet put
In nn appearance. The police in the
various districts, too, still observe the
street discipline of the pre-war days,
although they hnve not been very suc­
cessful In stamping out the lawless­
ness thnt Is everywhere evident, they
are, nt least, holding the unruly ele­
ment In check nnd, to a certnln de­
gree, holding It In awe of municipal
authority.
The principal hope of the better
educated class of Hollanders lies In
nn early restoration of the regular
channels of food Importation.
Relief Goes On
After W a r Ends
Work With American Expedition­
ary Forces to Continue
for Some Time.
EFFORTS ARE CO-ORDINATED
One W a r W orker for Every 150 Men
and One Hut Operated for Every
900 Men— Headquarters Inau­
gurates New Plan.
Paris.— Although the tumult and the
shouting have died over here, nnd the
cnptnlns, having assisted In effecting
the exit of the kings, nre themselves
beginning to depart, the American pro­
gram of w ar work with the American
expeditionary
forces
“carries
on”
with Increased resources and effective­
ness.
The other'’ day the American expedi­
tionary forces took stock of the agen­
cies from the homeland that nre serv­
ing the doughboy. The stock-tnking
was preliminary to the newly institut­
ed general hendqunrters program for
co-ordinating the work of-these agen­
cies to the best advantage of the men.
And the results are Illuminating. W ith
approximately 1,500,000 doughboys still
In France nnd occupied Germnny, there
is now one American wnr worker over
here for every 150 men nnd one hut
apernted by nn American wnr work
organization for every 900 men. The
totals ns given In the resume for all
the wnr agencies, exclusive of the
Amerlcnn Red Cross, nre 9.018 men
nnd women workers and 1,656 huts.
Of the total number of workers, 8.350
nre representatives of the Voting Men’s
Christian association, leaving the over­
sens w ar work strength of all other
organizations at 1,268. O f the total
number of huts, 1,507 are operated by
tile Young Men’s Christian nssocin-
tlon, nnd the remainder, 149 by all
other wnr work ngencles.
athletic and amusement programs ; de­
termine the proper disposition of huts,
restaurants and entertainment halls;
recommend readjustments where rec­
reational facilities are Inadequate or
where there Is duplication of effort,
nnd to notify w ar work ngencles of the
location of all units. They will decide
whether there are too many or too
few w ar workers In their territories
and where necessary, will obtain de­
tails of non-commissioned officers and
men to old the w ar workers.
The w elfare officers will have Juris­
diction over free distribution of food
nnd supplies by the various w ar work
organizations.
The Young Men’s Christian associa­
tion, which Is operating 1,600 huts In
Trance, is said to have expended half
the amount which will he available to
It for use In France. It has operated
the canteen service at n loss. With
the army tnking over the canteen
service, however, the expenses of the
Young Men’s Christian association will
be reduced.
Some Idea of the expenditure made
Japanese Courts
Simple and Quiet
No Wrangling of Counsel Allowed
and Sentences Generally
Are Fair.
CASES TRIED WITHOUT JURY
Many Unusual Points of Difference
Between American Tribunals and
Their Counterparts In Japan—
Minor Cases to Police.
All Increased.
The stock taking showed that every
one of the American agencies hns In­
creased Its personnel In the five
months since the signing of the ar­
mistice— the Young Men’s Christian ns-
soclntion, for Instnnce, hnvlng ndded
726 workers to Its strength.
W ith these resources at lmud the
general staff of the Amerlcnn expe­
ditionary forces hns undertaken to su­
pervise nnd regulate the service given
Now Land of Unrest.
to soldiers by the auxiliary organiza-.
Just now the Hollander Is anything tlons. General w elfare officers are to
but tractable. H e will drop his ham­ be appointed, one to each combat divi­
mer, his shdvel, his hoe or his churn­ sion, each similar unit o f the service
ing handle at ‘the drop of a hat or of supplies and each higher headquar­
the whisper o f a labor agitator, lie ters. Their duties will be to supervise
Imagines thnt he Is the under dog of
every ijjnn who possesses n nickel
more than he does.
From a land of calm, peaceful,
Ammonia Guns Turned
seething quiet. Holland hns changed
on “ Rum Detectives”
Into a land o f unrest. It oozes out of
the very ground nt every step one
Konnebnnk, Me.— Residents of
takes. Lack of grains keeps the grist
York county who hnve been
mills Idle, which consequently fail to
shocked by the Introduction of
provide work for those who might be
ammonia pistols Into the rum
Induced to take up th^ broken strands
traffic. Deputy Sheriff Perley D.
of their tasks and don the snow white
Greenlenf o f this town being
of the miller for the blue of the sol­
shot up when he attempted to
dier.
hold up a touring cross-state
Stagnation In shipping, owing to the
car, are reminded by old-timers
restrictions placed upon the country
that ammonia Is not • new­
by the allies, has had Its natural ef­
fangled weaikm. Ho Is not the
fect upon Holland’s Inland wnterways
first York county officer to be
commerce, with the result that thou­
overpowered by these fumes add
sands of men who were employed
turned from hts official duties.
| along the numerous canals, both ns
The other Instances occurred
boatmen nnd tow drivers, before the
at Saco, It 1« recalled, when a
war, now find their vocations gone,
raiding
officer attempted
to
i This Is another Important Industry
catch a certain drug store with
| which. If It could resume Its normal
the goods.
As the officer en­
proportions, would greatly reduce the
tered through r back window
number o f the unemployed.
there was an Immediate “gas at­
Over everything, however, looms thè
tack” launched In the form o f a
one larg-' fact that the formerly cor­
bottle o f ammonia from a handy
rect Hollander could so readily be
shelf In the back shop. It did
changed Into a man with criminal In­
Its work effectively, and that
stincts and to such an extent a « to
was the end of that raid.
make the entire country, practically,
• burglar's paradise.
for w ar work In the period which i
passed with the Institution of the pro­
gram o f co-ordlnatloh Is shown In the
record of the Young Men’s Christian
association. This organization ha(Pln-:
vested $4,500,000 In overseas huts andi
their equipment up to the first of the!
year, with an average maintenance
cost of more than $70,000 a month.:
It gave away In combat areas from last;
M ay to the end of November goods
valued nt more than $700,000, and Its!
Christmas gifts to the doughboys last
year represented a -value of more than
$500,000. Its loss In the operation of
canteens, done on borrowed cnpitnl,
w as $600,000. It has expended $1,750,-
000 for sporting goods for free use of
the soldiers. It has leased nnd operat­
ed 37 chocolate and biscuit factories
nnd sdVen sawmills In France to meet
the needs of the work. It hns dis­
tributed more than $2,000,000 worth ofi
books, literature nnd Bibles free to the
soldiers. The entertainment bill of the
Young Men’s Christian association
overseas for the- last six months had
increased to $400,000 a month In Feb­
ruary. In three months after tbs sign­
ing of the armistice It gave 11,181
moving picture presentations, repre­
senting an aggregate of 83,085.000 feet
of film. The Young Men’s Christian
association has transmitted free of
charge for the soldiers up to April 5
of this year 312,316 remittances to the
value of $18,027,797.00.
Tokyo.— A Japanese criminal court
Is almost as difficult to get Into ns a
spectator tfs It Is difficult to get out of
as a prisoner, but there are enough un-
usunl points of difference between
American tribunals and their counter­
parts In Japan to make at least one
visit Instructive, If not profitable.
Criminal trials In Japan nre public,
but not blatantly so, nnd Idle curi­
osity Is not encouraged. To be per­
mitted to even enter the grounds sur­
rounding the court buildings one must
secure the formal permission of the
stern police official at the gate, aud
that permission Is only-secured through
the presentation of same good reason
why the solicitor should be permitted
to pass.
Once past the guardian o f the gate,
however, one may proceed Into the
courtroom Itself without trouble, pro­
vided always that he removes his hat
immediately be enters the building, re­
moves his overcoat, If he happens to
be wearing one, walks quietly nnd
holds his remarks and questions down
to n faint whisper. In the main court­
house In Tokyo, which houses the su­
preme court and the various local
courts, corresponding to the American
circuit courts, the corridors are lined
during the session l>y be-sworded gen­
darmes, between the rows of which the
one with business before the jndges
warily walks.
N o chance Is lost to
Impress upon everyone the fact that
the dignity of the law in Japan Is
something which must not he trifled
with.
Minor Cases to Police.
most every street, are simply kept
long enough to sober up nnd nre dis­
charged with a stern wnrnlng.
Once he hns been sent to headquar­
ters a prisoner's troubles commence.
A s a preliminary to all else he Is pho-,
togrnphed nnd finger printed, a de-|
elded reversal of the American prln-,
clple, which bars a man from the:
rogues’ gallery until he has been con­
victed of a felony. From the photo-,
graph room nnd the Ink pad the pris­
oner passes on for his “examination,”
a legalized third degree, held In nn un­
derground room where, without bene­
fit of counsel, he is sweated, perhaps,
fo r several days In succession.
Then after waiting his turn thq.prls-i
oner goes to the local court, where he;
faces a bench of usually four Judges,
one of whom Is head Judge nnd whoi
does all the questioning o f the wlt-i
nesses.
On the bench also sits the, ✓
prosecuting lawyer, with the lawyeri
for the defense occupying a desk and!
seat Immediately facing the head!
JudtH
Everything is solemn, everything lS|
decorous and, without a Jury to lm-i
press, there nre none of those flights
of oratory with which the American
lawyers call upon heaven to witness
either the scandalous nature o f the
prisoner’s crime or the halo o f Inno­
cence so plain to the attorney for the
defense. The prisoners sit in a pris­
oners’ box until their case is called,
when they stand one by one before the
judges and nre polished off in rapid,
succession.
Handling of Prisoners.
T he handling o f the prisoners Is pure
Japanese, however. Delivered at thei
courthouse for trial, the prisoners are
marched from the police wagbn In
single file handcuffed and tied togeth­
er by a stout rope thnt circles each
man's waist and Is twisted through his
obi.
The most unusual feature o f all to a
stranger is the fact that each prisoner
has his head covered by a wicker;
mask, more like an inverted waste-
paper basket than anything else, the
object of which Is to prevent recognl-,
tion o f the prisoner, to permit him to
hide his shame under the disguise and,
very possibly, to prevent the whole
Ordinary police court cases in Japan file from making a holt fo r liberty.
are disposed of In the police stations The sight o f a prisoner so arrayed Is
themselves and the police Inspectors ghastly, the mask bringing up the sug-.
In charge have tho power to exercise gestkm o f the hangman's cap. O nce*
a wide discretion. Ordinary drunks, in the prisoners’ box, however, the^
o f whom there are very few consider­ masks are removed, while the prison­
ing that almost every corner grocery ers sit with deeply bowed heads In am
store and every tea house and restau­ attitude of the utmost humility.
rant sells Intoxicants, and there are
Japanese courts have the name of{
sakl shops every hundred yards oa ah being fair and the bench is honest.