The Controller and the Ox

OUovi (L BELGL4N INFORMATION CENTER • 630 FFFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK. N. Y. VOL. II, No. 40 NEW YOKE, N. Y. NOVEMBEll 14, 1!)42 All material published in NEWS FROM BELGIUM may be reprinted without permission. Please send copies of material in which quotations are used to this office. These periodical bulletins may be obtained on request from the Editor: BELGIAN INFORMATION CENTER, Room 3064, 630 Fifth Ave., New York CIRCLE 6-2450 loouoc uB>H The Controller and the Ox To prevent clandestine slaughter of ani• It sounded good, but a few days after this mals in Belgium the Germans have pro• marvelous discourse the already-hungry in• claimed a number of decrees of extreme habitants of a small Flemish town saw in severity. Not only are heavy fines imposed their local station a freight car full of pota• on those who are convicted of this misde• toes being shipped to Germany. On the meanor but in some cases even the death freight car the Germans had affixed a huge penalty can be pronounced. Punishing the sign: "Gift of the Belgian women to their death of a pig by the death of a man seems German sisters." The small town went with• to fit in exactly with Nazi philosophy. out potatoes for several weeks but Frau In the beginning the Germans tried to Miiller und Frau Schmidt had a wonderful get the collaboration of the Belgians in time: they received not only a message of order to organize the distribution of food good will from a conquered nation but they in the country. Their arguments sounded got a present along with it. "Krieg," they sensible and their appeal to the officials and said, "it's wonderful!" In a borough of to the public was a marvel of logistics and Brussels the paternal Germans requisitioned common sense. "If nobody does any hoard• 175 head of cattle; they would take care of ing," they said, "there will be food enough the distribution of the meat among the for everyone. But every producer, every population. They did. They allotted 150 farmer, should tell exactly what he can head of cattle to themselves and 25 to the contribute to the food supply and we, with town. Through the ration system, the one paternal benevolence and due severity for million German soldiers who at the begin• transgressors, will distribute the amount ning of the war were stationed in Belgium, equally among all. But we should of course among a population of eight million, re• know exactly how much there is and where ceived three times as much as the Belgians everything is stored and produced." and the German civilians received twice as NEWS FEOM BELGIUM NOVEMBEH 14, 1942 much. They still do. Noticing all these re• The radio in Belgium was an official in• markable demonstrations of German pater• stitution, government-owned and managed. nalism, the Belgians organized the black The Germans took it over, dismissed the market. For some time it permitted those entire staff and put in some of their men who had money to get some supplementary to run the show along Nazi lines. The big provisions, but as time went on prices went modern building is full of German soldiers. up excessively and the black market became Recently these gentlemen bought an ox on practically the privilege of the happy few. the black market; it was a choice piece, a However, a great feeling of solidarity among delightful morsel. Every employee in the all classes of society prevailed, and accord• building received written notice of the ing to all reports those who were in a posi• fact and was ordered to buy 400 grams at tion to help did so very effectively and 85 francs a kilogram (1,000 grams or 2.2 generously. pounds) which means that it was not exact• ly a bargain. At that moment the Germans got hungry But in a radio station news travels fast too. They had all the money they wanted. and in some way or another a food con• They just printed it, that's all! They re• troller was informed of what had happened. sorted to the black market too, and when He did some profound thinking, he reread people objected to that practice, the Briis- the solemn ordinances of his German mas• seler Zeitung openly came out for it. It was ters and decided that Fate had chosen him the strangest situation: on the one hand the to show that nobody is above the law, not Germans loading more and more food con• even German radio officials. trol ordinances onto the Belgians, prescrib• The controller appealed to four of his ing terrible punishment for food traffickers, aides and the impressive delegation, repre• on the other hand the semi-official Gazette senting Equal Justice For All, marched saying that the Germans used the black down to the Brussels radio station. They market and had a perfect right to do so. called on the manager of the building and By the beginning of this year the Ger• stated their case. mans found the situation so confused that Then things really began to Happen. A they decided to do something about it. They hot argument followed. In fact it was so hot discovered that the Belgian courts, which that the Germans got hold of the delegation, were supposed to deal with offenses relating stripped them and gave them the grandest to food regulations, sometimes congratulated beating they had ever dreamed of in their the transgressors, saying that nobody could lives. A regular third degree special, with survive without indulging in black market all the trimmings. When the Germans had traffic. Therefore the Germans put up spe• thus expounded their view of the question, cial Nazi courts to deal with those cases. the five unfortunate controllers, victims of These tribunals are also to protect that a very high conception of their duty, found locusthorde of food controllers the Germans themselves back where they started, all appointed to protect their system. Some of bruised and beaten on the Place Sainte them get shot, some get beaten when on Croix, in front of the radio building. duty—in short these defenders of law and It is a dreadful thing when five people order are an unhappy lot and need pro• who still have some illusions about Nazi tection very much. Justice in September 1942, have to lose A small incident which happened recent• them. Let us hope that the tide of the war ly shows to what extent the Germans mean will not give them any chance to recover business. Like an Andersen's fairy tale it from this unexpected coup, from this "most allows us to lift up the roof of the house unkindest cut of all." the Nazis built and look inside. —THE EDITOR. [362} NEWS FROM BELGIUM NOVEMBER 14, 1942 signed by its agent on July 12, 1941, which 1. Occupied Belgium stated that "the Bank of France has always been and still is ready and willing to meet its obliga• A. The War tions under the contract." Belgian Minister Comments on American The attorney for Belgium pointed out that Offensive—On Saturday night, November 7, since the spring of 1941, the Bank of France Mr. Albert de Vleeschauwer, Minister of Col• has "indulged in changes of position, equivoca• onies, just returned from the Belgian Congo, tions and inconsistencies," and that that "makes addressed his countrymen in Belgium and in it imperative that the Bank of France be com• the Belgian Congo over the radio at the request pelled in advance of trial and promptly, to de• of the Office of War Information. He commented fine clearly and irrevocably its claims." on the situation in Africa, pointing out the role V ... — played by Belgian colonial troops in the cam• War Criminals' Punishment Guaranteed paign of Ethiopia, which was part of the pre• —Questioned by the British press on punish• lude to the decisive United Nations action in ment of war criminals, Mr. Marcel de Baer, Lybia and in Northern Africa. As the shadow President of the Belgian Supreme Court in of great things to come, the impressive American Great Britain answered: offensive should be, Mr. de Vleeschauwer said, "Belgian public opinion has expressed great a tremendous encouragement to the Belgians satisfaction at the declaration made jointly by in their sorrow and hardships. the Lord Chancellor of London and President V ... — Roosevelt. Petain Named Responsible for Belgian "We are cognizant of the Palace of St. James Gold Loss—The Bank of France admitted in statement made January 13, 1942, and the state• papers filed in U. S. Supreme Court November ments of President Roosevelt and Mr. Churchill 6 that it had turned over more than $200,000,- in October 1941 and August 1942, but we now 000 in Belgian gold to the German Keichsbank, are assured that practical measures are to be according to The New York Times, November 7. taken to see that these statements are put into The Bank of France stated, however, that this effect. The fact that the United States and Great was done under "compulsion" of an order of the Britain have decided to cooperate with the nine "Head of the French State"—Marshal Henri signatory countries to the St. James declaration Philippe Petain. Because of this "compulsion," is of prime importance in this regard. the Bank of France said, it was "relieved of any "Two precious principles have resulted from further obligation" to return the gold to the the October 7, 1942, declaration. The first is National Bank of Belgium, according to the that, this time, judgment of war criminals will Times report.

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