VOL. IV, No. 9 MARCH 4, 1944 NEWS FROM BELGIUM AND THE BELGIAN CONGO BELGIAN INFORMATION CENTER fit 6 30 FIFTH AVENUE. NEW YORK. N. Y. CIRCLE 6 2450 An 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 FREE ON REQUEST. One Man Dies Roughly speaking, the official, supposed to be the nine provinces which com• moderator of the provincial pose present-day Belgium counsel, the maintainer of correspond to the duchies, the legal traditions and laws. counties and ecclesiastical His powers are relatively principalities which small; his moral position is through the ages evolved comparatively high. Being from a group of aristocratic appointed for life, as a rule possessions to a democratic, he becomes an element of united country. The only conciliation and of peace. souvenir of these feudal There are no definite origins is the custom of giv• rules which determine the ing medieval titles to the choice of the governors members of the royal fam• whose appointments have to ily. For the rest, the former be presented by the Minister county of Flanders, the mar- of the Interior to the King quisate of Antwerp, the for approval. Although in principality of Liege and the Frangois Bovesse most cases a governorship is county of Namur are just far from being a sinecure, administrative units of the Belgian State. only sedate people tvere generally selected They each have a governor, who is not a for these nine posts. Traditionally they had delegate of the people nor an elected officer, been given to the representatives of the local but who is a representative of the King in nobility, but that tradition was scrapped af• his province. He is not a politician, he is an ter the last war. Instead of looking for the NEWS FROM BBLOIUM UAHCH 4, 1944 social prestige to be derived from the pres• But every function is what the man who ence of cm elderly nobleman a$ governor, exercises it makes of it. There were in Bel• the government preferred to entrust the gium insignificant governors and bnlliant public affairs of the provinces to younger ones: some were solemn and boring like rmn men who had been trained in different serv• on Sunday; others were scholarly men and ices or who had taken part in politics. A great administrators; still others were liter• craving for efficiency took the place of rev• ary minded. Those belonging to the last cat• erence for archaeology. egory not only took good care of the inter• But still something solemn, a little out• ests of their domain, but they became its moded, remained the attribute of this office. bards, its singers. So enthusiastic cotdd they The governors were housed in venerated old become abotu their small territory that they buildings, most of the time in premises were ready to dng its praises with a love so which had been built by bishops in the sev• exclusive as to push the rest of the world enteenth and eighteenth century. Recep• into the badtg^ound. tion rooms were enormous, beautiful white Such was Francois Bovesse, Governor of and black checkered floors were to be seen Namur Province. His domain is one of the all over the place, Eltdforate chandeliers most /uctttresque parts of Waltonia: a threw just enou^ li^ in the age-tarnished dozen Uwdy rivers rush tkroitgh it, itdnding mirrors of the salons not to show too dearly throttffi narrow green valleys; there is Di- the gold stucco crumbling from the ceilings nant, on which WUhelm H wept two beauti• tchere cupids and nymphs had circled for ful erocodUe tears. Ids army having destroy• centuries around a benetaolent Neptune or ed it and murdered its inhabiiants; and a not OMierthaste Venus. there are also the grottoes of Han, **big§er h teas fitting that in such surrounding and better" than the Kentucky eaves; there the host should be pmpaiy decoradxe. A ere scores of old castles and eitad^is on kemy gold bnmded uniform was the gain- strtteffc heif^tts, reeatUng fierce fi^its in mmr's dress on aaleum aecusians. Thusfeudal at- times; and Acre is Nmuur, the ettfi- tirei he greeted Ae KiMig and JistingrddiedtmL, where people assert their dsseness U* tistUirs; Ams, foBomimg the Holy Smam- LaAuty by euUatg oue «^ Adr mnetutes mtemt,, he murdhed throm^ the '^Bouletmdcrooked ad mfumuT L^»snd» figmriJt in Oreetx rnnumd. the aU athedrmU whatAu am eoumtry, ffwe^utty md abimdasitfy, Imi^feeMdk^mrdi^iomspneesmmwommiGomermm- Btmesm mm borm there. In the Arm^ Ae Umm. His ffumedams wereImt mum- wmr he wm ht Ae frmt tases amd su^' iifiM, Ins «briKs mmned amd deSmle. His tmmed. m setoere wssmd rnUdk resulted fm m^Sinranee WHS a{^m clidDIl^^ ffimAd iaumbdimm. He etttered pstiiies md kamei ky A^ nomgm- uf one (or (oasAar «^ beemme MtsmHer of EdmesAm^ He mK$ am tilm Mig «Alaies im Ms diemmnL. Them rsp-mdemt delemder «ijf Ae emhmnd pormumy vwmM&tiem «^ Am ffmngillm parmmmsd imlts'«gff fflle WaBBmm ggsaaOry.. BUuamg aSmedsmed mA^ n^mttimms Ms mOmfmrmKis Sna ernnanm-Ms esady mm&ataem m hegmme <m (asOgur^ hie itttU a^ffaSn^ Bait A^ immiy amaM^ fommmairassd Ms wesumM hsms m Ae d^eme ^ itdu^ mmtw mttnvsttaai tla> Ms sgomOaS^ ttffAs ideem aiff Ae IMemd Pmmy:. He mm m maeaSmA Qtmr tUmr ^uaaaxss^ xmsgu^cttaB^gSmmaaB^ Aff iman^ eu ^!Bsd imi«sr» <s>f vwsdy ttiAL/, ^nmimtmtt ta> pimMoRffm- piAWe: otiiBtlam,(and mmi mlbeai wmag, As ^ema&jvd <str^<m tut^n^ tAs wAmasal&m. ceff anmtBmdbiffmMi»m^^Msimmmi$imam«»gmaie<tm«0tsgi 7mindl(ttimiaais.Tnm^gwmman-anBaM,,eaB^ aiff ffia£si^Hoe was sSM .vgauffaiAeeag: Mvd d^ (dn^iSi^aammyfltk^imint^ame^ldlmi^iia Sj^b^tMymasplBcBdgi. ^iteir US ymmtmPear-' aficK nuugc. MARCH 4, 1944 mur Province. He devoted some of his time goo<{ citisen, tftat brave soldier, that distin^ to poetry and became the poet of the Meuse guiahed imtriot. river. The beauty of the Walloon cowury- In the course of this global war, this crime side inspired hinh gave to every one of his is but a minor incident. A middh'aged man publie uttemnees a warmth and a lyrical falls down the stairs of his home, riddled quality which mis quite unusual in public with bullets. He leaves a widow and two life. It um one of the colorful events in children. One man dies. On the two EurO' Belgian circles when this man stood up af^ pean fronts thousands of young soldiers fall ter dinner^ resting from time to time with every day. What sense is there then in tin* his hand on the table^ because of his phys*derlining the murder in an obscure provin^ ieal handicap^ and before people who hod dal toww of Belgium of a former official of heard him many times already^ spok^ of the that country? wdl^^ streams,, and grottoes of the Namur Fighting ermi@8 are followed by war eor» emmtry^ For a few mututes the h^Umtnds respmdenu who t^ us a fern hours after ^fpolikmquie^downtoliatmaittmtiv^y the evmts how the battle proceeded^ who m the drm smi$ of a mm profoundly in sing the praise of the hero^ We see and lorn wiUh th% Imd of his hirth^ to whi^ he meet brme mm who emne ba^ from the ¥m ^xing eU his m&rgy md a memwr^ms frmt t»t^us tftetr mry„ The armies are dm^tim* wrtimlate^h&reismisnolong^obsmire.But Acmrding to his ixmruetims he hft Bei- outofmocmpijedemtntrynemfilt^spair* ftttm in IWi %ft» the inmsim md wm in in^ys Hundreds of people die vdth »mredy ^im^ «/ SglguNi r^u^e^ in myhodyheairingofth^f«^Mo^ofthiem Frmm, H% wmt 6«dfe t® hi» muntry md are humbk dti^mts^ m^tmm^ pimn hm* vm mv«^y Mtaekitd md phy^imtly miolmh est m^n whio emdd not meihw their dim»M ^bythif; Fmmts^ wh» hutd mme old gmd^ m the Need re^im^ who taiked or «md pa* firm heti^mt in fr^mk md triotieeUymd therefore died^Thi» time m» dm^^iM^y. Th)^ N%eei» emrm pr^mnt^ of tft« hi^m offieiid» of the cmntry fatk him frmi w^mmin^ hi» dudiis m ^smrm^y in the hmh of Bei^tmn. It mkd hf^ vi^^thi ^^tmt^y hxiK^ ^hj^^^d I®d^emid F«s@(st pmty hm sem the hmd* ^hm^ H% in Nmmt m « pr<- writing m, the wiiL It mem» thm Hke the eaptim ti^ they fe^ ^h&m»^ms he* citdiw^Si S® vi^ti dud hit ©iiife©d!y th)t huid be^n of iMi^®fMrf htitred^ ovi^t^hud* eimd hy the mmn^ dismt^ to G^fmm^*% tn IMl the ttdK^ of their gied*, they sw^^fe^dterf in h)svin^ h\m wfcslcrf m^d s^n* vmu t® t«ife@ vm^^emnee m thme who me ^mmi t® «^ m^mths in prkm, whi^ mler«/lfyr^pm^efer•itseemin^^ Theykitt mtv^inSnm^ mmtmly\ mnv^ys In the mn^ 4 Im weefes ««H!y in dte mi»win%s mmt ^hm Frm^ei» Bm^mie died, « mmtyr frkmd/s h^th vn* ^<e «m«t mtmde B^ilgutm wnder^tmd frmt. i»w*s4^. Mf-. #©««S(se h)md tfce «Jfe©s®sfei*v thi» tm^msAiK: mtvm th«t v>imry hm mme H% dm»mi)f% wtefcfttg t® ^mjfifmit ®Hfe th^ h^ $tK@@t hm h%* di^tinet thrm^ dte wtt^t ®/ dte mm> ^ 4i)^. ffmi- «s*assi»s 1^ ^«0et hi§ie^ =Tbi: lonm m NEWS FROM BELGIUM JifARCii 4, 1944 heavy machinery removed from Belgium to the 1.