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On this Page 30
pEDGIUM AND ITS HERO-KIJTO,
"'Sweet are the uses pt adversitj^
Iu the hour of tribulation nations as
well as Individuals sftnietimes find
themselves. It Is so with Belglumj
which has lost the whole world, buj
has- found its own. soulj and it is
with the soldier-King Albert, who jbhS
been temporarily robbed of his ^Inp
dom, but has gained tire love of hjs
people and the admiration of man
kind. Modern history offers ho parajl|i
to the base betrayal and bloody marfefo
dom of the Belglansj.and neither 4$fefc
It provide a similarly dramatic lljJN
tratlon of the unflinching recognition
of duty, the heroic perseverance lit 4
hopeless task, and the fortitude In facg *
of unimaginable' sorrows, which fcift
characterized that courageous
people during- these . dark
in tbeip history. "Others
saved; themselves they
not save." - Kom-Inally Germiai
< which overran the •• kingdg
from Liege to Antwerp, js ihe vlctojf
ithe unequal fight; morally Belglunj Bftfl. '
'conquered. The handful of Spartan^
land not the triumphant hosts of
l Xerxes, made Thermopyle Immortal
and the gallant army under.' AlbSrr,
'which for a while held the gate against
the Teuton horde, will take a more
.honourable place in" the annals of, tne
-Great War thaji the German le^pC
which broke Belgium's heart, but Could :
not tame Its spirit.; -
I When the Germans decided to teegt.'
.Belgium as 'a 'road instead of an '
'pendent kingdom, they did not dr^fjjpr -
! that the Belgians would so ficrceiy^Ud .
'effectively uphold the formal "No
Thoroughfare" notice. They saw ft _
'flourishing and pleasure-loving peopJ^L
'immersed In their wealthy industrlelj
and insufficiently armed, according
Prussian Ideas; and they imagined thpt -
J the slender Belgian' Army would not ;
' even momentarily hold the Kaiser's:
'disciplined millions, or their ^fences
withstand the science of Krupp. They.'
did not know—perhaps , the- Belgians
I themselves did not know—how brlghtw .
'the flame of independence glowed In -
'the hearts of a gallant people. PrbiS-^.
'sianism, with Its cynical reliance to . ;
I force, counted the Belgian Array, .aTO "
Its rathole spies wormed. oiit - .tt®
' secrets of the forts: It forgotjto reej^to
J with that Intangible factor^-the pik
slbnate national spirit which Is more
1 powerful than any guns. It forgot f!t> _
reckon "with the noble Indiguatibh of _a „
'people. bCh-ayed .and endangered.
calculated the strength of Belgium's
'armour; It-forgot to weigh the soul of .
Belgium. The awakeniug _£&jrie at
Liege. Gladstone said that, there is no .
^bulwark like the breasts ofjtree mto.
Tie Germans found that there lsf no
fighting force like the eonsctoiisiiess oi
'a rjghteous canse. For .daye.tjiey ^eg|. -
In vain agdinst the barrier of freemen . '
-fighting for their imperilled? ftbertiei^l ;
and when the inevitable end camesthtsy.
-vented ther rage and hate'od Aw people
yirho had dared to bar th<fir - .way ttt
prance, and wrote An blood and tears
a; chapter of Infamy which hsa xnpycil
*!the world fo, grfefAnd anger, andjwlll
tomato as. an Ineffaceable: wndwna*
; tlon of German militarism.. . .
was literally crucified, bub Its heroic -
pepple a^etiUl.to8thtoedi b.v,.ftc.>l»cpe .;

$?hat maimer of mou Is the klngdom.
led?i King of this heroic nation, Bel
gium's Albert the Great, whose
fortieth birthday is celebrated
' today? . During the reign - of

^eo^bldl , il, whose regime - in

the Congo associated his country wifch

- $ Sombre stigma, Albert was almost
tyjjmown. His uncle's jealousy con
^tputed to keep him in ihe background
Xiebppld, who won the admiration but
- wtor the hearts of his subjects, knew?
_ mat . the handsome young inau would
- ^Cedily acquire a wide popularity with

0le people; hud his judgment proved fro

be correct. Upon their accession to
toe throne Albert and his gracious
Queen established themselves in tine

. hqarts of the people; and His Majesty's
^soldierly qualities and kingly fortitude

have, since the war caused bis stricken
people's affection"to" deepen into rever
ipce and devotion. They have rallied
ground the monarch who has shared
toeir sorrows and their hardships-i-wlao
iia| fought beside his soldiers and par
taken of their rough fare. Simple alike
4u 1i)s public and private life, the

of tob Belgian^ tolled for th? "welfaare
of Ms subjects before the war, and lies
foiight for It since.. He is "The People's

King,''-the most popular who has ever
sat on the throne of Belgium. An un
kind fate has compelled a monarch
devoted to the arts of peace to lead

Into,battle a nation similarly uuwar
llkej ahd both have proved their
tjqjdity in the field against the hest
drllied armies in Europe. A bright arid
prosperous future is predicted for hitn
When the ruthless invader shall. Jnrve
been thrust back across the border of
bis ravaged kingdom. A tribute ' of
words seems a poor solace to offer to a
-Iving aud his people who have been so
cruelly used, but it should' be some
comfort to the Belgians in their afH !c
iidh- to be assured of the gratitude,
sympathy, and admiration' of the
British peoples.. That alone, of course,
Is not enough;: contributions must con
tinue to pour In to succour the starving
community; and the celebrations In
bopdur. of Belgium Day will doubtless
impart a needed..stimulus to the local
relief .movement. In the larger aspect,
Britain' aii'd her Allies will hot lay
•down their arms until , the eagle's
talons shall have been, withdrawn from
the, bleeding heart of a noble nation,

and a proportion at least of t.li£ Incal

culable damage wrought made good.'

$