Having reached Paris, a
German aviator
Dropped 3 bombs in the area
of Gare de l’Est,
With the complete purpose of
damaging
Some part of the railway
lines and station.
1000's of people were
considered to be within
And nearby the station -
men, women, children
Seeking
exodus from the capital –
There
were no known military trains
Or
troops of any kind in the proximity –
It
seemed to be random one-man act.
With
no notification of Paris being under siege,
Is
seen as a conscious act of German savage
Terrorism
- threatening innocent people,
To
be totally condemned - such an act
Raises
questions if Germany is carrying out
Civilised
warfare or not?
They
are far behind Eastern nations in tactics;
In
comparison to attacks of Bulgarian Aviators,
Above
a besieged Adrainpole, who refrained
From
letting any deadly bombs drop
On
non-combatant city occupants.
One
Paris bomb fell where two women talked
At
the door of a house. One woman cut to pieces,
Luckily
the other was uninjured. While two adults
And
children, by a window were blown off their feet,
But
none were killed. Just across the
quiet street
People
lunched in a restaurant, as hail of shrapnel
Smashed
the windows – the miracle being no one
Was
injured –a 100 yards away another bomb fell.
Opposite
the entrance of the Red Cross Hospital
Of
St Martin, with ensigns to mark the buildings,
The
second bomb hit a printer’s shop.
A
trembling owner stood with wife
And
children on the street - the evidence being
That
the real targets were the sick and wounded.
The
third bomb fell at the extremity of the hospital,
Causing
damage to an outbuilding - this too failed.
Being
at an estimate of 6000 feet.
The
German plane, a speck in the sky,
Turned
to escape as two French planes gave chase.
In
a street where a bomb fell was a dropped paper,
Marked
with a German flag and written German
Stating;
' the German army are at the gates of Paris.
All
you have to do is surrender,'
Signed
by Lieutenant Van Heidssen.
But
Paris takes threats quietly, knowing no enemy
Army
is outside the capital. There is no sign of panic
On
the Boulevards – only calm.
by
Jamie Mann
Anon.,1914.
Paris Bombs -Vivid Description of Sunday's Scenes- Ruthless Savagery. The Daily Telegraph, [online] 02 Sept. p.8. Col.6.
Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/11068542/Daily-Telegraph-September-2-1914.html
[Accessed: 2nd September
2014].
Mann, J., 2014. 100
years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 02
September 2014).
#WW1
#WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #ww1centenary #worldwarone
#worldwaroneremembered #Paris
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