THE FORESTS OF BELGIUM 



23 



main and Caesar evidently believed it 

 to extend from the Rhine to the North 

 Sea, for he has so described it. It is the 

 scene around vvhich hang countless 

 legends and stories and there seems no 

 reason to believe that it was not in 

 truth the very Forest of Arden of 

 Shakespeare's play. It was to 

 this forest that there came the 

 rich noble from the court of 

 King Pepin. So passionately 

 fond was he of the chase that all 

 else was neglected. On a certain 

 Good Friday when he was follow- 

 ing his favorite pastime, there 

 came within his view a noble 

 stag, bearing between its horns 

 a golden crucifix. On urging his 

 horse in the direction of the 

 animal, he was astonished to 

 note that it showed no disposi- 

 tion to flight, but stood calmh' 

 regarding him, although with an 

 imploring eye. Strangest of all, 

 it spake to the huntsman in these 

 words: "Hubert! Hubert! For 

 how long will this idle passion for 

 the chase tempt thee to forget- 

 fulness of thy Salvation?" 



The conscience-stricken hunts- 

 man threw himself prostrate on 

 the ground, crying, "Lord, what 

 shall I do? I am ready." 



And the voice answered, "Go 

 to Maestricht to see my servant 

 Lambert. From him shalt thou 

 learn what to do." 



The stag then disappeared as 

 suddenly as he came. Btit 

 Hubert went his way toward 

 Maestricht and to Saint Lam- 

 bert, there to make his confession 

 the monasterv of Stavelot. 



policies of forest cultivation and preser- 

 vation by both Belgium and Germany, 

 we may not assume that there would be 

 the slightest hesitation in destroying 

 any extent of forest in order to ac- 

 complish a tactical end. It is therefore 

 not difficult to understand that within 



V.\LLOX DES PaLISSADES. 



m 



A LITTLE VALLEY WHERE ONE MAY REST IN THAT QUIET WHICH 

 ONLY THE FOREST GIVES. 



Some years later he journeyed 



to Rome and after the martyrdom of the area of operations which has 



Saint Lambert in the valley of Liege, extended from east of Liege to Antwerp, 



the Pope appointed Hubert to be Bishop great quantities of trees have been sac- 



of Tongre. So goes the legend of St. rificed for strategic purposes. This is 



Hubert and so goes many another, to 

 the perpetuation of which the forest of 

 Ardennes forever lends its deep recesses. 

 So far as is at present known, the 

 Ardennes have not suffered materially 

 in the present war. It is true that 

 military necessity knows no law and 

 even in spite of the long - established 



especially true of the woods about 

 Liege and those iN'ing between Louvain 

 and Brussels and between Brussels and 

 ^lalines. The Belgians have not hesi- 

 tated to make these sacrifices in defense 

 of their country and the Germans have 

 cut down any woods which interfered 

 with their operations. 



