STORY OF THE FALL OF ANTWERP

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2279, 13 October 1914, Page 5

STORY OF THE FALL OF ANTWERP

FRANTIC FLIGHT FROM THE CITY 'ARMY RETIRES IN GOOD ORDER ON OSTEND By Telegraph—Press Association-Copylielit. " ,_.■'•■'■■••■.• Rotterdam, October ij)'.'When the first shell boomed m Antwerp the >city was dark and empty. The streets suddenly became,alive with people, women, and children crying . and flocking in every direction. ''■.'. ... ; There was a lull for a quarter of an hour, and then came the booming of the big guns. Each shot was followed by a weird, long-dTawn-out din, then ■■ the final explosion—the most;.fearsome of all. The bombardment continued until dawn, when there was a respite of two. hours. It then recommenced fiercer • than ever, with the fortress guns and field batteries joining in .the chorus. ... ' .; •■ Flames were breaking, out everywhere, and buildings crashing down. The city became_ an inferno. ">.. Meanwhile the. fugitives, many of whom were half-naked, thronged'the streets, the young, dragging along the old aiid infirm. There was no time to take any property. ' Numbers of women fainted in their frantio efforts to reach the trains. Fugitives clung to every available part of the carriages, sat on footboards and ro °fei,W even, hi the tenders. Others swarmed the boats at the quay.' _ Thousands who were left behind proceeded on a weary march to the frontier, "which they reached in an exhausted condition. • A pathetic sight is the number of escaped lunatics Tanging the country. • _"i .■ ■■ ~. ■,'.','■ '•' • Ostend, October 11. J lne Belgian troops manned the trenches at Antwerp"• for seventy-two hours'. Headquarters was established in a high tower, which was connected by telephone with all the trenches. While the battle was confined to the > infantry the Belgians easily held their own, but the overpowering massed ar- , tillery fire directed by the Taube aeroplanes was irresistible.' . The English Women's National Service Hospital had alarming experiences. It was necessary to-rescue 130 patients who were in the direct line of shell fire, and close by the ammunition building.- Those able to walk were ■ allowed to find their way out of the city. Sixty of the most seriouß oases were carried to cellars, where they spent Thursday night, shells bursting above ''. throughout. • . ■■•■■-.■ FIELD ARMY RETIRES IN GOOD-ORDER, ™ ~, . London, Ootober 11. The field army retired from Antwerp ;n good.order. The retreat, whioh began' several days ago, was completed under the best conditions. The soldiers were ordered to leave the forts before they.were blown up. The Belgians also destroyed the stores of petrol and benzine, and broke up the workshops of the Minerva factory, where machine guns, armoured trains, and aeroplanes were being made. . , . ..... : ~-<■ During the last month' German Zeppelins and, aeroplane's dropped 140 bombs. ■•'. . - i . During the siege three hundred thousand Germans' participated in 'the attack. - _ :;■.'• ■ _;■ . ,-;' ■ The conduct of King Albert throughout was an inspiration to the Belgian : troops. He wore the uniform ot a private, and shared meals-with the men in the trenches. The King only left when it was' impossible to do more. . FORTS BLOWN UP.- l :'' ' ■ ™ -, , . \, '~ , Amsterdam, Ootober 11. The Antwerp garrison blew up the . forts at Sohooten, Brasschaet, 'Mensem, Capellen, and other places. • BELGIAN ARMY AND KING AT OSTEND. • ™, „ .' „, „ , ■', ' London, October 11. •>The Central News Exchange correspondent at. The Hague Teports that the Germans are swiftly moving on Ostend, hoping to capture the King and the members of the Government. '>.■... ' It is reported that the Queen has sailed for England. The Belgian Army and a British force, with the* King of'the BeJeiaim have arrived safely. & laua i. im. ""«. „„, • ' . 'Amsterdam, October 11. ifiree thousand Belgian troops crossed the Dutch frontier, and have been interned. ADDITIONAL DUTIES FOR BRITISH FLEET. -„ ■ t ~' ' . London, October 11. lne capture of Antwerp imposes additional duties on the British Fleet • which will have to seo that Dutch neutrality is not' violated by Germans crossing the Scheldt. ' v vkmuhuio It is reported that nearly fifty vessels, including thirty-two German steamers, were destroyed at Antwerp. . , s ™ FORCED : MARCH TO OSTEND. "V, (Rec. October 13, 0.5 a.m.) „,, u . •' ',•■'«'.,, Ostend, October 12. With a view to reaching Ostend by forced marches, six hundred motorcars were used to convey various contingents of the retreating garrison through Zelzaeto. lne soldiers wore relieved of their knapsacks, which woro placed m vans, while London motor buses carried footsore troops who had fallen to the rear. Then came the dogs drawing columns of machine Rims, next woro the artillery, and after them the rearguard. The flight of the procession was continued for two days.

FINE OF £20,000,b00 ON ANTWERP, •■'■' "" (Rec; October 12, 10.15 p.m. ) • London, , October 12. At Flushing it is stated the Germans fined Antwerp £20,000,000. On their entry into Brussels the Germans imposed a war contribution .of £8,000,0Q0 on the city. DUTCH SYMPATHY- ALIENATED. (Rec. October 12, 12, 11.15 p.m.) Rotterdam, October 12. The bombardment of Antwerp has alienated Dutch sympathy for Germany; A STERILE ViOTURY. ■ (Rec. October 13, 0.5 a.m.) . , . Paris, October 12. The newspapers pay a tribute to the latest act of Belgian heroism and self-sacrifice, and point out the small value of fixed fortifications in the face of the terrific power of modern siege artillery. The capture of the town is a sterile victory, and is an attempt, to counter-balance in the eyes of the German people the coming evacuation of French territory. BRITISH .NAVAL FORGES SHARE IN THE DEFENCE. (Rec. October 13, 1.20 a.m.) ■_.',. Ostend, October 12. The first party of the British marines and bluejackets on Sunday, October I, hurried to Antwerp. During Monday and Tuesday a large proportion of the Belgians marched westward for the purpose of ensuring the line of retreat. ;> A large additional force of marines arrived at Antwerp on Tuesday morning. ■' •' \ (Rec. October 13, 1.20 a.m.) ' Ostend, October 12. -An Amsterdam telegram 6tates that the. Germans attacked the_ rearguard of the retreating garrison near St. Nioholas, using heavy field artillery from a great-distance. The Belgian and British troops crossed the frontier at different place's, mostly around Putten, east of the Scheldt, and Sas van tieht, west of the river. All were taken by. boat to Flushing, thence to a concentration camp at Gasterland. ■ FOREIGN PRESS COMMENT. London, October Hi ' The "New York Tribune" publishes a scathing article on Germany's conoeritration of her rage and revenge upon Belsium. ' The "Sun" in a cartoon shows the Kaiser surveying the ruins of Antwerp, saying: "My heart bleeds for Antwerp." ' .. .■ Amsterdam, October 11. The "Algemeen Handelsblad" says that the possession of Antwerp may give satisfaction to Germany, but the German object failed; The.destruction of. the. garrison was more important than the capture of the fortress. •