about 8,000 marines,
reached Antwerp on October 3, 1914. This buoyed up the spirits of
the Belgian soldiers and redoubled their efforts. Under cover of
the continuous fire of their guns, the Germans made determined
efforts to cross the river Nethe at Waelhem. Desperate fighting,
which lasted all night and until early in the morning of October
4, took place. This attempt, however, failed. Later in the day
the Germans succeeded in putting a pontoon bridge in place. Troops
in solid masses hurried across; but as they reached the other side
some well-directed shots from the Belgian guns blew the pontoon
bridge to pieces, killing many.

Throughout the night of October 4, 1914, and the day and night
of October 5, the battle raged about Lierre with savage ferocity.
The British marines had by this time relieved the Belgians. The
German fire, however, compelled the defenders to draw back a
considerable distance.

At four o'clock in the morning of October 6, 1914, the Germans
succeeded in crossing the river in force, and now the defenders
were obliged to give way, as the outer forts had ceased to afford
them any protection. Late in the afternoon the members of the Belgian
Cabinet and their official families went aboard one steamer, while
the French and British Legations boarded another, both sailing
early on October 7.

The Belgian troops had begun to withdraw the evening before. All the
defending forces now hastened their retreat. The actual evacuation
had indeed begun. Time was taken, however, to put out of commission
some thirty steamships lying at their docks and to set afire all the
large oil tanks on the west side of the river Scheldt. The streets
in Antwerp presented scenes of almost indescribable confusion.
Even before the bombardment had been long in operation almost the
entire civil population became panic-stricken. Hither and thither,
wherever the crowd drifted, explosions obstructed their paths;
fronts of buildings bent over and fell into the streets, in many
cases crushing their occupants. Although the burgomaster had issued
a proclamation advising the people to remain calm--indoors, if
possible--nothing could stop the stampede.

The defending troops withdrawing through the city from the firing
line destroyed everything that might possibly be of use to the
enemy. The suburbs of Antwerp seemed to be ablaze in every direction;
the village of Waerloos had been burning for some days; Contich,
Duffel, and Lierre als