ently pessimistic to be convinced that it would go up in smoke
before the row was over, and took a good look at our shoes to see
whether they would last through a walk back to Brussels.

Our officer came out from behind his barricade and showed us where the
attacking force was concealed--at least he told us that they were there
and we were willing to take his word for it without going across the
street to make a first-hand investigation.

He tried to impress us with the black sinfulness of people who would
fire upon the German troops, and called our particular attention to the
proof now offered us that civilians had started the row by firing on
German troops. According to the German story, which was the only one we
had heard, civilians had been hunted down like rats in garrets and
cellars and shot down in cold blood in the streets when they sought
safety in flight. To my mind it was not surprising that men driven to
desperation by seeing their friends and neighbours murdered in cold
blood, should decide to do any harm possible to the enemy. Three days of
the reign of terror that had been described to us was enough to account
for anything, and the fact that civilians were firing now did not in any
sense prove that they were guilty of starting the trouble. For all we
could tell they may have started it or they may not, but firing by them
three days after the row began was no proof to any one with the
slightest sense of the value of evidence. On the other hand, the story
freely told us by the Germans as to their own behaviour, is enough to
create the darkest presumptions as to how the trouble started, and would
seem to place the burden of proof on them rather than on the Belgians.

While we were talking about this there came another rattle of fire, and
we scuttled back to our shelter, among the horses. Every now and then a
surly soldier with two huge revolvers came and looked over the ledge at
us, and growled out: _Was machen Sie denn hier?_ followed by some
doubting remarks as to our right to be on the premises. As he was
evidently very drunk and bad-tempered I was not at all sure that he
would not decide on his own responsibility to take no chances and put
us out of our misery. After several visits, however, he evidently found
something else more interesting, and came back to trouble us no more.

When the row began a motor had been despatched toward Brussels to recall
some troops that had left a few hours before. Now a