coming into sight, the Americans along the Meuse put forth all the
energy that was in them, in their eager desire to hand the enemy a final
series of wallops. It was here one of the most brilliant exploits of the
war occurred.

On the night of November 4, American troops, though under very heavy
artillery and machine gun fire, succeeded in building four pontoon
bridges across the Meuse, a little more than a mile east of Brieulles.
Early in the morning one of these was destroyed, but a strong force
crossed over the other three, and swept forward with such rapidity,
though in the face of superior numbers, that by noon the enemy was in
disorderly retreat northward. By nightfall the Americans on that side of
the river had captured Liny-Devant-Dun and Mille-Devant-Dun, on the east
bank of the river, while a large American and French force pushed back
the Germans on the west bank, capturing Beaumont, Pouilly and several
less important places, and taking positions on three sides of Stenay,
the pivot on which the whole German retirement had turned. American
troops the 5th and 6th of November had advanced to within five miles
of the main communication line of the Germans between Metz, Mezieres,
Hirson and the north.

After destroying the bridge connecting Stenay with Laneuville, the
Germans had opened the locks of the Ardennes canal and flooded the river
to a width of about two-thirds of a mile.

It was here the Americans undertook and accomplished the impossible.
They picked out the best of their swimmers, who crossed the stream
carrying light lines attached to heavy cables, which were drawn after
them, and by a hasty pontoon construction got the whole force across.
Then, in the face of heavy firing, they pounded their way over a mud
flat nearly a mile wide, and hit the canal, which by then, had been
drained, forming a deep ditch that would have stopped any other
soldiers. But the Americans rustled up some grappling irons and hooks,
which they tied to the ends of ropes, and throwing them to the coping,
then swarmed up and chased the disconcerted Germans out of their last
position in that sector.

On November 7th American troops entered Sedan and cut the German line of
communication between Metz and the north.

The same day, troops from Ohio, under command of General Farnsworth,
took the Ecke salient sixteen miles southwest of Ghent in Belgium, and
were advancing on the city when the Germans suddenly evacuated it,
departin