scertain precisely how the German attack was
being constituted, but from officers and others who made journeys from
the fighting lines into the city I gathered that the final assault
consisted of a continuous bombardment of two hours' duration, from 7:30
o'clock in the morning until 9:30.

During that time there was a continuous rain of shells, and it was
extraordinary to notice the precision with which they dropped just where
they would do the most damage. I was told that the Germans used captive
balloons, whose officers signaled to the gunners the points in the
Belgian defense at which they should aim.

The German guns, too, were concealed with such cleverness that their
position could not be detected by the Belgians. Against such methods and
against the terrible power of the German guns the Belgian artillery
seemed quite ineffective. The firing came to an end at 9:30 o'clock
Friday, and the garrison escaped, leaving only ruins behind them.

[Illustration: GEN. VON KLUCK
Commanding on the German Left Wing in the West
(_Copyright, Photographische Gesellschaft, by permission of the Berlin
Photographic Co., N.Y._)]

[Illustration: GEN. VON HINDENBURG
The German Commander in the East
(_Copyright, Photographische Gesellschaft, by permission of the Berlin
Photographic Co. N.Y._)]

In order to gain time for an orderly retreat, a heavy fire was
maintained against the Germans up to the last minute, and the forts were
then blown up by the defenders as the Germans came in at the Gate of
Malines. I was lucky enough to escape by the river to the north in a
motor boat. The bombardment had then ceased, though many buildings were
still blazing, and while the little boat sped down the Scheldt one could
imagine the procession of the Kaiser's troops already goose-stepping
their way through the well-nigh deserted streets.

Those forty hours of shattering noise, almost without a lull, seem to me
now a fantastic nightmare, but the harrowing sights I witnessed in many
parts of the city cannot be forgotten. It was Wednesday night that the
shells began to fall into the city. From then onward they must have
averaged about ten a minute, and most of them came from the largest guns
which the Germans possess--"Black Marias," as Tommy Atkins has
christened them.

Before the bombardment had been long in operation the civil population
or a large proportion of it fell into a panic. It is impossible to blame
these peaceful, quiet living burgh