Evening star., 1914-10-08

t11SdSeu.
Great Guns VS.. Men.
The Antwerp correspondent OF ths
Daily News writes that grave vie"
of the situation is taken by the au-
thorities The great guns he con
tinues have told the tale. The hsht
ing around Antwerp has been oattle
of Krupps against men. Every DAY
and night the fighting has continued
with deadly effect against the 1orts
while the shrapnel and she'll have maoe
many of the trenches untenable.
"As fast as the Belgians were com
PEELED to withdraw from position the
Germans have moved up and occupied
it, The Belgians have frequently
fought brave and stubbornly with In,
fantry and frequently they repuiseo
the Germans, but these repulses al
ways meant a renewal Of the artillery
attacks by the Germans with the
eventual retirement of the Belgians.
IN their present poslt1on 1he es. Ger
mans, even with their second largest
guns, are able TO reach the city.
Air of Quiet Confidence.
The correspondent of the Chronicle
at Antwerp, under date of Wednesday
takes a contrary view. He says:
There is an air of quiet confidence
that the Germans will never capture
the city Numbers of the forts are stlil
holding out with stubbornness and the
threatened bombardment is desper-
ate maneuver to try and force them 10
capitulate in order to save that city
from damage.
For some days flags with red and
white diagonal stripes have hown from
the top of churches and other buildings,
those on the cathedral and st. jacques
tower being especially conspicuous
These flags indicate that the buildings
serve no military end 1t is stated tnat
the Germans have promised to spare
as much as possible the buildings not
devoted to military purposes. All the
lights in the town are now extln-
guished at dusk and the shops close at
in the evening
1T is rumored that Emperor Will
liam has offered the iron cross decora-
tion and $4,000 marks to the first man
entering Antwerp
For twenty-four hours the Germans
have made scarcely any advance. They
bombarded the village of Luith fierce
ly, but the Belgians held the place un-
til it was in flames before they evac-
uated il.
Near Termonde the Germans are
River Scheldt. The latest news is that
they have not yet succeeded
The Germans are pressing forward
on the east. They crossed the River
Nethe on the east and are only held
at bay by the desperate efforts of the
Belgians. This offeusive movement is
said to have cost the Germans 10000
men.
'On the south. in the region of Con-
itch. Boom and Willebroeck. the Ger
man attack appears to have been
brought to a standstlll.
Germans Cross the Nethe.
The Amsterdam correspondent of the
Chronicle. under Wednesdays date,
says the Germans have crossed the
Nethe and are advancing on Antwerp
from that side.
Another army seems. he said, to be
making an attack in an eastern direc-
ton from the village of Westmalle.
Early this morning" the corre-
spondent continues. the first long
the Belgian-Dutch frontier. They
came from the villages inside the inner
fort line and they were allowed to
tTavel only in northerly direction. By
noon the roads presented pitiabie
sight Thousands were trudging with
their household belongings in carts
drawn by horses and dogs. To mention
Germans to them is to make them
shiver with nervousness.
Under Tuesdays date the Times Ant
werp correspondent says:
The precise strength of the German
attacking force is unknown. The most
authoritative estimate Is that they
number 125, 900 men, and are we'll pro-
vided with artillery, including some
heavy 26-centimeter and. apparently,
one 42-centimeter guns. The last named
big gun. however, is rarely used. The
weight of the German attack during
the night was thrown on that part of
the river near Lierre.
Il have just returned from headquar-
ters where the chief of staff frankly
described the situation to me as being
serious