The Pleasantville press., 1914-10-17
MYSTERY over
OSTEND'S FATE
Reports Said Germans Had
Occupied Belgian Resort
THE ALLIES ARE At YPREs
Teutons Are Driven From City Twen
ty-fve Miles From Ostend-British
= Press Back Foes Right Flank.

England is very much in the dark
as to the situation in western Bel
GUM.
The veil that hitherto in the pres
ent war has always obscured the pre-
liminaries of great battles has again
descended and all that is known Is
that Ostend has not yet been occupied
by the Germans, and that Ypres,
twenty-five miles to the southeast, IS
in the hands of a British and French
force.
Press dispatches say that only
small Belgian force and almost no
English troops remain in Ostend, so
it would seem that it is not intended
to defend the city. One of the British
naval brigades returned to England
Monday, but whether the other British
troops that were at Ostend are those
now at Ypres is not revealed, nor is it
known what has become of the large
Belgian force that retreated from Ant
werp to Ostend.
The official announcement that the
French troops are with the British at
Ypres has increased the speculation
as to when and where French troops
entered Belgium. The first indication
of their presence came in reports of a
check administered last Saturday to
the Germans near Ghent.
Many are inclined to believe, despite
the lack of any official statement to
lend color to the belief, that the ex-
treme left allied line in northern
France has been extended across the
Belgian frontier and now rests at
Ypres instead of at Bailueul, where
the official bulletins left it, with line
of communications running through
Poperinghe, Hazebrouck and Aire.
The occupation OF Ipres was an
nounced in an official communication
In Paris. Previous reports indicated
that large German forces were concen-
trated in the Ypres region and conse-
quently the announcement of the oc-
cupation of the town may conceal an
important engagement.
British war office bulletins have
been rare during the last few weeks,
but one just issued says that British
troops have forced back the Germans
in battle on the left of the allied
line. This fighting is generally believ'
ed to have occurred in northern
France, but it is just possible that it
was in Belgium and was connected
with the occupation of Ypres.
According to special dispatch to
the Avond Post, of The Hague, no
fewer than $4,000 Germans are in
Ghent. Many of them, however, are
leaving in the direction of Bruges. A
German officer is quoted in this dis
patch as saying that Ostend was the
objective of the German advance.
The French State
The official bulletin issued in Paris
says:
"The information, received is of a
very general nature and does not in
dicate any important changes in the
situation.
"In the Belgian field of operations
there were some encounters during
the night of Oct. 1918 and during the
day of the 18th in the region around
Ghent. English and French troops
have occupied Ypres (eight miles
from the French frontier, twenty-five
miles southeast of Ostend and thirty
seven miles southwest of Ghent).
"On our left wing, as far as the
Disc, the operations are developing
normally.
"On the center previous reports OF
the progress of our armies in the
region of Berry-Au-Bac have been con.
firmed.
"On our right wing there is nothing
new"
Before the reports of the capture of
Ostend reached London English cor
respondents sent dispatches stating
that battle was in progress in the
district on the coast near Thourout,
Dixmunde and Ypres and the French
port of Dunkfrk. The Times cores
pondent at Ostend located this fight
ing in the triangle formed by Dun
kirk, Ypres and Dixmunde, but the
Central News correspondent said that
the heaviest fighting centered about
Thourout. His dispatch follows:
"a heavy engagement is reported
ucdI lnOuEOut. "A G6Tuldu COluIHu Was
ambushed south of Ghent. The Ger
man troops were moved down by ma.
chine guns and then bayonet charge
completed the rout. The Germans left
600 dead"
The Germans have prepared forti
fled positions, equipped with heavy
guns, from the east of Louvain and
north of Vilvorde, to the southeast OF
Brussels; also from Liege through Ma
muir and Mons to Valenciennes. This
indicates that the Germans have a
double line of Notifications guarding
their lines of communications.
'The German positions in Belgium
are equal to those of the allies" says
Central News dispatch from Ostend.
I'm addition to Antwerp, they have
prepared reinforced concrete works,
heavily mounted with guns, extending
from point east of Louvain to a
| place north of Vilvorde, on through