The Dickson County herald. (Dickson, Tenn.) 1907-1979, 1916-05-26

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tbAre are not many soldiers len In
this part Of Belgium, bat those who
are left are as hnsinesslike As the
men to the trenches.
Only two or three OF them are in
sight here at Smecrmsea-the sentl
mel, and one or two others little dis.
lance away. pacing along high
barbed wire fence. This fence Ia the
Belgian frontier--the frss fence built
along the border when the Germans
began their policy OF keeping the Bel,
g!sns - heme. When they found that
despite constant pAtroliing this bar
rier was insufficient they bnilt a SEQ
ong bsrbed wire fence all along the
$50 miles CT frontier. 500 yards be-
hind the irst one--closely woven wire
this time. high enough to make Il dim.
cult even TO throw letters over. and
charged with electricity. That fence
is studded from Maastricht TO the sns
With caTcasses Of dogs. rabbits. chlck,
ens and cows.
And iatterly the Germans have be
gun the construction OF still another
fence exactly like this one. but 500
yards farther back. The fences are
constantly patrolied, and at night
there are searchligEts, II is getting
pretty hard to get into or out OF Bel
GUM.
The taxi turns back through the
town and out again toward the south,
After passing another double barrier
Of earthen entertainments and an In.
Quisitiye sentry Just outside the city
limits you run along a road that fol
lows the river perhaps 200 yards on
tho right, down through the cleft be-
tween the double weld. u little village
where the Dutch troops acting as the
frontier guards against smuggling on
the much-traveled route are CHARTERED,
and then ON down the road towars
Wise.
Ruins Of Wise In Distance.
The ruins OF Wise are down yonder.
beyond the mist-clad woods. and 4,
la hardly more than quarter OF an
hours run to Liege Hut II In the
frontier: the driver shrugs his Shout
ders: "Weiter kann man uicht" And
az you turn back you pass line OF
high covered carts filled with loavcs
OF bread bread made from American
-four. sent across the frontier by tho
Belgian Relief commission.
until quite recently II Was almost
as hard to get 20 Maastricht as 10 get
into Belgium. The Dutch garrison
was strong one. and the traveller In
South Limburg had to undergo hourly
inspection OF passports and special
permits. But repeated protests by
Dutch business men had Its effect. and
tho reduction Of the garrison removed
much OF the military need for restrfc-
tons. no that today travel In the
southern tip OF the Netherlands Is 40
easy m II is in Westchester.
Only q single regiment Ia left In
MAastrtcht. ThA'o id bridge across sAs
Mense q guarded day and night, and
beside It's S..-:ssts Ito chcvauxde-
frtse. tangled with barbed wire and
heaps Of steel rails, ready to be
thrown into place and block the bridge
on Ave minutes notice. But the plant
OF the Dutch general stan do not con-
template any attempt to defend South
Limburg In the even,-~which s every
day regarded AZ, less likeiy--of nm at
tack from Germany. The Zuyher Eco
bikes would be blown up and q great
stretch flooded clear across the coun.
try. Behind the area 10 be flooded, al.
most to the center OF Holland. 10 u.
recht, fortified almost as strongly as
the cities Of the yosges Here the
Dutch would make their FIRST stand.
Behind that stiIl another area can be
flooded. and then a third, extending
the submerged district up to the fort'-
tications OF Amsterdam. which would
be the last refuge of the Dutch army.
as Antwerp was Of the Belgian. ANY.
thing east OF Utrecht would be rnly
outpost fighting; but the barbed wire
entangicments that are almost con
slant feature Of the landscape. and tho
marching soldiers that can be seen al
almost any glance fron the car win.
dow, indicate how sharp that fighting
might be.
Ono OF these outposts Ia Roermond
the city Just above the neck OF the
bottle that !s South Linburg. tn tho
north OF Roermond the railroad
crosses the Meuse ON bridge which
Is strongly guarded and mined. 40 tina.
Il can be blown up without an 4.
stan,s delay whenever the word u