Arizona republican., 1917-06-26
BELGIAN ARMY |S BETTER THAN AT
 WARS BEGINNING
Republican A. p. Leased Wire1


 WASHINGTON, June 25.-The Bel gian army is larger, better equipped ana more determined today than it was al the beginning of the war said Leuten~ ant General Leclercq, military member of the Belgian mission in an address tonight to the national press club. The general gave a graphic description oi how twice, at Liege and at the Yser, his countrymen held up Gernanys hordes. while the allies united in the rear and told of the joy of the Belgian soldiers would experience on sight of the Amer ica1 khaki
 "The king without country Gen eral Lecrecp said lis the expic sion the German papers use to Gesienate our sovereign. This is not qu-Ie accurate. There remains a part of Be:gium still unviolated. The German hordes have not succeeded in passing the Yser. The Germans shall never conquer this small corner of our country
 Besides rehabilitating their army af- ter terrible losses, the general declared, his country has set up munitions fac tories abroad. one at Havre with 900 workmen and two at Richmond and LetchWorth in England with 35,00O while the royal Belgian Lloyd with
  tiOn at sea. Special schools train the maimed and the cripples for whatever work their disabilities make possible
 The Belgian army now occupies a front of 22 miles with eight divisions, including two of cavalry. The land is low and flat, requiring millions Of sant. bags for defense.
 Nothing remains" said General Lec> lercq. in the battle zone where once there were great fields filled with cat tie, smiling Flemish farms and gree.. trees. The only bright note, If I may so call it. are the graves of those who have poured out their blood for their native land, serving as an encourag ge- rent to their living comrades, to whom they say and necessarily repea. 'aVenge us. Do your duty ''
 Upon Belgium's first victory of the war at Liege the general dwelt at length. There, he said, his countrymen barely one hundred thousand strong, met at least three times as many Ger mans, inflicted losses admitted by Ger many to total 42,714 and paralyzed for thirteen days the great invasion which after forty years of methodical prepa- ration was expected to be irresistible
 The Germans had organized a for midable war machine wnose Whees were adjusted with absolute precision he added The resistance of Belgium at Liege was the little grain of sand which threw the whole machinery out of gear at the very commencement, as it permitted the French to gain precious time"
 After picturing the ruthless destruc- tion of men, women and children tha, followed the fall of Liege. the general told of the Belgian attack upon the German flank before the battle Of the Marne. of the brave defense of Antwerp, of the fighting at the Yser and finally o1 the inundation of Flanders to drive out the enemy and make solid the line thrown by the allies across the road to Calais.
 Tn Africa, too the general conclud- ed. we have met the Germans. Our colonial army, 1S,000 colored troops be- fore the war, was immediately in creased to 23.000 and dedicated itself to inflicting a merited punishment for the unjust invasion of the mo;ler cour- try. Belgium has gained a territory Of incalculable value with ;,upu:atIon or S.000,000 and an area twice as large az Be gium itself and offering the most favorable commercial resources"