the country, pledging each other with "Vive la
Belgique" and "Vive l'Angleterre," and altogether we were a merry party,
although at the time German shells were whirling overhead and any moment
one might have upset our picnic and buried us in the debris of the
hotel.

How many of the inhabitants of Antwerp remained in the city that night
it is impossible to say, but it is pretty certain they were all in the
cellars of their houses or shops.

The admirable Burgomaster, M. De Vos, had in one of his several
proclamations made many suggestions for safety during the bombardment
for the benefit of those who took refuge in cellars. Among the most
useful of them perhaps was that which recommended means of escape to
adjoining cellars. The power of modern artillery is so tremendous that a
cellar might very well become a tomb if shells were to fall on the
building overhead.

We went to bed early that night but sleep was impossible in the noise
caused by the explosion of the shells in twenty different quarters of
the town. About 3 o'clock in the morning a twenty-eight centimeter shell
fell into the square in front of the hotel and broke all the windows in
the neighboring house. In spite of the terrific din one got to sleep at
last.

About 6 o'clock Fox roused me and said he thought it was time we got
out, as the Germans were entering the city. We hurried from the hotel,
and found in the square a squad of Belgian soldiers who had just come in
from the inner line of forts. They told us it was not safe for us to
remain any longer. The streets were now completely deserted.

I walked down to the quayside, and there I came across many wounded
soldiers, who had been unable to get away in the hospital boat. On the
quay piles of equipment had been abandoned; broken-down motor cars,
kit-bags, helmets, rifles, knapsacks were littered in heaps. Ammunition
had been dumped there and rendered useless. The Belgians had evidently
attempted to set fire to the whole lot. A pile of stuff was still
smoldering. I waited there for half an hour, and during that time
hundreds of Belgian soldiers passed in retreat, the last contingent
leaving at about 6:30 A.M.

I went again to the Queen's Hotel to inquire what had become of the
American newspaper men, and it was just about this time that the pontoon
bridge which had been the way of the Belgian retreat was blown up to
prevent pursuit by the Germans. The boats and woodwork of the
superstructure burnt