A Central News correspondent who saw the fighting near Louvain writes:
“The roar of cannon is still ringing in my ears. The Belgians had a
strong position around Louvain. The Germans advanced by three different
roads. The defenders held out until the Germans brought their heavy
artillery into play. Then the Belgians evacuated to save the beautiful
old place from destruction.
“Louvain to-day presented a wonderful if terrible spectacle. Bleeding,
riderless horses galloped into town. With them came the Belgian advance
guard who had been in action.
“Thirty Gardes Civiques, shut up behind a wooden barrier without arms,
exclaimed passionately at their enforced peacefulness. Homeless crowds
surged aimlessly about the streets. Now and then farmers cycled
furiously into the town to complain of houses occupied or horses
stolen. The Belgian outposts were twenty-seven miles away and the place
undefended, so nothing could be done.
“The utter, hopeless agitation of a population unable to do anything for
itself, forced to surrender home after home and forbidden to resist, was
a very painful sight. It cannot occur often, even in this war.
“Undefended towns when abandoned by the soldiery generally have warning
first. But these Uhlans seemed to have dropped out of the sky, and when
the Belgian civilians looked about they found their own army gone.”