[59] Declaration of the Abbe Vanryckeghem, who affirms that the _cures_
of Saint Georges, of Mannekensverke, and of Vladsloo were also executed.
[60] This, however, is not certainly established. For this account of
the closing scenes of the attack we have followed the narrative of the
correspondent of _La Liberte_, which appeared to us trustworthy. This
correspondent says, "They [the prisoners] had no time to retreat, so
sudden and furious was the attack. Carried away by their excitement, the
Marines never saw that the pavilion was full of Germans. It was not
until three hours later that a Prussian non-commissioned officer walked
unarmed out of the building and surrendered with his party to the first
French officer he met." We have been authoritatively told that nothing
of the kind took place. "The attack reached the Chateau, but failed to
carry it."
[61] At Dixmude the 4th and 5th had passed in comparative tranquillity.
"It rains," writes Alfred de Nanteuil on the 4th, "five hours drawn up
on the road, fully accoutred. Mud frightful. Walked through Dixmude--a
vision of horror, lights of pillagers, carcases, indescribable ruins....
Passed the night at a deserted farm, full of corpses, utterly sacked and
ruined. Plenty of evidence that the owners were well-behaved, pious, and
honest Belgian cultivators. The night fairly calm, so we had six hours
of sleep in our wet clothes. Impossible to change." The 5th: "To-day the
weather beautiful, the sun shining. Everything calm. In the watercourses
we see reflected the vaporous landscapes of the great Flemish masters.
The cattle which have escaped the bombardment stand about on the dykes.
At last one is able to breathe, ... to be glad one lives. I begin to
think we shall be here for a long time."
[62] It came at this juncture under the command of General Bidon.
Shortly before it had received an interesting visit. On November 2 a
naval lieutenant, De Perrinelle, writes in his diary that Colonel Seely,
sometime Minister of War in England, had visited this front and had told
them that they had saved the situation by their vigorous resistance.