At the front with three armies, my adventures in the great war

CHAP.

IV The Battle of Dinant V The Battle of Mons .

AT THE FRONT

It was the policy of the English newspapers at that time — a policy dictated by the War Office — to avoid publishing disquieting news. The facts of the battle of Mons were not entirely known to the public until the publication of General French's stinging report. Personally I think that this concealing the facts in the earlier days of the war has had a prejudicial effect on the present state of England's preparedness. If the whole story of the fighting at Mons had been made public, if the stories of the heroism of the different regiments had been written, recruits would not have been so slow in coming forward at the beginning of the war. It seems that England needs the stimulus of defeat to arouse her real fighting blood. In the beginning this stimulus was suppressed. The volunteer army would be far more advanced to-day — I write in the first weeks of November — in numbers and effectiveness, if the story of Mons had been read in the homes of the British the day after it occurred.

AT THE FRONT

his first action at the Battle of Mons. His description of the pictures one got of the fighting from a height of two thousand feet was fascinat- ing. It must be the ideal position for a war correspondent. He hovered over the contending armies throughout the day, watching every phase of the fighting.

WITH THREE ARMIES

I questioned a soldier of the Hundred and Ninetieth French Infantry about the fighting at Mons and Charleroi ; here is his description.