It is very difficult to state even approximately the position
at the front. All we know definitely is that Sunday last found our troops in and around Mons in Belgium; that they were heavily engaged on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday; and that owing to the fall of Namur town, which took place on Sunday, and the need for a French withdrawal from Charleroi, they had to fall back, fighting a series of rearguard actions, till they reached a line extending from Cambrai to Le Cateau. To their right extends the long French line, which ultimately rests on the Swiss frontier, while to their extreme left it is clear that French troops have come up. The British, therefore, are left- centre as usual. The German line now stretches from Douai on the West, again to the Swiss frontier on the East, and it is stated that the German troops have already occupied Arms. This may look rather alarming upon the map, but even if the Germans are there in force, and so threaten temporarily the communications of the British force, the matter must not be regarded too tragically. Our Army is not "on its own," but is part of the Allied Force, and it will with them play the Fabian game and play it manfully— the game of falling back day after day if necessary and till the time comes for piercing a German line stretched too long and too thin in the attempt to envelop its enemies. As we write on Friday the great battle is again in progress.
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