A Surgeon in Belgium | Page 4

man of military
age. All were women, old men, or children. Certainly the men of
Belgium had risen to the occasion. The women were doing
everything--working in the fields, tending the cattle, driving the
market-carts and the milk-carts with their polished brass cans. After
leaving Ghent, the men came into view, for at Lokeren and St. Nicholas
were important military stations, whilst nearer to Antwerp very
extensive entrenchments and wire entanglements were being
constructed. The trenches were most elaborate, carefully constructed
and covered in; and I believe that all the main approaches to the city
were defended in the same way. Antwerp could never have been taken
by assault, but with modern artillery it would have been quite easy to

destroy it over the heads of its defenders. The Germans have probably
by now rendered it impregnable, for though in modern war it is
impossible to defend one's own cities, the same does not apply to the
enemy. In future, forts will presumably be placed at points of strategic
importance only, and as far as possible from towns.
Passing through the western fortifications, we came upon the long
bridge of boats which had been thrown across the Scheldt. The river is
here more than a quarter of a mile wide, and the long row of sailing
barges was most picturesque. The roadway was of wooden planks, and
only just wide enough to allow one vehicle to pass at a time, the tall
spars of the barges rising on each side. It is strange that a city of such
wealth as Antwerp should not have bridged a river which, after all, is
not wider than the Thames. We were told that a tunnel was in
contemplation. The bridge of boats was only a tribute to the necessities
of war. We did not dream that a fortnight later it would be our one hope
of escape.

II. The Hospital

Antwerp is one of the richest cities in Europe, and our hospital was
placed in its wealthiest quarter. The Boulevard Leopold is a
magnificent avenue, with a wide roadway in the centre flanked by
broad paths planted with trees. Beyond these, again, on each side is a
paved road with a tram-line, whilst a wide pavement runs along the
houses. There are many such boulevards in Antwerp, and they give to
the city an air of spaciousness and opulence in striking contrast to the
more utilitarian plan of London or of most of our large towns. We talk
a great deal about fresh air, but we are not always ready to pay for it.
Our hospital occupied one of the largest houses on the south-east side.
A huge doorway led into an outer hall through which the garden was
directly reached behind the house. On the right-hand side of this outer
hall a wide flight of steps led to inner glass doors and the great central
hall of the building. As a private house it must have been magnificent;

as a hospital it was as spacious and airy as one could desire. The hall
was paved with marble, and on either side opened lofty reception
rooms, whilst in front wide marble staircases led to the first floor. This
first floor and another above it were occupied entirely by wards, each
containing from six to twelve beds. On the ground floor on the
right-hand side were two large wards, really magnificent rooms, and
one smaller, all these overlooking the Boulevard. On the left were the
office, the common room, and the operating theatre. Behind the house
was a large paved courtyard, flanked on the right by a garden border
and on the left by a wide glass-roofed corridor. The house had
previously been used as a school, and on the opposite side of the
courtyard was the gymnasium, with dormitories above. The gymnasium
furnished our dining-hall, whilst several of the staff slept in the rooms
above.
It will be seen that the building was in many ways well adapted to the
needs of a hospital and to the accommodation of the large staff required.
We had in all 150 beds, and a staff of about 50. The latter included 8
doctors, 20 nurses, 5 dressers, lay assistants, and motor drivers. In
addition to these there was a kitchen staff of Belgians, so that the
management of the whole was quite a large undertaking, especially in a
town where ordinary provisions were becoming more and more
difficult to obtain. In the later days of the siege, when milk was not to
be had and the only available water was salt, the lot of our housekeeper
was anything but happy. Providing meals for over 200 people in a
besieged town is no small matter. But it was managed somehow, and
our cuisine was positively astonishing, to