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STILL IN ANTWERP 255
men to relieve the town, a force which, in conjunction with
the Belgian army, should be sufficient for the defence of the
city. As a matter of fact, only 15,000 men arrived, of whom
2500 were bluejackets. They had heavy artillery with them
and are said to have fought bravely. On October 6th, late at
night, Churchill left the town and drove off in a motor-car
to the west, no doubt to Ostend.
As the inhabitants during the nights heard, and in day-
time saw, troops marching through the streets, they could not
but beheve that a vigorous resistance would be offered. They
were therefore greatly surprised when the town surrendered
without a fight and the defenders, at 6 a.m. on October 9th,
withdrew over the pontoon bridge, built six weeks before,
across the Scheldt, and then blew the bridge up. The British
are said to have been the last to cross it.
On October 17th, eight days after the fall of Antwerp,
the number of inhabitants was estimated at fifty to sixty
thousand. Probably even the young men fit for military
service would soon return when they learnt that the Germans
were paying well for work done and did not compel them to
join their own ranks. Besides, the Governor had issued an
order to the effect that all private property should be respected
and that no private house should be entered by the soldiers.
The three neutral Consuls—of Sweden, Holland and America
—
had also conferred with the Governor on the measures to be
taken to restore normal life. In consequence, the Dutch
Consul had advised his countrymen resident in Antwerp,
numbering up to 20,000, to return. The German colony was
estimated at 18,000, including many wealthy merchants.
These also had commenced to return. The neutral Consuls
most positively denied that any atrocities had been committed
against Germans at the outbreak of the war.
The material damage caused to the town itself by the bom-
bardment is very small. Consul Petri calculates that there are
40,000 houses in Antwerp. Out of these, about 300 have been
damaged by shells, and 100 burnt down—hence no more than
I per cent. He valued the buildings that had been burnt
down at something like £500,000, and thpse damaged by shells
at about ;£i5o,ooo.
Consul Petri’s chauffeur had fled, and when we made a tour
through the town the Consul drove the car himself. He was
familiar with all the spots in the southern parts of Antwerp
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