For Germany is not the only foe that the Belgian Army has to fight. It must struggle ceaselessly with the weather and the treacherous water which oozes from the inhospitable soil and gnaws at the foundations of defences whereon shells and bombs fall day in, day out. It lives in a country which has a disagreeable climate; where rain persists for two-thirds of the year; where dense and quickly-forming fogs spread an icy murk in the winter; where fierce storms rise suddenly and at times blow with extraordinary violence. A GENERAL REVIEW OF THE WORKS CONSTRUCTED. Before we proceed to a short account of the main defensive works, special attention should be drawn to certain constructive features common to them all. We must remember that it is impossible to excavate even to a slight depth, except in some parts of the more southerly front, where the ground rises on a gentle slope. Drive a spade in but a few inches, and you strike water. The result is that defence-works of all kinds _have had to be built with imported material_. [Illustration: A SANDBAG COMMUNICATION TRENCH _With Arches and Duckboards_.] [Illustration: A COMMUNICATION TRENCH, SOUTHERN PART OF FRONT _Revetted with Sandbags and Hurdles_.] [Illustration: FIRST LINE AS SEEN ACROSS THE FLOODS] [Illustration: A TYPICAL COMMUNICATION TRENCH _With protective Arches and Light Railway Track_.] The trenches of the Belgian line are not the least like the narrow, deep ditches of the western front, of which we all have seen many illustrations taken from all points of view. Properly speaking, they are nothing else than _ramparts_ raised _above_ the ground. Behind these breast-works, built throughout with the greatest difficulty, the defenders tread on the natural ground, which thus really forms the bottom of what is incorrectly named a "trench." The mere fact that one cannot excavate obviously makes it necessary to bring up from the rear--often from a great distance--all the materials required, including earth, hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of which is piled up in millions of bags. The transport of these materials meant a very formidable task, especially in the early days. We have referred to the country's deficiency in means of communication of any value. So everything--sand-bags, stakes, tree-trunks, rails, cement, bricks, shingle, hurdles, barbed wire--has to be moved to the front lines by night on men's backs or in light vehicles able to carry only a strictly limited load, as a heavy one could not be got along the muddy and soft roads. Need one dwell upon the peculiar difficulties encountered in consolidating the ground sufficiently to bear the weight of special defences, such as those of concrete?