The Germans could do nothing with this brave, gay Belgian, who stood up so sturdily for the rights of his people; so at last they removed him from his office, and sent him to a German fortress in what they called "honourable custody." You may be sure that the townsfolk grieved greatly when their burgomaster was thus removed, and the Germans soon discovered that they were far more difficult to handle than when they had been under the care and guidance of the good M. Max. * * * * * The Germans occupied Brussels in force for a single day only. A garrison was left to hold the city, and the march through Belgium was continued. Meanwhile huge bodies of men, under the command of von Buelow, were passing unnoticed along the north bank of the Meuse towards Namur. At the same time two other armies were marching through the leafy Ardennes, where the overhanging foliage hid them from the eyes of the Belgian airmen. The great line was slowly but surely deploying for the long-delayed march into France. With the occupation of Brussels by the Germans the first stage of the war comes to an end. [Footnote 263: "The Watch on the Rhine."] [Footnote 264: It was written by Hoffmann von Fallenleben at Heligoland in 1841. There is a monument to the composer in Heligoland.] [Footnote 265: German name for the Niemen.] [Footnote 266: Tributary of the Po, North Italy. The sea is the Baltic.] [Footnote 267: Sovereign duchy of the German Empire, chiefly surrounded by the provinces of Hanover, Saxony, and Westphalia.] [Footnote 268: Named after the Prussian general Zieten (_tsĕt'en_), who gained great renown in the wars of Frederick the Great.] [Footnote 269: Persons left with the enemy as pledges that certain conditions will be fulfilled.] CHAPTER XXX. HOW THE BRITISH ARMY WAS CARRIED OVERSEAS. On the morning of 18th August, when the fate of Brussels was hanging in the balance, our newspapers contained a brief paragraph which was read by Britons all over the world with great satisfaction--our army had been landed on French soil without the loss of a single man. It was a great feat, and we were rightly proud of it. To many of us the news came as a great surprise. We British are not good at keeping secrets; but on this occasion, like Brer Rabbit, we lay low and said "nuffin." Thousands of people knew what was going on, but they did not talk about it, and in the newspapers there was scarcely a hint of what was happening. For once we kept a secret; and we were rewarded, for our transports crossed the narrow seas without the slightest attempt on the part of the enemy to molest them.