When Longwy fell the tricolour alone flew from the fortress of Maubeuge, which was better able to stand a bombardment than almost any other stronghold of France. Its outlying defences had been strengthened with concrete and armour plates, and heavy guns had been mounted in steel turrets. The Germans were very anxious to capture it, because it gave them command of a good railway line from Aix right through the Meuse valley. The siege began soon after the British retreat from Mons. The French commandant had thrown up lines of earthworks between the forts, and had garrisoned them with soldiers. Just before the German guns began to thunder at the forts, detachments of French from the No. 2 Army that had been beaten at the Sambre came to reinforce the defenders, and further assistance was rendered by a British field battery that had been cut off when our line retired. The commandant had about 30,000 men to defend the place, and right nobly was it held. Not until the 7th of September did it yield. The outlying forts had then been battered down by 11-inch guns, throwing a 760-pound shell. [Illustration: A View in Krupp's Works, Essen, where the Big Guns are made. _Photo, L.N.A._] A story went the round of the papers that, long before the war, a Belgian had bought land near Maubeuge, and on it had begun to build a factory for making railway engines. It was said that the real owner of the land was Krupp, the great manufacturer of guns and armaments for the German Government; and that while the factory was being built, concrete gun platforms had been constructed, on which the Germans mounted their siege guns as soon as they arrived. The story, however, had no foundation. The guns which the Germans used in the siege of Maubeuge were smaller than those which battered down Namur. They did not need concrete foundations, but could be fired from an ordinary road or from a platform of sleepers. The story, however, was widely believed, and alleged gun platforms were actually discovered in innocent British factories! * * * * * The French official account of the retreat tells us that, when the defence of the Meuse collapsed, General Joffre decided on a general retreat, but determined to make a series of counter-attacks whenever opportunity offered, so that the enemy might be kept busy. He had to choose a position where the retreat was to end, and this position had to be so chosen that the different armies could reach it at the same time and be ready without delay to advance. If, however, he found that he could begin his forward movement before this point was reached, he was prepared to alter his plans.