84 The Great War The roads in Belgium are far better than in Tur- key, the German machinery was vastly finer, but even with automobile trucks and all the resources of a modern war department the task was a grave one, seriously complicated by the necessity to bring up siege guns and ammunition for the reduction of Liege along the same lines. Some delay, then, naturally followed the unex- pected resistance of Liege. But it did not prevent the Germans from pushing strong cavalry masses around Liege and to the west. These masses stead- ily drove the Belgian Infantry and cavalry screen before them, and as the German General Staff still persisted in its determination to use Western Bel- gium as a way of entering Northern France, follow- ing the Marlborough precedent, which v/as wholly successful, it presently became clear that the next week would see a great German mass, the Army of the Meuse, following their victorious cavalry toward Brussels. Meantime the Army of the Moselle, operating from Luxemburg, had with equally uniform success cleared Belgium between Luxemburg and the French frontier of hostile troops, at several points crossed the French frontier, and on a front from Givet to Verdun, and facing the unfortified gap of Stenay was advancing slowly, methodically, but so far un- interruptedly. On this front a great battle began to be forecast, but even this was wholly problemat- ical.