A strong force of British Marines has been sent to Ostend to occupy the town and surrounding districts.
Sir John French has reported that on Wednesday he was engaged against superior forces of the enemy; that the troops fought splendidly, and that the position and prospects of the Army in the impending battle are satisfactory. Sir John French also referred in high terms to the quality and efficiency of the French troops and their officers.
On behalf of the officers and men of the Grand Fleet, Admiral Sir John Jellicoe has sent a message to Field-Marshal Sir John French expressing to "their comrades of the Army: admiration of the magnificent stand made against great odds, and wishing the Army brilliant success.
The French Commander-in-Chief has addressed to Sir John French a message of acknowledgment of the effective manner in which the British Army contributed to securing the left flank of the French Army by not hesitating to throw its full strength against forces of great numerical superiority.
The German armed-liner, the Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse, which has been arresting traffic on the Cape route, has been sunk off the West Coast of Africa by his Majesty's ship High flyer. The survivors were landed before the vesselsank. On board the High flyer one man was killed and five were slightly wounded.
A message of congratulation to the high flyer for the service rendered has been sent by the Admiralty.
The German light cruiser Magdeburg, a sister ship of the Breslau, has (according to an announcement by the German Admiralty) been blown up after running ashore in a fog on an island at the entrance to the Gulf of Finland. Of the crew 17 were killed, 25 wounded, and 85 are missing. The rest were taken off by a German destroyer.
The Anglo-French lines in the north have been moved back a short distance. The events of Wednesday have "in no degree modified the dispositions made in view of ulterior developments."
The offensive progress of the French troops between Nancy and the Vosges was continued yesterday, but the "right" had been compelled to retreat slightly. The enemy appeared to have sustained considerable losses. For three days "sanguinary engagments have continued in this region."
The forts at Namur were still holding out on Wednesday night.
In Lorraine the German offenisive has been wholly repulsed.
The French Cabinet has been reconstituted under M. Viviani.
In Eastern Prussia the Germans have evacuated the region of the Mazurenland before the Russian advance. The Russians occupy the western outlets of this country, and have suffered no check in spite of the difficult country. They have captured 100 guns.
In Galicia, the Russian offensive is following the normal course.
A Danish trawler, two British trawlers, and a Norwegian steamship have been sunk by mines in the North Sea, and the survivors have been landed at Shields.
The casualty list from Togoland includes one British and two French officers killed, two British officers, one British and two French N.C.O.'s wounded, and among the native troops 26 killed and over 50 wounded.
The Swiss Minister in London denies that there is a secret treaty between his country and Germany and Austria, with a point against Italy.
ON THE WESTERN FRONTIER. From the messages summarised above it is evident that desperate fighting has been in progress both on the Franco-Belgian frontier and in Lorraine; and from Sir John French's reference to "the impending battle" it is to be gathered that this is only preliminary to the main engagement. The exact line occupied by the Allies cannot be more than guessed at, as the French official bulletin refers to a slight drawing back. Of the reports of a German cavalry incursion south of Lille, no official confirmation is forthcoming. The situation is full of indefiniteness in every respect except one - that very momentous events are in suspense, and are rapidly approaching a crisis.
ON THE EASTERN FRONTIER. The advance of the Russians in East Prussia is both rapid and sweeping. The Russians have taken Tilsit and are before Königsberg, where three German army corps are retreating, while another is in full flight to Osterode, on the line to Danzig. The peculiar difficulties which this country presents to an invading army have been, our St. Petersburg Correspondent says, all surmounted, and a wedge has been driven between the German forces.
RECRUITING. Our Belfast Correspondent reports that in Ulster, and especially in Tyrone, recruiting has been very brisk, and that it has been decided to form two extra battalions of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. In England the Rural League has placed its organisation at the disposal of the War Office to promote recruiting in the rural districts.
GERMAN WAR NEWS. Official German war news, circulated by wireless, announces that all the Namur forts have fallen; that Longwy has been taken; that the army of the Crown Prince repulsed a French advance from Verdun; and that the French have been almost cleared out of Upper Alsace.
A telegram of congratulation from the Emperor Francis Joseph is given and a report from Vienna describes a decisive victory over the Russians after a six days' battle.
It is admitted that in Belgium "unremitting severity" to the civil population, and " examples which by their frightfulness would be a warning to the whole country" have been adopted.