, 1870-12-25
THE SIEGE or PARIS.



question Of military engineering, and tho day
u incvitable kurTeEder Day be Eeckoued
with = sufficient approximation. But Paris
DOW set my TO bo ab!a to hofe II may receive
help, and moreover We hold one exposes him
sell 70 the fAleest tetsoninSs, to the most
4 military stronghold, The rule which
experience has confirmed "a applicable to
ordinary towns. We admit fnrtihcA:inns and
polioIcetica 10 70 almost exact ecienceAt but II
Will be admitted also that. even in the exact
sciences, great many truths cease 70 81
This is ono OF these cases, toE PAxir, ~ its
extent, exceeds tho EXTREMIST Limit which hAa
eler been fottseeh for military utron2hold.
l,ut u this the ouly exceptional circumstance
lefyiEg al rules ct the siege Of Pans. No.
Pans il Able to oppoto, with the almost indefio-
ite extent Of 1ta line Of defence, garrison |
WHICH may, without etaggeration. ba consd- |
cred as indefinitely removable, and this without |
its army ever ceasing to te eqttal to the forces |
OF the besicgen. for the rules on whi:h |
20 much stress ,s laid admit III good and sat |
isfscioiy tie proportion OF one beuleged to
three besieeeru- The Timer does not oret- |
look these advantages altogether, hut it
DIV ella upon tie little profit We have hitherto
turned them to. This il true. But wi1ether
our rulers were wrnog. Two, think them
wrong, or whether it waa possible 70 do 9TH
erRlse, las the Government assures ~. Tho
question IL settled, AMI without interest. So
let ut cousider the future. It il probably the
enemy has fortiht d himself. 1t IL certain he
has received, or will receive. reinforcc1nen.s-
But We, too, have forifiad our Ines: We have
AID, above all, We Lt,u reorganixsd an army.
Consequently, il tho defence has licked Au-
1acity II has rot absolutely lacked vigilance.
II the 1iuneianA have turned iirnc to good ac~
count NO have not lost II; and, after All. No
may doubt whether one OF these days mill
f.r nz,s11 1teh he@,u InpH
moro severely for not having attacked Para
before its fortiGcstions were completed, than
ouE leadera for not having attacked tie rrns-
sIans beforo they completed their lines-
Therefore tho chances remain nearly the same,
except for food But this important poins
ness. The alimentation Of Pans Is ee-
euro foE moro than \ moati.
yet. without our being obliged
to resort to those revolving expadients 70
ed themselvet- Wo shall cat horaefeah, wo
shall eat salted meat before We touch on:
milch cows. which must be kept alive as long
AZ possible All these measures may be disa-
greeabie; but how many urhappy Wretchea
aIe there who would like tc be assured of
army has smple provisions over and Above the
supply Of the people Of Pans aud Of the gov
erninont, and let Us conclude without any e1-
aggeratipn that Paris absolutely eecure ngaiust
any assault, Aaa to fear Tor at least month to
! come, in other words, untlthe end Of tho year,
hiH serious psivations. Ia this 80 dep:orAble
positlon? Severtheless, We must indulge
I in no ilus!ona. In the hypotheats in which
| We place ourselves, namely, discArding s11hope
| Of relief from provincial armies, It ID evident
! tho resist1ncN OF Paris must have An end.
This end il eas!ly foteHeen and measured, and
will relatively bo qnite short il it contents it,
talt with beiu. merely passive. We are per
| ..:aded (although We are igrorant Of Generat
! T ochu's plana) be understands his reeponei-
li:ify and hts duties differently, and that, after
having placed Paris in safety b. dint OF rru-
!:nce and care. he will comprehend he ::sln
ard dceisien. Nevertheless. Is We % must
not conceal from ourselves that foruign
/ newspapers, which question the possible sIc-
ccrs Ut our Resistance, doubt still more tho
euccces Of sally, and We confess, moreover,
ttat these doubts are sh.red in Paris by i
b6dy can beforehand guarantee the SUCCESS
Of m operation. But wn do mt believe
this truth can be denied: the circumference
and gsrlison (Which is superior in number ia
the bcsiegere) heinG given The chances, NJ
probabilities don't say the ceE.ainty-are
in favor Of the sucecss OF u sally il it be
made With skill and courage. 1udeed
this is 70 ttue, that tho Times, in ths verJ
article in wlnc}, it predicts to Paris the
same fate IS Netz, eonSesees tho extrems
difficulty wticl, eriBts for tho enemy TO be
; ready 10 re;cl an affftk which may take p1.ct
upon 70 many different points. Esvertho
| leaa The Times tbirks land this il the set,
| lcaRor ing OF ths French newspapers Wtic,
| opposed the offensive Hysteu1 the I'rus.ian
eizcr6lv fortified ut their weak and menac:a
Hnirts. will bo able always to coacentrat,
thsir fn'ces sufficiently ut the moment OF at
the lorg and lshorious advance Of our arm:
/ h5 the portals OF the front oppoeilo the men
aced point. This onjectiou hAe, and has 10
weight. It hss weight il the army intende,
for the emily be contained in PsIip, or even a
too great a proximity to the ranpssts. ]
hae, on the contrary, no weight II thi
army il thrown out several days bofore th
attack en- more than one point between :b
tamparts and the forts, il, need rising, 1t al
vsuces By night nnrch on the real point I
DO STACKED; We may, perhaps, DO told tn
comfortably encamEtd, and will givo b.ttl
. tired. This assutedly would not Be tho CAS-
I II they bad t1rce the commencement OF th
nieEe been Injured 10 fatigue But are on
soldiers 60 changed they canuot 70. = fe1
; have given them immortal e1Amples We re
peat we. believe u great sally ma
: succeed, because the geometricai pos
; tiou. Of the coutending hosts SLOWS 4
ehtily to fall IN superior numbers upon Au
Eiren pciat. Int i IL not enough to fore
= bc ready for all sorts Of fatiguca. resigne
!, : for few days to every kind Of priration. Tn
Times thinks It will be reduced by famine
: hut II takeH with it hiaenit, which do not bo
den mer, sotne bacon and s1lt beef, four
Eve days. rations at the ntmoet, little bs-gag7
and before tho cnd Of this period Of tine i
. . activity will erabio Il TO supply itaelf wit
, food. either from tellow. countI YInen's house
or at tho enemy expenee. In fine, we /.
: great e1srtion from our reoldiers-inmeliAte
from our soldiers. 1t ia the sole way to avoi
= imroeing on them MANY sacriarcs and lot
. . tle-felds on which tho Army OF Paris c,
. mauDuvre7 There is none moro open to
= THAI tho prolonged tlopc, which I. four mile
: IN extent, beyond Vilejuif, from Longboyea
i Heighte, md beyond TFctte and osge creek,
= tho hlf-wooded plain which apreads towas
. Eseonre River, between 31ontlhcry, A1pajo
i; TuTi.y. and CorbeiL II We march forward
:. direction VIC have An advantage as great
4 III those which nature or Art may have give
y :. our epeur. We 80 to them doa
. We dare say, TO carry many entrcnc
!. = , mcnte and many stronghoIde Hhero Il
. instruments Of defence hxve been accumul,
!, ! I'd. But in tho rear. betwecy Co1bsl AID AT,
Jon the enemy ceases to he strong. There 1
: / hundred Indications which cnnyince Il.
- ttlln. We have lorg been told that Metun
= = nesFly FREQ from the presence OF tho p1u
y / eiAue. We know tho pruaai.us arc numero
. nowhere in its nciEhboKhood. Therefore,
distance OF only twenty miles separates
;, from places where ne may find tho whot
withai 10 keep tho field. Every balloon {.
, RIGS persopa entrusted with tho dnty Of pit
= !. chasing supplies and collecting bceves
:, Iuay ne that L portion Of tbe-o supplies HI
+ tcen ordered in the event OF our breskipE
- lines OF investment At sorne point or anotht
= ). 1t il likewiee probable she.e precautions hs
:" been taken in the event Of 102, ,0D0 or 120, {
:. men Of the armv Of Paris succeeding IN fol
u y ing passage aud r,anHuvre on the cuem
! TEAR.
5
i SPURIOUS CHAMPAGNE.