The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1870-09-17
Cities and Towns upon the The.
atrc of War.

A brief description of some of the principal
places in France, referred to in the kilograms,
will serve to give an idea of the position of
the armies, and the changes which have taken
place since the last mail, when the Prussian
armies were crossing into French territory.
Bellort, west of Basel, and ON the direct road
between Basel and Paris, stands in the middle of
the opening between the Jura and Vosges noun
tains, and guards the pass. Its Qualifications are
very considerable.
\ short distance northwest of Basel, away
from the river, is Mulhousen, u considerable
manufacturing town of $1,000 inhabitants. 1t
is situated on the Rhine-Rhone Canal, and has
direct railroad communication with Strasburg
and with Switzerland and Southern France.
Following the French side of the river we come
to Neu Breisach, also on the Rhone Canal, and a
mile west of the river. 1t has strong ~fortiica-
tiOns requiring a garrison of 1000 men.
Colmar and Schlettstadt, on the River Ill, in
Alsace, are fortified towns of Importance, having
Fashioned works with ravelins AMI wet bitches,
which protect the railroad and other communica-
tions along the fertile plain and over the Vosges
mountains.
Strasburg, the capital of the French depart
ment of the Lower Rhine, lies on the Ill, three
miles from the Rhine, with which it is connected
by a small and a large canal. 1t is one of the
strongest fortrcsses, and the third largest arsenal
in France. The population numbers nearly co.
600, and the garrison in peace times is 5000.
French and German are about equally spoken,
the German tongue, which largely predominates
among the peasantry and country people of the
Alsace, holding it's own even in the large towns.
The Qualifications of Strasburg, which have been
much strengthened and improved of late, securely
hold the French side of the bridges across the
Rhine here. A mOat filled with water surrounds
the Fashioned enccinte, and there are numerous
outworks and detached forts.
Weissenburg, near the Bavarian line, was for
merly strongly fortified, and had a chain of
works extending along the Lauter for nearly Is
miles to the Rhine, but they were abandoned in
1867 by imperial decree.
Northwest of Strasburg, on the French side, is
the fort of Pfalzburg, and in the northern part of
Alsace, south of the line of Rhenish Bavaria, the
fortress of Bitsch holds a strong position, resist
ing successfully several attempts of the Prussians
to capture it in 1893 and 1915. Its ditch is deep
and hewn out of rock, and it's dcfences have lately
been considerably strengthened. Both Pfalzburg
and Bitsch defend passes of the Vosges mountains.
Saargemund is an unlortifed manufacturing
town of about 10 900 inhabitants, most of whom
speak the German language. 1t lies northwest
of Bitsch, between it and Forbach, on the Saar.
Metz, situated in northeastern France, and due
west from Saargemund, is the most important
n%ortherly point on the Franco-Prussian frontier,
and is very strongly fortified. 1t is a walled
town of 5000 inhabitants, and is usually gar
risoned with 10 900 troops. An arm of the Mo-
selle which partly surrounds the town, can be
raised so as to inundate the low grounds south
and southwest Of the town. Since the war of
1866, between Austria and Prussia, the French
Government has devoted much attention to the
strengthening and improvement of the %fortifca-
tions, with a special view to the capabilities OF
modern ordnance and projectiles, and it is pre-
pared to offer a formidable resistance to any at
lacking force which may be brought against it.
Thionville, north of Metz, and likewise on the
Moselle, is a small town, but important as a sup
plement to the latter in protecting the line OF the
river. The town itself, and an island in the
river here, are protected by strong works, and
the bridge which connects the two is well guarded.
Mezieres is a fortified town at the mouth of
the river Mouse, eighty miles northwest of
Metz, with a population of 5000. 1t is connected
with Charleyille, on the opposite bank of the
river, by a suspension bridge. 1t was at this
place that the left wing of MeMahon's army
rested on the 18th of August.
Chalons is a city of Is. 900 inhabitants. ninety
miles west of Paris. 1t is located in a fine open
country, and is on the line of the railroad from
Paris to Strasburg.
Reims or Rheims is a city of $4,000 inhabit-
ants, 25 miles north west of Chalons. 1t is cele-
brated for its wines, which are the finest in the
world. AT the latest dates it was held by the
Germans.