Omaha daily bee., 1914-08-24
FORTS TN CIRCLES
TO MEET INVADERS
Fortifications of Most Complete
Character Behind the Belgian
Frontier.
PLANNED DEFENSE
Germans, should They Succeed in
Crossing Border, Would Find
Difficult Task to Reach
Paris.

Copyright, 1914. Press Publishing Coz
PARIS, Aug. % ESPECIAL Cablegram to
New York World and Omaha Bee.)-
Should the German army cross the French
frontier through Belgium it will find a
first, second and third line of defense on
the March to Paris that will prove far
more difficult TO overcome than was the
case in 1870,
First of all. the intrenched camps OF
the Lille district will be met and it may
be said at once that everything points
to the certainty that the British eKpedi-
tionary force that has been landed in
France is now admirably situated, from
strategical point OF view, In this very
Lille region.
Three Strong FOrtresses.
The forts of Xalenciennes, Mauberme
and Hirson, all south Of Lille and close
to the Belgian border. form the chief re-
sisting points in this great intrenched
camp, which was specifically designed to
meet and repuise any invasion through
Belgium north of the Meuse.
Here must be fought the first great
battles Of any invasion that comes by
way Of Brussels, Ghent and the north Of
Belgium.
Behind this barrier the French have
constructed on the way to Paris, another
intrenched camp at Laon and La Fere,
which is the base of the operations of the
second line of defense-the field army
that will bar the invaders on their ad-
vance through the valleys of the Oise and
Aisne Jaisne-and west of that another
secondary line will oVerrun the plains he
tween the Somme and the Disc.
Forts Around Paris.
Nearer to Paris and southerly from this
second line is the third defense line, in
the shape of the formidable Notifications
Of Paris. These are made up of two con-
centric rings Of forts. arranged so that
the gunfire can be conveyed and CONF
bined in any one direction.
The outer ring lies about sixty kilo-
meters, or thirty-eight miles, from the
northern walls of fortified Paris itself,
while the inner ring is about thirty kilo-
meters, or nineteen miles distant. All
| these forts are of the most modern con-
struction and equipped with siege guns
OF the very latest type.
Plan Trap for Invaders.
Between Hirson and Verdun, which
races Mel1t Inere Is no lIOntltI line OF
fortresses, their omission being deliber-
ate design of the French general staff,
but west of the Aisne we find the in
trenched camps OF Rheims and Chalons,
which continue the La Fere and LaOn
second line.
Below the Belgian frontier and facing
any attack from the Luxemburg and
AIsace-Lorraine frontier, there exists a
long and powerful string of forts. distant
/ but a few kilometers each from the
border. They include Longwy. Verdin,
Commercy Toul, Epinal and Belfort, with
! other minor fortified places between them
/ Back Of this line is the continuation Of
the La Fere and Laon camps, including
below Rheims and Chalons, Chaumont
Langres, Dijon and Besancon.
Guns Most Modern.
Supporting this line again comes the
Paris outer tortifications. disposed just
as the rings on the northerly side are
disposed In all. Paris is surrounded by
about a hundred such forts and fortified
works. in all of which the guns are hidden
under cement cupolas which reveal only
the muzzles Of the long range guns. and
which revolve on axes that give the guns
a complete sweep in any direction.
General Michel, a member of the su-
perior COUNCIL OF war and military gov
ernor of Paris. H. in supreme command
over all the Paris Notifications.