New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-09-09
The Situation East of Paris.

forced the allied left wing back all the way ii'
the Be,cian border TO the environs of Paris has
passed into military history. 1t ended necessarily
whom the French left had retired far enough 70
bring up against the Paris forts. TO continue II
in its original character as a pure thanking move
ment ,yould have required detour far to the west
Of Paris. which would have accomplished nothing
b,, useless occupation Of more French territory
and would have put the German army on the eA
treme right dangerously ont Of touch with the
other German armies.
1t IS too early to say that the turning movement
failed absolutely to do its work 1t may have had
some value which will be disclosed as the present
campairn develops But it did not accomplish its
main purpose. which was to force the French
armies to surrender their fortified line Of defence
along the Franco German frontier. The French
have clunc to their positions on the border from
Verdun down to Belfort and have simply drawn
their left centre back in order to conform to the
retirement Of their extreme left on the Paris
Notifications. If the allied left had met with
disaster in ifs long retreat from Chartered and
Mons TO the outskirts of the capital or If the left
centre had been broken while falling back from
Mezieres to Rheims and Chalons, the eastern
frontier line Of fortresses would have had to be
abandoned and the allied army would have been
obliged to retire to the line Of the Seine southeast
or Paris. or possibly to the line of the Loire.
The Germans would have cleared all northeastern
boyo hoo
enabled to send more first line troops to Eastern
Prussia filling their places In France with sec
end line reserves Holding the French frontier
strongholds. as well as their own IN Lorraine and
Alsacc, they would have felt free for several
months to come from any dangerous pressure on
tho western border
General Joffre has held fast to his original plan
Of letting Paris shift for itself and making his
wants 10 hold the verdun Befort line for use in
offensive operations, in case the time comes to
take the offensive Therefore he has used Verdua
as pivot on which his left centre and left have
swung toward the south fully quarter Of circle
The left originally extended from verdun almost
north TO Mons and Lille. Now it is bent back west
aud south Of west toward Paris
The former northern line Of the allies is now
points south being touched in the middle Of the
arc at Sezanne and Vitry. Recently the strongest
pressure from the enemy has been in the direction
Of these southernmost points the allied line hay-
ing retired about forty miles within the last week
from Rheims to Sezanne and Fere Champenoise.
Tho position about Verdun has therefore become
more and more sharp salient enveoped on three
sides by the enemy.
The pressure on the allied left centre has be-
come moro powerful because Of the abandonment
Of the German turning movement and the with
drawal Of the turning army under General Won
Kuk toward the east. General Won Kluks army
is thus crowded up against General Won Bulow's
army and these two right wing armies are near
ing the positions of the third and fourth German
armies under General Won Hansen and the Grand
Duke Albrecht of Wdrtemberg The fifth Ger
man army, under Crown Prince Wilhelm Of Prus
sia is about Verdun, and the sixth, under Crown
Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria is facing west on the
Franco-Gcrman frontier opposite Nancy. -Four
German armies are thus massed opposite the
French left centre, just where its line says most
and If the Germans maintain the offensive they
will probably make desperate attempt to pierce
thc allied lies between Sezanne and Vitry
The weakness of the German position is that
It is now outfanked on the right, from which
direction the allies are attacking Won Kluk and
trying to get into his rear If the allies can hold
along their curved-back lef4 centre the situation
win be very favorable to them from the tactical
point Of view. since a successful flank and rear
attack from the direction Of Meaux would cut the
present German communications north and com
pel hurried retreat toward southern Belgium
and Luxembourg
The problem on the present front is still largely
one of numbers. If the French first line army is
now recruited up to full strength General Jofre
ought TO have enough men to begin an offensive
IN the extreme left and left centre If the French
army is still short Of fits full strength he will
oaturolIv delay counter stroke. The latest dis
a.,