The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1914-11-05
FRANCE HAS MUCH TO LOSE
German, still Holds Strong Position
in France and Belgium

When. on September Z, the German
right wing swcrycd eastward past The
walls Of Paris and began that retreat
which stopped only AZ the famous bat
tie line Of the Aisne, wave OF relief
and crul,ation swept over France.
The nightmare fear which had held
the French spellbound during that
terrible German "driye" Of " 70 Is
miles per day. through line after line
az Frances fortified northern border
was abruptly broken.
The French soldiery always 50
much better In attack than in retreat
displayed its traditional ELAN" in its
vigorous pursuit Of the retiring foe.
The loEg-seryice regulars Of the Brit
ish "eypcditionBry force showed the
same workmanlike efficiency on the Of
fensiyc. as during their mastery re-
treat after the numbing blow received
at Mons on the Franco Belgian 'front.'
Ter.
Nearly everywhere outside Of Ger
many Il was confidently predicted that
the Teu,on had shot his bolt" that
the German position on September Z
was the "high-water mark Of the war
and when the retreating armies turned
on their pursuers along the Aisne II
was considered only q pronounced
rear guard action to give the artillery
and supply trains time to get over
into Belgium and Luxembourg, on
route for Germany once more.
II is a good five weeks since the
Germans turned at bay along the
Aisne. and yet, despite the most tre-
mendous five weeks fighting ever seen
upon this planet, the Germans are
there to-day.
The reason is simple. When the
allied armies, flushed with their tri-
umphant pursuit, smashed their way
across the river Aisne, driving in the
German outposts as they went, they
suddenly found themselves up against
n stone wall. Just north of the river
runs a long line Of terraced hills, and
on these natural ramparts lay the
Germans.
Furthermore, the allies quickly dis
covered that while the heads of the
German invading columns had been
rushing on Paris the reserves had
been busy digging trenches and lay
ing big-gun displacements. In other
words, that the German stand on the
Aisne was no mere delayed rear-guard
action, but carefully planned resolve
to KEEP their grip on northern France
and await the morrow.
The advancing allies made the same
unpleasant discovery that Gustavus
Adolphus received from Wallenstein
at the Alte Veste, or that given to
Marshal Massent by Wellington at the
Portuguese lines of Torres Vedras. In
chess parlance, the Germans suddenly |
cried Check
Map Contradicted Bulletins
II is true that, for short time, the
allies refused to see the point. Their
artillery having failed to master the
well-placed German batteries, the
French and English infantry threw
themselves with superb courage
against the labyrinth Of the German
trenches, in a determined attempt to
break the line at the point Of the bay
onet, but they merely discovered what
Liege had already taught the Ger
mans, that the bravest infantry in
the world cannot, by frontal attack,
carry intrenchments still unbroken by
artillery fire, and after huge
losses the allies had to resign them
selves to counter-trenching and the in
of virtual siege.
Only amid the rocks and forests of