The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1919-05-22

under Louis XIV. Also the striking
monument, AUX Defenseurs de 1870
and two of the imposing gateways Of
the city.
The Subtcrranean City"
A visit to the famous underground
city Of the citadel" Of verdun was q
part of our program.
yerdun is perhaps one Of the most
extensively fortified cities in tho
world. In the i7th century Vauban
the famous military architect and en-
gineer planned its Notifications on
lines similar to those of Metz and
TouI, The entire town is first sur
rounded by a steep, sloping wall; this
in turn, by a deep moat, and outside
all, the rampant wall of immense
thickness faced with heavy retaining
wall both on the moat side and on the
outer side. The citadel in the case
Of Verdun, forms part of this outer
rampant on the exposed western side.
In 1874 the citadel with its under
ground passages was greatly enlarged
until now these latter constitute what
il truly the underground city OF
vcrdur,r comprising miles Of corri-
doris, about twelve feet wide by ten
feet hgh, leading off from which are
hundreds OF long, large rooms, for
sleeping quarters, mess halls, kitchens,
wash rooms, storerooms, magazines
for ammunition and various supplies,
There is large electric light and
power plant providing adequate' light
ing. etc, for this underground city.
There Is a hall provided for celebra-
tion OF Mass and even a well-equipped
Foyer du Soldat." A narrow gauge
railway system provides for transpor-
tation of supplies. Indeed everything
required by residents for months in
lsueh a soldier-city has been provided.
Our French soldier guide told us that
on d war basis, this subterranean
fortress city could accommodate a
garrison of fifteen thousand troops.
The other fortresses guarding the
northeast frontier of France are sim
ilarly built but on a smaller scale.
Fort Douaumont'
Fort Douaumont, lying little over
five miles northeast of Verdun togeth-
er with Fort Vaux, lying a little farth-
er to the east were the only forts of
the 'thirty-six outlying fortresses OF
the Verdun system, taken by the
Germans.
Fort Douaumont was the scene of
one of the longest and hardest strug-
giles Of the prolonged campaign against
Verdun.
After riding for some miles through
a continuous landscape OF battle fields
and passing through several silent and
completely shattered villages with
only lew ruined shells Of houses lett
standing, we climbed long mil near
ly to the summit. Leaving our car by
the roadside, we clambefed over the
shell-torn, and trench-cut battle field
making our way as best we could
around the water-tllled sheil-hole-
craters that literally covered the
ground and gingerly climbing over
barbed wire entanglements that run IN
parallels sometimes rods deep and ex-
tending for miles.
After difficult scramble OF nearly
half a mile we reached the summit of
Fort Douaumont, which at distance,
resembles a greyish clay bank crowned
hill, rather than an elaborate, mason
ry built fortress with citadel, moat
and outer rampant. Badly smashed
by months of shelling as it is, the out
lines Of the fortress are easily made
out when the summit it reached. It's
subterranean structure is still intact
and is now occupied by a small gar
rison Of French soldiers, The top of
the citadel has cap of ten feet or
more of solid concrete over the upper
tier of galleries, yet in places German
shells of high explosives had ripped
out huge craters in the concrete al
most down to these galleries.
A very courteous French soldier of
the garrison showed US over the inter
ior of this three-storied fortress, ex-
planning to us the purpose of the diff
ferent rooms, the working Of the dis
appearing guns, ETC., describing in