“From August 26, 1914, the German armies had been descending upon Paris by forced marches. On September 1st they were only three days’ march from the advanced line of the intrenched camp, which the garrison were laboring desperately to put into condition for defense. It was necessary to cover with trenches a circuit of 110 miles, install siege guns, assure the coming of supplies for them over narrow-gauge railways, assemble the food and provisions of all kinds necessary for a city of 4,000,000 inhabitants. “But on September 3rd, the intelligence service, which was working perfectly, stated about the middle of the day, that the German columns, after heading straight for Paris, were swerving toward the southeast and seemed to wish to avoid the fortified camp. “General Gallieni and I then had one of those long conferences which denoted grave events; they usually lasted from two to five minutes at most. The fact is that the military government of Paris did little talking--it acted. The conference reached this conclusion: ‘If they do not come to us, we will go to them with all the force we can muster.’ Nothing remained but to make the necessary preparations. The first thing to do was not to give the alarm to the enemy. General Manoury’s army immediately received orders to lie low and avoid any engagement that was not absolutely necessary.” Then care was taken to reinforce it by every means. All was ready at the designated time. In the night of September 3rd, knowing that the enemy would have to leave only a rear guard on one bank of the Ourcq, General Gallieni and General Clergerie decided to march against that rear guard, to drive it back with all the weight of the Manoury army, to cut the enemy’s communications, and take full advantage of his hazardous situation. Immediately the following order was addressed to General Manoury: Because of the movement of the German armies, which seem to be slipping in before our front to the southeast, I intend to send your army to attack them in the flank, that is to say, in an easterly direction. I will indicate your line of march as soon as I learn that of the British army. But make your arrangements now so that your troops shall be ready to march this afternoon and to begin a general movement east of the intrenched camp tomorrow. At ten in the morning a consultation was held by Generals Gallieni, Clergerie, and Manoury, and the details of the plan of operations were immediately decided. General Joffre gave permission to attack and announced that he would himself take the offensive on the 6th. On the 5th, at noon, the army from Paris fired the first shot; the battle of the Ourcq, a preface to the Marne, had begun.