The Story of the Great War, Volume 1: Introductions; Special Articles; Causes of War; Diplomatic and State Papers
History
The Story of the Great War, Volume 1: Introductions; Special Articles; Causes of War; Diplomatic and State Papers
World War, 1914-1918
Though the German armies had not been able to gain a decisive
victory over the French, they had established themselves on French
soil. All the destructive effects of war must be borne by their
adversary while they could make use of the regions occupied to
supply and feed their troops. They had put the burden of direct
economic waste on the French and deprived them of economic supplies,
while the psychologic value of driving home to the enemy population
the ravages of war is considered important by military leaders.
Nor could the economic advantage be adequately measured by extent of
area occupied; for the one-twenty-sixth of the territory of France
which was held by the Germans represented far more than
one-twenty-sixth of French producing power for war purposes. A
nation's true material wealth in peace may be in its farms and
vineyards, but in war it is in the coal and steel and machine shops.
The "Black Country" of northern France of no interest to the
tourist, plays the same part to industrial France that the
Pittsburgh region plays to industrial America. Besides, with Lille
in German hands, France had lost the income from her export trade in
textiles.
As the Russians for lack of transport were not able to follow up
their success at Lublin, the succeeding weeks showed it to be far
from a decisive victory. The Austrian army soon recovered itself. In
comparison with Russia, both Austria and Germany were highly
organized industrial nations. They had not only been able to put
larger forces into the field at the outset than their adversaries,
but they had the resources in guns and rifles, and in the factories
for the manufacture of munitions, which enabled them to increase
their actual fighting forces faster than their adversaries, and to
supply them with larger quantities of munitions.
The German army was established in well-chosen positions in France,
which might be impregnable against even forces as superior as three
to one; the Austrian army was safely established in front of the
Russians. Both the French and the Russians were short of munitions,
and particularly of guns of heavier caliber, and of high-explosive
shells, which had become most essential in trench warfare.
Relatively, the Germans were depending upon their guns to hold the
Aisne line, while the Allies were depending upon the flesh and blood
of infantry. Germany was rushing every trained man she had to the
front and training a million volunteers. Now she could spare troops
moved by her efficient railroad system, taking advantage of the
interior line for Von Hindenburg to make a drive toward Warsaw,
where he repeated the same maneuver, in keeping with German practice
of the advance to the Marne. After his drive, he fell back from
Warsaw, and intrenched for the winter.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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