"Seventy-five to 100 miles is the scouting range of the military aeroplanes, while the dirigibles will scout 500 to 1,000 miles from the base, according to the duration efficiency. The Zeppelins might, taking some risk, travel even farther. With this taken into consideration, the fact that there are only two German aero centers on the French frontier—Aix-la-Chapelle and Metz—is not very significant. The range of the Vosges occupies the territory where there is no aero center.
"Back of the mountains, along the Rhone from Dusseldorf to Strasbourg, there are a dozen aero stations, some of them devoted to aeroplanes and dirigibles, others to dirigibles alone.
"The latest data show that Germany has sixty stations, including private dirigible hangars, while France has thirty, in most cases of greater extent than those in Germany, Russia, eight months ago, had ten, but it is believed that this number has been increased twofold since that time.
"The two principal Belgian centers are at Brasschaet, near Antwerp, and Etterbeck, near Brussels. The aviators operating in the early engagements have undoubtedly flown down from Brussels and are in temporary camp at Liege. There are probably not more than four Belgian escadrilles, or little fleets of four machines each, on the scene, while Germany's force is supposedly greater."
CHAPTER XVIII
BATTLE OF THE AISNE
Most Prolonged Encounter in History Between Gigantic Forces—A Far-Flung Battle Line—Germans Face French and British in the Aisne Valley and Fight for Weeks—Mighty Armies Deadlocked After a Desperate and Bloody Struggle.
For a few days after the tide of battle in France turned in favor of the Allies (September 9), the German forces continued to retreat to the north, closely followed by the French and British armies that had fought and won the battle of the Marne, as described in a previous chapter. This northward movement was marked by heavy German losses in men and munitions of war, and lasted until Saturday, September 12, when the Germans were found to be occupying a position of great defensive strength on the River Aisne, north of Soissons. At that time they held both sides of the river and had a formidable line of intrenchments on the hills to the north of eight road bridges and two railway bridges crossing the Aisne. Seven of the road bridges and both the railway bridges had been destroyed.
The Allies gained some high ground south of the Aisne, overlooking the Aisne valley, east of Soissons. Then began (on Saturday, September 12) an action along the Aisne which was destined to go down in history as the greatest and most prolonged battle of all time. Two days, three days, a week, two weeks, three, four, five weeks it lasted, with varying fortune to the contending armies, but no decisive result. Germans, French and British, literally by the thousand, fell under the continuous hail of shrapnel, the hurricane of machine-gun and rifle fire, or in the desperate bayonet charges of daily occurrence, but still the battle raged. Minor positions were gained and lost, towns and villages along the far-flung battle line were occupied and evacuated, countless deeds of heroism were wrought, to be sung and celebrated by posterity in a dozen different lands—but the lines on both sides held and victory refused to perch on any banner.