no such
decision in sight, almost regardless of the depth of penetration. The
lines might have to be rectified; Verdun might have to be abandoned; the
Vosges frontier line might have to be drawn in. But even so the French
and British armies would both be intact; both biding their time when,
with full force of their own and a million or more American troops,
Germany could be beaten. In short, an attack against the French at any
point, while promising new gains in territory, promised nothing in the
way of a decision, and, be it remembered, this is Germany's last effort;
it must reach either victory or defeat. The Battle of Picardy must and
will produce a definite, positive result. It cannot end in indecision.

[Sidenote: British army trained only for trench warfare.]

[Sidenote: The French positions.]

[Sidenote: The British railway connections might be taken.]

An attack against the British offered none of the disadvantages which
attended an attack against the French. The British were stronger it is
true. But this army, unlike that of the French, was trained for but one
thing--trench warfare. If Germany could restore war in the open--a war
of movement--this strength might be offset by a wider experience. In
attacking the British, the French could be held in check by defensive
tactics with not a great deal of difficulty; as in such operations the
terrain was greatly in Germany's favor. To take a hurried glimpse of the
French positions, we find them in the valley of the Ailette north of
the Chemin des Dames facing the high slopes of the plateau on which is
found Laon. In the Champagne they are facing a high rolling country,
studded with good artillery positions and points of observation. In the
Vosges, their problem is identical with that of the Germans--forcing the
gaps in a barrier otherwise impassable. There would be then a minimum of
danger from the French while Germany was engaged on the British front.
Moreover, behind the British line was, first, Amiens, through which
passed the great railroad systems from Calais, Boulogne, and Abbeville,
binding together the British north of the Somme to the French in the
south. With Amiens in German hands this connection would be badly
ruptured. And farther on still was the sea, which, if Germany could
reach it, would physically separate the great Allied army into two
armies, without connection, each of which could be dealt with
separately. And unlike an advance through Champag