Yser (the Battle of the Yser) the Belgians held firm; and the Germans could not break through here.

Three days after the inauguration of the attack against the Belgians on the Allied left, the Germans launched a terrific offensive against the British in the centre of the line in front of Ypres (the Battle of Ypres). The British had already advanced, with the hope of penetrating the German centre, of cutting their communications, of flanking the troops attacking the Belgians to the west, or at least of relieving the pressure on the Belgians. But the German offensive soon crumpled up the British offensive, and the British were thrown back on the defensive. The fighting was of the fiercest nature imaginable-in none of the long four and one-quarter years' struggle was the combat to rage with greater violence, or were the losses to be greater, comparatively, than in this test of strength before Ypres. Step by step the British were forced back, until by October 22 they had yielded much ground to the Germans. On that day, the Germans even managed to cross the Yser to the north of Ypres, and to threaten a flanking movement. At the same time, the assault on Dixmude was renewed with increased intensity.

But a French division came to the relief of the Belgians and a British division to the relief of their fellow-countrymen; and on the night of the twenty-third both the Belgians and the British held their ground and beat back the German attacks. So close to the sea-coast was the fighting northwest of Dixmude that a number of British. warships managed to get close enough to rain shells upon the Germans and thus to provide material assistance to the Belgian army. Nevertheless, the Belgians, although never routed, were being slowly forced back, and Joffre determined to utilize his strongest remaining defence. On October 25, the dykes were opened and the waters of the ocean began to flood the land. But the waters of the ocean moved slowly, and gave the Germans still several days' breathing space. Until October 28, the army of the Imperial German Government managed to press steadily forward at the expense of the Belgians, although never making considerable gains; but by the latter day the German lines were disarranged by the oncoming water, and their manoeuvres were hampered. Further reinforcements arrived to strengthen the

Belgian ranks; and by October 31, the Germans had been definitely halted along the sea. Their hopes for breaking through to Dunkirk and Calais, and perhaps even for another flanking movement along

THE DEADLOCK IN THE WEST

The battle-line of trenches in France and Belgium in November, 1914

the Allied west, were now concentrated on their attack against the centre of the gap, on their attack upon the British defending Ypres. After their momentary check on the night of October 23, the Germans came to the attack against Ypres on the following day with

renewed fury. For the next several days, they gained slowly, but surely; but by October 27, the British again held their ground and again drove back every German assault. The struggle was now a man-to-man combat, and the result depended on the manhood of the opposing soldiers. If the Germans had been indeed a super-race, and the British and the French degenerate races, the Germans would have had little difficulty in breaking down resistance at Ypres. But the Battle of Ypres augured ill for the German claim of racial superiority. Indeed, on October 28, the British themselves assumed the offensive and drove back the Germans. The British advanced through Gheluvet, and threatened to capture Neuve Chapelle. Then the Germans rallied and re-captured Gheluvet, only to be driven out once more. On the following day, the French forces to the south of the British attacked the German line opposite them, with the effect of lessening for several days the pressure against the British.

On the last day of October, however, the Germans returned to the attack. Orders had been given to break through despite the sacrifices involved, and the orders were being obeyed. For a day, the Germans advanced, but after the first impetus of the assault had passed, the British held firm. On November 1 and 2, the struggle was an absolute deadlock. To and fro the battle-line swerved, with no decision possible. On the following day, the French again attacked to the south, and once more pressure on the British was relieved.

I

Rallying all their strength, the Germans resolved upon one last desperate effort. Baffled in the centre, on November 10 they drove at both wings against the Belgians again at Dixmude and against the French to the south, while at the same time they attacked the British with enough force to prevent the Allied centre from rendering assistance to the Allied wings. The attack on the Belgians failed, and after one day's success, the attack against the French also failed. Human flesh and blood could do no more. The Germans abandoned their last attempt to break the Allied line, and entrenched as they had entrenched along the rest of the battle-line.

It was a final quietus upon the attempt to overwhelm France within two months. The French line had held, finally; no French army had

been surrounded or captured; Germany's hope of a short war was forever blasted.

TRENCH WARFARE

The entire struggle in the West from November 15, 1914 to the spring of 1918 hence became a series of trench struggles. The Swiss border and the North Sea prevented further flanking attempts. Airplanes prevented surprise attacks on a large and decisive scale, and the extent of the trenches prevented smashing blows which would break through the opposing lines. Even the implements of warfare changed. With the soldiers entrenched below the surface of the ground, high explosives became far more valuable than shrapnel. For sudden trench raids, hand-grenades, bayonets, even knives, were the armament. Strong obstacles of barbed-wire were erected between the opposing lines of trenches and effectively hindered advances. The Germans in 1915 introduced poison gas, which then became used by both belligerent camps. In the West, the Great War had become at struggle of food, of minerals, of munitions, of man-power, of industry, of propaganda, of political manoeuvres, of financial strength,-in a word, a struggle of attrition.

THE WAR IN THE EAST

THE BATTLE OF LEMBERG

As we have seen, Germany anticipated from Russia no serious threat for the first two months of war. Because of the inevitable tardiness of Russian mobilization, Germany maintained at first but a small force of several hundred thousand men on her Russian frontier. She counted upon an advance by Austria to keep Russia occupied until France had been overwhelmed and until Germany herself could turn her undivided attention to the forces of the Tsar. We have seen also that the most vulnerable portion of Germany bordering on Russia was the southern portion. It was therefore natural that Austria should advance northward in a line parallel to this southern portion of the Russo-German frontier, so as effectively to protect that vulnerable section of the German Empire (Silesia). (See Map, page 503.)

Indeed, with the Austrian advance, the section of Russia bordering. on Germany (Russian Poland) became more vulnerable to attack than the section of Germany bordering on Russia. In the words of one writer upon the military strategy of the Great War, Russian Poland projects into Germany and Austria-Hungary like a fist shoved into a pillow. Russian Poland was open to attack on three sides-from the north and west by Germany, and from the south by AustriaHungary. Moreover, Russian Poland was roughly in the shape of a square an army occupying it would be able to hold its eastern boundary with hardly less difficulty than its western. It was protected by a number of fortresses-its capital, Warsaw; Novorgeorgievsk, Ivangorod, Brest-Litovsk, and a line of lesser forts along the Narew River to the Bobr. Its frontiers provided little natural protection; and, indeed, the main fortresses of Russian Poland were some distance back from the frontier. Whereas to the south, the Carpathians were too far beyond the frontier to protect Russian Poland,