PARIS MISSED.

North Otago Times, Volume CV, Issue 30938, 23 July 1917, Page 1

PARIS MISSED.

MOLTKE'S HESITATION. GERMAN STORY OF MARNE, Considerable interest is taken in Paris in an account published in the "Renaissance" of a statement made by a German officer, alleged to be of high rank, to a Spanish journalist, who has reproduced it in the Bilbao newspaper, According to this statement, General von Moltke was responsible personally'for the German defeat on tho Marno, He stales that General von Kluck wished to surround the capital* and undertook to capture it within a very short space of time. He telegraphed to Moltke, who gave him instructions to ignore Paris and go in pursuit of the army corps of Franehct d'Esperey. In this way one day was lost, Kluck insisted, and again pro-' mised to reduce.Paris in a few days, but again Moltke sent instructions that he should surround the French loft,'

. Two days had now passed, and Kluck a third time urged the import-, auce of capturing Paris, and at the same moment drew attention to the fresh French army which was appearing on his right, Moltke insisted that ihis new army was unimportant, and that the real objective was the French left. Three days had in this way been wasted, and when Kluck delivered his furious attack on the French left he was attacked in the flank', as he had foreseen by the oth French Army under General Manoury, and was forced lo fall back to the Oureq. "Such, according to the German statement, was the lerrlble error that can never be forgot;en. In this way we lost Paris, for we knew it could never resist a siege by us, because the forts, had no, heavy guns to reply _ to our modern weapons."

More importance has probably been given to this statement .in Paris than, it ailnlly merits, and Ihe academic question has been hotly discussed as to what would have been the effect in (he early days of the war if Paris had fallen into German hands. There is considerable difference of opinion on the subject, and .sonic argue that with Ihe fall of Paris the whole French resistance would have been crushed, while others maintain that, despite this blow, France' would have continued to resist. The general opinion here in Paris, however, inclines to the belief that Moltke was personally responsible for the carrying out of the cast-iron policy prepared in .advance, which unquestionably deprived the Germans of a considerable military advantage, which, it now appears, lay well within their giu«...