General Petain, upon Stubbs' request,
agreed that the little war correspondent should be allowed to make a tour
of the city of Verdun and the surrounding fortifications and view for
himself the effects of the siege thus far.
An officer of the general staff was assigned by the French commander to
show Stubbs about. It was the first time a war correspondent had been
admitted to Verdun and the surrounding fortifications; and because of the
things that Stubbs learned on the tour, it is fitting that the reader
take the trip with him.
The officer first led Stubbs to the highest point on the walls encircling
Verdun and there explained the lay-out of the contending forces. From
this point of vantage, commanding the battlefield, Verdun looked like the
center of a huge saucer, with the town lying very low, while all around
rose an even circle of crests forming the outer edge of the saucer.
The dangerous proximity of the Germans was apparent. At the time that
Stubbs viewed the battlefield the armies of the Kaiser held a goodly
portion of these crests, though the battle of Verdun was less than two
weeks old.
An intermittent bombardment was in progress from Fort Tavennes, Fort
Soueville, Fort St.
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