The Russian Offensive Also Steps Out 107 were free to use their massive military machine against France almost exclusively, it was equally necessary that they should have a way to get to France promptly, to be at the throat of the enemy without delay. Hence it was impossible to attack France from the Franco-German frontier. Here, from the very morning of her terrible defeat in 1870, France had been building tremendous forts, Verdun, Toul, Epinal, Belfort, barred this approach and behind them was a second line hardly less for- midable. Six weeks to Paris had been the time-table of the German General Staff. Now what had been the progress of the movement on the French capital? At Liege on August 4, the German Army was 228 miles from Paris. At Brussels on August 20, it was 213. In sixteen days the march to Paris had gone forward precisely fifteen miles. From Liege to Brussels is sixty-two miles; they had been covered in sixteen days, despite the fact that only the Bel- gian army had barred the way. Ten days of this time, to be sure, had been consumed in the regular mobilization. To succeed in this great offensive, Germany had concentrated at least twenty of her twenty-five army corps in the southwestern field. She had in addition borrowed two from Austria. Had Italy remained loyal to the Triple Alliance, she would have taken care of at least three French along the Alps and in Africa, and Germany would have had twenty-two corps against eighteen French