Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-08-14
MIMICRY OF WAR BEGINS
Center of Attacking Force Rests at
Mendall Hill.
BLUES" WARY AND WATCHFUL
"Red" Flankers Cover Wide Area,
With Twenty-Mile Battle Line
Confronting Them.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE
RED, in the field near New Bedford.
Mass, August 14.-With the old village
of New Bedford flying the theoretical
white flag of surrender. Gen. Tasker H.
Bliss Is today throwing out his first line
of skirmshers for the siX-day war game
OF wiping out Boston.
Today the invading center rests at Men
dali Hill. on the new Rochester road
toward Boston The f1ankers, far flung
to the right and left, are on the watch
for surprises ont of Boston clear to Sip
picar harbor on the right and Watuppa
pond on the left.
Between is a twenty-mile battle line.
where concentrated fighting could occur
at any point the commanding general
wishes. His information. received by
scouts early this morning. is that the
blue defenders are thirty miles away in
his front getting ready to swoop down
upon his forming positions. And for as
gressive warfare Gen. Bliss has especial
~ shaped his organization. His three
brigades are composed entirely of in
fantrymen who will make up the main
line of his advance.
But to do the hunting for Boston's de-
tenders and rout them out of all but their
most entrenched centers, he has already
a flying group of divisional troops. direct
u under his personal command They are
composed of Maj Oliver Bridgman's New
York caharymen, Maj. Wilson's light
batteries Of sixteen guns and Maj Muir
phys New York engineers, armed as in
fantrymen.
Land Without Opposition.
The red army. in it's sneak on New
Englands shores. met keen disappoint-
ment at Buzzard bay if it expected Bos-
tons defenders to care figure as to
whether 1t got ashore or stayed afloat.
The theoretical blowing up Of Fort Rod
real suggestion Of destroyed naval power.
The Puritan and Pilgrim, chief troopers
of the transport fleet, nosed their way
into the shallow shore water past the
masts and protruding snokestacks of the
late lamented United States converted
cruiser Yankee. She lay with her gun
decks wholly submerged, and got as
much attention from the Buzzard bay
landing party as did the near shore line
they were to attack.
Can Boston be captured with 1000 of
her fayorite Yankee sons afield in her de-
fenSe?
An old New Bedford whaler watched
the sixty-seven galvanized garbage cans
aboard captured quartermaster's ve-
hicle leading the red army's advance
upon the town.
maybe these cotton workers won't. Blame
me If Bedford amt gettin foreign fac
tory hands here till we've got no fghtin'
Yankees left. Now. bless YOU. reds. if
YOU wuZ to be really from foreign parts
instead Of just from Manhattan blamed
il this town wouldn't get out and shout.
! never thought of ii before. Halt of us
is foreign now, and the cotton mills are
CROWN. But up Boston way I guess
there's Yank or two left thatll fight
like their daddies did to shut We off,"
In Hands of Opposing Generals.
Gen. Leonard Wood has passed out OF
control of the actual fighting. The war
game now is real war, with Gen. Bliss
against Gen. Pew and the victory bird
for the shrewder. Each must take full
responsibility for his tactics, and each
often as he pleases I'm his process of fig
uring out his fight for Boston.
Gen. Bliss is a veteran fighter with the
bars of an extensive insular campaign
decorating his coat front. He tanned the
savage .Zulus of Mindinao and Jolo and
was first to talk with the Dattos on the
shores of Lake Lanao in the Islands ter
ritory.
when do YOU dine in Boston," was
asked as he left the Bedford shore line
for his field headquarters this morning.
Its early to say yet" he answered.
We'll fight a little first. and then We'll
know.
The weeks series of warfare tactics is
tickling the field officers, who, sixty
strong. wearing the white bands of
field umpires. They have nearly all seen
service, and service that suffered for lack
of support from the signal men, the
quartermasteTs and the commissaries
It Is these departments that bear the real
strain of this outing warfare, and the
responsible officers are going at their
tasks. well knowing that they are the
real observed of all observers.
Ii is the biggest war game the country
has yet played. and II has brought a
more distinguished group of veterans to-
gether 10 see how it's large scale
maneuvers work out In the field.
Except at such times this the gen
erals OF the army get really little to do.
While the captains drill their compan nies
AMI the colonels drill their regiments the
generals rather remain in quarters And
every one OF them shows joy OF being
,nce more atield in the enthusiastic way
ne reaches for his tasks.
Value of the Maneuvers.
Definite results are sure to follow the
naneuvers that will seriously affect any
ZEAL New England invasion should one
come while present warfare methods pre-
vail. For one thing the improvements
made for the government on the Fall
liver boats Puritan. Pilgrim and Boston
are 10 remain so that these boats can
De converted into transports on a notice
II four hours The freight cars used
the transfer of horses are 10 be stored
)n side track. with their loading equip
nent intact. so that 2G9o horses can
De put in motion at any time thirty min
ties after arriving at the railroad tracks
District Army Reaches
Country of the Enemy
special From stan Correspondent.
FAIR HAVEN, Mass. August 1.-THE
National Guard OF the District of Column
bia to the number of more than 1.oO0