The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1914-09-24
6ERlllAN EFFICIENCY.
fcontInued nom Faee One.)

Continued from Fage One.)
ing trenches bristling with mttTal-
leuses and reinforced by masses Of barb
ed wire and blockhousee, whose quick
ftrers and nitrailleuses sweep the whole
front To the rear OF these works the
heavy artillery II placed In position and
from tts fire such places ~ SCISSOR
and Rheims have suffered great DAM
age
Most Of the work ON this line was
hntshed while the battle Of the Marine
was still in progress. The allies did
their best to prevent its completion
and there has been some desperate
PUSHES have been made toward the
trenches and fierce hand-to-hand
struggles have taken place upon top
OF the Craonne plateau. the side Of
which rises like q clfff against the al
lies. Attack and counter attack sue
ceeded one another while the endan-
gered crown princes army has been
picking . way out of the dimcult
country into q still more awkward po-
sitfon. On our right, tho enemy's
army has been seeking for an open
ing or q weak link in the chain Of forts
between Toul and Verdun.
The allies. for their part. have
been progressing slowly on the ene-
my's right. pushing up a wedge into
the center between Rheims and Ar
gonne. Still the actual battle Of the
Aisne has not yet begun. There has
already been enough fighting to con-
stitute half q dozen battles but only
the preliminary stages Of the big
struggle have been reached The rail-
ways on both sides are massinR troops
along the front, tho Germans coming
from Lorraine. the British from the
whole Empire. and the French from
the south and west.
Meanwhile the siege operations
continue. The deceptive lull which
preceded the battle of Lao Yang has
fallen upon the field. The situation
remains unchanged in spite of the fur
ious cannonading and desperate fight
ing, but with each fresh engagement
the situation becomes more clear. the
plan OF the stan more definite and the
day OF its realization more imminent"
Paris Hopes Run High.
Paris. Sept 24.@The formidable
force the Germans threw against the
allies left is still flinching, according
to the official communication. under
the unrelenting blows Of the Franco
Engnsh battertng ram. Even the IA
nous guards as in the battle of the
Marine are unable to stand the pres
sure and are giving little more
ground every day. The diversion at
tempted in Lorraine having proven in
effectnal, the Germans are now maxi
ing a fierce drive in the Woevere dis
trict northeast Of Verdun.
The object no doubt il to cut off the
army operating around Nancy. but the
Germans already had tried to make an
opening between Verdun and Toul, be-
siegtng Troyan at the same time.
The maneuver constitutes a grave
menace to the allies. who are resisting
desperately and have thus far repulsed
attacks with heavy losses.
That the Germans are losing heavily
on their right il also attested by the
constant arrival here OF prisoners and
wounded. Early this morning many
automobiles were seen with wounded,
both German and allies, passing
through the streets but some Of these
were convalescents returning from the
seashore and rejoining their corps.
The steady progress of the allies
left fortifies the confidence here. This
mornings press is unanimous that the
hattie of Aisne cannot last much long
'er for the. steady retirement Of the
German right must entail a weakening
of the center elbow that the German
threw out along the river Disc to pre-
vent being turned.