The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1914-12-15
FRENCH Menace
METZ FljaTaESS
Cli:a Germans Across Border
all iisalca
TEUT0N WEDGE ATTACKED
Main Line OF KaHiser In Danger.
Joiire's Troops Near Strassbur5 ana
kiueiIaUscn.


Joffre's T,oo-s Near StrassburJ ana
MueiEausen.
London. Dec. 15.-Smashing all re
sistance 20 their advance. tle French
army operating On the right wing OF
the battle line extending from the sea
to the frontier OF Switzerland, has
crossed the border into Alsace and is
threatening the German fCrtresscs OF
Metz, Strassburg and Muelhausen.
This offensive of General Joffre's
forces has carried that army to within
twelve miles of the outer forts al
Metz and tewnty miles from the for
tress at Molsheim, one Of the works
in the outer ring defending Strass
burg.
The French have succeeded In
crossing the German line of commu
nication with Metz and are attacking
from two sides the wedge which the
Germans have driven at ST. Mihiel
says an Official Paris communication
The forces of the republic have
days in that section of TIE battle
front and in addition to inaictfng Sc
we're losses and repelling all counter
attacks of the kaiser's troops, have
steadily pushed their way yard by
yard and from trench to trench, until
they are now battling on German soil
Along the entire length of the right
wing of the battle line the French are
making substantial gains, saws the
French official report. In the Woevre
district the French captured trench
and repulsed two fierce German at
tacks, while the advance of the
French line into Alsace has brought
them to a point only eirht miles north
of Altkirch and ten miles east of the
Franco-Alsatian frontier.
The success of this pan of the
French and their steady advance in
that region threatens not only the
German fortresses guarding the main
lines into the DOMAIN of abe kaiser,
but also has dealt blow at the Ger.
man center, which must retire if the
pronounced gains of the French and
the claims of the Paris war Office are
correct.
The French Official statement COW
ering the operations in that field of
the western war zone says:
ION the heights of the Meuse there
has been violent cannonading. Bat
teries of the enemy would appear to
70 n q
north.
Gin the Woevre district, after hav.
ing occupied line of entertainments
along a front of 500 yards in the for
est of Mortmare, our troops repulsed
two violent counter attacks.
"In Alsace our advance has brought
our front to a line that passes 425
yards to the north of Steinbach, and
thence to Pont d'Aspach, and thence
to Point de Brinighoefen, 1900 yards
to the west of Eglihgen."
On the other extreme of the battle
line the allies also have been hurled
against the German trenches, and
with success A late official announce
ment from Paris saws that the attacks
of the allies along the Ypres canal, In
Belgium, resulted in progress and
that counter attacks failed.
The Berlin reports are contradic.
tory Of those issued by the French,
and claim that light attacks by the
French on the German positions be-
tween the river Meuse and the Vosges
mountains were easily repulsed. Ac-
cording to the report there was little
activity at other points along the bat
tie front.
Berlin dispatches from the south
western war zone say violent artil-
lery duel was in progress Sunday in
upper Alsace, arising apparently from
an attempt by the French to advance
In the direction of Altkirch. The firing
lasted from II o'clock in the morning
until late in the afternoon. The re-
suit of the fighting has not been re-
ported.
Correspondents in northern France,
who anticipate general advance by
the allies shortly, point out that the
situation is fraught with the greatest
danger to the civilian population of
the towns occupied by the Germans.
The sympathies of the civilians, the
correspondents think, are likely to
lead them to attempt to assist the al
lies, thereby compelling the Germans
to take severe measures for self-pro-
lection.
Such a situation, in fact, arose in
Roulers last week, according to the
correspondent of the Daily Express,
who says:
when the allies attacked Roulers
the Germans learned that civilians
were aiding the allies by messages
and signals, whereupon they warned
the inhabitants that the town would
be destroyed and every inhabitant
killed unless neutrality was main
tanned. Roulers was evacuated too
hastily to enable the Germans to carry
out their threats, although the popu-
lace, openly hostile, began shooting
at the retreating Germans from eel
lars and killed struggling Germans
with pitchforks and other weapons"