South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1914-12-30
Gains in Flanders Result in Cap
ture of German Point of Sup
port to Southeast of ZOnne-
beke-Defend St. Georges.
TEUT0NS MOVED DOWN
BY ARTILLERY ATTACKS
One of KaiSer'S Officers Admits
Advance is Impossible Before
Terrific Fire But Fears Re-
treat Would Break Morale.

PARIS, Dec 30.-Gains for the al
lies in Flanders are officially an
nounced in "a statement issued. here
this afternoon. II says that they have
advanced in the region of Nieuport
and that they have captured a Ger
man point of support to the south
east OF Zonnebeke. The town of ST.
Georges, recently captured by the al
lies, has been placed in "a state OF de-
fense by them
1t IS being bOmbarded by the Ger
mans.
In the valley of the Aisne and
Champagne the Germans are mani
Testing greater activity. In the Ar
gonne the allies have made some
progress. The French forces in up
per Alsace are strengthening their pO-
sitiOns there and their heavy artillery
has silenced the German hOwitzers
which have been bombarding upper
Aspach.
The official statement follows:
In Belgium we have gained a little
ground in the regiO', of NieupOrt TO
the north of LOmbartyde. The enemy
has violently bombarded st. Georges,
which we are placing in state of
defense.
From the Lys TO the Disc there is
nothing 10 report In the valley of
the Aisne and in Champagne the en-
emy has manifested a recrudescence
of activity which is determined every
where by a violent bardment to
which our heavy artillery has re-
sponded effectively.
"In the Argonne We have made
slight progress in the region of -Four
de Paris. Between the ArgOnne and
the MOselle there is an artillery en-
gagement along the whole front. par
ticularly intense on the heights of the
Meuse.
'In the Vosges the enemy has made
a sharp attack on La Tete de Faux,
which has been repulsed.
In upper Alsace we are strength
ening our positions. The heavy ar
tillery has silenced the German how
itZers, which were bOmbarding upper
Aspach.
Artillery Duel RaScs.
over the greater part of the 300
mile front in France. Belgium and
Alsace-Lorraine the terrific battle be
tween the allies and the Germans
has developed into an artillery duel
on a grand scale.
Despite the gale which is raging
over western Belgium and northeast
ern France the thunder of guns is in
cessant At Sluis a telegram received
via London says:
Since Tuesday morning the thun-
der of the British naval guns has
been dominating the bombardment of
the Germans A German officer who
has just returned from the User front
says: our men are falling by thou
sands under the mighty cannOnade of
the French and British. Never be-
fore has an army been called upon to
face sucr a murderous artillery fire. [
am Convinced that we shall never be
able to reach Dunkirk and Calais. but
we cannot yield because the morale of
our troops would suffer too much if
we did so
At the eastern end of the line the
French lines have been drawn
through Germany. Aspach, Thanh
and SulZ. In the center of this cir
Gle. lies Steinbach which is under
continuous bombardment. Stein
bach is nine miles northwest of
Muelhausen. 1t lies upon a railway
line running from Muelhausen into
the lower reaches of the NOsges
mountains and is a point of consider
able strategic importance.
Airmen Drop Bombs.
French airmen operating from Bel
fort have dropped bombs in Stein
bach and Muelhausen during the past
As hours
From Altkirch. the Pont-aMous-
son the battle line lies almost exactly
upon the Franco-G German frontier. AT
only one point. namely in the region
CONTINUED on PAGE TEN