The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-09-19
FIGHT CONTINUES
. FOR SIX LONG DAYS
WITHOUT RESULT
Succession of Gigantic Bat
ties Fought Along Whole
Line.
GERMANS DESPERATELY
C0NTESTING EVERY INCH
Make Supreme Endeavor to Hold
Positions Until Reinforce
ments Arrive
ENORMOUS LOSSES SUFFERED
Mere Numerical Strength Inade-
quate TO Force Decisive
Issue.

Especial Cable to The Times Dispatch. !
PARIS, September 1S.-It is now pos
sible to give the first details Of the
terrific battle Of the .Aisnc-the great
est battle i'll the history OF the world.
1t is story OF deadly duel OF the
big guns. OF furious attacks. OF ter
rife counter attacks. Of hand-to hand
clashes and bayonct charges. and OF
frightful carnage. II is a story of n
succession OF battles which have been
fought now on one part OF the line
and now on another. hour after hour,
for every hour of the twenty four, tla v
after day, and night after night for
| six long days and still with no result
The story starts with the day of the
18th. From the 18TH to the morning of
I the l4tlI. the rival armies had beer
fighting a rear guard action. precip-
! itated when the retreating Germans
turned at bay TO give battle TO their
allied pursucrs The real fighting start
ed on the morning ~Cf the 18th. when
the battle became general along the
range of heights to the north of the
.Aisne. The lighting was sustained with
deadly carnestness during all Of the
next day. the Germans desperately con-
testing every foot OF the way in "A gu
/ preme epdcavor to hold their posi-
| lions until reinforcements could.ss
! rive.
! FORMIDA MOVEMENT
ALL ALONG THE FRONT
or the night OF tht 18th they. ap-
peared to have been strengthened. and
commenced their formidable move
mcnt against the French and British
all along their front. y furious at
sack on the allies extreme left. with
the big guns Of the rival artilleryists
lighting the line of opposing fronts
in hery Silhouette was rcpulscd with
and again The allies returned to the
attack with the tenacity that was the
marvel OF French troops, but each time
they were rcDulsed. No fewer than ten
times did they drive their dense masses
Of troops al ;he allied infantry, but
never were they able TO break through
All night long the fighting lasted.
the allies bracing themselves after each
successive counter attack to meet the
furious onslaught OF charging Tcutons
until the men on both sides were ready
TO drop from sheer exhaustion.
Just before daybrcak the Germans
threw all their remaining strength and
energy into one final charge that was
conducted with all the vim and courage
that could be expected of fresh troops.
They charged like madmen-like ia
natics who knew nothing of the fear
Of death. But they were rolled back
again, and to their enormous losses
OF the night was added another long
roll of dead and wounded. 1t was as
If this was their one chance of saliva
resolution at their command was
thrown into 1t.
PARTLY SUCCESSFUL
IN COUNTER-ATvTACK CK
Hardly had they recovered from this
final grand sortie when the allies fol-
lowed with vigorous counter attack
in an effort TO catch the Germans off
their balance. In this the allies were
partly successful, for they gained
ground slightly.
On the morning of the 18th fighting
again was resumed with the despera-
tion that rivalled that of the big night
attack.
At the end OF the day it appeared
that the Germans had been forced to
retire about seven miles.
During the fighting, which lasted all
day and into the night, the Germans
lost 600 prisoners. aside from the dead
and wounded. which could not be com
puted. and number Of rapid-fire guns.
Darkness made the operations ex
tremcly difficult, as the use of search
lights by the rival commander was
refrained from owing to the danger of
exposing their positions.
Hand-to- hand fighting, in which the
bayonet was used extensively. result
! ing In terrific losses, marked the COM
bat as one OF the most furious ever
fought
The British and French avlators did
valiant service for the allies In dis
covering the positions of the big Ger
man guns. where they were hidden un-
der earth coverings disguised with
branches of trees. One series of bat
| teries, whose position was thus dis
closed, lapsed into silence shortly af-
ter the French gunners had taken ad-
vantage of their corrected range. and
it is believed that they were either
rendered helpless or that their effec-
! tiveness was suspended while they
were seeking a new concealed position
DECISION/OF CONFLICT
WILL. REST WITH BIG GUNS
The progress Of the battle thus far
indicates that the rival supreme com
manders are going to leave a decision
Of tho gigantic conflict to the big
guns. The struggle is so titanic that
mere numerical strength, even when
that strength is counted into the mill
lions, has proved itself inadequate to
force the issue to n decisive result
Official news late tonight regarding
developments at the front during to-
day. was confined to the statement that
the French had progressed slight on