The Washington times., 1915-03-21


lishman or anybody else likes to pro-
nounce has gained a new meaning in
English minds,
Now that the truth is known. the re-
treat from Mons has made a brilliant
new page In English history and has
put the name of Sir John French. the
man who kept his head" on the highest
summit Of Engiand's approval
French was great at the battle Of
Ypres, but his greatest generalship was
displayed two months before that bat
tie, when he retreated from LIONS.
1t was the fastest cyclone war that
ever swept the Germans down toward
Paris-that war has ever known. The
mitts in their first light contact, as
prize fighters do at the bell for the
first round. And then the Germans
rushed in with a tornado of blows they
had been saving up for forty years.
Was To Be Knockout.
Itwas to be first round knockout If the
Germans had theirway. No army in all
history has ever taken the beating and
lived through the milling and kept its
legs and heads as the English army did
through the thirteen awful days in
which the Germans put in their light
ming strokes.
It was an all but irresistible cyclone.
If General French stood still II would
be q knockout. II he ran 1t would be a
rout and annihihtion. Footwork. and
cool head. sidestepping and protect
ing his body would have been the tao
tics of a great fighter had this tremen-
dous battle occurred in the prize ring.
French followed these tactics exactly.
But the thinz that makes England
gasp and will make the world gasp
when it knows the full details of the
10 IA
a prize fight, but the most frantic and
terrific rush Of the greatest war the
world has eveT known. For a man to
have kept his head in THAT. just as
with only knockout at stake instead
of the annihilation of $1,000 men. Is the
thing that Englishmen wonder at.
Met On August %.
1t was on August % that the English
and the Germans first touched mitts
sat Mons. The English Tommies had ar
rived on the scene the day before and
had enjoyed two or three successful
brushes with the Germans. General
French had found himself a house
which could be used as headquarters
and that night he sat at a table and
wrote notes In his diary which were
later to be used in his dispatches. The
Tommies in the streets Of Mons were
suits OF the days fighting.
when General French went to bed
that night Of August % he expected
that the sunrise would usher in a fair
There are not more than two German
army corps In front OF you," said the
French officials.
General French and his men had just
took the Frenchmen's word for il. A
strong French line stretched to the
right. But Sunday afternoon came the
surprise. A courier brought a message
to Geperal French from General Joffre.
1t said in effect:
-Four German army corps are coming
up against YOU we have fallen back" ;.
The strong French line hal gone! It
was thirty miles back! French's army
Of 5000 men stuck out in the oncoming
tide of Germans like a thirty-mile pc
ninsula. Ten thousand Custer massacres
were at hand! Or a rout such as history
had never known! If General French
did not do his work as coolly as a work
man at his bench. the day would be lost.
Some Had To Stay.
Some men must stay to fight while
the others began to fall back There
was artillery to move. There were
thousands Of tons of supplies and am
munition to be operated in autos. There
were horses to save from German hands.
The roads would hold only so much
traffic; there must be no jams; cool
heads must plan 1t all.
So men must fall far behind and di:;
trenches, SO that the retreating Eng
lishment could hide themselves and put
UP their daily and nightly fight with
the Germans.
Other thousa nds of men must be given
chances to eat and sleep. And in the
midst of all this movement and activity
the dead must be buried the wounded
cared for and the battle must be car
ried on every moment without ceasing.
All these things were done perfectly.
Not one single hot meal did the fleeing
army Of General French miss, durin-
the days of the retreat. And no general
In history had ever had such a retreat
to direct.
French was dashing about everywhere
in his automobile, up to the front where
his men were firing along roads where
the huge supplies were being moved.
here and there. wherever he found them.
In these personal talks he measured the
strength of his soldiers he gauged the
amount Of physical force they had left.
Knew Strength of Both.
And what's more he not only knew
the strength of his own army but the
strength of his opponent
The lightning blows that the Germans
sent in were terrific. The Ninth IIancers
were moved down like grass that was
one little blow The Eighteenth Hus-
sars were almost wiped out that was
another
Regiments were torn to pieces day
after day. Some of the generals life,
long friends were killed. Other pals OF
old days he was forced to send out tC
certain death. 1t was as If all the bat,
ties of history had been collected into
one space of time, and were being
fought over again.
The towns in which the general anC
his staff slept were shelled. Bullets ant
shells flew around General French as
they did around the most ordinary sol
der. Yet every night he wrote in hi.
notebook the reports Of the retrea
that later went to London. Some nights
he wrote by the light of a candle IL
the peasants house some night by thu
glare from fancy oil lamp in the home
of some village rich man.
For four days in this great running
General French kept his men as cool
headed as If they had been standing
still or fighting or far more cool-headeC
than they would have been had they
been advancing.
At last the English reached the Marine
after nine more days of fighting. Th
Marne gave them a chance for rest, anC
they needed it. The Germans were tireC