The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1915-10-06
BRITISH AND FRENCH KEEP UP
OFFENSIVE AROUND LENS
GERMANS ADMIT LOSSES
From London and Paris Come De-
scriptions of Steady Progress of
Allied Troops-Towns are Destroy
ed and Railway Communications
Threatens-ArtiIlery Fire Heavy.

A special correspondent of the New
York World, writing from Paris, says
he learns from the highest possible
military source that the German loss
es in Champagne alone total more
than $4,000, and that the Kaiser's
advent in that sector is evidence that
the Germans fear disaster will over
whelm their sorely tried centre. In
Artois they have lost between $4,000
and 10000. Although it is impos-
sible to cable an estimate Of the
French casualties, I am empowered
to state that their total is consider
ably below that of the Germans.
This is remarkable, in view of the
fact they were the attacking force,
but it is partly explained in the trif-
ling number of prisoners taken by the
Germans. The number of Germans
captured by the French, on the other
hand, is amazingly large.
Most of the wounds on the French
side were caused by shrapnel and
machine guns, while the Germans
were either entombed beneath the
artillery cloudburst Immediately pre-
ceding the infantry attacks, or
sliced open by French bayonets. In
the fury of their charge the French
had little time to use their rifles ex-
cept for stabbing purposes.
''Silencing their machine guns was
our hardest job-there seemed to be
literally thousands of these venomous
weapons tearing away at u.s. one OF
the first wounded officers arriving in
Paris told me.
So ear-shattering was the cannon
ade, which ragged for seventy-two
hours before the advance proper be-
gan, that many cases of deafness
were reported among the gunners,
whose batteries were crowded to-
gether with scarcely elbow room be-
tween the guns.
In those seventy-two hours, from
noon Wednesday to noon Saturday,
more than (deleted) shells burst
among the German intrenchments, in
cluding thousands upon thousands
of huge projectiles more powerful
than any yet launched from French
guns in field warfare.
On my recent visit to the Cham
payne front I got good idea of the
difficulties confronting an attacking
force on either side. Not only are
the opposing trenches 800 or 400
yards apart along the Aisne valley,
but to reach the German lines from
the French means running first down
mill and then uphill across absolutely
open ground covered with pitfalls
made by shell craters, exploded mines
and disused trenches.
During their charge the attacking
force would always have to face an
intense rifle and machine gun fusll-
lade, and at many points be enfiladed
as we'll. During my visit seven weeks
ago the French sappers were burst
ing mines under the enemy almost
daily, an operation which at times
seemed rather purposeless.
In the light of present develop
ments, it is easy to understand the
mining was deliberately designed TO
pave the way for the artillery cyclone
even then in contemplation. by break
ing up the continuity of the German
earthworks. For cavalry to traverse
territory of this kind appeared i'm
possible then. In the last three days
the impossible has been achieved,
however, and at some points horse
men have even sabred German artil-
lerymen. How they managed to get
across can not be fully told.
The German counter attacks in the
Argonne were no surprise to the
French high command. which had
carefully planned for resistance
to just such an onslaught at
that point. In all but a few unlm-
portant places the famous curtain OF
shellfre" was sufficient to hold off
the Crown Princes troops, whose
losses proportionately far exceeded
those of the French in Champagne.
London reports: The flower of the
British army in France is being hurl-
ed forward in a terrific effort to cap
ture Lens and thus cripple the entire
system of the German lines OF COM
munication. 1t is the greatest Brit
ish offensive against the Germans
since the war began.
The English army's part in the un'
precedented drive in the west is be-
ing carried out under special orders
from Lord Kitchener, the British war
secretary, to smash the Teutonic lines
or exhaust every human endeavor IN
trying. The sixth day Of the mighty
battle, whose chief storm centers lie
between Arras and La Bassee and IN
the Champagne and Argonne regions
found no let-up in the power OF the
drive against the two flanks of the