The Sentinel=record. (Hot Springs, Ark.) 1900-current, 1915-01-22

| as llVe successive lines of permanent
| French trenches. each with its entan.
clement OF barbed wire. supported on
iron posts, screwed into the ground
Pioneers might cut their way through
the first ENHANCEMENT before the
general attack, but it was necessary
for the others to make the advance
across the exposed positions under
fire
The attackers, however. were Cen
eral Won Kluck's veterans who after
the famous dash on Paris, the battle
of the Marine and the retirement to
the Aisne, had been remaining here
in comparative inactivity since the
middle of September
They succeeded somehow in sweep
ing across the plateau first in the
center aad then, on January 13 on
the left or eastern flank, carrying
trench after trench by storm in an
uninterrupted and irresistible attack.
by nightfal of January 13 they had
driven the French from the plateau.
French from the valley below and
drove them across the river The vic
tory was Completed by an advance
through the valley on that same day.
The earlier operations made this
comparatively easy; in fact many of
the French had no alternative but to
surrender, as the only path of escape
over which retreat might have
been attempted was commanded com.
pletely from the plateau above
The correspondent reached the bat.
tefield over the turnpike leading
from SCISSORS, approaching by auto
mobile as far as the village Of
Group, a scant mile from the French
outposts, which were the scene three
days earlier OF desperate combats
The road is cut into the side of the
hill between the plateau and the val-
ley The narrow margin of roadside
on one hand before the drop into the
valley had become oae long cemetery.
The Germans had inferred THERE
their dead of past months in long
rows, each grave surmounted by
stone or wooden cross telling some
times Of one ofteler of twenty or
thirty or more comrades lying at rest
beneath On the opposite side of the
road were entrances to numerous tun-
neled stone quarries. driven several
hundred feet into the hillside.
Within the quarries had been lodged
German troops. the number in each
cavern varying from company to
regiment
The village of Group itself present.
ed the familiar picture of shell
wrought destruction with which the
correspondent has become so we'll ac-
quainted after five months of travel
through the war zone From the
battlefield on the plateau above was
unfolded a panorama Of the Aisne
valley and the French positions on
the opposite hills
The promenade along the exposed
side of the plateau in sight of Sois-
soas and the bank of the Aisne, held
in force by the French, gave a rather
uncanny feeling OF insecurity. How
ever, it was less dangerous than il
seemed, as a slight haze rendered the
little group i'm German field gray in
visible to the French artillery on the
opposite heights and the Infantry in
the valley itself although nearer,
was too far below to direct an effec.
tive fire The haze also made it inn
possible to ascertain to what extent
Scissors had suffered under bonn
bardment
The battlefield is still dotted with
hundreds of corpses. principally Of
French, Who fell during their hasty
retirement They had to cross open
fields under artillery and Infantry
fire and death overlook some as they
ran. The positions of the bodies
show that most of the FrencA sol
diers retired fighting, although some
of them fell on their faces as they
stumbled to the rear. Three or four
had managed to draw from pockets
packages of black French cigarettes
for final smoke before passing
away. Most Of the bodies lie with
heads pointed toward the abandoned
French trenches rifles by their sides
or often still clencAed in the stilteaed
hands
At the edge of the plateau just
over its brink, lay long line of dead
men. They had turned toc last
stand against the advancing Germans
aad had met their death. Study Of
the situation showed that they had
made no attempt to rush down the
declivity to temporary safety. The
bayonets on all their rifles were fixed
and in number Of cases the cham
bers Of their pieces still held exploded
shells. Two or three rifles were
found the stocks of which had broken
off at the grip, evidence of the Sc
verify of the hand-to hand fighting.
I There was little feeling of horror
or reyulsioa at the sight Of these
hundreds of corpses. their very num-
Der took away the impression of hui
man slaughter They seemed like
figures in a huge panoramic painting