Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-03-16
PREPARATION OF OFFENSIVE

feace Forward the French command
devotes It's efforts to preparing the Of
fensive. To this end three conditions
had 20 be fulfilled
1.-The retreat had to be carried ont
in order under succession Of counter
attacks which would Keep the enemy
busy.
The extreme po.at OF tbs retreat
must be fixed in such q way thai the
different armies should reach il sinful
taneously ready at the moment of
reaching it 10 resume the offensive al
together.
5-EveTy circumstance permitting o.
j resumption OF the offensive before
! this point should be reached must be
, utilized by the whole Of our forces ard
, the British forces.
The counter-attacks executed du.ine.
IN" retreat We're brilliant and often
/ fruitful. On August 10Th we successfully
| a lacked :. Quentin to disengase the
Hr.tisA array. Two other corps and a
reserve division engaged the Prussian
guard and tae 10th German army CORPS.
which vas debouchng from Guise. BY,
the end fthe day. after various fiuc-
tu2tiois. the enemy was thrown back
o.i the ois" and the British front was
freed
On August = We Lad also succeeded
in throwing back upon the Meuse the
enemy. who was endeaVoring 10 gain
foothold On the left bank Our sue.
cesses continued on the 18th in the
woods OF Marfee and o Jaulnay. Thanks
! to them We are able. in accordance with
the orders Of the general-in-cllief to fail
back on the Buzancy -LeChesne- Bowel
lelnont line. Further TO the right an
other army took part in the same move
ment and carried out successful at
tacks on August - on the Obtain and
in the region OF Spincourt.
On the 26th these different units 70
crossed the Mouse without being dis.
turbed and were able 70 ioin in the
action of our center. Our armies were
therefore again intact and availabIa for
the offensive
IN August 2oth n new army. composed
OF two army corps, five reserve diyis-
ions and a Moorish brigade. was con-
stitu.s1. This army was to assemble in
the region OF Amiens between August
2 ard Sep LIST and take the offensive
against the German right. uniting its
action with that Of the British army
operating in the line am-Bray-Sur-
Sonme.
The hope of resurnng the offensive was
from this moment rendered vain by the
rapidity Of the march of the German
right wing. This rapidity had two conse-
Quences which we had to parry before
thinking of advancing. On one hand our
new army had not time to complete its
detraining, and on the other the British
army, forced back further by the enc
my, uncovered on Aug. 31st our left flank.
Our line thus modified contained waves
which had 70 be redressed before we
could pass on the offensive To under
stand this it is sufficient to consider the
situation created by the quick advance
on the evening of Sept. 2. The corps of
cavalry had crossed the Disc and adj
vanced as far as Chateau Thierry Their
first army General Won Kluck), compris-
ing four active army corps and a reserve
corps. had passed Compiegne. Tha sec
ond army General Won Buelow), three
active army corps and two reserve CORDS,
was reaching the Laone region. The third
army General Won Hausen,, two active
army corps and reserve corps, had
crossed the Aisne between the Chateau
Porcien and Attigny.
More to the east the 4th, 9Th, 9Th and
'es armies, namely, II army corpa. four
reserve corps and numerous EreatZ for
nations, were in contact with our troops,
the It'll and 9Th armies between vouziers
and Ferdun and the others In the posi-
tons which have been indicated above