Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-03-01
FRENCH NOW CONFIDENT
b SITUATION Is IN HAND
Belief Expressed That Kaisers
Forces Will Not Be Able to
Il Continue Advance.
AWAITING THE NEXT MOVE
Activity Behind Pont-a-Mousson
Front Leads to Opinion That an
Early Drive May Be Attempt
ed Against Eastern Wing.

ed Against Eastern wing.
LONDON. March 1.-The
German offensive against Yer
dun. which had brought the
crown princes armies up to the
inner line OF French defenses, has
halted there. according to today ;
official statement from Paris.
The lull which yesterday gave
signs OF setting in now extends
along virtually the entire front
where the desperate struggles Of
the past week and more have been
going on. There were no impor-
tant developments at any point
during the night, the French war
Office reports.
Await Next German Move.
Unofficial commentators in entente
capitals admit themselves at a loss to
determine as yet whether the German
drive has spent its force or whether
the pause is simply the prelude to its
renewal before the hard-won positions
at Verdun or elsewhere on the front.
Possibly significant in this connec-
tion is the French official statement
that there are signs of German prep
aration behind the front west of Pont-
a-Mousson, eighteen miles southwest
Of Metz and in the Moselle river re-
sion., The French guns have been
pounding the second and third line
German positions there. while an iutsr~t
mittent bombardment has been going
on at various points between Regnie-
Vile and Remenauville. some half dozen
miles west of Pont-a -Mousson.
Look for Southern Drive.
Apparently the recent German attack
in the Champagne was nothing more
than one of the numerous local opera
tons such as the Germans carried out
in several sectors of the front from
time to time in the three weeks pre-
cedfng the Eerdun offensive as it has
opinion of military observers that the
German offensive, il it broadened ap-
preciably. would be more likely to
spread to the south than the north the
many signs of activity along the lines
in upper Alsace and down 10 the Swiss
border being pointed to in this con-
nection.
Paris dispatches declare the situation
north of Nerdua satisfactory to the
"a O1H- Cad
their positions from Cote du Poivre
four miles due north. to Douaumont,
three miles to the east. along which
line the German pressure above Verdun
has been heaviest At Douaumont it
self several hundred Germans are re-
ported still cut off in the fort. which
the French have surrounded.
Quiet on verdun Front.
PARIS. March /. 2:30 p.m.-There is
nothing of Importance to report in the
region to the north of Verdun or in
the Woevre district, according to the
announcement of the progress of hos
tilities made by the French war Office
this afternoon.
There was an intermittent lombard
ment last night along the French front
between Regnieville and Remenauville.
The text of the communication issued
by the war Office follows:
In the region to the north of Verdun.
well in the Woevre. there has
been nothing of Importance to report.
During last night there was an in
termittent bomba rdment at various
points of our front between Regnie-
willie and Remenauville.
TO the west of Pont-a- -Mousson our
artillery fire was directed against the
second and third of the enemy lines,
where the Germans apparently were
putting through certain preparatory
evolutions.
In Alsace the fire of our batteries
had been directed against the roads
of communication of the enemy.
..In the region of Cernay. valley of
the Thur. French aeroplane equipped
with double motors was successful in
an encounter with aeropIane Of
the enemy. The German machine fell
at La Bassee. into the German trenches.
and at once caught on fire"
No Mention of verdun.
BERLIN. March L. via London. 3:15
pm.-No mention of the fighting at
Nerdun is made in the Official state
ment Of today. The report follows:
Activity of the artillery yesterday
was very great on various parts of the
front. aus, -ticularly on the enemy's
side. AT various points the enemy fired
for the purpose Of assuaging his disap-
pointment. On the other hand in the
User region. in the Champagne and he
tween the Meuse and the Moselle he
seemed TO be endeavoring to do dam
age. but did not achieve his object
in aerial combat a British hi
plane was forced down near Menin. The
occupants were made prisoner. Two
French biplanes were brought down by
our anti-aircraft guns, one near VEGA
''"nin. northwest of scissors. the occu-
pants OF which were captured. the
other due west of Soissons the occu-
pants Of which apparently were dead
An aeroplane. piloted by Lieut.
Kuehi. carrying an observation officer
Lieut.. Faber of the reserve. brought a
military transport to a standstill on the
Besanson- -Jussey road by dropping
bombs. and then successfully fought
the men of the transport with machine
suns.