The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-07-07
TRENCH LOSSES IN FIGHT ARE SMALL Troops Who Began Offens-
 i've Retained on Front ADVANCE IS UNIFORM
French Are Profiting From Lessons Learned in the Champagne Fight ing-Germans Begin to React
 With Arrival of Reserves

Paris, July 6.-The French offensive
 along the Somme has made steady prog
 ress so that the left of the advance now rests on Hardecourt and the right or Estrees, while the entire intervening front has been transformed within the last four days from one of irregular lines, , that exposed some positions to a flanking fire, into homogeneous line without fis- sures or dangerous wedges.
 The solidity of this front is in marked contrast with the fronts in the battles
 of the Champagne and the Artois, the irregularity of which permitted of a
 heavy cross-fire being brought to bear
 upon the more advanced points That part
 of the present front facing Peronne has
 the classic form of two echetons on two
 sides of Peronne, which is said to be the
 only one of the well-known dispositions
 survived the revolutionizing developments
 of the present war.
 The right of this formation is protected
 by defensive curve that unites the new
 front with the old line Tacticians de-
 clare the maneuvers ,nat accomplished
 this formation constituted one of the most notable strategic phases of the war. The French offensive has made steady progress in the last 24 hours. All counter attacks have been repulsed, large area
 of new territory has been occupied sand vt ptu of crIlp nd e have been made.
 ADVANCE IS UNIFORM In the first five days the French have advanced with remarkable uniformity.
 The ground gained varied each day in depth at different points, but the gains
 have averaged about the same along the
 entire front. and the French are now
 fiji mly installed between the German sec ond and third line of defense over front in excess of seven miles.
 That the French losses have been com paratively insignificant, is indicated by the maintenance on the front line of at- tack at their own request of the same two army corps that made the first as-
 sault on the German positions last Sat- urday morning. One of these corps dis l, tinguished itself before Verdun in Feb- l ruary, after having won laurels in the ba tile of the Marne The other corps comprises chiefly colonial troops and it also is counted among the elite of the
 French army organizations. The gen erals commanding each corps were again congratulated yesterday by General Foch. Not all the divisions of these two corps have been actually in action, but passing the calculations upon 5000 men made prisoners by these troops the French clearly appear to have suffered only slightly in comparison with the | forces with which they were engaged. 1 This result is attributed by German prisoners to the efficiency of the l French heavy artillery.
 l Tt was impossible to keep up the fight under such fire" said an officer taken prisoner yesterday. I've took counsel and the officers unanimously decided to surrender to avoid useless sacrifice of life
 l PLANNING ANOTHER WAR I What we have to do now the of l ficer is quoted as adding. Ifs to save
 men for the coming victorious war i which Germany will wage four years l hence.'
 The new French trenches at the most advanced point are now in front of Peronne and the village of Mount St. l quentin. situated on an elevation 300 l feet from the point from wnich in 1870 the Germans bombarded Peronne. I The Anglo French offensive in Pi- l cardy has had another day of substan- : ] tial progress. outstanding features be- : ing the resumption of the French ad-
 tContinued on Page seven)