El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-06-03
SURPRISE ATTACK
CAN BREAK LINES
ON WEST FRONT
French General Says Only
Surprises Could Be
Effective Now.
BIG WAR ONE
OF SURPRISES

ONDON, Eng June 3.-The German
! lines in the west can be broken II
- the surprise is complete and crush
ing, declares Gen Cherfils, Of the
French army, in an article published
here today. only a surprise. big and
crushing. can do it. ne says.
Naturally the German failure at
verdun has reopened the question OF
the possibility OF taking the offensive
on the western front, and the matter is
being eagerly discussed in French mill
tary circles" says Gen Cherfils.
~One school maintains that it is i'm
possible to take the offensive on the
western front. now so strongly fortified
on either side have already pointed
out that surprise must necessarily be
one of the decisive elements Neverthe-
less I think the view that the German
lines in the west cannot be broken IS
an erroneous one
The reason il has not been done I'D
TO the present is that no attack has
been made Of sufficient scope and den
sity with d large army held smmedf-
ateiy in reserve to at once exploit the
success obtained by the original attack
Surprises Play Big Role.
Never before in war has surprise
great struggle II was the effect OF
the surprise on the river DunajeC which
delivered into the hands Of the Austro-
Germans 900 miles Of Russian territory.
Surprise almost succeeded in the
original German attack upon the
fortress OF Nerdun, and il was the sur
prise counter-strOke Of Cen de Castel-
nau, who quite unexpectedly brought
up a new French army. which turned
the original German success into ulti-
mate defeat
II the Germans completely abandon
their efforts in the region OF Nerdun.
they may be expected 10 attempt n new
surprise at some other part Of the line
Where will they attempt it, To car
y out a surprise attack will require an
accumulation OF men and material diff
cult TO hide from the allies.
Heavy Concentration or the West.
AT present the chief German concen-
tration in reserve are on the western
front. particularly opposite the line
held BY the British army Whatever
may be the intentions OF the enemy,
they are exhibiting activity at many
points Of both the western and eastern
fronts. and il is difficult TO divine their
motive
ION the Russian front. Hindeuburg
has delivered in the Lake Narotch re-
gion an attack with six divisions. re-
capturing some OF the positions re-
Gently taken by the Russians
At the present moment however the
Germans on the Russian front are hold
ing their line with only one man 70
each yard Of front. and thev have no
reserve Of any consequence in the east
of course they might transfer their
big reserves in France and Flanders 70
Iithuania- but even If they scored
temporary success there they would
again be promptly stopped by the huge
mass Of the Russian empire.
If the Germans were TO employ their
reserves against the allied line in the
west. I am inclined to think they would
throw them against the British right
wing. at the point of junction OF the
British and French armies
.s-rbev have employed these tactics
before. Il is true, and unsuccessfully.
out il is always well TO be completely
on our guard