The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1916-12-26
In Early Hours of Christmas
Day He Launches One Of
Greatest Offensives of War
BATTLE OF SERETH
NOW IN FULL BLAST
Ultimate Goal Is Odessa-If
Attack Successful Means
General Retirement of Rus
slams On Whole Line

(By International News Seryice.)
The battle of the Sereth is i'm
fun blast
Along a front Of 200 miles from
the kasino tCasin) River in the
area between the Carpathian
Mountains and the Transylyanian
Alps, eastwards to the head
waters of the Danube. Field Mar
shal Won Mackensen i'm the carly
hours of Christmas Day opened
what holds promise to become
the biggest and most fateful Of
fensivc of the war.
With drum fire." whose fierce,
ness is emphasized by the Russian
war offce bulletin, the big Teutol
guns, emplaced in a huge semicircle.
fronting the Sereth and the southern
border of Bessarabia, are battering the
Russo-Rumanian defense positions.
paving the path for infantry on
slaughts, upon whose success or fail
ure hangs the fate of the entire
southern line of the Russians from
Voihynia down TO the Transylvanian
ridges. and whose ultimate goal is
Odessa.
At some points the Teuton shelling
was SO terrific that, according to Of
fclai admission from Petrograd the
Rumanians and their Muscovite al
lies were forced to seek cover from its
murderous hail. In other sectors the
invaders already have sent their in
fantry into battle. pushing back the
defenders
The center of Mackensen's attack
ing front faces the Focsa mi -Galatz-
Braila line. "A powerful defense Sec
tor fortified years ago by the Ruma-
mans against a possible Russian in
vasion. Rimicu-Sara the railhead
north of Buzeu and Braila. the big
Danube port surrounded from three
sides, are the immediate detectives
or the center. These points captured,
the battle line will be pushed auto
matically to the south bank of the
Sereth.
Teutons Hammering Onward
Meanwhile the Teutons are. how
ever, menacingly close to the Sereth
at Its middle course and, with a view
TO crossing there. are hurting an ava
lanche of steel into the defense lines.
Already their infantry pushed back
the Runanian troops in some places"
according to the Petrograd statement.
ihfustlng eaStwards against the river
from the Nranchea mountains. and on
both banks of the Kasino River. the
Teutons who on this front are prob
ably under the immediate command
of General Nonkenhayn. who has
marked time for weeks, pending tho
Dobrudja developments, are aiming
at forcing Sereth. thus to force tha
whole Russian line on the mountain
front to withdraw to the east, and
O h. tiv,,a
of the Russo Rumanian army defend
ing the vital southern Sereth line.
To the south of Rake Vacheni.
which lies almost due west of Odessa.
the Teutons, with the pressure OF
their terrific bombardment succeeded
in capturing a height, Petrograd con-
cedes. AS If to emphasize Just how
fierce the Smelling is. the Russian
report goes on to say that the height
was retaken in a counter attack but
our detachment soon abandoned it
again as the enemy was sweeping it
with shells" The Russian war once
described the bombardment north OF
the Buzeu- Rimicu Sarat as "particu-
larly fierce" and indirectly foreshad-
ows the fall Of Rimicu-sarat by stat
ing that the firing was Extremely
fierce In the neighborhood of Dro-
gul, small village in the immediate
vicinity OF the big railhead.
While these battles are raging
south and west OF the Sereth, Mack.
ensen's Dobrudja army is cooperate
ing by clearing the northernmost tip
of the province OF defenders and thus
establishing an attacking front solid-
ly along the southern bank OF Tho
Danube. His heaviest gun. are
smashing the Russian positions on
the opposite shore and a GRO Ssing Is
expected momentarily in the region
of Tulcea.
Ports Are Given Up.
The loss of the Danube ports Isaaca
and Tulsea was admitted by Petrol
grad yesterday. "On the right bank
adds the statement. IAN artillery duel
took place throughout the day. II
was especially violent in the region
of the Danube village of Grecha jast
below Braila).
The Berlin report of yesterday says:
I'VE are now attacking the Bridge
head OF Macin." This is another Dan-
ube port. seven and half miles south
Of Braila.
AS to the opening of the grand Of
fensive against the Sereth line the
Berlin statement disposes of II by
saying:
in Great Wallachia new engages
ments are in progress
Unsuccessful Teuton attempts to re.
capture heights lost on the previous
day to the Russians in the wooded
Carpathians and on the Moldaviai
frontier Ia reported by Petrograd. Tho
attackers, the statement AYERS. sui
fered heavy losses. the Slopes OF the
height fought for being covered with
dead"
Eight of,icers and s1s men were
taken prisoners.
The German reports speaks Of nm
successful Russian attempts - 49,