Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-10-28

forces in the campaign for the inva-
sion of Rumania. The men went at
their work in almost a holiday spirit,
for it is with a sense of deep relief that
the Germans and Hungarians here,
officers and men alike, have left be-
hind them the trench warfare of other
regions and thrown themselves into
open field maneuvers against the Ru-
manians.
1t was scarcely believable that after
two years of strenuous life at the front
infantrymen should rush to the as
sault with songs, yet it is q fact, to
which the universal feeling here of
dealing with a foe who has yet to learn
every trick of modern warfare contri-
butes much. Thougff>khe German and
hungarian infantrymen were about to
rush into tn fire of Rumanian rifles
and machine guns they viewed the
situation complacently saying the
worst OF open field work was prefer
able to trench drudgery. Officers ex-
planned that the change virtually
would make the troops fresh forces,
owing to the novelty and the fact that
the central powers troops are best
suited for maneuvering because of
their training along that line.
Followed BY Fire
The Predeal battle is one of the few
open field actions witnessed in this
W
to approach within less than 5000
yards of the skirmishing line. At II
a. m. German artillery opened desul-
tory fire on the Rumanian trenches on
Susaiul mountain, 5000 feet high,
which an hour later reached its max
imum fury. The fire was then directed
mainly against the trenches some 500
feet below the summit, For a quarter
of an hour the Rumanians stuck to
their trenches. Word coming from
the artillery spoilers that the Ru-
manians thus far seemingly had not
been impressed, the artillery increased
its fire. The Rumanian infantry still
held on for a time. but finally broke
across the slope like swarm of ants
as the German and Hungarian infan-
try came in view. General artillery
followed up the fleeing Rumanians
with shrapnel and the manner III
which the fire pursued the Rumanians
appeared almost uncanny.
On a ridge leading from Susaiul
mountain the RumanianS finally reach
ed their second position. A lull en-
sued. a few minutes before 2 b. m.
it was decided to resume operations.
German artillery ably supported by
the work of the morning and the in
fantry then rushed forward. In a
comparatively short time the objective
was gained.
Inv SiCuht bCiilS tAti SAilStE uiliiCull
the Rumanians endeavored to forward
infantry reinforceme through the
town of Predeal. with the result that
heavy German and Hungarian guns
inside of fifteen minutes blew up half
of the town. The Russian forces were
obliged to seek shelter in the forest
above the town, passing through Ger
man infantry fire at long range.
The Predeal battle was not remark
able for severity or artillery fire or
other action. but great interest centers
in il because German and Hungarian
infantry, unaccustomed to mountain
fighting was able to cope with the diff
ficulties of the terrain.
Lack Military knowledge
The Rumanians on the other hand
showed lack of military knowledge.
The efficiency of their troops suffered
because much of the artillery had been
taken out of range for fear of being
cut off. The Rumanian artillery
therefore made an unusually poor
showing. The Rumanian infantry did
relatively better but it was at the mer-
cy of the murderous German and
Hungarian shells.