Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-10-26
GERMANS, IN PANIC,
ABANDON BIG GUNS IN
RETREAT FROM AISNE

,..., IARPS, Oct &c
WIN everv hour today therc grew evil
derce that General Petain's stroke on tho
N'n" had inflicted on Germany her great
est de'eat of 1911.
nemoralized by the triphammer blows of
the F~cat French war machine the Ger
mans t'day were abandoning their guns In
IN effort 10 retreat across the marshv
''l'ette valley ard tho Aisre and Disc
Canal Fighting with the desperation OF
nHn who know, they are beaten the enemy
~7ro w7v for the French wedge until to-
dnN II had been jammed more than three
npcs into the nivotal base % the German
IRE curvirg around the western extrcm-
ity ~ the CNem'n- dee Danes
What mndN the Aisne victory all the
more d"moralizing to the German forces
was the fact that on this particular ridge
Hindenhurg changed his favorite battle tao
ties. 1t has been his scheme heretofore to
refuse battle and elastically to fall back to
prepared new positions. Dwindllng man
power impclled the German high comma no
TO husband all forces of men and not to
fight and lose men where n retreat of
few hundred yards or poss bly, more might
save troops.
The import ,nco Of the Aisne ridge. how
ever. led Hlndenburg to rush up his hest
troops and accept the battle offered by the
French with all the power at his command
The French were victorious
Total centuries Of men reached more than
-'V""' more tnan l2D guns have been
taken So far. Several hundred trench NOR
tars and machine guns are not included in
this count.
Two enormous guns designed 20 fire tor
pedoes carrying 200 pounds Of explosive.
with which the Germans were apparently
preparing to experiment were among the
military booty captured at GobienauS
Neither Of the guns had been fired
Judging from prisoners stories and an
estimate Of he maug'e1 heaps of the Ger
nan dead the German losses in Tuesdays
drive and Thursdays acceleration may be
conservatively estimated Mt equivalent to
three whole German divisions - approxi-
nately $4,000 men.
In proportion to the size Of the battle
front-seven mlles--this is the heaviest loss
which Germany has ever suffered I'm Il
SINGLE series OF military operations since
the disastrous German retreat last spring.
Not only that, but the French victory is
cumulative one. Poilus now dominate
the entire Aillettc Valley. Their hold on
the observatories here virtually renders
untenable the German lines along the
northern edge OF the bloody Chemin.des.
Danes all the way toward Craonne, far
to the east.
How great was the jar to German army
morale when Hundenburg's troops felt the
impact of Petain's pivotal blow was evil
denced in score of proofs today Like
boxer struck staggering blow on the
Jaw the German army machine reeled
backward. its mind confused, every Ssnse
of apprehension attuned to the keenest
point and then with muddled befoEged
comprehension strove blindy to cover up"
one officer captured near Pinon carried
orders to abandon his four mortars His
maJor-takcn at the same point-had
exactly contradictory orders-hrst to re-
treat; second, to resist regardless of cost"
Six hundred prisoners taken at Pinon
evidence this Generalization of the orderly
German military brain through Petains
stagger ng blow.
The Germans hadn't even thought of n
defeat AZ the corner" of their line where
the French struck. Their lines were i'm
pregnable." When those "impregnabe"
positions melted before the French fire the
Generalization must have been sudden.
dramatic and Of bitter relish TO the Ger
man high command.
The new advanced French line today was
an average of three and one-tenth miles
beyond Mondays positions over a total
front Of virtually seven miles. Consolida-
ton OF these lines today swept more and
more German positions into the poilus'
hands. France has already reoccupled the
territory between Monkey Mountain and
Fargny. capturing the villages of Pinon,
Pargny and Filain.