Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-04-29

When the French operation ended the
Germans were standing on the crest
of the ridge or were even In places
pushed downward into the valley of
the Athletic. on the north side of the
Craonne plateau Here they had a
strongly prepared line, resting on Fort
de Malmaison on one side and Craonne
on the other, and from this position
the French were not able to drive them.
Eastward from Craonne to Rheims the
French made other gains on both banks
of the river, partially encirclng Fort
de Brimont. but were not able to drive
a wedge between the German lines on
either side of the river. After seven
, ground all along their front, varying
from four miles northward of Condo to
a mile westward and eastward of
Craonne.
Across the Aisne.
AS the situation stood at tha end of
the battle, the French had passed the
Aisne at all points west of Berry-au-
Bac, climbed the hills and were now in
| position to make a new attack in the
direction of Laon, which lay six or
seven miles to the northward, behind
the Athlete river and covered by an
other spur of the Craonne plateau, be-
| tween 600 and 700 feet high. heavily
stacle. The extent of the French gain
| may be summed up in the statement
that the first step in an advance to
l.aon has been taken and that from
the new position the French would be
able to operate more effectively than
ever before on this front.
Eastward OF Rheims there was an
! other general advance northward and
a successful storming of a line of
heights about Maronviliiers, dominating
the whole region, while the village of
Aubertve, the western pivot of the
French in their battle of Champagne
IN 1915, was also captured and the
French line Strengthened thereby But
once more it is necessary to note that
only beginning was made, and at no
point was there anything like as sue
cessful penetration of German lines
as the British had achieved a week be-
fore from Vtmy ridge to the Cojeul
river.
Ammunition Supply Ample.
1t is necessary to regard the French
operation as one of preparation. Tween
! ty thousand prisoners and more than
one hundred captured cannon make a
victory fully comparable with that
achieved in the Champagne nearly two
years before. But in the Champagne
operation the French did not succeed
| In piercing the German line. At that
| time they exhausted their ammunition
and their later attacks were bloody
and relatively profitless. No such ex-
hauStion of ammunition can be expect
ed now. If the French operation was
designed to pierce the German lines at
| single blow, it failed. II it was de-
signed to capture completely the Cha
onne plateau and open the road to Laon
| 1t failed If 1t was expected to Olsen
tangle Rheims. it failed. But if it was
the first step in a long series of attacks.
| as seems to have been the case-if it
was mere preparation. necessary, but
preliminary to the main effort, it might
be counted as a strategic success, as
the capture of guns and soldiers dem
onstrated that it was a tactical success
Pounding German Morale.
On the larger side it must be re-
| membered that the chief object of
French and British strategy in the
present year is not to pierce the Ger
| man lines. but to break the German
morale by long continued pounding
of heavy artillery and to do this with
the smallest possible cost to the allies.
The measure of the French success in
the fighting in the second battle of the
Aisne must be the relative cost in cas-
ualtieS in the operation to the Ger
mans and to the French.
Recognizing that the larger purpose
than to pierce German lines. it is still
| necessary to realize that the effect of
the two operations-British and French
at the present time, if they make any
large advance, will be to compel the
Germans to retire to the French from
tier. This is the case because the new
German line in France is roughly
speaking. right angle, running south
ward from the North sea to the heights
above the Aisne and then eastward to
the Argonne and the Mouse at Nerdun
The French and the British are attack
ing the sides of this right angle. If
they break down the sides the position
of the troops in the apex will be unten-
able. and before this happens the Ger
mans will necessarily draw their
| troops out of the country in the apex
exactly as they drew their troops out
of the great Noyon salient a few weeks
ago. Then the French and British at
tack was on one side of the previous
right angle. Now the attack is on both
sides. but the piercing of either side
must mean a general retirement, il
did when the Germans retired out of
the country between Arras and Sois-
sons.