The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1917-11-06
identified.

washington, NOV. b.-Ine war uS
partment received from General Per.
shing the first casualty list Of Ai,,--,..-I -,
can troops in France resulting from
a clash with German soldiers.
He said three Americans were kill
ed, five wounded and twelve captured
or missing One German was captur
ed.
The combat occurred at dawn Satur
day. The Americans were probable
trapped in their dugouts, and forced
to surrender of be blown to pieces
with hand grenades without chance
for their lives. This is the only ex
PLANTATION which occurs to army off.
GERS, lacking details.
General Pershing reports merely
the German artillery had dropped a
heavy barrage fire about a sector OF
the trench, cutting the men off from
help. The fact that a German was
captured indicates the Americans re
occupied the trench.
The first fragmentary details make
no mention of where the fight occur
red. Berlin dispatches say it was In
the region of the Rhine-Marne canal
in the section defended by the crown
princes forces.
Publication of the casualty list was
accompanied by the following an
nouncement:
THE war department has received
a despatch from the commanding gen
eral of the American expeditionary
ich c+o hnfnrn dow
light. November 8, a salient occupied
for instruction by company Of Ameri
can infantry was raided by Germans
"The enemy put down the heavy
barrage fire, cutting off the salient
from the rest of the line. Our losses
we're three killed, five wounded and
twelve captured or missing.
"The enemy's losses are not known
One wounded German was taken pris
oner."
Whether the men were killed in
hand-tohand fighting, or were struck
down by shrapnel is not known. A
single shell, scoring a direct hit in
he trench, might have caused all the
casualties That would not explain
the surrender of the other men.
Under anything short of positive or
ders, these men would have been ex
pected to offer desperate resistance te
Germans crawling up through the
darkness. There probably would have
been more than one wounded German
left behind.
It is customary for French, British
or German raids to be carried out
with an intense barrage fire to isolate
the small sector of the enemy line il
is planned to invade. The fire covers
a far wider portion of the front thar
the real objective, to conceal from the
defenders the exact point Of attack.
Presumably the trench raided was
an advance post. If there were onl!
twenty men in it, it could not have
had a front of more than fifty or sixty
feet. Possibly it was the head of &
sap driven into No Mans Land a
right angles with the general trench
line, for a listening and observation
post.
In that case, the barrage fire OF {
few guns could cut off the sector alb
solute7v from its support. The com
nunicating trench would be impass'
able under a shrapnel shower.
With twenty men on small front,
provision would be made for relief OF
sentries, posted on the fire step in the
trench, watching for attack. Under
shell fire, the remainder would seek
shelter in dugouts. 1t is possible the
men killed and wounded may have
been sentries, overwhelmed by the
rush of Germans in the dark.
The others may have been in their
shelters, to be hailed by an unseen
enemy and told to come out or bombs
would be hurled among them. There