Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-04-13
British Troops RipFOe's
Line at TlUO Points
Continued from Page One

two sides. interspersed with tremendous ar
tillery firing. st. Gobaip. in the center Of
the upper Coucy forest, was being steadily
encirced by the French attacks forced
northward and westward by powerful
smashes today.
While the French infantry fought at
many places hand-to-hand with the Ger
MANS the French artillery was pouring a
rain of projectiles on the crests dominating |
st, Quentin. including shells from the great !
French siege guns.
IT Is a tribute to the systematic ,;ay On |
which the French have advanced that these |
great guns. exceedingly difficult of trans
portation, have been moved across coun-
try which the Germans boasted was rirtu- !
ally impossible from the devastation which !
they wrought upon 1t in their retreat
The great French siege guns were being !
moved further and further forward today In |
anticipation of duel with the ,ternan |
busy Berthas," known to he permanently |
fixed on the "Hindenburg line"
st, Quentin is being sacked by the Ger
mans preparatory to it's capture by the
French. Great pals of smoke hung over
the town today, visible for fifteen miles in
the desolaton everywhere about. So far
the majestic Cathedral of St Quentin APP
parently is untouched
French forces advancing from the south
on the city were actually amazed today TO
discover one building which the Germans
had not destroyed It arose abruptly from
the surrounding desoatiou. situated on
knoll and was a hunting lodge Prince
! Eitel Friedrich. of Germany, had used it
as his headquarters prisoners said These
! same Germans were likewise authority for
| the statement that much of the utterly wan
! ton destruction around 81. Quentin had been
| at the order of this royal prince
LONDON. April 49,
la
his push today and quickly striking to-
ward Cambrai. instead of around Nin1N
succeeded in capturing enemy positions "on
a wide front" He sent the following re-
port this afternoon;
! We captured enemy positions at night
a wide front from Hargicourt to
| Metz-en-Coutre and now hold Sart
Farm. Gauche Wood and Gouzeaucourt
village and the wood,
There was sharp fighting between ST.
Quentin and Cambrai before the posi-
tions we captured
| During the night In q successful rald
| southwest of Loos. the enemys dug
! outs were bombed and defenses DAM
| aged. In the neighborhood of Ploeg-
street hostile raidng party came un-
der our machire-gun fire and failed to
| reach our trenches,
A special dispatch from the front re-
ceived by the Times today asserted that
the total of guns captured from the Ger
|
now reached more than l60.
Desperation stalks behind the German
lines. The German army chiefs, astounded
at the tremendous unceasng strength OF the
British smash using prisoners of war
to dig trenches thus relieving "A few more
German fighters while the word has gone
out for re-enforcements. While awaiting
those re-enforcemeuts the enemy is using
nonfghting auXilaries of the army to MI
up depleted ranks of its fighting regiments.
| Scores of captured trench defenders to-
day were transport drivers and assistants,
| chaNffeurs, bandsmen and other auxiliary
service men. They had been pressed into
service around Fampoux and Hyderabad
redoubt, where the British smashed hardest,
in the hurried call for every available man
to withstand the British advance.
| Another bit of desperation was in the
repeated and fruitless attempts by Ser
man armen to fly over the British kines
and learn where Haig's mighty blows might
next be expected swarm of British air
men patrolled the air. Fantastic battles
occurred almost hourly today as the Ger
man flyers were literally swept out of the
sky.
Among prisoners taken today were many
Bavarans. They were bitterly denunca
tory Of the German leaders The BavarianS
claimed they had been hurried to the Arras
sector to relieve the Saxons. and had not
leen told of what they would have to face
The Bavarians' insisted it always fell t'
their lot to do the dsagreeable tasks OF
fighting and when they were rushed t.
Arras they felt something tremendous
was on.
The way in which German army chiefs
are scraping all possible men together t.
, | fight against the British onslaught was
graphically detailed by Russian prisoners
who escaped to Allied lines today TheN
had been forced to dig trenches at thu
point of German bayonets, permitting thu
soldiers to be hurried a few hundred yards
further to the front to fight
orders have gone out all along the lin'
d of Haigs smash to German commander
: to hold at all costs" because four army
, | divisions are coming to re-enforce the leu
Il ton lines,
> From various sources today it wa
9 learned the Germans were preparing L
:. complete the destruction of Arras with tn
~ great 4S-centimeter howitzers when th
y British push" interrupted. The Germans
;. guns were on their way to points near tn
n city and shells reported to contain prussi
acid. were likewise in course Of transport
l. But the great engagement now ol
l. promises to develop into a battle on evel
& a grander scale, according to dispatche
e from the front today.
- Major General f. b. Maurice. director o
e military operations at the British war or
lie fee says that the Germans have masse'
huge concentrations of reserves in Yves
l. Flanders and around Lille. Some of thes
l. were rushed to the Arras front to re
rs enforce the Teutons south of Lens an
lie southeast of Arras. but the bulk of ther
are being held and can be hurled into tn
ct fray upon short notice, General Mauric
d. indicated that the zone Of fighting may b
IS extended northward through counter pres
sure by the Germans in that direction.
IN PARIS, April 13.
IS French troops this morning captured Sc,
h, eral lines Of German trenches south O
n ST. Quentin and took prisoners and boot,
e. the War Office statement declared.
8. Further gains were made east of Couc.
,g la-Ville. many prisoners and machine
ye guns being taken.
u BERLIN April 13.-German counter
attacks "balanced preliminary successes"
is British attacks around Arras, todays of
n cial statement declared
es The attacks were described as strong
is and as being delivered on the Givench!