New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1917-02-17
ARMIES PREPARING
FOR final CLASH
English and German Expect to
Be at Grips Shortly

British Headquarters In France,
Friday Feb. Is, via London.-(From
a staff correspondent Of the Asso-
ciated Press) The cold which has
held the western front frostbound for
nearly month is gradually moderat-
ing and 1t is easy to sense all along
the battle line an unmistakable quick
ening which forshadows the coming
to grips of the greatest armies yet as
sem bled in the world war. Already
these armies are reaching out toward
each other, testing various parts OF
the lines and attempting to discover
the. most likely point of contest for
the beginning of the titanic struggle
that is expected to make this the de-
cision year of the conflict. In an
ticipation of eventualities, the Ger
mans have removed the civilian pop
ulations from the cities and town in
proximity to their line but such pre-
caution has not been felt necessary
behind the allied front. Never SILENT
the British guns are beginning to roar
moro and more steadily. Tonight
they are booming with particular vio-
lence in the sector Of the Somn1e.
From a distance the bonn bardment
might easily be mistaken for the
grumbling echoes of a passing sum-
mer storm. The chorus of guns rises
and falls like great peals of thunder
and there are flashes in the darkened
sky like the play of lightning along
the horizon.
Germans Re-arranging Army.
New groups Of divisions have been
recently been identified along the
German lines, bearing out reports of
great troop movements now going on
in Germany. British officers, how
ever, say that these movements are
not as formidable as it appears at
first sight. They say that many of
the so-called new divisions of their
opponents are merely re-arrange-
ment of old divisions. These state
ments are based on information care
fully collected during the continuous
trench raids. In raid undertaken
this week an apparently new Bava-
rian division was located. 1t was aft
erward discovered that his CORPS had
been made up from regiments taken
from older divisions, namely, the
Fifth, Sixth and Seventh.
Another maneuver carried out nv
the Germans has been a com bining of
regiments and divisions by which
groups of twenty-five of the youngest
men were taken from each company
in the line and sent back to GERMANY
to form now units or corps de'elite.
British officers believe that it is on
these corps de'elite that Field Marshal
Won Hindenburg is placing his great
est reliance.
According to the information OBJ
tanned here the groups in the COM
panies have not been filled and the
diminution in numbers have been
covered in some instances by reducing
infantry regiments from four battal-
ions to three. One infantry company
was recently encountered with a rifle
strength of 70 out of u regulation
company of 175. Landsturm regi-
ments recently have been identified on
the front line. They had formerly
been employed III patroiling the
Dutch frontier and protecting lines of
communication.
According to prisoners the picked
men of the landsturm are In the
trenches while those unfit for the
hardshtps of the firing line are on
duty at the depots in the rear. Utiliz-
ing the landsturm battalions in this
way permits the organization Of the
young men divisions in Germany and