The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1917-12-15
The War For the Week

the most valuable point for the
Germans, even more so than Paris,
but the Germans may feel that it
is hopeless OF attainment, with the
greater part OF the British army
available for its defense. The
Hindenburg line. moreover, which
has been shattered and penetrated
but not yet abandoned, is intended
as defense line, and can be held
with a minimum Of troops, This
would argue against its voluntary
abandonment by an attempted adj
vance. Writers on the war, there
fore, seem to agree that the great
German offensive. IL 1t comes. win
be in the Champagne. the district
between Rheims and Verdun. and
that the aim win be to drive in be-
hind the French lines to the south
and force a retirement along the en-
tire line from verdun to switzer-
land.
Superior In Numbers.
For the first time since the first
year OF the war. the Germans are
believed to have a superiority in
numbers in the west. The German
strength in the west has been about
100000 men, or 100 divisions. Re.
Gently this has been nearly doubled
by additions OF men from the Rus
sian front, and IL Is believed that
there are now nearly 100000 Ger
mans on the French and English
fronts. Against them the allies have
approximately 4.OOO.Oog men, it is
believed.
This situation was reflected in the
desperate efforts to regain the
ground lost to General Byng in the
Cambrai drive. The Germans un-
dertook a big offensive for the first
time in many months. and after a
bloody struggle regained about half
OF what they had lost. They had to
do it, or retire from the linden
burg line, for IL the allies had been
able to hold Fontaine Notre Dame,
Cambria would have been useless to
Germany as base. without the re-
Inducements from Russia the Ger
mans never could have accomplish
ed such an attack, without SO
weakening other parts Of. the line
that repetition OF the Cambria sur
prise would have been invited.
With Russia out OF 1t. the scales
are once more nearly equal in tho
west, and America must be the de-
Gliding factor. Nobody realizes this
better than Germany, despite her
sneers at the American army. and
she knows If she Is to win, it must
be done before next summer. That
is why everything points to the
most desperate lighting of the war
during the coming winter. and un-
less the drive at Calais is decided
upon, the center OF the fighting is
very likely to be in the Champagne.
Chaos In Russia.
Russian affairs are even more
chaotic than ever. and it is impos-
sible at this distance to get anything
like an unbiased and truthful sum
mary of the situation. Undoubtedly
there is a state OF civil war between
the BolsheviId and the Cossacks. The
reports as to the lighting are fatty
contradictory.
Meanwhile the negotiations for an
armistice are in progress 1t Is the
plan to extend the temporary truce
into an armistice OF several months,
but very little information Of the
proposed terms Is being disclosed,
These negotiations are in progress
al Breat-LitovHk.
The Balsheviki are making desper.
ate Efforts to gain control Of the
constitutional assembly. which was
to be the great democratic govern
ment or Russia. Apparently they are
mot particular as 70 the means they
sempIoy to gain this control and re-
lports have told Of seizing election