The sun., 1917-03-20
1900 50. MILES
WON BY FRENCH
$50 Towns and Villages Are
Freed of Invaders, Who
Still Retreat.
HAM AND CHAUNY TAKEN
Nivelle's Troops Only Five
Miles From the st. Quen-
tin-La Ferc Line.
HAM AND CHAUNY TAKEN


LONDON. March 1e.--The vast German
retirement In northern France continues.
spurred on by British and French cav
airy. airmen and infantry and ham
mered by the artillery. In three days
the Germans have given up some 1900
square miles Of French soil and ESQ
towns and villages
On the whole 100 mile front British
and French advanced to-day. the British
to depth Of from two TO eight miles.
the French from five to ten. At one
point the French have advanced twenty
two miles in two days. The British oc-
cupied forty more villages. the French
twenty. The important towns of Ham
and Chauny fell to the French.
The Allies are drawing near the Hin
denburg line," where 1t Is expected the
Germans will turn, ready to give battle.
The French are little more than five
miles from st. Quentin and La Fere
while the British are little more distant
from Cambria. The German retirement
has not spread north OF Arrss, but is
under way few miles southeast OF Sois-
sons. where the line in France benjs TO
the east.
Calais Drive Possible.
Though there Is still great enthusiasm
here and In Paris over the fact that at
last the Germans are on the Tove. the
early ardor has somew what cooled and
md fhA xhIt Iii,
the future. 1t is realized that the re-
tirement releases from $50 900 to zoo. 900
Germans to add to a striking force for a
big offensive elsewhere, and comment in
both capitals is that Belgium may he the
place. new German drive for Calais
Is considered possible
A paragraph IN the French official
statement. which is corroborated by des-
patches from correspondents at the front
says:
THE enemy before his retirement dew
astated the country. Fruit trees We're
cut or torn down. fences were over
turned by mines which had opened up
great craters, numerous villages were
completely burned. The Inhabitants.
without shelter or sustenance. were fed
by our troops
Everything Is Destroyed.
The German official statement SAYS
that "a part Of the population. provided
with food for five days, was left" This
Is supplemented by the following Berlin
despatch:
AS the ground abandoned has now
become battlefield 4 was necessary TO
destroy everything which might be of
service TO the enemy. such as roads. shel-
ters and the water supply This des.ruc-
p,it u1,
could be of no military advantage to the
enemy WAS spared.
The population which was capable of
military service has been brought away
so that 1t might not be incorporated in
the enemy army or retained as peaceful
workers, and care for the remaining
civilian population has been left to the
enemy"
Cavalry in Action.
Fighting in the open still continues
as result of the retreat. Some Incl
dents almost unheard of on the western
front are reported tonight. French
cavalry dash!ng out of Ham up the road
toward st. Quentin captured a German
convoy In retreat British cavalry came
TO grips with Chlars. who are screen
ing the retreat. British and French air
men have fought with bombs and even
machine guns German conveys ard
troops hurrying TO the rear.
Reuters correspondent at British
Headquarters gives the following de-
scription OF incidents Of the retreat:
Sometimes the British find villages
he'd by rearguard forces sometimes the
enemy has completely disappeared For
instance. after tine occupation Of Pc
rome. a patrol passed forward two miles
to the northeast without getting into
touch with the enemy. In another case
patrol crossed the Somme by partly
damaged bridge and hurried into viii
lage mile away. only 10 discover It
empty.
perhaps the most striking feature Of
the situation Is the fact thai our patrols
got astr!de the railway between Arras
and Bapsume in various places between
the two towns without encounterlng any
resistance. The Germans have greatly
damaged both the railway and the
roads. but the British can soon repair
them and restore communication.
Recalls JOHre's Retreat.
ut Is an Interesting fact that the
British are now holding practically the
line which Joffre chose for an attemp,
to make stand during the great re-
treat. but was unable to hold under the
To complete the day OF allied sue
cess. there has been hard fghting at
verdun, which started out with the ad.
vantage in German hands and ended
with practically all the lost ground re-
gained The Germans attacked on the
west bank OF the Meuse. on the east
slope of Hill 304 and in Malancourt
wood on front totallins two-thirds OF
n mile. They took 400 prisoners and
some trench guns. The French state
ment tonight says OF the situation at
Verdun:
on the left bank OF the Meuse we
recaptured almost all the trench eIe-
ments. which the enemy had entered,
The fighting continues.
The official reports issued to-day re-
garding the German retirement on the
Somme front are as follows;
Britsh--The pursuit Of the enemv
continued to-day. our cavalry and ad-
vanced guards driving back the en-
emy's rear guards
The ground gained extends for n
depth Of from two to eight miles, and
forty more villages have fallen into
our hands.
Raid British Trenches.
The enemy raided our trenches early
this morning In the neighborhood of
I.oos and northwest OF Ypres. few