Evening star., 1917-03-21
TEN TOWNS SEIZED
|. BYFRENCHFORCES
|NSW|FT ADVANCE
important Gains on Laon
Road-Carry Saviennois
Castle and Jussy.
HEAVY LOSS IN
PARIS LATE REPORT
Germans Repulsed in Champagne.
British Armies Register
Further Progress.

BY the Associated Press.
PARIS, March 21.-Rapid progress is
being made by the French in pursuit OF
the retreating Germans. the war once
announces. Important gains were made
On both sides of the Laon road, ten
villages being captured.
After a severe fight, in which heavy
losses were sustaind, the French car
ried Saviennois Castle and the village
of Jussy, about nine miles south of st.
Quentin. Skirmishes between French
cavalry and German detachments oc-
Cured on the Ham-St. Quentin road.
South of Chauny the French are oc-
cupying the Aillette line and CONSOLE
dating their new positions. A German
surprise attack in the Champagne was
repulsed.
French Near st. Quentin.
French cavalry has advanced to
within about four and half miles of
ST. Quentin, one of the larger towns
Germans.
The French have occupied Tergnier.
an important railroad junction on the
line between Amiens and Rheims. and
have crossed the St Quentin canal.
French aviators report the destruc-
ton by the Germans of the historic
ruins of Coucy-1e-Chateau, one of the
most striking monuments of the feudal
ages in Europe, built early in the thir-
teenth century.
Girls Are Carried Off.
The French war office officially an
nounces that in evacuating Noyon the
Germans carried away by force fifty
young girls ranging in age from fifteen
to twenty-five years. The statement
today reports fighting at Verdun, say
ing:
(Verdun fron) we penetrated a Ger
man trench north of Chambrettes
farm, after subjecting it to a bonn
bardment, and found there a number
of German dead. Surprise attacks
against small French posts southeast
of Tahure. in the Willy wood and in
the region of Limey, were repulsed
completely. We took prisoners"
British Make Progress.
LONDON. March 21.-"Despite the
less favorable weather conditions" says
the official report from British head
quarters in France last night, 1--WE
made considerable progress again to-
day along the greater part of the front
of our advance south of Arras and n
further fourteen villages have been
cleared of the enemy.
Our troops now have passed the
general line of Canizy, Estree-en-
Chaussee, Nurlu, Velu and ST. Leger
Our machine gun fire drove off an
enemy attempt to counter-attack south
Of ArraS. We successfully raided last
night northeast of Neuville-St Vast
and brought back few prisoners.
Bombs were dropped yesterday by our
airplanes with good results on an inn
portant enemy ammunition depot In the
brought down in flames; two others were
driven down completely out of control.
Three of our airplanes are missing"
Retreat Slows Down.
Telegraphing from the British head
quarters in France. Reuters correspond
ent says:
The pace of the German retreat seems
to have slowed down considerable dur
ing the past twenty-four hours. a fact
for which the very wild weather NAV
well be responsible A violent eouinoc.
tial gale has been roaring over northern
france. and is still very heavy, although
it has veered more to the north with
frequent feeting glimpses of sunshine.
Many rain squalls have swept over
the battle area. but these have not suf
feed to render the ground bad and there
is keen, drying edge in the wind Not
wfthstanding the tempestuous weather
however. our troops have made consid-