Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-10-01
GERMAN STAMINA
LESSENED, SAYS BAKER

tContinued from First Pagc.l
the Germans to retake the lost posi-
tions.
Beginning Sunday last the con-
stantly increasing violence of the
counterattacks reached a culmina-
tion on the 9th instant when seven
powerful onslaughts, by the picked
storm battalions' of the enemy en-
deavored vainly to regain the lost OBJ
jectives. The village of Zonnebeke,
the center of the conflict, is now
firmly held by the British.
1T is evident that the efforts of
the enemy in this sector are not ac-
tuated merely by the desire to re-
gain lost terrain of little more than
tactical value, nor must their per-
sistent attacks be considered merely
the normal reaction of Il modern
field engagement, in which counter
attack invariable follows an attack
but rather it is to be noted that the
enemy realizes fully the immense
importance Ol tIe
thrust along the Menin road.
German Line Threatened
This new British advance in the
Tyres salient now definitely threat
ems the enemys line of communica-
tions to the Belgian. coast. The Os-
tend-Lille railway, which in large
measure feeds the German naval
bases at Ostend and Zeebrugee, the
latter the home port of the German
high sees submarine tiotillas, now
comes within the range of the fire of
the British guns.
The superiority of the British
over their enemies was conclusively
proved during the engagement of
the past week. The battle of Menin
road, Furthermore shows that the
fighting stamina of the Germans is
deteriorating, not that the enemy
did not display great skill and dogged
determination in his repeated coun-
terattacks."
OF the fighting on the French
front the communique says:
THE outstanding feature of the
recent engagements is the wastage of
the manpower of the enemy. If we
compare the combat front of Ver-
dun in 1916, held by twelve German
divisions, with the combat front
along the Aisne in 1917, held by
fourteen divisions, both of practI-
cally the same length, it is found that
during the same period of time, from
May to September, 1916 and 1917,
respectively, the enemy engaged
along the Verdun from twenty five
new divisions last year: along the
Aisne, thirty-five new divisions this
year.
Wastage Great
nf
enemy forces become, owing to the
improved mechanical means of the
allies and the perfection of their
methods of combat, that the Ger
mans are obliged to maintain in re-
serve as a minimum guarantee safety
of their battle line in the west, at
least forty divisions. The western
front thus remains the principal bat
tie front of the war. 1t is still strong
ly held by the enemy and his defen-
sive strength, while shaken remains
powerful"
The situation on the other fronts
is dismissed with a brief relief re-
view of recent official dispatches.
The only mention of American forces
follows:
THE mobilization of the National
Guard in their camps is proceeding
rapidly and the formation of reor-
ganiZed divisions is taking place. This
reorganization is necessitated by the
conditions of the present war and
requires larger regiments and certain
machine guns and other units not
typical heretofore. Some misunder-
standing of the reorganization has
arisen but its purpose and military
necessity are being explained and the
division commanders are doing their
utmost to preserve the local asso-
Citations and historic memories of
these state forces.
THE assembling of the National
Army in the cantonments has gone
on with smoothness and success.
Equipment difficulties are not serl-
Gus and are being rapidly overcome.
The most obvious shortage is in rifles
but an adequate supply for all pur-
poses will soon be at hand and no
delay in training results from the
shortage. All overseas forces are of
course adequately supplied"