Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-07-24
Must Hold Allies While
Beaten Columns Are Ex.
tricated From Salient
.ERENCH GAIN GROUND
Genius of Foch and Wisdom
Of United Command Shown
in Victory
Special Cable TO Erening Public Ledger

Reports were received here yester-
day afternoon to the effect that the
Grmans launched a violent counter
y attack against the Allied armies hght-
ing between Chateau-Thierry and
Neuilly.St Front. The troops of Gen.
arol de Gouette are resisting splendid
sly and have driven the enemy back at
seyeral points and even gained fresh
ground.
This counter.attack is interpreted as
fresh evidence of the enemys defeat
as it can only have been undertaken
with a view to give time for the col
umns which are being eXtricated from
the northern banks of the Marne to
get away toward the Vesle district.
Meanwhile Franco-American forces
in ever-increasiug numbers are pour
ing northward across the Marine in
pursuit of the retreating enemy. The
Marine was crossed at several fresh
places Tuesday morning. De Gouette's
men, who are coming on from the
westward in spite of German counter.
attack, took something like another
thousand prisoners in the night.
Allies Coming in Three Directions
~ The great German offensive that
was to have brought the boChe to
Paris last Thursday has now resolved
itself into a series of desperate rear
guard actions in the hope of giving
the bulk of the enemy forces time to
escape from the clutches of the Al
lies advancing on them from three
points of the compass simultaneously.
~ The enemy's losses in these rear
guard actions, all accounts agree, are
enormous, while the Allied casualties,
thanks to the splendid support of our
gunsf1 are relatively light. Our avia-
tors are marrying the retreating col
umns of the enemy every yard of the
tourney, and are able to infliCt enor.
III nous damage with comparative i'm
:, punity. The only danger the airmen
5have to meet is from rife fire. as
nearly all of the German guns that
can be saved have been withdrawn
4 already.
In the course Of their rapid advance
north of the OurcQ yesterday French
infantrynen recaptured a battery of
their own siX.nch guns which the
Germans had since been using against
the Allies. The French guns were
quickly turned once more against the
Germans.
The retreating enemy has now some
twenty.four miles Of country to cross
before he reaches compare tive safety
.bn the north bank of the Aisne. unless
q he is able to receive help before long
from other parts of this line This
twenty-four miles of country involves
B the crossing of three more rivers
the Ourcq, the Vesle and the Aisne.
Allies Arrive at Fere
The point which the Allies advancing
from the west, will make their greatest
efforts to reach in order to cut off the
retreating enemy will doubtless be Fere
en- Tardenois, which lies on the Ourcu.
2 at the most important knot of roads in
3 the, whole district II is this town which
Won Boehm's army now is dearly de-
Tending by its counter-attack between
3 ChateauThierry and Neully St Front.
y for the roads which pass through Fere
form the Germans only practicable way
northward
The next most important center fur
ther north is Fismes. on the Vesle, which
was. the scene of terrific fighting while
the Gern,ans We're driving down from
the Chemin-des-D Danes to the Marne
Both Fere and Fismes are threatened
3 from several directions by the Allies,
but the Germans may he relied upon.
in view of their vital Importance to de-
fend both, cost what it may
Military critics here are unstinting in
their praise of Foch's brilliant handling
of the Allied armies which resulted IN
bringing the Germans into their present
difficult situation, The genius Of Forh
was shown in successfully passing from
the defensive to the offensive which
< Napoleon described as one of the most
delicate operations in warfare and that
In the height of the great battle. stamps
him beyond all doubt the greatest SOL
dier the war has produced
Foch saw unerringly what the Cor
man plan would he, for nothing is inn
provised these days. when men involved
Z In modern battle are numbered nv tba
millions. He knew the Germans wound
u direct their attack against the Rheims
salient. both from the east and the west
and he directed Gounard, in the Cham.
payne, and Berthelot to hold at any
cost while he waited quietly for the
enemy to plunge into the big blunder
which his genius for war and deem
knowledge of the German inner mind
revealed the Germans sooner or later
would be bound to commit This blum
der was TO hold Foch army so chea D.
ly that they were ready to run the
risk of leaving their flank exposed.
q When the moment that he had fore
seen came, Foch struck like lightning
+ both north and south of the Ourc1
the blow that has brought Germany's
doom appreciably nearer.
FayolIe Carried Out Plan
II is announced that Foch pintrusted
s* the carrying out of his plan TO Favolle
under whom Mangin and De Goutts
were in actual command of the two
armies engaged Fayolle is another
Rreat soldier who has proved his va.ue
IS during the war He was Foch's lien.
tenant during the great battle of the
Somme and afterward was sent by Foct
x lawn TO Italy, where he did magnificent
q useful work in reorganizing Victor EN-.
C lnAuuers shattered army after its dis.
oGtxous retreat.
t.z With two such commanders the AL
Ks ll0n may well have confidence in the flu,
Paris found its hopes of continued
W yiotory substantially confirmed yester
~ by the news of further progress IL
..2s ~ work of reducing the great salen
's nam which the Germans drove into til,
~ e5<sad front by their offensive.
- hopes grow from knowledge tina
3. ubstantial numbers of British troop
81 noSo now appeared in support of tn
xka1ians and French on the line be
< 1[fan the Marne and Rheims, and tina
i 1kerday these recovered two village
Sc ~ bit sharply into the salient in tn
Il 1lection toward the northwest.
8vePy yard gained in this direction
&oops to render more critical the situa
Il tt6n of Won Boehm's troops. who ar,
* orAfing desperately to overcome tn
IL 96oeady pressure of the Allies on th'