The sun., 1918-09-30
AMERICANS FIND
ENEMY DESPERATE


railroad to bring up troops from tne
west. One Smelling Is reported to nave
cut the railway and the other TO NAYS
badly damaged the roadbed
Great Credit Due Troops.
The capture of Montfaucon by the
Americans was an achievement accom-
panied by such stupendous dinlculties
that the credit due the troops can hardly
be appreciated without a personal In
spection of the heights they had 10
storm and the roads over which they
had to march,, the strategical disao.
vantages with which they were opposed
and the minimum support of artillery
The claim Of the Germans that they
evacuated Montfaucon because OF the
danger of being surrounded perhaps Ia
technically true. since they were IN
danger of development. The town itselr
lies on a height overlooking the entire
rolling country below. 1t Is a verita ole
fortress and It had been strengthened by
the Germans until IL seemed almost
impregna Bile.
on the outskirts. of the town, block
ing every entrance, the Americans found
great pyramids of steel and concrete,
constructed as obstacles 20 the dreaded
American and French tanks. a large
portion of the seven kllometere over
which the Americans passed consisted
OF a devastated no mans land that de-
flies description Of its dreary waste thlt
for four years had had no other atten-
| ton than that of shells ploughing It up.
Germans Fought bitterly.
The impression the Germans seek to
| give that the town was given up without
! fight Is entirely erroneous. since they
resisted bitterly and put the Americans
| on their mettle. They really were driven
out after n long and strenuous night IN
which their machine gun nests played a
nota BILE part. Montfaucon lies exact!
seven miles due north of Avacourt. the
nearest point to the old line. The south
| side of the town had been made into
machine gun forts OF tremendous
| strength.
1 When the preliminary artillery action
| had concluded the Americans rushed
! the first German positions without great
difficulty. or for that matter. great re-
1 sstance What the Germans did not op-
1 pose i'm the way OF difficulties along this
! sector OF the line. nature In the past
1 four years OF the war did. The Ameri-
| cans found the terrain all the way north
/, from Avocourt. Bethncourt and Chat
| tancourt torn into an unacceptable
! parody of the peaceful countryside II
I once mad been. ROauS tnal na0 once Deer
! among Frances best were gouged by
1 shells until passage over them was al
! but impossible.
1 The country all along this sector Is
, rolling and uncultivated. II once was
! wooded until the artillery of both sides
| shot away the foliage and then de
| stroyed the trees until only then
stumps protrude from the ground
/, Across this dreary waste the American:
/ fought their way, dislodging German
machine gunners from their nests behint
rocks and among clumps Of trees.
! 1t was perhaps fortunate that IN,
! ground Is SO rocky, for it served we'll In
purpose of the engineers who had to h
on the scene almost before the infantry
preparing the way for supplies. ammuni
ton trains and artillery, when the.
should advane TO keep up with the infan
try. Hardly had the first wave pro
| ceeded in the wake OF the retreating Ger
| mans than thousands Of men were o,
| hand, digging energetially and reballa 81
ing the roads. These engineers. like tn,
/ infantry. quickly accomplished the seem
! ingly impossible in making out of a sole
!, belt OF devaSta ton nearly five mile
y wide, at least a passable road, owe
4 which anything from a mule cart to
4 five ton truck might pass. carrying sup
! port to the fighters ahead