Martinsburg W Va evening journal. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1913-1920, 1918-08-06


lire from the high ground south of
that city. Such a retirement by the
Allies would enable the Germans to
straighten and shorten their lines.
This was the fifth big German often.
sive of the year on the western front
but the first few days of fighting
seemed to doom 1T as a failure On
July Is French and American forces
between the Aisne and Marine began
strong counter-offensive on %.
mile front between the scissors sec
tor and Belfeau Wood northwest of
Chateau-Thierry, making a gain of
over seven miles in the initial fight
ing and capturing number of vii
lagos. This offensive, which was evil
IDENTITY taken to relieve the pressure
against Rheims and Epernay, extend
ed along the entire western flank of
the Marine salient.
Italian frsnt--The latter half of
1917 was marked by series of bril-
liant offensive operations by the TIA
lians on the southwestern front and
they had extended their lines east
ward of Gorilla and Through the
Bansizza and Carseau Plateaux On
December "a last the Austrians, sup
IIorted by heavy forces of Germans,
began an offensive which changed
this front completely. The Italians
were thrown back acnoss the Isonzo
River, then across the Tagliamento,
and finally were forced to the western
bank of the Piave river. nearly eigh-
ty miles at one point. to the westward
of where the old battle positions
stood.
Balkan front-It was not until the
past few weeks that there was any
material change on this front Early
this month the Italians and French,
supported on the Adriatic coast by
British warships. began surprise
offensive which rolled the Austro-
Hungarians back from twenty-five to
thi-ty-fve or more miles. The Aus
hold on the coast was
badly shaken and they lest their
base at Berat
Eastern front-This front collapsed
shortly afte' the Russian revolution
The Germans entered Riga, captured
the Oeiel Island group and proceed
ed to occupy Large stretches of Es-
thpnia, Livonla and Lithuania.
in Turkey the British have main
tanned their steady pressure in both
Mesopotamia and Palestine. The
greatest achievement of the British
in Turkey, from combined military
and political viewpoint, was the &C.
cupation OF Jerusalem ON December
8 last
A great feature of the past year and
one of peculiar interest to the United
States was the fact chat American
took their place upon the fir
ing line in France and now hold war;
ious sectors of the front between the
North Sea and the Swiss frontier.
Americans have been placed upon
vital parts of the front which, is
splendid tribute to their fighting quail
titles. They are helping defend the
road to Paris on the Marine front and
some of them have been brigaded
with Austrians in the Somme Valley,
where the Germans are expected to
begin another effort to break through
20 Amiens and Abbeville
The first clash between German and
American troops took place on the
third of last November on the Toul
front. Since then, Americans have
been placed upon the following sec
tors:
1. With the British in Flanders
and on the iSomme.
q With the French north and
south OF Montdidier (Picardy 'front.'
3. With the French on the Marine
and in Champagne.
a. On the heights of the Mouse
(near Verdun)
5. In, French lorraine.
G. In the Vosges Mountains upper
On both the Picardy and Marine
fronts the boys from the U. S. A.
themselves for their va
Tor in action and won the praise of
their commanding generals. They
some villages and patches
of woodland which the Germans had
fortified to point they (the Ger
mansl thought made them impregna-
bic.
There have been no big naval en-
gagements OF the past year although
there are some achievements that
stand out conspicuously for the dar-
ing with which they were accom-
plished:
1.-The blocking Of the German