The Robesonian., 1918-06-20
VOL. IxL
TEUTONS HAVE
LOST SPIRIT


ed the Tenacity of Other Days
Ambitious Attempts of Enc
my in Past Few Weeks Have
Failed.
The latest news before going to
press this afternoon is to the effect !
that the American forces have made
an advance at Chateau Thierry,
This mornings summary of war
news gives the following:
The Teutonic allies apparently
have lost their spirit Of do-or-die.
Their attacks everywhere lately have
gone BY.
Instead of ploughing through AL
lied lines with stubborn indifference
to casualties 50 long as an objective
was gained, they now waver and halt
IN IT the face of the artillery and rifle
fire of the men barring their way and
with the points they were trying to
gain still far beyond their reach.
Ambitious attempts by the troops
of the Central Powers in the past few
weeks have proven this. The opening
of a gateway to Paris through the
western front running from Montdid-
ier to the Marne, failed completely;
the offensive on the Italian battle
line launched by the Austrians SEEM
inglv has failed miserably in the
mountain regions and apparently has
been almost stopped along the Piave,
while a stroke started by the Germans
against Rheims broke down in its in
ception without the enemy taking a
yard of territory.
And in these various enterprises
the high commands of the German
and Austrio- Hungarian armies, have
seen their men literally moved down
until battlefields have been clogged
with dead or wounded as recompense
to the Allied troops for the small bits
of terrian they yielded. The Aus
trian offensive in the Italian theatre
is still in progress along the Piave
river. but in the mountain region af-
ter the sharp reaction by the Italian,
British and French troops, who in
counter-attacks pushed back the in
yader from the points he had attain
ed in the initial rush, the enemy evi-
IDENTIFY is fearful of again trying out
the mettle of the defenders.
On the Piave numerous attempts
have been made by the Austrians to
gain further bridgeheads on the west
ern bank Of the stream, but the 1tali-
ans everywhere are holding them with
their gun fire and also doing san
culinary execution within the ranks
of the enemy across the river with
bombs and machine gun fire.
The Austrian war Office asserts
that the Austro-Hungarian troops
have crossed the Fosseta canal at
some points where Tuesday it was
claimed they had made advances and
also that several Italian lines at the
southern foot of the Montello plateau,
the key to the Venetian plains, have
been pierced. Rome. on the other
hand, declared that all the weak at
tempts made in Montello region were
completely repulsed.
More than 5000 men have been TAX
en- by the Italians since the offensive
began, and many guns and several
hundred machine guns have been cap
tured; that intensive air fighting has
also take nplace is shown by the fact
that fifty enemy planes have been
shot down. Only two Of the Allied
machines have failed to return to their
base.
The attacks of the Germans near
Rheims resulted disastrously to them.
Hardly had they left their trenches
after one of the most terrific bonn
bardments by shells of all calibres,
including gas projectiles, ever expe-
rienced on the western front nearly
10000 men were faced by the rein
forced French armies and literally cut
to pieces and forced to fall back pre-
cipitately. At only one point to the
east of Rheims, did the enemy sue
eeed in penetrating the French line
Here they were elected almost imme'
diately. The German official describes
the attack as a demonstration of ar,
tillery and mine throwers.
Little activity has prevailed on the
remainder of the western front, excep,
the casual reciprocal bombardments
IN the nature Of patrol engagements.
The success of the recent naval at
tack by the British on the German
submarine base at Zeebrugge seem
lngly was more successful than antlcl
pated. Twenty-one destroyers, ;
large number of submarines and mum
erous auxiliary craft are blocked IL
the canal by the ships sunk across
the waterway.