Evening star., 1918-07-15
GERMANS KEEP ON
SNEER|NG AT IS.
Experts Refuse to Believe
Over Million Americans
Are In France.

AMSTERDAM. July 15.-The Ger
man press continues its campaign Of
belittling the American military ef-
fort on the western front.
The military correspondent Of the
Lokal Anzeiger keeps sep with the
other experts and expresses disbelief
million soldiers are in France. How
ever, he confesses to great admiration
for the personal qualities Of the
American soldiers, although he con-
siders that they lack discipline, say
Ing:
Smart When They Like to Be.
.They are smart fellows. but only
when they like to be-
ut is granted" he adds, that Amer
lean human material equals that o!
England, yet the-American Army Will
be inferior, because the Americans
will not have leaders possessing the
requisite experience for handling DIG
armies.
Gen. Kobe. the military critic OF
the Germania, says that at the most
there are 100000 Americans, includ-
ing WORKING squads. Mt the front. and
proceeds: "The significance of Amer
lea action iip NtSO ~ aAh
derrated. nor does our CHEZ comnand
underrate it. but we should guard
against overrating 1t for no other rea-
son but that transportation must De
made. increasingly difficult by the
U-boats; also in view of the prob
which are easily solvable on paper.
but not in reality. Therefore, the
Americans can bring about no change
in favor Of our opponents in the I'M
mediate future"
Hun Belittles Strength Of o. 8.
AMSTERDAM. July 14.-Gen. Won
Der osten-Sacken. military expert of
the Rhenish /. Westphalian Gazette,
Joined in the chorus with Lieut.. Gen.
Baron Won Ardenne, military expert
of the Tageblatt. and other critics
who profess to disbelieve the figures
given by Secretary of War Baker re-
garding the number Of American
troops now in France.
"Our information" says Gen. Osten-
Sacken, lis that there are no more
than a half million Americans in Eu-
rope. and not one-third of these are
at the front"
In a column article the writer runs
the whole gamut- of familiar argu-
ments, proving, perhaps. to the sat
isfacton of the Teutonic mind. that
theresis nothing in Secretary Bakers
statement.
The keynote of German expert opin-
ion is that America cannot put up a
really big army equipped. and II
armed and equipped il cannot be
transported. Gen. Osten-Sacken's ar
ticle concludes with this naive OBJ
servation: I
''If the Americans cannot come with
an army at least equal to that of
Russia at the beginning Of the war
they had better stay. home. In the
end France will thank them, II by
doing SO their country be spared
further destruction"
A Berlin dispatch received here
contains the following quotation from
of a session of the Prussian upper
house of parliament by the president
of the chamber:
DO the entente peoples still believe
in a victory by arms? Now 1t Is the
American reserves which constitutes
the hope of France and Italy, the
two victims of England's huckster-
ing spirit
But these reserves can no longer
decide the war. They come too late,
SO we earnestly hope. The enemy
puts his faith In our internal dis
union. which. in addition to our eco
nomfc annihilation, is the war aim Of
England and America.
prince Won Buelow's saying must
be made to prevail: The king first
in Prussia, Prussia first in Germany
and Germany first in the world"