Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-04-08
New Threat May Develop
Into Big Engagement or
May Be a Feint to Attract
Attention
AMERICANS ENGAGE In
MINOR TRENCH RAIDS
French and British Lines
Hold Firm When Germans
Launch Heavy Assaults; ;
Poilus' Great Defense
By associated Press

Checked at most points along the
front from Arras to Courcy north of
Soissons, the Germans are nibbling
at the allied line in an effort to find
a weak spot. So far the enemy has
been repulsed along the western leg
of the elbow salient. In the
Chauny-Courcy-La Fere triangle
along the Disc, on the extreme east
ern end of the southern front of the
battleline the French have retired TO
higher ground.
Correspondents at the British
front in France say signs are not
wanting that the Germans are get
ting ready to launch another heavy
attack on a long front in an endeaV-
or to reach Amiens. Enemy efforts
north of the Somme recently have
been solely in an endeayor to capture
artillery positions but Germans have
not gained their detectives. Aerial
fighting continues heavy. French and
British aviators have brought down
thirty-one enemy machines while
HBerlin reports the destruction of
eighteen enemy airplanes.
Pctrain Men Stand Firm
IOul <ATTdS 10 lne SOmme tne
British line still stands as it did ten
days ago. The latest enemy attempt
to attack was made in the region of
Bucquoy, 20 miles north of the Som
me, but both efforts were broken up
by the British artillery fire. Imme-
diately south of the Somme there
has been only local fighting with no
change in the position of the battle
front.
GoneraI Dotoip'e ,,,a,, .t;Ir ,,.o;,.
tain their splendid defense east of
the Amiens-Paris railway. The Ger
mans have tried to advance north
of the Amiens-Roye road in the re-
gion of Hangard, but the French ar
tillery fire was sufficient to break up
the attack.
Berlin claims further advances in
the region norh of CourCy and around
the lower forest of Courcy. No men,
ton of fighting here is made in Paris
south of Chauncy the ground is low
and marshy, especially along the
Disc river and the Disc canal. Folem-
bray, 65 miles northeast of Paris and
Pierremande reported captured by
Berlin, are on the low land between
the forest of Courcy and the heights
north of the Aisne.
Await Developments
Whether the German attacks on
the front between the Oise and
Courcy are designed as a feint to
draw fresh attention from q more
vital point or are the beginning of
strong effort to force the French
back to the AiSne, remains for de-
velopments to show. Up to the pres
ent the Germans have only gained
the marshy ground along the Oise
and the low lying ground between
Chauny and Courcy as we'll as the
lower forest of Courcy which was vir-
tually denuded of trees in. the Ger
man retreat of March, 1917. Facing
them now are the heights on the
line running south of Noyon, through
Courcy to Anizy and thence across
the Ailette TO the famous Chemin des
Danes sector.
American troops on the front
northwest of Toul have successfully
countered German attempts to raid
their positions. Two raids were made
at two different points on Sunday,
but each was dealt with efficaciously
with machine gun and automatic
rifle fire, the enemy advancing no
further than the outposts.
On Friday the Americans also
checked two raids. The first was
taken care of easily, while the sec
ond time the Americans left the
trenches and pursued the Germans
back to the fire enemy trenches and
drove the Germans into the support
positions The artillery silenced two
German batteries.