Evening star., 1918-06-16
TEUTONS ARE LIKELY
TO ALTERNATE ATTACKS
Next Blow Expected in Flanders,
But Allies Are Ready There.
FIERCE BATTLES IN WEEK
Smashing Effort South of Mont
didier and Noyon Brought to a
Halt by the French.
BY OLIVER OWEN KUHN.

BY OLIVER OWEN KUHN.
The Germans in dismal fash
ion have failed in their fourth
attempt to smash the allies.
But the Germans are desperate
and further drives will follow
in quick order. 1t would ap-
pear that after four unsuccess-
full thrusts of mighty power and
ghastly casualties the German
command would tarry. But not
so. The militarists of Germany
are desperate. They desire vic
tory. They have to obtain it
ii they are perpetuated in power
in Germany and escape the reck-
cning which must come in case
Teutonic aspirations are not
achieved in full. Should the
rnilitarists sign an allied peace
they with the same stroke of
the pen seal their death war
rant. They realize this. Great
masses of men will be continued
tc be hurled into battles now
ior -awesome destruction.
- <:
That the Germans now will resume
the general scheme of alternating
their attacks
Germans May is expected.
Alternate Attacks. nndonhtaaIS
again will endeavor to reach the
channel ports, If they do not imme-
diately attempt to extricate them
selves from the extremely bad tactical
positions which have been forced upon
them by allied Resistance in the direc-
tion of the Marine. The German COM
mand, however, must know by this
time that the southern drive has not
disarransed Foch's scheme of defense
to the north and that the great masses
of allied troops assembled for the
protection of channel ports still are
In this region. ready for the expected
German blow.
Though the Germans continue their
fight during the remainder of the
summer they. however. eventually
will be defeated. but unquestionably
the allies resistive qualities will be
tested to the utmost in preventing
achievement of the kaiser's dreams
American effort definitely turns the
scales on the side of the entente.
The tremendous battles that have
been raging during the past week on
the battle front
Battles Furious, stretching to the
Losses Terrible. and and" Mo,tdis,er Nj mHson
have been among the wars fercest Re-
ports indicate that the fury of the
struggle has been more intense than
the long conflict that RACED at the
portals of>yerdun. Though no ofiicial
figures have been revealed, il is de-
clared that the Germans have suffered
losses even greater than they did dur
ing the earlier days Of their spring
offensive when casualties were ghast-
ly. 1t cannot be expected that the al
Ifed casualties have not been heavy.
for many of the fights have been of
hand-to-hand character and the
French undoubtedly have been badly
cut up in certain sections, though
losses possibly never have exceeded
those Of the Germans at any point,
1nasmuch as loses of an army of de-
fense generally are much smaller than
the forces taking the initiative, and
this undoubtedly is true in the present
case. owing to the weight Of machine
guns and artillery which the allies
had assembled in READINGS for the Ger
man blow.
The armies under the general COM
mand OF the crown prince struck
hy1t 0pA H.,
dfdfer and Noyon. with the hope of
completely eliminating the French
salient between the Marne and the
Montdidier region. thereby consolidat-
ing the whole German line and giving
the various German armies elbow
room In carrying out their plans in
the campaign for Paris.
As In the case of the battles below
Gotssops and Rheims, the allies have
been able to keep the Germans within
Q comparatively narrow strip of ter
ritory. Although the Germans reach
90 the River Metz. at Its junction with
the Disc. but few miles from
Compiegne. this advance represents
but six or seven miles from the start
ing point. The Germans attempted to
spread the sides of the salient, but
French forces. in tremendously effec-
tive counter strokes on the western
wing of the salient. recaptured high
ground between Belloy and st. Maur,
which dominates the German center,
stretching to the region of March,
mont. Bethancourt and Antheuil, and
the German communications will be
exceedingly difficult to maintain, un-
less further progress Is scored and
the French driven from their positions
on the eastern bank Of the Disc and
the Germans given wide ground for
operations In all that region stretch
ing from Rheims to Montdidier.
The French reacted strongly against
the Germans in the region Of the Matz
river and drove them back to its
northern banks. The Germans forced
French readjustments of both east
and west of the Disc, and the French
were forced to give up wooded dis
trfcts stretching from the southern
banks OF the Disc to a line stretching
from Ribecourt through Bailly. Tracy
le Val and Naumcel.
Generally speaking. the Germans are
In worse tactical position than when
the drive start
Germans in bad ed. II they con-
Tactical Positions. tensivs % - w,th M
success. however. they stand a chance
Of scoring some military success in
the general campaign toward Paris,
tracks. as there il every reason to be-
1ieve they will. then they must face
trying times. for the French have the
advantage of Typographical conditions
(which they may be expected to use to
the utmost In further inflicting tremend-