Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-08-01
Americans Beat
Best German Forces
Continued from PAGE One

Continued from PAGE One
them at the guns to make them stop
firing.
Tuesday night seven Germans were
brought in, members of the Fifth Foot
Guards Regiment, part of the Fourth
Prussian Guard Division They said
that the day before their company,
$50 strong, had been thrown into the
fight. They refused to retreat and
the Americans refused to retreat. The
seven said they were all that were left
of their company. They were cap.
tured in hand-to-hand fighting after
their ammunition was exhausted.
The Fifth Guard Grenadier Resi.
ment and the Ninety.third Reserve
Regiment which also We're part of the
Fourth Prussian Guard Division. suf.
fered heavily also. This. the foremost
of all the German divisions before the
Americans, bore the reputation of
never having failed in it's mission. Its
mission this time, according to orders
found on German bodies, was to drive
the Americans back into the Ourcu.
They failed for the first time during
the war. Americans are game fighters
and, therefore. somehow or other have
an admiration for these Prussians
were they from many Germans
against whom our troops have been
thrown in this drive. They did not
surrender when the Americans got in
close. but fought to the end. to the
death. In the whole two days fight.
| ing Of this division we took only
eleven prisoners. That tells the bitter
story Of itself.
Fighting Americans Like
| Instead of fighting their machine guns
until the Americans were close and then
oh
rife and bayonet. That kind Of fighting
our men like, and the result was bloody
! slaughter.
1t so happened that two OF the four
! companies which helped to meet the
| Prussians were composed largely OF Ger
| man-American fighters. They certainly
showed no sign of love or respect for
the fatherland or It's best military repre-
sentatves
| The fighting Tuesday was violent. with
the Germans hurling counter-attacks and
| the Americans doing likewise. Often
! two attacking parties met half way and
had It out at close range. The Germans
| made use of all their weapons, including
treachery, for we have proofs that they
carried guns made up like stretchers
which enabled the Eunners. each bear
ing Red Cross on his arm, to get Close
to the Americans before cutting loost
streams of bullets
The Germans used much artillery fire
and they gassed and bombed our linea
nearly all day. while daring aviator!
4 strafed us with machine guns at clos,
range. 1t was strenuous day al
around. Perhaps the most sensationa
of all the enemy efforts Of the last TIVE
Gays has been the so-called most In
tensive airplane activity of the war. o.
! bn iaI n
crack f1iers here and they are shown,
the utmost daring and efficiency. Til
air yesterday was literally filled will
German airplanes which knew no fear
They bombed us and they strafed us
and our observation machines were al
most invariably attacked when near!nl
their lines.
The Germans travelled in fives, ten
and fifteens, which made them formida
BILE. One Of the most wonderful sight
or the war was to see ten of their air
planes challenge and meet eight of ours
Up there In the air one could hear tn
droning OF many engines. with per
haps five or six machine guns going a
once, In free-for-all battle. as the fier
y circled about looking for the foes vita
spot. One such battle lasted fftee
minutes. during which two airplane
, dropped and others drifted apart.
German planes flew from five to te
miles behind our lines in broad daylight
ID Drawing countless guns. and droppe
I'd many bombs. I was standing talkin
to an American generalwh hen we saw tn
p nerviest sort Of aerial performance.
: road was filed with American truck,
, soldiers and automobiles. All along
, mounted on carriages were anti-aircraf
, guns of every description.
Out CT the clouds came three boch
machines. The guns opened up. throw
: ing hundreds of shrapnel shells. but tn
: fiiers came on and on. They descenGe
until only 200 feet above the ground. GU
!. loose with their machine guns. achieve
some results and flew away. There Is n
denying that it takes brave men to d
, this.