The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-10-30
Gen. Debeney's French Tighten
Hold on Guise.
Advance and Take Lines North
of the City.
YAhKS IN HARD BATTLE
Germans Try To Hold Until
Armistice Comes.
Make Desperate Attempts To
So Retain Lines in West.

Paris, Oct. 30.-General Debeney's
First army has gained new successes
in the encircling of Guise. according to
the official statement from the war
office today.
North of Guise they have taken the
Beaufort farm, north of the Disc.
Along the Peronne river south of Guise
the French have progressed east of
Monceau-Le-Neuf and captured pris-
oners.
In Lorraine the Germans made two
raids without results
Hold Till Armisticc.
Fighting like mad men. the Ger
mans are attempting to- hold the al
lies on the present lines long enough
to obtain an armiStice.
Thus, while the allies are fixing con-
ditions for the capitulation they will
impose of Germany, the Hun chiefs
are ordering their underlings to hold
or die.
French and American troops, at
tacking northwest of Rethel, have
penetrated deeply into the German
positions at many points. reaching the
support lines, which were almost
empty of defenders
General Guillaumat's pressure in
this region is being accentuated along
the Hannogne road, in the neighbor-
hood of st. FergeuX, where violent
enemy counter attacks were repulsed.
The French are at the outskirts of
, Chateau Porcien, reaching the junction
OF Rethel-Sevigny-L'A Abbaye roads.
By the Associated Press)
! Bitter fighting has been going on in
the Meuse sector during the last day
| or two East of the Meuse the Ameri-
| can forces have moved ahead once
more and have wrested important
fror hn 80
| the Meuse, the Germans have been
heavily bombarding the America n
lines and back areas with gas and
high explosive shells. American long
| range artillery has been pounding the
| German supply lines at Conflans.
| French Attack Again.
| West of Argonne forest the French
| have begun an attack which seems to
| promise the turning of the Aisne line,
| which is the main obstacle to the
/ French advance Immediately west of
the Argonne in the region of
the front from Quentin-Le Petit to
| Herpy, north of the Aisne, and prog
ress made in the first few hours of
the onslaught indicated that impor-
! tant results are within reach.
Tightening on Guise.
On the Oise-Serre front the French
are slowly tightening their hold Oh the
/
town they are moving ahead in spite
| of desperate resistance on the part of
| the enemy.
In neighborhood of valenciennes
| the British are apparently checked
| for the moment, at least no signiff-
| cant progress has been made there
during the last day or two.
Patrol Encounters.
| London. Oct. 3O.-"Apart from pa
| troll encounters, in which we made
progress and secured a. few prisoners
| there is nothing to report" Field Mar
| shall Haig said today.
Field Marshal Haig reported that ir
Flanders. the allies took 1S,493 pris.
onerS from October IA to 27, making
| a total of $4,000 since September 2s
| They also took sos guns between the
| 14th and 9th.
Artillery Busy.
Washington. Oct. 3O-"On the Yer.
| dun front there has been steady ar.
tillery and machine gun fire today
| west of the Meuse. especially in the
region north Of Juvin." General Perish.
| 1ng's communique said.
with more favorable weather con.
ditions there has been increased aeria
activity on the front of the First army
thruout the day Our pursuit plane!
engaged the enemy in numerous com
bats. in the course of which eighteer
II
did not return. Our aviatorS also car
rled out important reconnaissance!
and Photographic missions
Artillery and machine gun fire con
tinued during the night on the front O
the First army north of Verdun
| reaching particular intensity in tn,
regions of Bois Belleau and the Boi
du Ormont.
"On the remainder of the from
there is nothing of Importance to re
port
Pershing's Report.
Washington, Oct. 30.-Heavy artil
lery and machine gun fire north o
Nerdun and the bringing down o
eighteen enemy airplanes with failur
of five American machines to retur
were reported by General Pershing i
a communique received today by tn
J war department