The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1918-07-17
Enemy's Desperate Attempts TO
Break Through Defenses Pro-
nounced Signal Failure.
HEAVY LOSSES
IN SMALL GAINS
German Offensive East and
West of Rheims Is Sue
cessfully Met.

The German offensive east and west
OF Rheims has had the brakes vigor-
~ applied by Americans, French
aa.l Italians Nowhere has the enemy
/ ynd it possible, as heretofore. to tear
tuI ough the opposing positions to
s4nts of advantage chosen as eir
Lily detectives. Gains for Germans
we're innnitesimal as compared with
rormer attacks. A tacit admission
thst enemy hordes had been retarded
j the.s assaults IS seemingly con-
Ianied "a Ice German onlcIal COM
..a4ll4taslon, wAicn admitted "Nio4ent
,.44sSr i..1-....s ana the -unchanIed
j. ,iation east OF Rheims.
The Americans and French have
- oNereu .helr strategic positions
& nina LIE, tie Marne valley Through
Oac the region west of Rheims, the
Ls.imans made desperate attempts to
l..etease the.r penetration of the allied
ont, but gained only foot at time
and suffering enormous losses. The
I. e. mans claim thirteen thousand pris-
oners. The French. are reported to
have taken thousands captive and the
Americans about fifteen hundred The
salsye reserves into the fray.
IS appears that the enemy, after
crossing the Marne between Dorrnans
aad Chatil.on, has reached in. this area
tne eillages OF St. Agfian, La Chapelle
end Monthodon which are approx
mately mile and three quarters
south of the river, but in the outskirts
&C these towns they have been held up.
Just to the northeast the Germans
managed TO traverse the Bouquigny
wood but on the southern side they
have been stopped.
West of Dormans, which IS "a miles
east OF Chateau Thierry, American
troops are holding the battle line. Un-
oficial 1dvices state that in this area
they have retaken the villages of Fos-
SOY and Crezancy, south OF the Marne.
where the Germans gained ground in
the first rush across the river.
from the French official report it is
evident that between Dormans and
Rheims the Germans are driving to-
ward the Marne at Chatillon and along
the line to the northeast. Only at one
point in the Rodmat wood, a mile and
n half from Chatillon. however, did
they advance last night. Even there
they have been checked by the French
fire From that point to Rheims there
Is no change in the situation. The
deepest penetration along this line is
approximately three and three quar-
ter miles northeast of Chatiiion, In
the Rodmat wood. This marks the
greatest advance of the Germans at
any point along the line since their
offensive began.
East of Rheims the situation also
appears reassuring The French bat
ar @anlmrnd ~
the Germans have not been able to ad-
vance southwark further than the out
skirts OF the woods that parallel on
the north the ancient Chaussee Ro-
maine, the main highway running
eastward from Rheims. They are
being held all along this line as far
ps the region north of the town of
Suippe which virtually marks the
easterly limits Of the great battle.
In the German offensives during the
spring and summer delay was one of
the prime factors in the situation.
The Germans have never been able to
gain materially when faced by forces
that were numerically equal and all OF
their drives have come to q pause
when allied reinforcements were
rushed mp to threatened points
The Germans are now more than e4
little 10 indicate .,,at they still have
striking power greater or as great as
they possessed on Monday morning
when their attacks began. The allies
therefore seem 10 have reason to be-
iieve that the supreme test c1 their
defeuse has been met successfully.
The battle Is not ove- as vet, and
there may be a possibility. II not
probability that the German high COM
rsand has not played it's trump cards
IN the mighty game that Is going on
There is. however. feeling Of sat
iesact!on over che first phases 81 the
rew drive and conndenre that the al
lid forces VIII continue to resist as
'-'~n-olslv as they have during the ter
rh,s first hours ST the conflict. Ger
ran artillery IL reported sctivc IN tAe
Albert sector ard in some other re-
~'@ns along the British sront. ent there
t.ve brsn no rortentious develop-
-en's there. The british have I'm
~--vcd their positions slightly In rhe
yillers-Bretenreaux sector.