The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-06-15
Chief of Staff Gives Out Army
Figures.
Ships Are Only Limitation to
Numbers.
GAS CAUSED REGENT DEFEATS
Allies Prepare to Meet These
Gas Attacks.
Says Allies Need Men to Hold
Heightened Line.

Washington, June 15.-More than
100000 American troops have been
sent to France and the government
expects to have a million there by
July 1.
This disclosure was made today by
Gen. Peyton C. March, chief of staff,
at his first weekly conference with
newspaper correspondents and at an
earlier conference OF war department
officials with members of the senate
military committee.
Includes All Branches.
The 100000 figure includes AL
branches of the service necessary to
make up a complete army, both COM
blatant and non-combatant units, G en-
eral March said.' All war department
figures regarding troops sent across
will be given out on this basis.
Must Use American Troops.
General March summarized The bat
lie situation as ii stands today with
four distinct phases of the great Ger
man offensive halted. but with its
final battles still to come. To meet
the emergency, he added. only lack
of shipping facilities is limiting the
rush of American troops to the fight
ing front. Their prompt engagement
in the struggle. he said, is a para
mount necessity.
Germans Try to Straighten Lines.
The newspaper conference was held
In the rooms of the war council. On
the walls were great maps showing
the battle fronts and as General
March talked. he pointed to the rows
of colored pins that marked each
phase of the fighting. He said that
all four OF the German drives thus
far have had a common object and
have been only developing phases of
the German purpose to drive their
wav to the channel ports. primarily.
and secondnrily, to capture Paris. The
f~hting of the last week, in the Oise
AiSne salient. he demonstrated. was
desi~ned to stra:ghten out the German
Iattle front, rather than blow at a
direct objective like Paris. Further
o~erat tons of this nature, it was in
6'cated. are ANTICIPATED before the
drive toward the channel can be re-
sumed
Allied Linz stretched 80 Miles.
I-p to the present time the bulge
the Germans have made in the allied
line has added siXty-six miles OF front
to the allied lines from Rheims to the
sea and large numbers of additional
allied forces have been absorbed into
the work of holding the lines. This
makes il urgent, said General March,
thrt American forces be rushed for
ward without delay.
diction as to when American aid
might give the allies superiority OF
numbers again. The time and size OF
movement Of enemy divisions from the
east to the west, he said. could not be
estimated, nor could a day be liked
when the allies would have the mas
tering superiority" of numbers which
will eventually be theirs.
The Italian front situation was not
discussed. and General March indi-
~ u +fsara Al lnV1a
still political rather than military and
therefore, not within his field of re-
view.
Gas Broke Allied Lines.
American military experts are
agreed, sena tors said after the confer
ence, that the present German drive
had been stopped. for the present al
least, but its renewal, possibly with it:
force directed more largely agains
positions held by the Americans. i:
expected. The enemy's recent sue
cesses, the senators were told, wa!
due alrgely to new uses of gas. Tht
allies, 1t was said, soon will be ready
to cope with new forms of gas attack
Gas masks now in use, the senator.
were told, admittedly are not usefu
particularly mustard gas. A specia
tear" gas for use against artillery
the senators were told, has been dupli
Gated by the Germans.
The allies, officials said, are prepar
ing to match the German efforts II
the use of gas and provide for com
plete defense of their forces as far a.
possible before the next attack of tht
enemy develops.
General March took occasion to cor
rect the impression that the German
advance has at some points gone be
yond the points reached in 1914. H,
pointed out on the map that at M
point during the present offensive hat
the Germans come closer to Pari
than within 201s miles of the farthes
advance they made in 1914 towart