The Monticellonian., 1918-12-13

 yancing waves of German infantry" and the Third division held the Marne line. opposite Chateau Thierry, against powerful artillery and infantry attack.
 Single Regiment Checks Enemy.
 A single regiment of the Third wrote one of the most brilliant pages in our military annals on this occa- sion" General Pershing says. Tt pre- vented the crossing at certain points on it's front while, on either flank, the Germans who had gained a foot ing pressed forward. Our men. firing in three directions, met the German attacks with eounter-attacks at criti- cal points and succeeded in throwing two German divisions into complete confusion. capturing GOO prisoners
 Thus was the stage set for the counter-offensive which, beginning with the smashing of the enemys Marne salient brought overwhelming victory to the allies and the United States in the eventful months that have followed. The intimation is strong that General Pershing's advice helped Marshal Foch to reach his de- eision to strike.
 Counter Offensive Opens.
 General Pershing continues:
 "The great force of the German Chateau Thierry offensive established the deep Marne salient, but the enemy was taking chances, and the vulnera- of tn nlr f,rl,t be turned to his disadvantage.
 "Seizing this opportunity to support my conviction, every division with any sort of training was made available for Use in eounter-offensive. The place of honor in the thrust toward First and Second divisions in com pany with chosen French divisions.
 ''Without the usual brief warning of preliminary bombardment, the massed French and American artillery, firing by the map, laid down its rolling barrage at dawn while the infantry be- gan it's charge. The tactical handling of our troops under these trying condi tions was excellent throughout the ac- tion.
 "The enemy brought up large num- bers of reserves and made Il stubborn defense both with machine guns and artillery, but through five days fight ing the First division continued to ad- vance until 1t had gained the heights above Soissons and captured the vil lage of Berzy-le-Sec
 "The Second division took Beau Re paire farm and Vierzy in very rapid vance and reached a position in front of Tigny at the end of its second day These two divisions captured r. l GOO prisoners and over 100 pieces of artillery"
 First American Army Formed.
 The report describes in some detail the work of completing the reduction of the salient, mentioning the opera tions of the Twenty-sixth, Third Fourth. Forty-second, Thirty-seccnd and Twenty-eighth divisions. With the situation on the Marne front thus could turn to the organization of the First American army and the reduction of the St MihieI salient. long planned as the initial purely American enter prise.
 A troop concentration, aided by gen erous contributions of artillery and air units by the French, began, involving the movement, mostly at night, of G00,000 men.
 sector reaching from Port sur Seille, east of the MoSele, eastward through St Mihiel to Verdun and later enlarged to carry it to the edge of the forest of Argonne was taken over, the Second Colonial French, holding the tip of the salient opposite St. Mihiel and the French Seventeenth corps, on the heights above Verdun being trans ferred, to General Pershing's command
 The combined French, British, and American air forces mobilized for the battle. the report says, was the largest aviation assembly ever engaged on the western front up to that time in q sin gle operation.
 Battle of St. Mihiel.
 Of the reduction of the St Mihiel salient General PerShing says:
 sAfter four hours artillery prepa- ration the seven American divisions in the front line advanced at : a. m. on September 12, assisted by limit ed number of tanks manned partly by Americans and partly by the French.
 "These divisions, accompanied by groups of wire-cutters and others armed with bangalore torp ioes, went through the successive bands of barbed wire that protected the ene my's front line and support trenches in irresistible waves on schedule time. breaking down all defense of an en- emy demoralized by the great volume of our artillery fire and our sudden approach out of the fog
 "Our First corps advanced to Thiau- court, while our Fourth corps curved | back to the southwest through Non sard. The Second Colonial French Guired of 1t on very difficult ground. and the Fifth corps took its three ridges and repulsed counter-attack. "A rapid march brought reserve reg | iments of division of the Fifth corps l Into yigneulles in the early morning, where it linked up with patrols of our Fourth corps, closing the salient and forming a new line west of Thaucourt to yigneulles and beyond Fresnes-en- Woeyre.
 10000 Prisoners Taken. "At cost of only 1000 casualties