Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1918-10-12

swer to the German peace proposal.
From verdun TO the North sea the
Huns are In fun retreat or battling to
their utmost to gain time TO organize
a retreat. Where this withdrawal will
stop depends very largely upon the
ability OF Marshal Foch to follow up.
the r defeated German armies. The
enemy may be enabled, thru rear guard
actions on one hand and hasty with
drawal OF his forces and supplies on
the other, to move faster than the en-
tente allies can move forward and
bring up their supplies and heavy
guns. An army Is no stronger than
its supporting columns and lines OF
communication and supply make it.
To date, however, the Germans have
been unable 20 break the grip Of the
allies. Foch and his aides have main
tanned contact with the enemy at every
point of retreat. infiictirg severe pun
ishment and constantly adding to the
number Of prisoners and the supplies
taken, The capture of St. Quentin
and Cambria has been followed by
results heretofore predicted. The
on this front, causing the Germans to
begin the evacuation of the Chemin
des Danes. The fall Of Laon and the
entire elimination Of the Laon salient
will follow as a natural result, and the
moment the st. Gobain forest is en-
circled and outflanked-an undertake
ing which is now near accomplish
the rout of the Germans from Verdun
to the sea will be complete.
The battle line. at the present time
is undergoing great changes. 1t will
he modified extensively in the next
few days BY early next week the
probabilities are there will be few Huns
in France except the manifold thou
sands who are held prisoners. The
Germans In the, north may elect to
make a stand on the Scheldt river and
seek to maintain contact with the Hin
denburg forces farther southwark and
eastward on a line extending thru
Guise to the Aisne river, thence east
ward to the Meuse near his present
line. Guise. however. is already men,
aced by the rapid advance Of the
Anglo American forces which have
been pouring thru the broken defenses
between Cambria and st. Quentin.
Furthermore, the French and Amer |
leans are pushing on toward the Aisne
and Pershing's Independent forces are |
slowly fighting their way northward
on both sides of the Meuse It would |
appear that this proposed line would |
he made untenable and that a retreat !
10 the Meuse in Belgium will be nee
essary and withdrawal to the Rhine |
not an improbability. Much will de- |
pend on the continuance Of favorable |
weather conditions.
80
Should Hindenburg and Ludendorff |
forces at the Meuse they win settle i
down to . defensive contest in the |
hope Of negotiating peace by which |
the empire might save something |
from the wreckage. Should retreat to
the Rhine be forced by Foch it will be
by armies beaten so decisively that un-
conditional surrender will be offered |
and the entente allied victory win be
complete. 49, Af $500
There is no question that Germany's |
military power is dwindling ito the |
breaking point. Teutonic losses since
J uly Is, when the great offensive start |
ed, have been enormous. In those two
and one -haalf months the allies have
captured more than $4,000 prisoners
on the western front alone. These men
were all taken on the battlefields, and
with very few exceptions would be
grade men, It is doubtful if the whole |
German annual contingent Of recruits
today produces $4,000 grade l. men.
To the prisoners must be added the |
losses in killed and = wounded, and |
these at a moderate estimate, would |
not be less than four times as many |
as the prisoners, say 100000.
So in two and a half months Ger
many has lost on the western front not |
less than 1,a50,cO men,. To her annual
contingent of 10 year old boys she has
only her recovered wounded and sick |
To add: and as these are not nearly |
sufficient to make good these losses, |
and to keep her armies up~4o strength, !
she has therefore had to live on her
capital since July Is. She has had to
break up twenty-one divisions in or
der tol fill khe ranks OF the remainder.
She he's Mad to reduce her military
not less than 100000 men.
From reports which were received
we may estimate the number Of Amer
lean soldiers who have completed their
training and gone to the front during
this period of two and a half months
at about 50O, 900. The balance of
strength has. therefore, changed in
favor Of the allies( approximately
100000. The, diminution of the enc
nly's forces is the key to what has been
happening recently in France and
Flanders.
The Germans, being unable to make
good their losses, have been forced to
try to reduce their commitments.
When Foch hurled them back from the
Marine to the Aisne they attempted to
shorten their fronts on the Somme and
in Flanders, but before they could do
this is their own time and In their own
way they were anticipated and defeated
by Haig. They then hoped to be able
to stand for the winter in the Hinden-
burg system, and once more they have
been defeated.
Reference, to the larger map will
show the lack Of natural defensive po-
sitions until the Mouse is reached. Re-
tirement to the Mouse means the evac-
uation Of all occupied French territory
and the larger part of Belgium. From
yerdun, which is in France and not far
from the German stronghold Of Metz,
the Mouse flows in northwesterly di.:
rection following closely the Belgian