New-York tribune., 1918-03-26
The West Front Outlook

The West Front Outlook
The huge German thrust on the West
front continues. Bapaume has fallen
and north of the Sonme as we'll as south
of it the British armies are withdrawing
under enormous pressure toward the
line which the Allies held before the Hin
denburg retirement year ago.
But the German advance seems to be
slowing down little. The gain in ground
is slighter. German claims of prisoners
taken are not mounting in startling fash
ion The British front has been bent
back. but it has not been severed. The
Allied losses can hardly exceed the Ger
man losses. Should the offensive pause
now and die away, its results would rep
resent only another sterile German
victory
The fairest way to measure the present
offensive is to compare it with earlier
German offensives. The Marne campaign
may be left aside since it antedated what
is how called positional warfare. But
German strategy and tactical methods
have been the same on the Somme as they
were at the Dunajec, at Verdun and on
the Isonzo The only difference per
ceptible so far is in the vastness of the
operation
At the Dunajec Mackensen broke the
Russian line at a highly vulnerable point.
The Russian position was a huge pro
iecting. elliptlcal salient. On the north
ern curve were the Hindenburg armies
in East Prussia. On the southern were
the Austro- Hungarian armies, behind the
Carpathians. Mackensen smashed through
the Russian defence on the southern edge
of the apex. The whole position in
Galicia and Poland crunapled up, and the
Russian armies. fatally handicapped by
lack Of reserve artillery and munitions,
began a retreat which lasted nearly three
months and carried them back to the
Dwna and the Pinsk marshes. Russia
was put out of the war for a year
thereafter.
At Verdun a colossal offensive was at
tempted on a narrow front. 1t came as
a surprise and the initial losses Of the
French were relatively much greater than
the British losses have been so far on the
Somme. After d few days the German
advance was checked. and Neretun be
came battle Of position lasting through
several months. All the ground lost by
the French was eventually recaptured by
them, because they were able to de
velop sufficient power to counter attack
Nerdun, in the end, was d complete
German defeat
On the IsonZo the German and Austro-
Hungarian armies broke the Italian sa-
lient thrust eastward toward Trieste
They broke it well back from the neck,
coming out of the Julian Alps, and the
only hope Of the Italian vanguard
trapped beyond the lower Isonzo lay in
rapid retreat. The IsonZo was d great
disaster, counting losses in material,
prisoners and morale But it was made
possible only By dangerous concen-
tration Of the Italian forces in a pro
jecting salient at the most exposed end
of long line.
In France to-day Hindcnburg is try
ing to break through the Allied centre
by massed attacks, such as the Grown
Prince launched at Verdun On a front
as extended az that from the North Sea
TO Switzerland decisive penetration is
extremely difficult. The long line may
bend and yield at points, but a new con-
nection IS quickly established d little
1urther back. The entire Allied position
IN France IS not threatened by heavy
oiow at one sector as the Russian posi-
tion was threatened in 1915 or the Ital
ian in 1917.
Inc Allies in France have sound de-
5 iensive alignment. They have troops Of
as good quality as Germany has. as MANY
men ana nearly as many guns IL the
ii2nting iioe and as ample reserves. II the
German offensive is prolonged little
further, It ought to lead to an Allied
counter offensive, just as Byng's first
easy success at Cambria was followed
ny Hindenburg's vigorous counter at
tack IT IS the history Of every big
offensive in this war that it has worn
itself down, on whatever scale it has
been attempted, because Of the almost
insuperable difficulties in the way Of con
tinued movement. The guns and trans
port have not been able To keep pace
with the infantry The Russians were
thrust out Of Poland and Galicia in 1915
because Of their inability 10 rally after
one smashing blow. The Italians re
treated from the Isore'o ~ the Piaye be
cauSe their armies we're caught off bal.