Bisbee daily review., 1918-06-01


  tofore. They are using trench mortars in large numbers for wire cutting
 "The Germans had prepared for an attack on this part of the line for q long time, constructing the necessary gun emplacements and assembly places 50 that our aircraft did not ob- serve airy construction of new trenches or emplacements just before the at tack
 Initial Success Expected
 Under the conditions which pre- vailed in the region of the Chemin Des Danes. an initial success could hardly De prevented Nor can it be prevented anywhere there are not ade- quate reserves immediately available
 ''The allis have thse disadvantages: first they are inferior in numbers; second, they are actcing on exterior lines; third, they have made vulner- able points; fourth, north of the Son. me, they have little foOtway in which to maneuver.
 'It is Bot fair to blame the hign command when the allies have inner ently an unfavOraDIe strategic posi- tion If it is said that the hign com mand placed three tired British di- visions or an exposed part of the front. it must be remembered that this dispO- sition was made with full agreement of the British headquarters.
 Exhaust Effectiveness
 "Questions such as the bases of sup plies and communication have 10 2e taken mo account in the employment Of troops. Until fresh reserves of the Germans lave been engaged some where the situation must continue anx- ious.
 "On the other hand the attack of the last wseK has not been so serious as on some other points in the allied line, because we have more room to maneuYcr and can better afford to saJl back Another thing that must always be considered is that the eGrmans are rapidly using up their effectiveness. Thus far they probably have employed 45 divisions in the present attack, of which 70 have been identified"
 Not Complete Surprise
 "The question has been much dis 'sAooO0 III lAAG past lC N01so NAANAAAtA this herman attack was a surprise to thC allies. It cannot be called .: com plete surprise because of the fact that enemy concentrations in the LaUn area were known, but until day or TWO before the battle we had no indi- cation thai any attack on a big scale was intended. The Germans deserve full consideration for maintaining secrecy of their plans. The main masses of men Were brought up to the actual front lines on the night before the attack, which was preceded by only two hours of bombardment for the purpose Of cutting wire entanglc- ments. The Germans are not making the same use of artillery as heretofore. They are using trench mOrtars in large numbers for wire cutting.
 ''Is his the eRemy's main attack"
 Three Great cbiectives
 He probably did not know when be initiated it, whether it would prove to be a subsidiary or leading operation. lt must Dc remembered that the en- emy has three great geographical ob, iectives as means toward his great ob jective of destroying the Franco Brit ish armies-the channel ports separa- ion of the allied arIn1es by an attack through Amiens and an attack on Paris.
 Tn tle present operation he is do- ing all possible to develop his initial success by attacking both on tlHe cen ter and or the Hanks of the salient. He has achieved considerable success in the center. but on the Hanks the French are holding well on the heights west of Soissons and the British are similarly fighting hard on the heights around Rheims.
 rrsiSe for Americans
 No review of the past week would be complete without mention of the fine exploit of the American troops n he capture of Cantigny It was an extremely well conducted opration in viw of he fact that the troops were lntrained It is Gctahle that they did not only capture their objective. but held it. It is always much more diff ficult to consolidate and retain a po- stition luau tc capture it and the per formance e the Americans show tneir very high standard as wei as their training. bravery and fighting quhli- ties"