Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-09-09

now are virtually behind their old wire
entanglements in their old trenches Of
1917. Ali along the edge of the Forest
of Coucy and through the western horn
of the st. Gobain Forest the Germans
are only 200 yards away. and in some
Pi;nsy places they are; are in positions in the old
from the heights west of Chateau-Coucy.
The Oise-Aisne Canal and the River
Ailette, that runs between the heights
sort Of ADVANCED post of their main line
six miles further back at Fresnes. were
not abandoned voluntarily but wrested
from the enemy after a struggle of five
days, during which five different Ger
man divisions tried to hold eff a single
French division.
Greatest Machine Gun Fire
THE divisions that tried to prevent
the crossing of the canal and river" the
Associated Press correspondent was in
formed by French officer. who has
participated in most of the campaigns
concentration of machine gun fire tina,
has been witnessed in this war"
The French troops were obliged &c
face. that fire at range of twenty
Canal and the River Ailette. Pioneers
throwing bridges over the canal seven.
teen yards wide suffered not only from
the Guick-firers. but We're in good range
days to advance to the Ailette from the
village Pont Saint Mard and four days
to gain 500 yards of ground. The ma:
chine guns were nassed thickly all
along the canal in front Of Quincy and ir
the woods, thickets and marshes.
Sergeant Charges Enemy
The French engineers finally succeeded
| in bridging the canal. and over the frs
| bridge an enraged sergeant charged th'
| Germans around machine gun position
and. single handed. made twelve of then
prisoner. Such was the work that wen
on both along the river and the cana
| during the five days each day exhaust
ing Germany's best divisions.
| Twenty-Five uuick-firers were found Ii
q small thicket called Etuaraissag
| Wood They were almost as thick II
| Fache Wood and the more extensive tim
bered land fronting Coucy-l -Chatea,
and Coucy-la-Ville. Where the Frencl
could get at them they charged am
| killed the German gunners on thei
pieces. but many emplacements were to-
well hidden or protected for a direc
| attack and it was necessary to shel
them.
Foe Abandous Guns
During several hours French projec
tiles sent splinters flying all through
| the timber. and when the infantry
charged they had to go on to Courcy
| la-Nille to catch the enemy, who hat
fed. leaving his guns and an enormou:
amount OF material and supplies be
hind. Courcy- le-Chateau and the hcigh
on which it stands were thus turned
from the north and iianked at the same
time from the south. while thousands
of shells filled the ruins of the sur
rounding positions.
Chateau Nogent to the southeast
was taken about the same time, ant
with it the 'Germarys lost positions ol
which they had spent a tremendous eff
| fort They retired behind their thrc
positions of barbed wire on the line t
Fresnes. The booty they left behind il
two immense engineering groups in
| cluded locomotives, railroad materia
of all sorts and a great number o
quick-firer and emplacement guns an
one tifteen-inch gun with which the
| had bombarded French towns far be
hind the line east of the Ailette.