Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-09-14
MOP UP SALIENT:
CAPTURE MORE THAN $1,000

and wireless men were unable TO keep
up with the infantry.
on our right. near the Moselle. the
Americans encountered some difficulty in
clearing out woods, and there were oc-
casional stiff fights along the heights.
Preparations Protected
The night before the American attack
there was little to indicate a big often
sIve was about to start. As the sun
went down and night fell over the towns,
woods. fields, roads and the sharp out
lines of Montsec, nothing save increased
streams of speeding army vehicles over
busy roads. all moving toward the front,
indicated other than the usual quiet
The American preparations had been
well protected in the darkness and
clouds.
The evening turned to a drizzling,
rainy night Through hours of watch
ing 1t was impossible to distinguish a
single outline in the inky blackness All
up and down the fighting line no gun
sounded. Then solitary American flare
shot up, Frightening the landscape,
nashing "ali's we'll" Several times
squirmy German outposts shot up fran
tic punches of flares anticipating at
tacks which did not materialize.
Suddenly at a. m. through the peace
ful blackness a single American gun
behind Seicheprey, the first American
battlefield in France, flashed n chal-
lenge to the Kaiser. This was fol-
lowed by flashes along the entire line
The flashes increased, piling on top Of
each other, up and down the front near
and far until at 1:10 a. m the spec
tacle looked like a continuous winkir,c
Of lightning along the horizon, so amaz-
ingly fast the eye couldn't follow the
blazing of the cannons.
L. $. Batteries Turn Loose
More flashes, less dazzling and further
4,
on the German side of the lines In
front of MontscC huge light broke out
telling that shells had struck an ammu-
milton dump. It's flames illuminated
vast oxpause of blown-up barbed wire,
trenches. dugOuts and strong polu,s, no
longer strong. Another dump burst
into a blaze under the pounding of the
accurate American artillery men. Clouds
of battle smoke above reflected varia-
tions of a red and yellow glow as the
inferno spread over the German posi-
ttons. Our batteries turned loose to-
ward Montsec, brightly sllhouetting its
crater.
Up and down the thirty-fve miles of
front the continuous fire raced. dimming
slightly. then faring brilliantly again.
The German batteries replied but feebly,
apparently outbarraged and cowed.
The zero hour came. Its first surprise
was an enormous flame miles long which
darted into the German positions. This
was OF fe-eNtinEuiShing chemicals, ShOt
off simultaneously, producing huge smoke
clouds Gas was sent against the enemy
concentration points.
Suddenly an officer shouted eXcitedly:
Red flares See, they are--red fares !"
Red flares were shooting up from the
trenches. yet they could not compare
with the sheets of flame.
Red flares mean the Americans are
attacking said the officer.
Panorama Wonderful
1t was a wonderful moment for us all
In the half dawn We couldn't follow the
American infantry going over the top
yet the forward moving barrages and
the smoke clouds indicated their progress
until daylight revealed the panorama.
Through glasses | saw the doughboys
in mass advancing on Richecourt, fol-
loving barragc. and taking the town
easily. evidently without fighting. Then
we saw them apparently pressing
through Lahayville toward the woods
in the rear. which were drowned in
clouds of white smoke.
Suddenly our doughboys began firing
into the smoke cloud. They dropped to
the ground in skirmish order and so
went forward by degrees. A few re-
turned, carrying their comrades. Others
ran on into the smoke cloud and disap-
peared in the woods.
on our left nearer to Montsec the
glasses revealed six American tanks
crawling steadily forward from Nivray-
one along the road, the others across
the fields. Doughboys surrounded them,
walking deliberately toward Montsec to
drive out the Germans. This was but
a small glimpse of our first tank attack