The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1918-07-31
CONDENSED WAR REPORTS.
SUPPLY BASE OF GERMANS PEN.
ETRATED BY ALLIES.
Pocket Decreasing for Huns Near
SOissOns and Enthusiastically and
Tanks Active in Fighting.

The Franco-American troops, con-
tinuing their pressure on the Germans
in retreat from the Marne, have reach
ed and crossed the OurcQ river and
penetrated the town of Fere-en-Tar-
denois, one of the great German sup
ply bases for the enemy troops inside
the SOissons- Rheims salient
Meantime, on the center Of the al
lied right wing southwest of Rheims,
violent attacks by the French have
forced the enemy to give further
ground and enabled the French to
capture several towns of strategic
value and to draw their front ap-
probably nearer the high road which
runs northward from Dormans to
Rheims.
On the extreme wings of the grad
ually decreasing pocket-near scissors
and RheimS-the enemy, heavily re-
| inforced is holding tenaciousiy to his
ground, realizing that success there
would result in a general crumblirg
Of his plans of defense against the
| locking up of his entire army inside
the big bag.
In addition to the large number Of
been thrown on these two sectors the
German long range guns from the re-
giOn north of scissors and north and
northeast OF Rheims are keeping both
wings of the salient under a heavy
enfils.ding fire.
! Under the battering tactics of the
Americans and Frenchmen the Ger
man line on the south has now been
driven back more than IL miles from
| the point south Of Chateau-Thierry
where the Allied troops locked the
door to Paris against the enemy July
| Is and themselves became the aggres-
sOrs in what has turned out to be one
of the greatest battles of the war.
The crossing of the Ourcq, even if
only by advanced elements of the AL
| lied forces, presages general cross
| ing later on. The French official COM
munications thus far during the bat
tie have been remarkably conservative
/ in their estimates of the gains that
daily have been made and it is indi-
Gated in unofficial dispatches that al
lied troops are considerably in ad-
vance of the line as announced Off
cially.
Where the Germans are in retreat
| from the south, the cavalry has been
brought into the fighting and numer-
Gus tanks and machine guns are every
where harassing the enemy, whose
losses are heavy.
Meantime, airplanes are flying over
the retreating hordes dropping bombs,
while the big allied guns from the
sides of the salient are keeping up
! their intensive firing from all along
| the line in the densely congested area.
The retreat of the enemy has by no
means become rout and so long rs
the picked troops around Soissons
and Rheims are able to keep well open
the mouth of the bag through which
the Germans are falling back, it is
expected that the greater portion of
the armies of the Crown Prince will
be successful in reaching in order the
line where it is intended for them 10
turn and make stand.
| Just where this stand will be made
is problematical. More than half the
pocket has been recaptured by the
American, French, British and Italian
troops opposing the enemy, and there
| have as yet been no signs of let up
| LII Tie IttIOSIdue movement IL, us
some of the military critics have sug-
gested, Crown Prince Rupprecht of
Bavaria purposes to start an offensive
gainst the British in France and
Flanders, as a diversion against the
big battle now in progress. no signs
of it are apparent at present. What
little fghing has been going on in
| this region has been in the nature of
patrol raids in which the British have
taken q number of prisoners and ma
chine guns.
Evidently impressed by the threat
of the British premier that if tLey re-
manned on strike until Monday they
would be liable to military service, a
majority of the dissatisfied munitions
workers in England will return to
work Immediately.