The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-12-29
LAR JUST CLOSING IS PRODUCTIVE OF MORE HISTORY
THAN ANY SIMILAR PERIOD SINCE BEGINNING OF TIME

- y
units, continued the smash on the
samme front and on August 80 the
Germans were hurled across tho
Somme. The British took Bapaume
ard were close to Percnne. Roye fell
to the French and dozens OF small
towns wTTH wrgsted from the In
vadcrs. Further north the British
smashed the Hindenburg line and
forced the Germans to begin q re-
treat from the LIS salient.
Throughout September the allies
continued to hammer the retreatfng
Germans and rapidly recovered all
the ground lost in all the German
ofrensives beginning on March FL.
On September American troops
were reported operating for the first
time on Belgian soil, capturing
Voormezeeie The French and Brit
ish gained steadily on a ninety mile
front. Ham and Chauny. on the road
10 the southern part of the linden
burg line. were taken by the French
September s. The British troops, on
tenn they held before the German
drive began.
On September IL, the first Ameri-
ran ,arrt. under the direct command
Of General Pershing, began a brilliant
action which wiped out the difficult
st. Mihei salient in three days. The
Americans took 10000 prisoners in
this action The Americans made q
further advance of from two to three
miles on Il thirty-three- mile front on
0@rtamher Is and the guns OF the
Metz forts opeued against them.
Austria, on September Il, appealed
to President Wilson for an informs al
discussion of principles that might
lead to a general peace, but the
president promptly replied that the
terms upon which the United States
would conclude peace had been made
So clear that a further inconciusive
discussion could not be considered
Germany simultaneously offered
Belgium "A separate peace On Sep
tern her II the Siberian government
which had been established at Omsk
by anti-Bolshevik elements declared
war on Germany
Serbian. French ard italian forces.
on Septemb Der Is, LAUGHED a big drive
against the Buigars in Macedonia, be-
ginning an advance that ultimately
forced bulgaria into a separate peace
on the allies terms. Almost stimuli
taneousiy the British broke the Turk
lines in the Holy Land. The Turkish
a-ntv was shattered and by Septern bes
81 had lost $4,000 men in prisoners.
In the mes ,,tine the allies smashed
the Hindenourg line along a twenty
two mile front in the st. Quentin Sec
rnr, and RI Was announced at wash
ington that the United States now
had 1850. 900 men across The sea to
aid IN crushing the crumb bling armies
Of the enemy. On September, 81 TIRE
Americans hurled on. twenty lie
front west Of Verdun. The Ameri-
cans had gradually advanced east OF
. t.xN -tars 49, tar, 4
extended their operations west az the
river.
The first decisive break In the ks
Of the central empires came on Sep
TENDER ~. when General Malsnofs,
commander of the Ruigar a--,ies,
vllieh@ were in rout before the ad-
tancing Serbs and French asked for
an arnistite.
esermany's Allies Crnmfic.
On September 30, bulgaria accept
III tsaa arnlistien terms proposed by
tionai'y. At tire same time the Ger
man lines tettered cverywi' ere. The
French entered St Quentin and the
Germans opposite the British reeled
under HsiE's attacks. Americans
and French made big gains near
Arconno and near Rheims. The
Americans encountered the, stiffest
resistance as they neared the Argonne
forest. hut continued TO advance.
Turkey moved fo- peace on. octcber
4. and the German neople were thown
-4nto a panic as they ~a~ their als'es
1As3gsr7>ssra .tctx 80 MR. .~Sho ehe@
'6ew i'accYy4e German chancellor adj
dressed a note to President Wilson
asking that steps be taken imraedi-
---s--4s conclude -a#ta4siie-- and
TO orsa peace negotiations. Presi-
dent Wilson answered by asking
whether he spoke for the people or
the then rulers of the empire and
whether the proposal was based on an
tsen peace points. Meanwhile tho
drive or the west front continued
and the Germans were driven frorl
much ground that they had held since
1919. The Hindenburg line was
smashed at many points and the
allied armies went through great
gap north of st. Quentin. Pershing's
men broke the foes main line OF de-
Tense west at the Meuse and after
days of bitter fighting cleared tffe
Germans out Of Argcnne forest. The
Germans ware forced to abandon the
observation-disclosures and to retreat ON
"A long line from Laon as far east as
ArsoGne.
Germany continued her peace often
sive sanSing another note to President
Wilson on October II accepting the
later's fourteen peace principles and
urging the president to transmit their
proposal for an armistice to the allies
Prince Max assured the President thu
by reason OF constitutional changes
the exciting German government
spoke for the people. President VIII
son replied two days later rejecting
the German proposals declaring that
any armistice must he granted ny the
military commanders and must guar
antec the continued supremacy OF tho
Allied arms
The answer OF the s,allicd armies to
she German reace proposals wan ITO
,.eiiver still harder blows, al. this rettr-
ing enemy. In the north the Helgiaa
army led bv King Albert co-opeea ting
with the British began to. sweep the
Cerma ns from the Belgian enast,s Bet
gan cavalry pursued the .enemyA who
was in full retreat On 5Dcs1h4f N
tho Germans were driven from tsnd
and Bruges and the I3ritish occupied
Lille The whole west front was iii
motion, The allies swept eastward
through I:clLium and through 4ho In
dustria1 regions Of France. III
A Il saster .hfAstei4sf he Anttt9
German army. shs INTERNAL condt tl}fnS
in GeymJny, and Austria HuflgAry Ne;