Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-08-17
HUMBERT TELLS
OF PINCER MOVE
French General Started At
tack by Which Allies Won
Montdidier
DASH DAZED GERMANS
Struck Heavy Ble,xin Difficult
Country and Now Commands
Roye Road
DASH DAZED GERMANS
By WALTER DURANTY
Special Gable to Erening Public Ledger

terday at his headquarters and from
the description he gave r,N of the bat.
tie that has been in progress since
August l am in a position to give
certain additional information that
supplements what has already been
published.
Throughout the army there is the
most intense admiration felt for the
genius with which Marshal Foch pre-
pared this, his second, counter often.
sive. Once again he has completely
surprised the enemy who, perhaps,
had greater excuse for being taken
unaware, because he believed that, as
result of the Soissons. Rheims sector
attack, Foch would be unable to mass
sufficient reserves for an immediate
and further offensive.
As previously. Foch only furnished
the generals under>him with a mini
mum of strength necessary for the
task assigned them. During the first
two days, the battle spread southwark,
and the success obtained was such as
to make 1t almost certain that an at
tack could be usefully delivered further
south.
Debeny's line came down approXi.
mately as far as Courcelles and by
the second day the offensive position
of Montdidier was so seriously threat
ened that enemy reserves were hurried
| up there. 1t was on the morning Of
August 10 that the first stage of the
! pincers movement can be said really
to have begun with General Humbert's
| attack.
In these first two days the Germans
ha
started to abandon some portion Of
Petite Suisse but they appear not to
have believed that Humbert's attack
would break as soon as 1t did.
Humbert's first instructions were to
advance northeast. 1t is only neces-
sary to look at the map to realize the
difficulty of his task. The whole of it
is high ground, cut by deep valleys,
typified by such sheer mountainous
masses as historic Plemont. The OBJ.
jectives assigned him for the first day
were Cuvilly, Reasons and Chevin.
court, with rider that, If II was nee
essary and possible, he should advance
further.
More than two score tanks took
part in the attack and added to the
din that broke loose at 1922 o'clock
on the morning of August 12. All the
objectives were easily taken within
an hour, and the rapidity and com.
pleteness of the success far exceeded
the anticipat!ons of the army.
The enemy was driven hack so ~,n.
idly that they We're unable to make
reconnaissance, and this facilitated
the pressing forward OF Humbert's
army. By evening the army lay on a
line drawn by Boulogue, Conchyless-
pots, Ricquebourg, Elincourt and
Chevncourt.
The pincers tactics now became OBJ.
Vious. for to the north the British
were pressing forward toward Nesle.
General Deheny was attacking toward
Roye and Humbert's army was also
! taking this as its objective. The DO
sition OF Montdidier became untena-
able. and although the enemy had
regarded it as Of vital importance that
the town should hold out there was
nothing for them but 10 evacuate It.
Thus. one Of the great objectives of
attack had been attained.
Threatened Noyon.Roye Road
On the morning Of the 11th the axis
OF Humbert's attack was changed and
swung round In clockwise fashion
So as to be directed to the southeas,
and to threaten the Noyon- Roye road
A satisfactory advance of some two
and half miles was made, and the
army reached points close to Cam,
ana Curry, moving again further or
the 18th and very definitely threaten.
Ing Petite Suisse. or the mountainous
mass Of Thiescourt.
Already the army has established
itself on the high ground at St. Claude
farm and Belle Assise farm. and. as
telegraphed previously. Ribecourt has
fallen. That lies at the southeastern
corner of the position
10
road has been virtually closed to the
enemy. The resistance of the enem,
has been greatly intensified. and new
J divisions have REINFORCED the troop!
of the line who are back of the
, wire entanglements and trenches O
March. 1917. Machine guns, artiller,
| and infantry are all in action ant
there can be no question but that fol
the time being. at any rate, the Ger
mans intend. IL possible, to maintain
i such hold as they still have of Petit,
, Suisse.
: The capture Thursday in a ravin
near Belaval Of eight officers, including
two battalion commanders, with only
small group of men, suggests tina
further re-enforcements are being hur
ried up to that quarter, as there wa
, every indication that they were recon
noitering the position.
Calls 1t Great Victory
General Humbert felt justified Il
characterizing the battle that bega
on the Sth as Belle Victorei," anC
$ in adding that 1t reflected great homo
= on Marshal Foch and his commander!
e who had been intrusted with the e,
ecution OF the plan, he modestly spok
q OF his own share in 1t as having bee
:. able to take advantage Of the wor
y done by the British and French
: the north of him,
h As a matter of fact. there oan b
e no doubt that he and his armies hay
g. brilliantly contributed to the success
e They had great natural difficulties
contend with, and it was owing to III
rapidity and dash with which the
advanced that they were able to reduc
the intensity of the German resis
ance.
G Humbert was enthusiastic in h
praise of the achievements of II
British troops, and he Is at one wit
the nation in regarding the Britis
French and Americans as absolu
n brothers in arms. He represents Il
8 feeling of the army in his determin
ton not TO allow the enemy any m
= ments Of breathing space. Throug
e out the army the feeling is that al
= idea of speaking OF peace until &c
The German "scrap-of-paper" poll,
has more profoundly shocked the mi
tary mind even than such crimes
the sinking of the Lusitania al
~ countless other atrocities. No Fren'