The Greeneville daily sun. (Greeneville, Tenn.) 1918-1920, 1918-08-31
THE IKE ro B EuNsArlsFlED.

All the world witness the retreat Of the enemy.
The fighting in France is an enormous stage in view
Of all humanity. There no need to dwell upon the i'm.
mediate possibilities Of ground gained or lost here and
there These details important to the generals and
the men, and may be safely left to their care The world
does not follow with minute attention the swaying of
fighters over obscure little points Of ground 1t observes
the trend and awaits the result
The trend toward decisive defeat Of the enemy The
result now to be predetermined As the struggle
progresses the Germans exhibit less ability to recuperate
and make counter attacks The surrenderers are more
numerous The retreat more rapid and the rear guard
defensive actions are becoming less stubborn This
means that the line destined to be redrawn much far
ther back If the German staff has decided to make
stand somewhere in France it probably has, the re-
treat shows that this stand will be some distance in the
1t is supposed that the enemy will make efforts
to hold Douai and Cambria at any cost It remains to
be whether the fleeing army can be brought to
halt and rghtabout with combined celebrity and with
tenacity 1t will be marvellous piece of maneuverng
if it should be successfully accomplished.
The prospects that the enemy will be driven well
back and that winter will see the two antagonists lined
up at point where the Germans well defended and
the allies not quite strong enough sweep them back
There is sound basis for the hope that the enemy
becoming so demoralized that the retreat will become
rout and that collapse imminent That is splendid
hope but it is only hope The probabilities are against
it. The German armies largely far to the rear where
they be handled with comparative freedom. The
with which the allied armies have moved forward
some sections in itself evidence that the enemy has
successfully retired in those sections
The allies performing wonders in the incessant
pursuit of the retiring enemy The pursuers cannot keep
up the pace much longer. They have done much more
than expected of them Victory lends fresh elasticity
exhausted muscles but nature will have her way over
victors as well as vanquished.
AS the Germans fall back they will surely fight more
desperately and while they may be outnumbered at GER
tain points, they probably strong enough in the ag
gregate to hold out any determined line for weeks
months The allies were able to do this when the
Germans greatly outnumbered them and it is unwse to
presume that the Germans will do less The allies there
fore should not sacken their efforts IN the slightest de-
gree in increasing their strength in and material
They have the opportunity of the ages if they will
seize it and press to conclusion Now the time for
the allies to be supremacy unsatsfed ravenousy hungry
for more acutely anxious to speed up their efforts and
increase the sum total Of their strength.
The United States is the power house from which
extends the live wire that is incineratng the enemy. Keep
the home fires burning! Every factory ought to be
blazing with energy now, day and night Every miner
ought to be blasting out coal with frantic speed The
shipbuiders should be Outrvang themselves with the
rvetng machines. The army that is authorized
cannot come into existence moment too The
farmers should be figuring on bigger fields and harder
work next spring. The should keep their fingers
busy making the clothing required for the army.
Germany has thrice failed to disable France. Win
the allies fail to disable Germany? Germany failed be-
cause she did not have or did not the last
that needed to win. When the allies get Germany
to the point this year and next where superiority of
force will finally tell the ale they must have abundant
power to deliver the final blow the risk of hav
ing victory thrust far into the future by of the in
Vulnerable accidents Of war.-Washington Post.