Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1918-05-31
TREMENDOUS BLOW MAY Bf HURLED AT GERMAN WAVE Wave of Advance is Ap- preaching the Valley of
 the Marne.
SITUATION SERIOUS
 BUT NOT CRITICAL
Forts Before HIt'ims Reported to Have Fallen as They Are Flank. cd by Waves 0i the Foes
 Army. sas
Associated Press Summary)

Associated Press Summary)
 Slowly but surely the plunge of the Germans crown princes armies is being halted by the French and Brit ish armies. While the momentum of the German masses has net as vet spent itself there has been notable slaekening in it's advance during the past day,
 The chief effort of the Germans how seems to be devoted to widening the gap they have torn in the posi- tons of the allies between Pinon and Brimont. This work seems to be pre- gressing slowly aginst the desperate resistance of the allied force.
 Hold Enemy at Soissons
 grhe French have fallen back from the limit of the city of Soissons have stoed their ground against the at Jacks of the enemy and the German official statement fails to show ma terial advances there during the days fighting.
 The French are here fighting on familiar ground which has been made historic by numerous battles some of which ara named among the decis- i've combats of history. On the east- ern end of' the fighting efine<some Of the forts before Rheims are said to have fallen, which was to be expected from the fact that they have been outflanked by the tide of invasion that has swept far to the south of the city l
 The fighting has taken on the as pect of the first invasion of France in 1914, the advance of Von Macken- zen along the Dunajec and the fight ing in Picardy in Mach.
 Germans Widening Wedge
 After breaking the French and British defensive positions but not breaking the allied line the Germans are again moving their. forces out in a an-shaped figure, fighting hardest of the flank of the extreme front of their advance.
 The situation, while apparently ex- tremely serious, has not assumed the critical aspect of the fighting late in March,, The allies are resisting the enemy's attacks stubbcrnly, giving ground when overpowered and all ways maintaining solid front.
 The wave of the advance is now approaching the valley of the Marne, the nearest approach to that avenue toward Paris being at the village of which lies at the extreme apex of the German wedge, and is about seven miles from the river.
 In 1914 the Germans advanced ov-i CT front extending from Braisne just east of Soissons, to Vauquios, a little town west of Verdun. After having reached the Marne the leu tons turned the force of their ad-. vance toward the west and they may be expected to repeat their tactics of four years ago.
 May Launch Counter Attack
 The reserve forces at the command of General Fcch are now coming into action on ground chosen for the com bat by that master strategist and it is possible that blow of tremend- ous proportions may be struck some where along the front of the German wave or on it's west side, which seems to be open to an attack which might crumple up the German armies to the east of Soissons.
 The Americans who captured Can- tigny have beaten off attack after attack by the Germans. Large Ger man forces are said to have been gathered to retake the village and they have launched savage attacks at the Americans but the latter with rifle and machine gun fire have mow- ed down the advancing Teutons, while the American artillery has smashed the German formations with bar rage fire.
 Along the tAmerican-held positions in the Toul and Luneville sectc>c there have been several spirited