The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1918-09-10
ALLIES GAINING
MILE BY MILE
Stiffening Resistance. Makes
Rapid Advance Cost More
Than Worth.
GERMAN PLAN Is UPSET
Capture Of Mont st. Quentin
Was Surprise That Disor-
ganized Campaign.
GERMAN PLAN IS UPSET
ny PERRY ROBINSON.
Special cao'e Despatch TO THE srS from .,e
London Times Serrirs

Sbecd! Cdo'e Despatch to TuE SrS from the
London Times Service.
T0pVri1ht. 1918: all RIGHTS -eserred
WITH THE BRITISH ARMIES IN, FRANCE.
Sept. a.--The business Of pushing the
enemy back on the Hlndenburg line con.
tinues. the advance averaging half n
mile or so daily along much of the Brit
ish and French front
In the Scarpe River area there Is a
heavy artillery FIRE, while the enemy
guns also are active north of Armen-
there's, where great qua, titles OF gas
shells are being used. The German re-
sistancc has become more serious in the
douzeaucourt section. but there are no
outstanding incidents.
captured documents show the shaken
morale of the enemy. Battery com
nanders are using more than their al
lotments OF shells and explain their
shortages by saying that the ammunition
dumps were blown up by the fire OF al
lied guns. The German command there
fore is appointing special inspectors to
watch the exploded dumps.
symptoms of Grave Condition.
report of the court-martial OF the
2l4th Division. which is included in the
captured documents. shows that for dis
obedience and attempted desertion
fifteen sentences OF from one TO seven
years imprisonment were inflicted. From
this 1t is possible TO recognize that the
symptoms. when put together, point to a
iairiy grave condition in the German
army.
The German armies on the British
front are now in the lines they occu-
pied last winter. From the Scarpe
soutnward 10 Moeuvres the enemy is
already from twelve to thirteen miles
east OF his old lines and is attempting
to Use the Canal du Nord and the flooded
areas of the Scarpe and Sensee rivers
As substitute for the lost Drocourt-
Queant line. Below, from the region
OF Havrincourt south. our progress has
been SO fast tnat all the way to st.
Quentin We are on ground we have
not seen since March 22. tho second
day of the German advance.
Conditions have changed greatly
since the enemy started from these posi-
tions last spring, and since the winter
and spring OF 1917. At that time he
fell back across this same country. but
did It in his own time and after spend
ing months destroying all military
works and buildings In the evacuated
territory. Even after his first great
disaster there Is no doubt he expected
to have plenty of time to fortify the
line along the Somme and Tortille
rivers.
Crisis mt Mont 81. Quentin.
1t was the brilliant capture OF Mont
st. Quentin and the turning of all the
positions southwark that upset all these
fine calculations. Since then the Ger
mans have moved eastward as best they
could. Again and again we have cap
tured prisoners bearing orders to hold
their positions on dates long subsequent
to the time they were In our hands
have spoken before of the great
quantities OF ammunition and engineer
| ing supplies falling into our hands This
continues. We are getting great guam
titles OF material the Germans intended
| to use in their winter campaign. Every
where Is evidence OF haste and disor-
ganization.
In the Havrincourt area. from Moeu-
vres to Gouzeaucourt. the Germans
are fighting most strenuously, appar-
emily with the intention OF holding up
our advance to the Hindenburg line from
Gouseaucourt to villers Guislan, which