The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1918-08-01
ALLIES BEGIN A TURNING MOVEMENT
BY AN ATTACK ON T4REE-NILE FRONT;
AMERICANS MADE GREATEST ADVANCE
GERMANS FOUND
AMERICANS WERE
CRAFTY FIGHTERS
After Three Days of Incessant Fighting,
the Americans Withdrew from Sc
ringes as If to Give Up Village and
When the Germans Came They
Found Themselves Almost
Surrounded.

London, Wednesday, July 3l.-Yester.
day was a day of sheer, hard in and out
fighting on the American front, tele.
graphs Reuters correspondent on the
front north Of the Marne. He says that
the final capture of Seringes by the
Americans was an especially creditable
achievement
Since the Americans took the village
on Monday the Germans made no infan-
try attack on the place, but kept up a
constant artillery and machine gun fire
to drive them out. This continued all
day on Tuesday and towards evening the
enemy seemed TO think that the spirit Of
the defenders might possibly be broken
and then they began to emerge from the
Nesles forest in way that seemed to
forecast fresh attempt to take the viii
lage. OF the fighting which ensued the
correspondent writes:
'The Americans, after three days of
to-and-fro fighting through villages, had
learned subtlety and were determined to
have real fight to finish. They con-
sequently withdrew as il retiring from
Seringes and the Germans crept down
from the high ground convinced they had
their opponents beaten Additional Ger
man troops came pouring in until the
town was occupied as it never had been
before.
But as the new occupants began to
organize their defenses they found that
bullets appeared to be coming in from
three sides Of the village and it was not
long before they discovered that the
Americans, while withdrawing from the
front of the town, had commenced an
encircling movement on both sides, thus
forming ring almost completely around
it.
Then came tragic fighting The Prus-
sian Guard had voted not to surrender
and their opponents were Just as anxious
to see the thing through. 1t was an af-
fair Of small arms, but the Americans
proved to be better shots and slowly
picked off men here and there.
'Then the Americans began TO advance
and slowly their encircling ring closed
about the village, the defenders saw
their doom approaching, they redoubled
their fire, but still the Americans came
on unfaltermgly.
when the Americans reached the pre-
cincts Of the village their fire ceased and
with one wild yell, they closed with the
foe. The fierce uproar suddenly gave
place to strange silence as men grappled
with men. Only the clash of steel on
steel and the groans of the stricken could
be heard.
"The issue never was in doubt. At
this kind of fighting the American is
more than equal TO any Prussian guards.
man, and in little more than ten min
utes all was over. Except for few
German prisoners, every German in the
village was killed.
During the night the enemy twice at.
tempted to retake Sergy, but each time
he was repulsed with heavy losses Then
he made fierce assault on Meurcy farm,
east of Seringes, which was piled with
dead which he had left there the day
before, when every man in the fighting
died at his post There again the enemy
was unsuccessful. Heaps of German
slain were doubled.
subsequently the fighting extended
still further eastward and in every case
the Germans who attacked were annihi-
lated Later came the attack on Seringes
and an attempt at the same time to
drive the allies from hill 1877, west Of
Seringes. There for the first time since
the allies crossed the 0urcq the Germans
may be said to have definitely taken the
offensive.
"All through the days fighting the en-
emy's airplanes attempted in the most
daring manner to assist in the battle.
Early in the morning six enemy planes
succeeded in penetrating as far as the
La Croix Blanche farm, near La Fere
forest, firing upon allied troops.
members of the Prussian Guard who
were taken prisoner state that their or
ders were to hold the line at all costs
All three of their battalions apparently
were in the line on this memorable day,
which ended everywhere in victory for
the allies, although there was no great
gain Of ground
During the following night ground
near Cierges was captured by the Amer
leans. This advance will make it pos
sible for the troops in this sector to join
hands with the conquerors Of Sergy and
Seringes."