The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-06-16
TROOPS OVERSEAS
LIMITED ONLY BY
SHIPS CAPACITY
Facts Embodied in First
Message of March to
American People.
1900, 900 NOW OVER
Chief Of Staff Describes
the German Strategy.
Hun Objective To-
wards Paris.
1900, 900 NOW OVER

Warrington, June i5.--There are
troops in France.
The numbers we are sending are
limited only by the ever increasing
capacity of the shipping that carries
them.
The German drive has been stopped.
These are the striking messages
corveyed TO the American people to-
day BY Major General peyton G.
March. chief of staff of the American
army in the first Of his weekly talks
with tAe Washington newspaper cor
respondents. He said:
The four drives. one beginning
March II. the next April 0, the third
Nav II. and the present one begin
ring on June Q. are all parts of the
common scheme Of offensive. Look
arg at this map. you see this red dot
ed line of the interior running down
10 The Swiss frontier which represents
she allied line when the Germans be-
gas their advance on March III. Con
sleiering ms whole the succession of
attacks, the first penetrated this line
some thtrty-six miles into Picardy. the
secoad some thirteen miles into Fland-
ers and the third drive a distance of
thirty eight miles further along the
Marine Under the present drive the
line has been penetrated an aver
age distance Of from Ave and one~half
10 six miles One very striking fsa-
fure In connection with this whole ad
vance is The extent of front which the
alias have had to cover as a result
OF 1he German advance. The total
ssysetehing OF the line from Rheims
10 the sea is sixty-stx miles. In order
20 hold that extra line the allies nave
had to have more troops than they
had at the start
obviously the detectives of tn,
German advance are first the channe
ports which make ii necessary for
England IN shipping troops to France
10 go further out 20 sea and a longer
distance making the turn around long
err and slowing up the movement and
making 1t more dangerous. Second,
Paris. which, OF course. is great
strategic objective because OF It's i'm
portance sentimentally and practically
10 the people Of France.
Drives Stopped.
"AIl of these drives have been
stopped The last advance, the ad-
vance which we are now considering
in the daily press. the news OF, which
YOU are now getting la more to
atraighter1 out the German line than II
ia an advance, considered as mill
tarv movement with definite and
important objective like Paris for In
stance.
In a condition Of this kind where
a new line has to be held where the
attacks of the Germans have been
made with such large forces as they
have the importance of getting
American troops to the front Is more
and more preeminent. We have now
passed the 100000 mark in troops
shipped overseas.
Ships Limit Troops.
The matter OF the numbers OF
troops on the western front Is aues-
tion that must be considered with re-
ference not only to the divisions which
have known to have been there all
along. but with the potential increase
which might be attained by bringing
divisions from the eastern front. 1t
Is impossible to predict day-say
month ahead or any other definite
tire--when a mastering superiority