Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1918-04-15
Herojs>n of Small
French Force Saves
Fort of La Ponpe11e

Correspondence Associated Press
French Front, March 25.-Only
the heroic tenacity of a small body
of French troops in holding the fort
of La Pompelle, southeast of Rheims,
prevented a strong force of Germans
from capturing that old and long-dis-
mantled work on March 1.
After pouring over fifty thousand
shells of all colibers onto the posi-
ton and pumping over all the sur
roundings thick clouds Of the most
deadly, poisonous gases, two battal-
ions of Crown Prince Frederick's Sc
lected troops advanced to the attack.
All the barbed wire entanglements
had been uprooted during the bonn
bardmer. and the centers of resist
ance in front Of and around the fort
had been demolished when the as
sauiting infantry waves came for
ward.
The ground and the trenches form
ing the only obstacles between the
German lines and the French posi-
lions had been leveled and the few
French advanced posts had retired
first onto their supports and then in
to the classmates of the fort itself,
where with the rest of the small gar
rison they prepared to fight to the
last.
As the churning up of the ground
about the fort had INSTRUCTED the
field Of fire o. the machine-guns, the
Germans met with only slight resist
,,rfi1 had ohod tho
moat. This was more than half filled
with debris resulting from the heavy
bomhardment and the attacking
troops were. able to advance to the
stone walls. naThere, howeves, they
stopped in spite of their liquid fire
machines. a
One of these implements was tried
on heavy timber door leading into
the southern side of the fort, but the
door held firm Meanwhile, from
behind shelter of sandbags at one
end of the moat, a group of hardy
spirits of the garrison opened fire on
the Germans with machine gun and
killed or put out of action all who
we're attempting to place cans of
high explosive against the walls of
the fort. .rs
The garrison consisted of colonial
troops OF tried courage and they
fought up to the traditions of the
corps. Soon the enemy found their
efforts were doomed to failure and
retired to the advanced work which,
together with several bastions/ they
retained for some hours.
The defenders communicated with
their comrades in the rear, count
erzattack was organized and, al
though the fighting which ensued
was of the fiercest kind, the Germans
were driven out of every inch of
trench they had occupied and forced
to flee in disorder to their own lines.
Evidences of the nature of the
struggle were still to be found when
the correspondent of The Associated
Press arrived at the fort soon after
the cessation of the bombardment.
In the barbed wire fronting . the
enemy trenches were the bodies of
dozens of Germans shot down as they
fled The systems of barbed wire en-
tanglements which had formerly pre-
vented approach to the fort were al
most non-existent, most of them hav-
ing been buried under heaps of earth.
the fumes of the German gas.
The communication trenches had
crumbled under the hail Of projec-
tiles and to go from one spot to an
other it was necessary to Gross the
open under immediate observation
from the dominating heights of No
gent-rAbesse and Berru where the
Germans have been installed since
1914.
\ The Germans were evidently still
chagrined at the defeat OF their care
fully planned attack and as the cor
respondent with some colleagues was
examining their lines, only hum
dred yards or so away, they opened
fire and swept the fort with several
salvos of big shells. The only meth
cd of escaping further bombardment
was to feign death, and when the
guns had Quieted little to creep
away in groups of two.
On the way the party was observed
again by squadron of German avia-
tors who signalled to their batteries
and once more the correspondents
were bombarded until finally they
reached the marshes behind the fort
and comparative security.