The Washington herald., 1918-09-15
Sudden American Blow
Staggers Enemy Army.

With the first American Army,
Sept li-AIready We are beginning TO
reap the fruits OF our victorious on
SlauEht Of Thursday and Friday which
wiped out the ST. Mihiel salient.
The suddenness and swiftness of
our blow knocked the Germans clear
OF their feet and they are still reel
ing backward. They are retrcating
late today along the whole twenty
mile front which three days ago
formed the mouth of the salient.
I.udendoTff in his COmmuniQue yes
trrday spoke OF prepared lines and
hintCd at a stand. But at this cablIr&
, all signs point to A sustain German
! withdrawal Il IL continues, the
situation will shortly be transformed
from a German wedge in the WoeYre
into an American wedge in German
: Lorraine with its nose pointing
menacinEIy at the great fortress of
Metz. from which our Ines at one
point are less than ten miles away.
No man can fOretelI what the next
few days or weeks will bring forth in
: this sectOn, which was turned over
night from the quietest of the whole
West front into the center OF the
+ universe No man can even guess
. at what viii happen. PCrshing and
/ TOch alone know.
Americans Ache for Action.
Fact is that Americas army, having
tasted triumph, aches for more action.
. The d0uehboys keep singing where
: Do We Go From Here? ?''
Fact also is that all along the
northeastern tip OF the Nerdun front.
above the Cotes de Lorraine to the
eGcrman Lorraine border at Pagny-
: sur -MoseIIe the sky is red with re-
lection Of huge fires in the German
: zone faced by our forces. Our aerial
sobservers report that all the main
.roads leading toward Metz and Die
sdenhofen are chuck full of columns
of troops and transports. The roads
passing through Jarny, MARSHA Tour,
sChambley and Etain are swarming
with soldiers. carts. trucks and guns
sma nifestly on the rearward move.
. From Chambley 1.-TWO and three
squarter miles north Of the line
Preached by the Americans yester-
sday and two and a half miles west
sof the German frOntier) and from
: EMars-la-ToUr. the Germans are
greported Withdrawing to Aman
svillers Con the border. about six
smiles northwest Of the outer forts
-of Metz. From HarvilIe Cnorth-
swest of Chambley) they appear to
gbe drawing back to Conflans-en-
sJarnisy. the. important base so
eoften bombed by our own and al
-lied fliers in the last few months
Would Draw Straight Line.
+ This would indicate a German
sintention to draw a straight front
SalonC the Etain-Amanvillers sector
-of the Verdun-Metz Railway and
from Amanvillers along the border
tto PaGny, a dangerous. rectangular
GfrOnt-dangerOus to the Germans.
Possibly the WuertemberG Duke
.Albrecht. who is in command of
sthe southern portion OF the Ger
man front in the West. sees a ne
-Cessity OF abandoning the strip Of
g.orrain territory west Of the Mo
xelle, between that river and the
-Yerdun-Metz rail.
: In the zone where the new German
Withdrawal is reported late today
some Of the ierCest battles Of the
Franco Prussian war were fought.
I'm il lie places like Mars-la-Tour,
Nienviue and Malmaison. all household
words in Germany ever since lS7O-7l.
Ono Of the first things every German
child learns in school Is the story of
,the battles at these places with poems
full Of glory and laurels TO make the
story stick" Frances people,
Frances soldiers know the story. too,
,and the knowledge OF 1t wings the fer
Nor with which the French co-operat-
ing with our army are advancing
During the last twelve hours Ameri-
ran cavalry has been active "mopping
up isolated German nests and strong
points.