Mountain Home Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1915-1946, 1918-02-23
German Observation Points Are
MethodicaIIy Taken in OAR
ing Attacks.
HEROIC WORK OF BLUE Devils
First Spygass Seizure Is Credited to
Chasseurs Who, in Sensational At
tack, Wipe Out Powerfully
Fortified Salient by Surprise.

With the French Armies in the Field.
French troops are methodically TAX
ing away the German spyglasses.
One by one, enemy observation
points or advantageous positions have
been carefully spotted by the French
command and effectively eliminated.
Though French official communicates
issued have registered merely local ac-
tons, these have had for the main OBJ
jective that of snatching the binocu-
lars from the Teuton eyes.
A brief artillery preparation,
shrill whistle in the first-line trench,
and the Poilus have bounded "over
the top" in actions of signal impor-
lance In Alsace, north Of the Chemin
Des Danes and north of Verdun at
Hill 344 Nearly 1,400 prisoners and
valuable war material is the 'by-prod-
uct' Of these local, strategical drives.
Won by Blue Devils.
The first "spyglass" seizure was
that of the "Schonholz," q powerful
fortified German salient jutting into
the French lines in Alsace, serving the
double purpose of German observation
Of the French organizations and pre-
venting the French seeing in the dlrec-
ton of Altkirch. On the afternoon Of
November Z, after brief but violent
artillery preparation, three companies
of the French Chasseurs-Blue Devils
ATTACKED the Schonholz, completely
wiping out the salient in fierce fight
lasting into the night.
The enemy desperately counter-at-
tackled, but failed. leaving in all 100
prisoners, including six officers, In the
hands Of the Blue Devils. Complete
German losses, high because of their
iiel 'e effort to retain Il position which
they knew to be of extreme value, were
estimated at at least 600 men.
The following day French general
pinned military medals on the blue
tuncs of two adjutants and n cor
poral for exceptional valor. Though
there were no such medals In the dis
trict the general sent fast automo-
lille TO finNl them, wherever possible,
and the little presentation ceremony
in an Alsacian village was happy
aftermath of victory that took from
the Germans priceless observations
which had bothered the French for
two years.
The French command next decided
that the Germans were seeing too
much north of the Chemin Des Danes.
Consequently following a brief artil-
lery deluge. four companies of Poilus
passed to the attack against the enemy
lines forming a salient between the
small River Misotte and the route of
the German-held village Of Jouvin-
court as far as the village of Ville-au-
Bots. Here the enemy held valuable
observation posts overlooking Jouvin-
court and ground each. of the Mi
cite
Under low-lying clouds and in a
"pea-soup" fog, the former prevent |
ing all aerial work and the latter pre-
venting enemy observation of the adj
vartce, the French infantrymen, in less !
than an hour swept over positions on
front of 1900 yards and penetrated
to a depth of over half mile. They
wiped out the salient, took all the OBJ
servatories and captared AIS prison
ers--a number almost equal to half of
sbo antfro ottoclrinU foroa Civ Cnr- |
man officers and As under officers fell
into the net
The third and most important
French action of November was in r
region where constant hellish fighting
has been the daily routine-Hill 344,
on the right bank Of the Meuse, north
nj Verdun. Here drumllke artillery
nex Fet rCTer ceased, night and day,