Arizona republican., 1918-10-30
Battle Summary
IRepublican A. p. Leased Wirel

In the Italian theater over a front of nearly 40 miles, from the Brenta to the middle reaches of the Piave river, the British. French and Italian armies are developing with success an offen- siye against the Austro- -HungarlanS, and are swiftly driving them from the mountain passes toward the Austrian frontier, and across the plains east of the Piave in northern Italy. American reserves are behind the lines prepared to aid the allies when the opportune moment arrives.
 On all of the other battle fronts, the allied arms continue to be served. In Belgium there has been little fighting except by the artillery wings of the op- posing armies, while in the region around Valenciennes, the engagements between the British and Germans have savored more of outpost encounters than pitched battles. In whatever fight ing there has been, however, Field Mar shal Haig's men have retained the up per hand and taken more prisoners and additional guns and war stores.
 Farther south the French are contin- uing successfully their process of level ing the old salient between the territory east of St. Quentin and Rethel. Addi- tional progress has been made by Gen eral Debeney's troops. nothwithstand- ing the violent resistance of the Ger mans, who all along the front are using machine guns to retard the advance of the Frenchmen toward the important lines of railway communication to the east. On some sectors the Germans are slowly retreatinG, but nowhere are the French patrols permitting the enemy to get out of contact With them.
 Aside from artillery and machine gun ! activity there has been little fighting on that part of the front held by the Americans from the Mouse river to the vicinity of Grand Pre-. The Germans have been heavily bombing the Ameri- can positions with shells of all calibre. including g1s projectiles. with the Americans answering them shot for shot The new big guns of the Ameri- cans are violently smelling German po- stions far behind the lines, taking un- der their fire, towns of strategic i'm portance from the standpoint of com- munications and troop formations pre- | pairing to be sent as endorsements to 1 salient points of the crumbling battle | line
 Conflans, lying to the west of Metz, and the principal junction point of com munication with the big fortress, on 1 the Moselle and Spincourt and Dom- mary -Baroncourt, also important rail-
 road functions, all were under a par | ticularly heavy fire from the American guns throughout Tuesday. In addition American aviators continually are lend | ing their aid to the big guns in the pro- cess of blasting enemy positions and 1 troops concentration points inside the | German lines. In the latest operations | by the aviators nine German machines
 were sent crashing down.
 Large numbers of prisoners and num- erous guns have been taken by the allied troops in the big battle that is in progress on the Italian front. The allies particularly the British. are well across
 the Piave river from where the battle | line in the mountains. curves and bends
 southward toward the Adriatic. The 1 latest British official communication
 announces the opposition of the Aus
 tria- -Hungarians appears to be weaken :
 ing in the face of the attacks of the
 British tenth army which is success fully driving northwestward.
 Reports are to the effect that an inde-
 pendent state has been formed in Hun gary. There are also reports that Tur-
 key has made an independent peace
 proposal.