Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1918-08-05
WHOLE SALIENT
IS WIPED OUT
WHOLE ARMY OF GERMAN
CROWN PRINCE IN RETREAT
TO AISNE RIVER,
RETIREMENT MASTERLY,
HUNS SHORT OF TROOPS
Large Part of Reserves May Be Massed
in Flanders - Foe Escaped Feared
Doom and Prevented Capture of All,
Altho Dead Lie Everywhere on
Ground Crossed by Allied Armies.


London, Aug. 5.-Telesraphing at
o'clock Sunday afternoon, Reuters
correspondent at the American head
quarters on the Aisne- Marine front
says:
The salient is gone. The allied
troops, French. British and Americans
already are holding the south bank OF
the Vesle river Fismes is in flames.
The wagons of the retreating Ger
man columns. can be seen toiling labor
iously over the muddy upland roads
leading from the river toward the
Aisne. Our cavalry patrols have found
nothing to report but read guard
screens.
Foe Escaped Feared Doom.
ITO have thus driven the enemy
back as ne was driven back four years
ago is no mean achievement, but we
must not over-estimate the possibili-
ties it may disclose.
That the enemy has been forced to
retire, bitterly against his will. is quite
obvious Nevertheless. am prepared
to accept General Ludendorff's STATE
ment that the retirement was decided
on fifteen days ago, after General Pc
tain's blow against the west side OF
the salient, and the Germans can pride
themselves on having remained. to use
Ludendorff's phrase, masters Of the
situation
Prevented Capture Of All.
That Is to say they nave been able
to avert the doom they feared, which
was the collapse of the sides of the
salient and the consequent capture by
the allies Of all of the troops within 1T,
and they have ben able to withdraw
in an orderly manner without serious
loss In men or guns, but at q consider
able sacrifice of ammunition.
ITO that extent they are masters OF
the situations the bankrupt may be
described who just escaped being sent
to prison.
1.-The American communication to-
day describes the enemy as having
been driven in confusion beyond the
vesle. and one is extremely glad to
hear it, since so far as I have been
able to witness or to learn, in the
enemy's retirement signs Of confusion
hitherto have been conspicuously abb
sent.
Dead Lie Everywhere.
Indeed. have never followed any
army's retirement which left so little
evidence Of being forced, except in this
one matter of ammunition.
THE enemy's dead are certainly I'M
buried. But who should have buried
them? He left men behind him with
orders to die. And died they have.
They lie In groups about their guns,
dozens here, dozens there-every one
brain or breast, or with the equally de-
cisive stab of the American bayonet
These groups are close together In
vital positions and amount to total OF
from 100 to 900 men. They give evil
dence Of fine discipline and determina<
ton and not of that sort Of thing one
is accustomed to- find behind defeated
armies.
Shows Shortage Of Men.
$50 far as 1 can see, the enemy
counted exactly the cost of his retire
ment and paid not a man or qua
above his margin. AS soldierly
achievement it moved one to admira-
ton and, cheered as one must be by
the confession of weakness which the
retirement implies, there Is nothing in
the retirement IN which to build exag-
.gerated hopes for the future.
'sBy far the most hopeful feature OF
the whole business is the difficulty 81
explaining 1t on any other hypothesis
than that the Germans are much
shorter Of men than we had supposed
Advance Artillery Bluff.
Their advance on the west OF
Rheims was big artillery bluff which
could only have been justified by the
success Of the attack on the east of 1t
THAT attack failed, and, altho vor
Boehm tried for a couple of days tc
| cloak the failure, the moment Genera
Petain struck from the west the Ger
mans had no option, with the force a,
their disposal, but to retire.
And they evidently are profoundly
thankful that they have made such q
good Job of it.
StrategicaI Failure.
"Ludendorff calls the operation
strategical success. No. it is not that
It is a great strategical failure. re-
lleVed by various tactlca1 SucceSSeS,dH
it may not be too soon to say that the
failure, even retrieved as it has been
probably spells ruin to the German
offensive. for this season at least
against Paris.
"True, they have an attack they may
deliver in Flanders almost any moment
they please, II Crown Prince Rup-
precht's reserves have not been drawn
upon too largely in the German crown
princes interest
But October is likely to be the earl
list date for any vital operations here
and October means some half million
more of these excellent Americans In
the line.
Missed Counter Blow Chance. )
1.-THE extreme weakness Of Luden-
dorffs strategical success was ex-
hibited yesterday. A great general
with a strategical success on his hands
had opportunity yesterday for q bie
tactical blow which surely would have
tempted him had not some serious
reason interviewed.
THE German retirement was rapie
and the allied pursit, in order to keel
pace with it, was forced to outrun the
protection Of it's heavy guns.