Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-09-05
GERMANS RETIRE
NORTH TO A|SNE
WITH ALL SPEED
TeutOn Armies Face An
other Crisis at Northern
End of Battle Line.
LENS REPORTED EVACUATED
BY FAST.RETREATlNG HUNS
British Troops Continue Onward
March Between Arras
and Peronne.
CANAL DU NORD is CROSSED
Boches Unable to Check Onslaught
OF Field Marshal 'Haig's Vic
torious Soldiers.
CANAL DU NoRD is CROSSED
Boches Unable to Check Onslaught
OF Field Marshal Haig's Vic
torious Soldiers.
rsy Associated pr.s,.1

The Germans are now giving ground
over the entire ffty-mile battle front,
from Ypres to Rheims. Seeminelyrthe
question whether the Germans willrbe
able to hold even relatively their pres
ent line from Flanders to Champagne
Is being answered. And the answer
apparently is in the negative. a~
The strategy of General Foch. which
imposed upon the Germans the neces-
sity of falling back in Flanders, Artois
and Picardy, now likewise is compell-
Vesle River between SCISSORS and
Rheims, northward toward the Aisne
in order to avert disastfr.
Outflanked on all offensive works
along the western part of the battle
line and in great danger OF turning
OF Noyon and scissors, the German
high command at last has been forced
to begin the retrograde moyementfIn
itary experts long had predicted would
he necesSitated through the successes
of the British, French and 'Amcrican
| The climax to tho German maneuyers
along The Eesle eliminated when the
remaining portion of tho old salient in
the region OF Noyon, and tho French
| and Americans north of Soissons and
along the Vesle reached positions don1-
| mating the Aisnc and the Chemin-dess
Danes and crossed to the north side Of
the Vesle on front of nearly twenty
miles. a~hr-
All behind the front toward tho
| Aisne huge fires are to be seen where
the enemy is making his way as fast
as possible northward in all probabtl-
ity harrasscd by outposts of French
and American troops and by artillery
hre and the machine guns and bombs
While the debacle in the, south seems
complete. in the north the Germans also
are facing crisis: Everywhere from
men are keeping hard after the enemy.
whose line daily is being bent back
further eastward. giving the British
70 work in their task OF regaininE. as
their first detectives, ST. Quentin. Cam
brai Lille and Armentieres. From
fpres to Lens additional towns have
been recaptured and tho old salient
more nearly reclaimed.
to have been entirely evacuated by the
Geramns. and the British are only
awaiting the dissipation OF the noxious
sae rom the Of Of the city
nation. of mines in the subterrancan
coal chambers TO enter it.
From Arras southwark to Peronne
English. Scotch, Welsh, Canadian and
Australian troops everywhere are har-
RAISING the enemy. meeting his violent
pressure that the enemy has been vir-
tually nonplussed, and has retired. at
some points almost precipitately
GERMANS TRY TO HOLD sT
BRITISH TO CANAL
Eastward Of the old Drocourt-Queant
line the enemy has been pushed across
to the east bank Of the Canal du Nord.
where. at last accounts. he was en-
deavoring to prevent, by use Of in
Vulnerable machine guns, a British ad-
vance east of the ditch.
To the north Of Peronne, over an
eisht-mile front between Moislaines
and Demicourt, the British at several
points. have beaten their way across
the canal. and Wednesday night were
pressing the enemy well to the east
ward