Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-06-04
DRIVES FAILURE
APPEARS CERTAIN
Allies Press Advantage as
German Offensive Grows
Weaker
AIR MASTERY RECLAIMED
BY WALTER DURANTY
Special Gable to Euening Public Ledger

Copyright, 1918. bU NCiC YORK Times co.
With the French Armies, June 4.
The change of direction of the Ger.
man drive from south to west, as the
enemy attempted to exploit his ad.
vance on the flank of the main Allied
forces. is "a logical development of the
original maneuver, which was con.
tinued until the Marine was reached in
order that the river might form a
the German left flank as he faces
westward.
Fighting has continued desperately
on the whole front from north of
Villers-Cotterets Wood to the plateau
above Chateau-Thierry. while further
north from the region OF scissors to
the Oise before Noyon, the enemy
maintained continuous pressure.
AS the French say. the boche has
exposed his game" His plan of battle
IL evident and the crisis of the opera.
ton is reached.
EVERYWHERE the Germans have been
checked with appalling losses for now
the boche must attack straightforward
aRainst the forces whose strength is
hourly growing to be nearer an equal
ity. The time has passed for further
gains by infiltration. which the Ger.
man numerical superiority permitted
before.
Few Frontal Attacks
There have been hardly any frontal
attacks hitherto Every advance has
been made by the turning movement.
Now the enemy has to pay for what
he has gained.
Forest of Villers-Cotteres is the chief
bastion of the Allied lines and against
its eastern border the German waves
are breaking in vain. In the last
month your correspondent has often
traversed its deep valleys and dense
coyerts, where the trees and under
growths are so thick that the sun
light hardly filters through.
There is small chance for the boche
"sausages' to identify battery positions
or for the prying airplanes to distin-
Ruish the movement of guns or troops
II is an ideal screen for operations. and
its situation on the German flank in
creases its valued hundredfold
The enemy realizes this TO the full.
and for torty-eight hours he has been
trying in vain to penetrate forest re-
cesses along the valleys lea ding from the
villages on the eastern border. Troesnes
and Corey especially, from each of which
runs a railroad TO Nilers-Cotterets town,
have been literally drenched in blood
Taken and retaken several times. they
finally remained in the hands of the
French. Fooled in this direction. the
enemy tried TO turn the obstacle by an
advance further south between Torcy
and Bouresches, on the road TO Chateau
Thierry where the heaviest fighting of
the day took place. Again they met an
impregnable resistance. The poilus, cleo
trified by the certainty that the retrea
was ended and that the French and
British divisions formed a solid mass of
support behind them, whose aid could be
counted on at any moment required, re-
fused to give an inch of ground
Again and again the German masses
swept forward against Passy. east of
Ia Fertemilon, and against Torcy and
Bouresches Each time the seventy-fives
and the quick frers tore the advancing
line to pieces, while the heavier artillery
played numerically on each new con-
centration of troops in the rear.
One of the most important factors in
the battle, the mastery OF air. has now
passed back to the hands of the Allies,
from which it had been momentarily
wrested, owing to the necessity of re-
grouping the air bases. Now every move
ment of the enemy Is Immediately sig
nailed and anticipated and his troops
attacking or on the march, are harried
,pithout respite by the Allied pilots fly
ing at tree-top level
The centers behind the German front
are bombarded on scale hitherto un'
dreamed of by day and night. In the
twenty-four hours of Sunday sixty-three
TONS of bombs were launched by the
French alone.
At Fismes and Culchy in particular
lbeavy concentrations of infantry and ar
tillery were deluged with flame and
destruction from heaven. The hideous
confusion and slaughter avenged thou
eandfold the innocent victims of Ger.
man brutality in Paris.
The enthusiasm of the Allied airmer
Knew no limits. Bombarders on the way
) Ick after the mission was accomplished
hacked troops with m!trailleuse and
little planes brought information to the
ftillery.