The Leavenworth echo. [volume] (Leavenworth, Wash.) 1904-current, 1918-06-07

The last big drive inauguarted by
the Germans last week with the OBJ
ject of getting to Paris, and kept up
until Tuesday with varying gains
and advances, came to practical
stand1till Wednesday, when the
German army reached the river
Marne, a stretch of some twelve
miles of which they hold on the north
side, and distant from Paris approx
imately forty miles. Here the armies
of the allies, with the help of rein
forcements, among them American
troops, the allied line has since held.
Well over a million Teuton soldiers,
many of them picked troops from
Prussia proper that have been held
back since the war began were in the
German battle line. For four
days, up to Tuesday, the battle
ragged almost night and day with a
fury and fierceness that can only be
likened to fight between enraged
wild animals. The battle line was
fifty miles long and close to three
million-a million human beings
and two million Germans-were en-
gagged in deadly conflict. No casualty
list has been given out by either side.
There is good reason for believing
that the mortality was much heavier
among the Germans. The allies were
fighting on the defensive. The at
tacking side is always the heavier
loser. American troops were fight
ing side by side with French and
English and never once showed their
backs to the Germans. The full
force of the German drive came to
an end with Tuesday. Indications
point, however, say press dispatches,
that the Germans will renew the
drive in a very short time. Their
objective is Paris, to take which they
are prepared to sacrifice a million
men, believing that with Paris. in
their hands the French people would
throw up the sponge and they would
most able military leaders among the
allies give it as their opinion that
the German army will never get thru
the allied line, and that it will hold
practically where it is now drawn.
There is not the slightest evidence
of uneasiness or fear among the al
lied nations. All seem to have con-
fidence in the ability and military
wisdom of the French commander in
chief, Gen. Foch. One heartening
thing in the news is the fact that
only about one-fourth of the Ameri-
can troops now in France have so far
been thrown into the big battle. The
others are in reserve. Indicating that
the allies have considerable number
of fresh troops to throw agains the
Germans, one of the strOgest cards
that can be played at the end of
great battle. There are also English
and French troops in reserve that
have not yet taken part in the big
fight. 1t is this fact that gives the
allies confidence in the outcome.
The Submarine Surprise.
That the people of the United
States were taken by surprise by the
audacity of the German submarines
when the news was flashed to them
Monday that a number of American
vessels had beeen sunk off the New
Jersey coast, is putting it mild. Ger
tain government officials claim that
they were expecting something of
the kind but if they were why was
not one or two submarine chasers on
guard in the vicinity of the sinkings?
So far there is not one scintilla of ev-
dence that there was a war vessel
anywhere in the vicinity of where
the American ships were sunk. Only
two German subs have so far beeen
accounted for as having taken part
in the destruction of vessels. Twelve
vessels have been destroyed. One a
Norwegian. Only one large passen-
ger vessel, the Carolina, of 5000
tons, plying between HAVANA and
New York. The others all compara-
lively small vessels. OF the 225 pas