Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1918-03-05
FOES PROGRAM
SHOT TO PIECES
AMERICANS DEFENSE NORTH OF
TOUL UPSET ENEMY'S
PLANS
lBy Associated Press Staff
Correspondent. ]

March O. (Delayed) A p]a,
| of attack, including map o
| the American positions, indicating
| every dugout, which was removed
from the body of. the Prussian cap
tain who led the recent assault upol
the sector northwest of Toul, shows
how completely the Germans prepare
their raids-if, in fact, this was, but {
| simple raid, not having as its ultimate
object the retention of portion Of thu
salient.
HELD FOUR REHEARsALs
The map goes into such detail as tt
show every machine gun emplace
ment, every trench, and every depres
sion in the ground within the Ameri
can lines. At the bottom there is
simply line drawn, labeled "Ou1
front line" Along this line are five
shaded portions, each marked "Nest.
Four rehearsals were held for the
attack, and the troops who made il
were specially picked from new ar
rivals of fresh troops in the sector
They were told that the Americans
were in front Of them.
After the artillery had nearly lev
eled the American position the Ger
mans started out from their nests
each of which contained forty in
fantrymen, one lieutenant, and three
pioneers to precede the infantry and
five to follow it. The two groups upon
the American extreme right went
around this flank, and the group upon
the extreme left carried out similar
movement there.
DEFENDERS SPOIL PLANS
The two groups in the center had
planned to attack directly, but the
American defense changed all the
plans. When they were met by the
heavy machine gun fire from the
American lines they saw it would be
impossible to gain footing there,
changed their direction. and followed
the other groups around the flank
The duty Of the pioneers preceding
the infantry was to clean up any wire
that had not been broken by the artil-
lery, while the pioneers who followed
carried large quantities Of explosives
for the purpose Of cleaning up the
dugouts.
PRISONERS EXPECT Defeat
Official reports of the interrogation
Of the prisoners taken by the Ameri-
cans show that all of them did not
believe Germany would win the war.
One Of the men told the intelligence
officers he presumed that the Ameri-
cans, like the Germans, did not want
to fight but had to. The officers
quickly changed the Germans view
point by informing him that all of the
troops in attacked positions were vol
unteers.
One prisoners, whose home is in
German Lorraine, said he thought the
fatherland would lose the war, but he
hoped not. He knew nothing about
the Americans except that they were
in the war, the German newspapers
not printing much upon the subject,
he said, and being slow in reaching
the front lines because Of mail con-
gestion.
CALL STRIKERS SINCERE
This prisoner said he was con-
WINGED that the recent strikes in Ger
many were caused by a desire for
peace, adding that all Germany want
ed the war to end. He was certain
that an offensive was coming, but did
not believe it would be launched be-
fore April 1.
None of the prisoners had seen any
German tanks, they said. All of them
added they were glad to have been
taken prisoner, especially by the
Americans, because they believed
they would be we'll treated.
The prisoners accounts showed
that the sector opposite the American
position was commanded by General
StalZmann.