The Eureka sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1902-current, 1918-06-29
PROGRESS OF THE WAR
From Sundays Salt Lake Tribune

Two enemy OuenSlVeS Ialieu uuTlng
the week-one against Italy and the
other. on a smaller scale. against the
French in the Rheims sector. Fol-
lowing closely on the repulse of a
German offensive north of Paris
these events suggest that the Allies
have solved the problem of meeting
the new form of attack.
The Germans have been boasting
in their newspapers that they have
devised new form of offensive ca
nable of attaining results far more
valuable than was possible by the
older methods. When we attempt
to analyze the German methods we
find nothing especially new. The
break through on limited front and
the development of the breach was
carried out with considerable success
by the British at Cambria. where
the element of surprise also was
present. The Germans and Austri-
ans tried the plan with success in
Italy last Autumn and triumphed
beyond their brightest expectations.
What, then, is new in the offensive
of this year? The element of sur
prise is obtained by the veiled ap-
proach. Working on interior lines
the Germans have been able to throw
large bodies of men quickly to the
point at which an offensive is to be
launched. Even if the army which
Is acting on the defensive is not
completely surprised. it is caught
unprepared. 1t cannot afford to
rush a great part of its reserves to
the point of attack, lest the enemy
strike successfully some place else.
The result is that the army on the
offensive is able to concentrate all
the men and guns it needs at points
where it is determined to break
through.
The only way to combat the blow
effectively is to have enough men.
guns and ammunition at the point
of attack to insure the holding up of
the enemy. In the recent offensives
the Allies have taken the chance of
depicting their lines at other places
and have met the enemy drives with
adequate reserves. Just as soon as
the enemy begins his five-hour or six
hour artillery preparations the Allies
respond with the heaviest possible
bombardment. expending all possible
ammunition. They argue that if the
enemy breaks through they will lose
their guns and ammunition anyway
and that no useful purpose can bel
served by sparing ammunition.
Moreover, they meet the attack with
all the men necessary, taking theI
risk that they will exhaust their re-
serves before the enemy's momentum
vanishes. At Rheims this method
was followed with entire success.
1t was taken for granted by General
Foch that the enemy would attack
Rheims as a part of the development
Of the offensive against the French
armies. At the risk of weakening
his lines elsewhere General Foch
manned the Rheims Notifications
with large force. AS soon as theI
enemy bombardment opened, the
French began to reply with every
possible gun. 1t is said that the ar
tillery fire on this narrow front from
Vrigny, on the west of the city. to
Fort Pompelle. on the east. was as
heavy as any during the war. The
result was that the four or five Ger
man divisions of storm troops did
not get a good start. They were
shattered again and again and it was
only to the east of the city that they
ever got into the French trench sys-
tenn, to be thrown back by large
bodies of French troops.
So unsuccessful was the attack
that the German high command de-
clded not to renew it and in its Off
clal communique it did not even
mention the infantry operations.
The Rheims attack was launched
at the very climax of the Austrian