The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1918-09-28
With Pershing, Watches
Battle Cyclorama Move in
Champagne Plain.
Us. TANKS MYsTIFY FOE
Important Artillery Observa-
ton Post Captured in =
Advance.
B,RAYMoND G. CARROLL.

Public Ledger.
copvrioht. lsls; all rights reserred.,
WITH THE AMERICAN FIRST ARMY IN
FRANCE. Sept. 27.--Fresh from the
laurels won in the st. Mihiel drive our
troops yesterday made a mass pene-
totion attack against the German
line for a width Of twenty miles
on the Argonne -Montfaucon salient.
northwest Of verdun. From the sum-
nit of the famous La Morte Homme-I
Dead Mans Hill--a part Of the great
hattie could be seen unfolding like q
magnificent panorama.
Our advance to-day after FIVE and
half hours Of severe fighting envel-
oped and left in our hands Montfau-
con village, upon the crest Of a hill
high above the sea level and one of
the principal observation posts upon
the entire western front. 1t was from
this location that the greatest con-
eentration Of artillery fire in the his
tory of the war was directed in 1916
against verdun. The heights also
command an enormous reach Of coun-
tryside to the north and give our ar
tIllery an unsurpassed opportunity for
directing it's FIRE upon the German
positions beyond.
The battle was opened at 1880
Wednesday night by a tremendous ar
,illery bombardment, which continued
until $50 o'clock Thursday morning.
when the infantry advanced, the
French soldiers acting with the
Americans and all under the COM
mand OF Gen. Pershing. From the
TOD Of Dead Mans Hill, near Verdun.
our men could be seen passing down
its southern slopes and from the dis
lance, in the Bots de FORCES, came the
ripple Of machine gun fire and the
drumming noise of the curtain bar
rage ahead of the advancing Ameri-
cans.
CycIorama OF Land and sky.
Stumbling from one enormous shell
OF the famous hill, nearly 1000 feet
above sea level. just as the sun burst out
from the fog that still filled the valley.
Spread out before me was glorious
Cycorama overhead a world OF aerial
crnbats were In progress; inside the
craters of numerous shell holes were
patches Of grass, grown since the Crown
Prince tried to cut Off VerduR in the first
year of the war and launch his soldiers
= nuxl w r
flowers too; the last offerings OF sum-
mer.
Projectiles we're flying from concealed
positions far back and the roar OF mighty
cannon was frightful. BY opening ones
mouth and standing upon tiptoes 1t was
possible TO retain ones hearing. They
we're our great guns. including two mon
stcrs supplied to the army by the navy
for blasting the back enemy areas and
preventing German reenforcements from
coming up. Dead Mans Hill is maze
o. tunnels and open cuts; these were
used by our soldiers going forward.
Among the troops were many veterans
from the battle about Chateau Thierry
last july, and some neophytes fresh
from ira aiming with the British. ] met
Capt Robert II. Cox of Plainfeld, n. ].
Cant Leland Garretson of Morristown
y. j.: Cant p Blair Lee of Silver
Springs. Md, and these from Baltimore
Capts Fred Mag, George Pennimar
and Conway Cooke and Lieuts. George
Page, Kenneth Burns and Dunstane Pen
nnan. All were in tip top spirits.
-Four Bridges Built without Loss
A Colonel came along with the infor'
nation that Secretary OF War Baker was
watching the contest from an eminenct
had been up all night; II was under mis-
eyes that another Pennsylvania division
distinguished itself near Varennes. Ser
ceant Alfred Schwerger of Chicago told
me how 200 men. before the infantr!
went forward, had built fout bridges
across FORCES Creek under protection OF
an artillery barrage without the loss OF
man.
Here on the hill I see men from every
part OF the United States; they swarm
over it like bees. All are imbued WITT
the same indomitable spirit. the spiri
OF tie American army. A lad from
Pittsburg. clipped on the shoulder by 9
machine gun bullet, said: Amt this
great day. Another from Scranton
said III I don't stop looking at these
airpIanes I'll get sunburn In the roof o.
my mouth"
Somehow. although the great battle
's on. perhaps, the greatest Of the year
one forgets II for the moment when talk
ing with our boys. They do not SIM
much, but they laugh often. Deaf
Mans Hin will ever stand for sorrow
10 France and Germany. 1t Is thu
mausoleum of 100000 of their nnes
troops There Is not n single square
FOOT Of its surface that has not beef
rhurned up by artillery fire. But to tn
American soldiers It Is a place to fore
Gather after the stress of battle;
bold barren, treeless high place from
which to view the surrounding countr,
ana plan for their Christmas dinner IL
Berlin
American Tanks Disturb Foe.
Glory for Pennsylvania centres aroun'
,he capture OF Varennes, one Of tn
aozen or more French towns returne'
20 France Thursday by the America
forces
In tie same general attack witt
troops from Kansas and Missouri tn
soldiers from the keystone State. VIII
wrote their names high at Chateau
lhlerry, along with fiedgling recent ar
rivals, again demonstrated their RICH
20 one OF the finest pages in the ma
uon's history,
our whole attack extended from tn
Reuse River to the west of the fores
o. Argonne. The enemy was completed
mystifed by tanks and alrplanes tha
were American made and driven b
americans Tho Hindenburg line wa
penetrated and the enemy pinchcd ou
oi tho forest of Argonne and the fores
VI MOntfaucon