The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-08-08

against them IN new sector.
The attack started at dawn this
morning on a wide front in Picardy,
east and southeast of Amiens. The
French first army and the British
fourth army are engaged in this new
offensive, which is under the imme-
date direction of Field Marshal Halg,
the British commander-in-chief.
Both the Paris and London official
statements announce the opening OF
the attack and report satisfactory pro-
gress in it's early stages.
On 2O-miIe Front.
The field of the fighting is the
scene of the most pronounced German
success in this years series of enemy
offensives 1t was in the first Ger
man blow, delivered against the Brit
ish front that since has stood virtually
intact with it's apex at Montdidier and
it's base roughly extending along the
| line from Albert, near the Somme, on
| the north, to Noyon and the Disc on
it's southern side.
The front under attack is not def
| nitely defined, but it seems probable
! that its length is at least twenty miles
| from the Somme south to the Mont
! didier region.
Marshal Foch's object In striking
here may we'll have been based upon
/ between Montdidier and scissors be-
fore the Germans had time to stabil-
ize the scissors Rheims front.
Busy on TWO Sectors.
Allied troops on two widely separat-
ing the Germans busy and have car
ried out local advances which may
prove of first Importance In future
operations.
Along the vesle, French and Amer
lean troops have crossed the river
successfully on front of about miles
between Braisne and Fismes. North
of Rheims, on the eastern end of this
sector, the French have moved 400
yards between the railroads running
to Laon and Bethel.
British troops at the apex of the Lys
salient have pushed forward their
lines more than half mile on a front
of almost five miles between the Laws
and Clarence rivers. Apparently the
German resistance was not great as
Field Marshal Haig does not report
any heavy fighting. 1t is on this sec
tor that the enemy withdrew slightly
several days ago.
Artillery Duel Continues.
Thus far Marshal Foch has not
thrown very large forces to the north
of the Vesle. The units which have
crossed are stretched along the
Rhejms-Soissons highway and are
meeting with stubborn resistance from
German infantry and machine gun Or
CARNATIONS. Several enemy counter
attacks have been withstood success
fully by the French and Americans
who are striving to dislodge the enemy
from the low hills bordering the river.
Over the entire front between Sois-
sons and Rheims, the artillery duel
continues intense. The allied artillery
has been aiding the infantry north of
the river by breaking up some of the
German infantry attacks. Enemy
guns in use appear to be only of med
ium calibre and it is believed they
have their heavy guns north of the
Aisne, in preparation for an eventual
retirement from between the rivers
The French movement north of
Rheims is local in character as yet,
but any advance by the allies here
adds to the danger of the German DO
sition within the angle formed by the
Vesle and Aisne rivers. West of Sois-
sons the other end of the sector, the
Germans are showing signs of ner-
vousness and have carried out two
surprise attacks. Both were checked
by the French.
Lys Salient Active.
Activity within the Lys salient is
becoming more pronounced The Brit
ISL progress between the Lave and
the Clarence is in the region south
east of st. Venant the apex of the
irregularly shaped salient and in the
low lying ground northwest of Be-
thune. The German position here is
hardly as important as that on the
northern side of the salient around
Mont KENNEL East of the Nieppe
forest. north of ST Venant British pa
trolls have taken 80 prisoners from the
German trenches. North of the Som
me, in Picardy, the British have re-
pulsed further German efforts to ad-
vance astride the Bray-Corbie road
Apparently the movements both
along the Vesle and in Flanders are in
their opening stages. 1t may be sew
eral days, more or less, before their
full significance is clear. The initia-
tive, however, still remains with Mar
shall Foch.
Berlin says that nearly 800 prison
ers were taken from the British in the
fighting along the Bray-Corbie road in
which the Germans gained and lost
/ British front line positions Regard
ing the fighting along the Vesle, it re-
| ports that all allied attacks have been
i repulsed.
On the Italian front, isolated artil-
lery firing continues with some Sue
cessful work by Italian patrols in the
: mountain region. French troops in
eastern Albania have repulsed a Bull
! garian attack while along the Semeni,
! in the west, Italian cavalry captured
. seventy prisoners in the routing of an
Austrian column