The Oskaloosa herald., 1918-05-09
.GE RMAN ARMIES
shot TO PIECES
CASUALTIES IN soMME AND
FLANDERS WERE HEAVY.
REORGANIZATION NECESSARY
Hlndenburs About Ready To Resume
Drive-Another Offensive In the
West and In italy Is Near-Big
Guns Brought Up.
(By william Phillip simms.)

(By William Phillip Simms)
With the British Armies in the
Field, May THE continued quiet
on the Western front daily furnished
fresh proof OF the disorganiZation OF
the German armies.
The casualties on, the Somme and
in the Flanders region have resulted
in the necessity of complete patch
ing up before attacks can go on.
OF the total of two hundred and six
German divisions or two million four
hundred and twenty-five thousand
men on the Western front, more than
one hundred and forty have been used
in the battle without achieving any
Of the difficult measures promised
the German people.
Not Out Of Commission.
But one can not too often say that
these divisions have not been COM
pletely wiped out Some of them
have been badly cut up while others
have been only slightly. so that a
short rest and a few recruits will
make them as good as new in short
time.
For instance in 1917 during the
British Franco Western front cam
paigns, the Germans used the equiv
alent of three hundred and six divis-
ions, exactly one hundred more than
they have now on the Western front
showing that many divisions are able
to appear several times in different
battle lines by process of rotation
and reorganization.
About Ready To Strike Again.
Won Hindenburg has been hit hard,
but by now his reorganization should
be about complete. When the
weather and other conditions are fay.
orable for them it is thought that
they will hit again and this time
hard, but not necessarily on the SOM
me or the Lys river line fronts.
10 Fresh Hun Divisions.
BY Henry Woods, With the French
Armies in the Field, May THE
French have identified eighteen fresh
or reorganized German divisions two
hundred and sixteen men on the
Amiens front
. While this would presumably indi-
cate the Generals intention to re.
sumo their offensive 1t would at the
same time indicate likewise that the
divisions thus placed have had sub
stantiated losses aggregating at least
fifty thousand men as 1t is the enemy's
custom to replace first line defenses
when the loss has been between two
thousand and three thousand men.
The prisoners admit that the French
artillery before Amiens is constantly
inflicting heavy losses on the enemy,
Resumption Of Drive Expected.
Amsterdam, May THE German
press today declared that the resump-
ton of the Western front offensive
would be aided by huge offensive
on the Italian battle front it was Of
ficially learned today.
"The combined effort will thus bring
about the longed for German sue
cess" the German newspaper said.
(The beginning of another great
Western front offensive was definitely
forecasted in the German press.)
Monster German Guns.
The Hague, Holland, May THE
Belgian newspaper Les Nouvelles
says that monster guns made by the
Krupps at Essen have been brought
to the front through Belgium. One
of these was seen near the railway
between Aix-la-Chapelle and Viseg~
1t rested on five lorries which togetk
er had the length OF three railway
trucks The guns are about twenty.
FIVE meters (eighty.two feet) long and
CORY shell of from twenty to TWEEN.
ty-flve centimeters (eight to ten
| inches
German Name For Tank.
Paris, May THE war correspond.
ent at the front for the Temps
writes:
"some one asked me recently what
the Germans called their tanks.
was compelled to confess ignorance
A document found since, however
shows that the German far tank is
'sturm panzerwraft-wagen.
Pean or Arc Day.
Paris, France, May THE ami
versary of the deliverance of France
by Joan of Arc at Orleans, May IL
celebrated with great solemnity at
Orleans May IL. and three days OF
prayer have been ordered in Catho.
lie churches throughout France for
the success Of the allied troops.
4 d