The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1918-08-13
ROADS ARE TANNED
BY WAR PROCESSION
Route to Battlefield Along
Crowded Amiens-Roye High
way Looks Like Picnic.

Special Cd6ie D6spdrch 10 THE Sun rom he
london Ttrtes
Copv-ip,.. 1918; all rights reserred.
WITH TIE FRENCH ARMY, Aug Ia
Beyond Moreuil all the way to the
Amiens- Roye road. French troops are
cleaning up the battlefield, repairing
roads and filing shell holes.
On some Of the roads there is a
heavy traffic of troops pressing for
ward to join the pursuit of the enemy.
On others the allied soldiers are rest
ing, and on still others the traffic.
composed of prisoners and empty food
and ammunition wagons. is the other
way.
The main Roye road is an endless
proce ssion OF horses. lorries and guns
pushing toward the front. with a re-
turning file OF prisoners. some of them
wounded. There Is story of one
batch OF 500 prisoners who were
rounded up preparatory to the march
to the rear under command of a lone
French guard, the only man who
could be spared for the moment for
that task. This Frenchman. who
Of his prisoners and warned them In
no uncertain tone that the first man
who tried to escape would be instantly
shot.
Escapef II Is to Laugh.
AT this there was an uproarious peal
of laughter from the prisoners. and when
the surprised guard inquired as to the
~. lvE- AAaN 60
the tickled Germans nothing could be
more idiotically funny than the suEges-
ton that any OF their number would at
tempt to get back to the German lines.
In Sundays bright sunshine the whole
scene was like q vast picnic. with here
and there men eating their lunch under
the trees and others rambling about on
the battlefield busy at various odd Jobs
The fact that so many groups were scat
tered about eating lunch is what gave
the scene picnic aspect.
The French stan officers we're doing all
their work in the open fields. and often
one could see an officer, a sandwich in
one hand, cup Of coffee In the other
and before him. pinned to a tree trunk. n
map Of the battlefield.
Liaison between the officers in the rear
and the front line troops Is carried out bv
mounted messengers, the advance having
been so fast that the telephone men had
dif1culty in keeping up.
Chasseur. Cited Five Times.
The Roye road Is roughly the dividing
line between the French and British. and
at ono place we came upon battalion OF
chasseurs. all in high spirits because
they had been mentioned for gallantry
for the fifth time, talking to a group OF
Canadian drivers sitting on their motor
lorries. with which they had Just carried
out a dangerous mission.
Ono OF the most picturesque Incidents
Of tho fighting on the French front was
the taking OF Montdidier. When Gen.
Debeney's troops entered the town at
midday II was defended only by machine
guns, and these were served not by or
binary gunners, but by officers. who are
beginning to feel they cannot depend on
their men
Gen. Humbert's attack was made UNI
der cover of the greatest secrecy. Until
the infantry began to advance at go
In the morning not a gun had spoken,
The ammunition lorries had moved up
to the front as quietly as possible. Then
only two minutes before the infantry
started the silence was abruptly broken
by sudden and thunderous outburst
from every gun in the sector,
unuer cover OF INC sneils the whole
attacking mass moved forward, lorries
and all, and the great clouds OF dust
kicked w by the big trucks. mjngling
with the mist that spread over the land |
scape. made screen that protected our
men until the very instant OF contact
with the enemy,
The strongest resistance was at
MarQueglise and the little wood at Bois
du Mont We made steady advance
across the low ground in front Of the
massif OF Thiescourt, which was used by
the enemy TO night a delaying action. |