Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-09-20
First Army Makes At
tack on Both Sides of st.
MihieI Salient.
HUN ARMY MAY Be TRAPPED
Many Towns and Prisoners Taken
Foch May Be Aiming at Metz
Germans in Picardy Trying to
Halt Retreat Approximately
on Hindenburg Line.
BY EDWARD W. PIckARD.

BY EDWARD w. FlCNAHOs
The American First army, General
Pershing commanding, started the first
great wholly American offensive
Thursday, attacking on both sides of
the st. Mihiel salient southeast OF
Verdun. The French assisted by at
lacking on the point of the salient, but
the operation was planned by the
American staff and executed by Amer
lean officers and troops.
After a terrific artillery preparation
which for four hours smothered the
entire region within the German lines
with shells, the Yanks went over the
top exactly at five o'clock, following
a rolling barrage timed for an ad-
vance of 100 meters every 40 minutes.
Great numbers of tanks supported
them and cleared the way by crushing
numerous concrete machine gun shell
tiers and breaking down the elaborate
wire defenses. American aviatOrS In
f1ocks quickly drove away the few Hun
airmen in sight and thereafter del
uged the enemy supply centers, mu-
milton dumps and hangers with
bombs, while the observation planes
directed the work of the artillery.
Everything moved like clockwork and
the troops speedily gained their OBJ
jectives and went on to the next ones.
Village after village was taken and
by Friday the cavalry had advanced
far into the center of the salient and
occupied strong positions. At the
time of writing the drive was progress
ing steadily and the Germans were in
danger of finding their retreat from
the big wedge entirely cut off. Hun
dreds of prisoners were taken. The
st. Mihiel salient had been held by
the Huns ever since 1914 and was
very strongly fortified. It's base is to-
ward the German stronghold of Metz
and 1t may be that the drive is direct
ed against that city. However, Mar
shall Foch's strategy had not been re-
vealed when this was written.
Ia
Having given up all the ground they
won in their great spring drive, and
finding themselves back on the old
H~indenburg line, and in some places
well behind it, the Germans decided to
stop their retreat for a while. Marshal
Foch did not fully assent to this deci-
sion, but powerful concentrations of
Hun artillery and reserves In strong
positions, coupled with torrential
rains throughout Picardy, brought the
allied offensive almost to temporary
s~tandstill. Not that the fighting by
any means ceased, for the French and
British kept pressing forward, though
more slowly, and the Germans delv-
cred desperate counter-attacks, which
In almost every instance resulted only
in severe losses for them.
1t Is the opinion of expert observers
that the halt of the Huns approximate
Iy on the H~indenburg line will be only
temporary. Indeed. 1t Is believed they
cannot stay there long If they
would. For many weeks they have
been hastily building new lines Of de-
Tense farther east, and Marcel Hutin
in the Echo de Paris says they are now
constructing a supreme line from Ant
werp to Metz and are putting the Ant
werp forts In defensive condition.
Their present line depends on Douai,
Cambria, st. Quentin and Laon, and
farther to the southeast, on the Chemin
des Danes. Douai already was be-
ing evacuated last week and the air
drome moles east Of 1t were being dis
mantled. The British, fighting fierce
ly and repulsing heavy counter-attacks,
were advancing steadily through Hav-
rincourt. Pezieres and Gouzeaucourt
and forced a crossing Of the Canal du
Nord, thus taking the main defense Of
! Cambria on the southwest. st. 0uen-