Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1918-09-16
BRILLIANT WORK
U. S. on WEST SIDE
St. M|n|EL WEDGE

Win the Amehican Army in Lor"
raine. Sept. Is. (By the Associated
Press)-The performance Of the AM
ericans stationed on the western side
Of the ST. Mibiei salient. with the as
sistance of ne French. constitutes
one Of tA most brilliant pages of
America history thus far in the
grea. struggle. 1t was this unit
wrch accomplished two Of the most
dotable strotegic moves Of the Of
fensive. The frst was the taking OF
Les Eparges Hill which had cost the
French army many casualties in the
last four years The second was the
daring march of an American regi-
ment at night through woods infest-
ed with Germans to Vigneulles. there
to effec, liason with troops working
from the eastward.
In carrying out these two moves the
Allies encountered the stiffest oppo-
sition of the offensive. The Germans
cherished Les E.rarges. They Khe"
1t was the key 10 Woevre plain. 1hey
fought desperately 10 hold II anu
counter attacked repeatedly after
they had been elected
Similarly the Germans knew the
dire results they would suffer If they
permitted the Americans 10 meet at
Vi-nrul,es and in some cases foueht
like remons to prevent such caiaf'-
i,v The Americans. nevertheless.
rarcSed steadily onward through the
night with fiXed bayonets killing or
taking prisoners all the Teutons VINO
opnosed them Thev took the prison
ers ahead with them. for they were
too busy 10 send them back,
The difficulties confronting the AM
orleans MAJ be appreciated when II is
realized that all along the western
salient the Germans held series or
hills almost the size Of mountains.
which dominated the Woevre plain as
far as the eve could see 1t was to
take these natural fortiticationa
eouirpod With every modern defensive
d.yice. that the Americans were or
dered 10 attack All previous efforts
to capture Les Eparges, the highest
and most dominating height, mad
failed
4, tho conclusion # their artillery
prcraratiaa the FrancoAmc-itans
swept forward III an Irresls'inle
rush which never STOPPED until theJ
Rad reached every height in the ~. :
seriss which extend southwark near
" 10 St Mihiol
Irncounted thousands of miles OF
farted wire had been stretched Al
intervals for miles back Of the Ger
man front lines. Every foot of the
way was through underbrush thick
with machine guns. while comph-
Ca.ed trench system further barred
the way
Tho American artillery preparation
must have considerably llghtenod the
task of the attackers. for it created
terrible havoc. Shells had struck so
close togother that the craters
merged into another. Many cases
the American ar,illerymen evidently
had the most accurate possible
knowledge Of the roads for all lines
Of communications into tho heights
Mt all points from north to south
we're torn up by direct hits which
must have impeded the German re-
treat seriously Nearly everywhere
the artillery played havoc with the
barbed wire, tearing open paths Tor
the infantry Only the solid, rem
freed concrete fortJ topping the
heights seemed impeviCus to the hre
from the heavy guns.
Despite tho Interest opposition the
Franco Americans swept upward and
onward into Les Epargcs hill. From
that point they stormed the villages
OF Herbeuville. 'Hannonvilc. Thll-
lot, ST Maurice, Billy and Hatton l.
chatel and then in the dead OF night
into Eigneulles 1T the southern emu
Of tho Inc on heights.
To reach these points they had to ad-
vance through vertable thickets of ma
chine guns In many cases these guns
were abandoned intact with their crews
fed The victors have not yet finished
assembling and counting their booty OF
this nature,
Great ammunition dumps IN the plans
lust beyond the heights were abandoned
so hastily the Germans did not even
have time to explode them The fields
under the hills were filled today with
boxes o. cartridges and shells Of ev-
cry cslibre MS well as aerial torpedoes
for the Gothas which formerly operated
from the Woevre plains. Articles OF
clothing of every description Uttered tie
roadstead over hills where the bodies
OF German soldiers lie sill unburied.
Almost the only objects not destroyed,
except the abandoned material. are the
concrete blockhouses lining the submits
OF the heights which stand unchanged
IN their commanding positions. Electric
lights are still in their sockets although
the power is gone.
Ammunition for machine guns. hand
grenades and shells for light defensive
guns still are stacked in orderly rows.
The investors of these miniature fort
resses are examining them slowly. how
ever in the fear that they may be
mined.
II the heights were valuable to the
Germans because they overlooked the
AIMED positions to the westward, they
are doubly so to the Americans, who
can see from their tops clear across the
Woevre plains.