Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-05-02
US. TODG
MORE FIGHTING IN
ACTIVE SECTORS
Officers Here Believe Five or
Six American Divisions
Are in Picardy.
PROBABLY TRAINED MEN
WHO WENT OVER EARLY
New Drive on Amiens Is Looked For.
Germans Recent Losses Include
Best Picked Troops.

Participation of Americans in the bat
tie near Villers- -Bretonneux is regarded
here as the forerunner Of other engage
ments involving American troops. which
have been brought up to active sectors
of the lines about Amiens.
Onicers here believe the attack was
an Independent unit, under French COM
mand. From a reading Of dispatches.
and not from any. information sent
from Gen. Pershing's headquar-
ters on the subject. it is believed here
that there now are five >or six such
divisions Of Americans on the Picardy
front. Two or three of them are about
Amiens, while the others are known to
be stationed in the more quiet region
south of the Meuse.
Trained Men, Who Went Over Early
But these do not represent, by any
means, the number Of Americans now
among the combatant allied troops. The
separate divisions in the fighting zone
are believed to be trained men who are
rived in France early and therefore
were found fully prepared and organ
ICED to be thrown in, with French d.
visions, on that portion OF the line
which the French took over when the
British concentrated for the attack OF
the Germans farther north.
The question of organization figures
in the disposition of troops which went
over later and which still are arriving
To send these over, divisions must be
split up and reassembled when all ar
rive in France. The advance units are
not held idle, but are brigaded with the
rival Of the compliments of their di.
visions.
Look for Drive on Amiens.
Therefore any general engagement
in the region of the somme would b<
most likely to involve Americans. II
would not surprise officers here to SEE
such general drive toward Amfens
begin at any time. Though the center
Of interest has been directed toward
the thrust Of the Germans about Ypres
for the past few days. it was explained
that their plan Of campaign still is to
exert a pressure all along the line
from the Disc northward.
The fact that the northern drive has
been stopped and the German forces COM
PEELED to halt until they are reorganized
only increases the likelihood Of resump-
ton Of operations at Amiens. There was
indication in some press dispatches that
the Americans. with the British and
French. were digging in behind the
resumption Of trench fighting.
But the Germans are in a position be-
fore Amiens from which they must either
advance or recede, and 1t is believed to
be only a matter of time until they at
tempt the former.
German Losses More Serious.
A study of the comparative losses of
the allies and the Germans since March
81 indicates to officers here that, even
though the losses of the two sides, ex-
cept for the probable heavier German
within the past week before
Ypres. were about equal, the actual ef-
feet on the Germans was more serious.
In an advance the Germans used their
picked troops. and these were killed,
captured and wounded. whereas the al
lied losses partly were of non-com-
batants-that is. ambulance drivers.
could not get out of the way Of the
heavy German artillery fire in time
Moreover. 1t becomes clearer, now
that the Germans have been halted,
that their objectives in neither Fland-
ers nor Picardy have been gained. To
count their movement success COM
parable to the cost they must break
through the allied lines at some point
and seriously disarrange the COM
lines. This they have not
DONE Even an advance to Dunkirk
would only leave the allied lines short
er, but continuous, though the Belgian
army would be- removed from Belgian
soil thereby.
This consideration only adds to the
belief that the Germans. having now
met strong resistance at Ypres, will
make another attempt to make the break
at Amfens.
Since the attack yesterday was di-
rected toward a division of American
troops. it is believed that the American
casualties should begin to come through.
soon They will be much easier to re-
port than If the Americans at that point
had been interminsled with allied COM
batants.