Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-12-05


tactical position, with far greater
loss to the enemy than to ourselves
On July !, before the Second was
relieved, it captured the village
of Vaux with most splendid precls-
ion.
"Meanwhile our Second corps, un-
der Major General George w. Reau,
had been organized for the cominanu
of our divisions with the BRUSH
which were held back in training
areas or assigned to second-hne ae-
fenses. Five of the ten DIVISIONS
were withdrawn from the bri@tlsh @
area in June, three to reheNe wv
sions in Lorraine and the tosses
and two to the Paris area TO JON tne
group of American divisions WHieh i
stood between the city ana any - u
ther advance of the enemy IN that
direction"
BY that time the great tide OF
American troop movements
France was in full swing' ana lie
older divisions could De useu &c
Iv The Forty-second in line east OF
Rheims, faced the German assault
of JuIy 1S and held their ground
unfiinchingly" on the right flank
four companies of the twenty
ei@htb division faced advancing
waves of German infantry" and the
Third division held the Marne line
onnosite Chateau Thierry against
nowerful artillery and infantry at
tnclxs, IA single regiment OF the
Third wrote one of the most prli-
liant pages in our military anhals
ON this occasion" General Pershlhs
says.
eft prevented the crossing at GER
tain noints on its front, whlle, on
either flank, the Germans, VINO hau
gained a footing, pressed iorWaIu'
II or men. firing in three direclohs'
mot the German attacks with couh-
terattacks at critical points ana sue
ceeded in throwing two German
; divisions into complete cohlusloh'
capturing 500 prisoners.
Thus was the stage set LOT tlle
counterattacks when, peslllIliiis
with the smashing OF the enemy
Marne salient, brought oVerwneiiio IN
inc victory to the Allies ana the
United States in the eventful months
that have followed. The intlmatloh
l. strong that General Pershing
aa,.ice helped Marshal Foch 10
raoch his decision to strike.
"The great force of the German
Chateau Thierry offensive established
the deep Marine salient. but the en-
a,,,,- was taking chances, and the
,.,,Irerability of this pocket to at
+ocls might be turned to his dlsaa-
vantage. Seizing this opportunity 10
sunport my conviction, every DIVISION
Win any sort of training was MADE
available for use in counter-ol-
fsnsiye. The place of honor in the
+brnst toward Scissors on July lS
vas given to our First and Second
divisions in company with CHOSEN
French divisions.
, without the usual brief warning
: of a preliminary bombardment' tne
massed French and American aftil-
lery, firing by the map. lalu ooMil GOV,
its rolling barrage at dawn, while
.ho infantry began it's charge. The
8 tactical handling of our troops under
! these trying conditions was excel
lent throughout the action.
"The enemy brought up large num-
hers Of reserves and made stub
| horn defense. both with machine guns
= ana artillery, but through hVe days
eghtinr the First division continued
/ 70 advance until it had gained the
= hefghts above scissors and captured
r the village of Brezy-de-sec. The
} second division took Beau Repaire
t farm and Vierzy in very rapid ad-
vance and reached a position in FROM
e of Tigny at the end of its second day
: Tbase tw, divisions captured 7OO(
prisoners and over 100 pieces OF ar
) tillery."
e The report describes in some detail
4 the work of completing the reduction
n of the salient, mentioning the opera
= tions of the Twenty-sixth, Third
4 Fourth, Forty-second, Thirty-secont
and Twenty eighth divisions WIN
: the situation on the Marine front thu'
d relieved. General Pershing writes NJ
e could turn to the organization OF th'
i I7irst American army and the reduc
= t,op of the st. Mihiel salient, Ions
nlanned as the initial purely Ameri
e can enterprise.
: "a troop concentration. aided b!
t generous contributions of artiller!
and air units by the French, began
: involving the movement. mostly a
: night. of 500, 600 men. A sector reach
d inn from Port sur Seille, east of th'
e Noselle. westward through st. Mihie
IN Verdun and later enlarged to carr.
|, Il to the edge of the forest of Ar
- ponne. was taken, over, the SeconC
colonial French holding the tip o
the salient opposite St. Mihiels ant
the French Seventeenth corps, on thI
heights above Verdun, being trans
ferred to General Pershing's com
mand.
The combined French. British ant
American air forces mobilized for th'
battle, the report says. was the larg
est aviation assembly ever engaged
on the western front up to that timt
in a single operation.
or the reduction of the St Mihie
salient, General Pershing says:
How st. sIihIeI Was Taken
After four hours artillery prep
aration the seven American divisions
in the front line advanced at 6. m.
on September IL, assisted by lin
tied number of tanks. manned partly
| by Americans and partly by thu
French. These divisions. accompanied
| by groups of wire cutters and other
armed with .bangalore torpedoes, wen
through the successive bands o
barbed wire that protected the en-
emy's front line and support trenches
in irresistible waves on schedule
time, breaking down all defense Of
an enemy demoralized by the grea
volume of our artillry fire and oul
sudden approach out of the fog.
Our First corps advanced to Thiau
court, while our Fourth corps curveC
back to the southwest through Non
sard. The Second colonial Frencl
corps made the slight advance re-
uuired of 1t on very difficult ground
and the Fifth corps took its three
| ridges and repulsed a counterattack