Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-07-25
OE RESERVE
lSIONS USED UP
kht of Men Slackens
Rapidity of Allied
Advance
ERMANS MUST FIGHT
men Have Done Wonder
ful Work in Aiding Fochs
'sS Forces
ERMANS MUST FIGHT
* Nv WALTER DURANTY
ScSrf Gable to Evening Public Ledger

4 44sko,1rh the official communidues
E.1u&s. more laconic, the battle Is raging
b s.9iynfnished. The initial rapidity OF
1AAllies' progress has been slowed
E1&Sv14 by the German reserves, lunR
~ 1nvishly to effect, 1t not stanlllz-
S3tion," at least reduction OF conses'
{ -, IN the Marne salient of surplus
"a and supplies accumulated io' '''e
(<rnan offensive.
- - --r,ra,rc to the latest information,
y 9 eremy has engaged siXty-three or
S}vtv.four of the divisions that form
IL Me strategic reserve fortnight
- The startling ease with which the
y IIrench took 1900 prisoners and a line
htils north of Nontdidier Wednes-
& 80, thns completing the success at
szs.ionr shows the condition of the
71I-,,,an line divisions unsupported by
b 6kst-ciass units.
III 1.-The German command cannot ne
hind 10 the dangers threatening Its
40 al points outside the main battle
-. vet II has no choice hut to con-
ffauel to resist at all costs IN the
Z sIIss,st attacked on three sides stimuli
{Aneously. Despite the appearance of
~ ehalization. the enemy is still being
y X,t,,,a neuvered by the Allies and the
1@veraI strategic situation remains as
8yorable as ever.
Airmen's Great Service
account Of the magnificent serv-
~ rendered by aviation in the battle
- given to your correspondent to-
4 Av AT the headquarters of one of the
kkest French air fleets | was told that.
III the crossing of the Narne by the
srman bridges-siX were reported in
1 ~ nv 10 a. m.-were cleared for
\ {kteen minutes at a time by the effects
~ airmen's fire, and the slaughter of
: 31en and horses was terrible.
ik,ne after another the battleplanes
lkuld dive toward the objective. loose
(Iwhole round pointblank and rise to
3 iii a new cartridge drum. Before
& HIM bombing planes. each carving
lxe-inch bombs weighing nearly fifty
: 1unds apiece, were sharing the work
Aeva station. Dropped from n height
q Zoo to 1000 meters, the projectiIes
k1id hardly failed to find a Target.
(her on the bridges or amidst the
q nse masses of the enemy on the
Inks. AS soon as a bomber un
Il Ned his cargo he would plunge and
eep the foe with his machine gun
S 1td then return for a new load and
4 reat the performance. That went
q without respite day and night,
n must have cost thousands of
besides fatal delays when every
1nt was priceless
Z: Nv the Germans dreaded the air
EAc]ks was shown by the fact that nu-
sW1fOus anti-aircraft batteries and ma
me guns were installed in the hills
alarlooking the river before the battle.
NJ very few of our machines were thus
01wned, although all had their wings
fy4dled. The German battleplanes were
ytetty aggressive, but, as usual. hesi-
t6fed to tackle bombing planes in flying
Afmation When the latter swooped to
otop bombs, they We're effectively pro-
etcted by strong force of spads up
3Cve which engaged in continual COM
AAts with great success.
The boche bombing planes We're no.
Jherei reported working by day. hut
G2eSned to reserve themselves exclusively
~ night work.
ss Allied Tactics Changed
The counter-offensive changed the AL
4 = tactics. In strong groups bombers,
Nbose way was cleared by hattleplanes,
&&tecked transportation centers, such as
re, Fismes, Bash-Oches, Coulonges and
aBEAiene. The imagination might picture
Itmantic aerial battles with hundreds Of
Names engaged in a death struggle
efross miles of sky, but in point of fact
We German Resistance TO such mass at
fGcks was confined to lowering on the
/ Fqtskirts of the fleet in an attempt to cut
80 stragglers.
One unit alone dropped thirty tons Of
bombs in three days on the Tere station
S1nd started a conaagration on Friday
3hat has not yet been eXtinguished. As
HE boche retreat was accentuated the
Allies work was lightened by the con-
Z session of the hostile airdromes, caused
by the abandonment of advanced fields.
{ The boches We're so crowded as to cause
frequent accidents and great confusion.
which was augmented by bombing them
fnpeatedly.
CGnvoys on the roads also suffered
1xtefribly. At Loupiegne one bombing
plane alone destroyed twenty munition
camions.
Your correspondent talked with
orCup of spad pilots, including Lieuten-
faht Boyau, former captain o: the French
91nternational football team. now a crack
3 }Drachen specialist" with an official
score OF sixteen balloons and eleven air.
olRnee. All refused to smoke and they
y E3nk nothing stronger than light wine
yNA water. The strain of air fighting
the active period is so great that
onIy effective physical training can with
{ tand II.
The pilots e out twice always, some
fines thrice daily in spells of two hours
S&Apd q spad can fly in all weather save
4cE or binding rain Nervous exhaus-
3tiun Is chiefly dreaded. Its first symp.
e0m Is Nightmares, of which machine
e G0ng 5amming and two boches diving on
our tail" are the commonest. A couple
days rest Is the only remedy. Goot
14ions enoble an airman to surviv,
~ = less fit man'would perish
~ told me of a youngster shot
SNtth bullet in the stomach las
~ In enemy territory south of thu
Stunned by the fall, he soon re
~ consciousness and crawled from
washed machine into a nearb,
~. where he hid until nightfall Il
&nrkness he made his way two kilo
Nh into the American lines, narrowl
1tng being shot by sentry suspecte
w boche ruse Hin comrades hav
<foce;yed a CHEEKY penciled letts
~ HIn in hospital
5o11ghout the air service a realiza
~ the value of the work ha
splendid spirit Cutthroa
q non-existent and all energie
lrected toward perfecting tear
Whicsh Is the secret of air sue
~. WAS loath to discuss his ow
He said Downing
x y not very risky in itself, bl
~ tudicious use of cloud cover q
klimed dive from great heigh
rzrn kAI an INN