The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1918-06-15
AMERICANS HURL
BACK ENEMY WITH
HEAVY CASUALTIES
BY BERT FORD.
international News Service staff
Correspondent.

international News Service staff
Correspondent.
WITH THE AMERICAN ARMY AT
THE MARINE, June 13 (night).-The
steady progress OF the Americans in
the sector Of Belleau wood and BOur-
esches has cut the Chateau Thierry
VilIers-Cotterets railway line which
was previously in German hands.
Information obtained from German
prisoners. one Prussian captain in
particular, as well as from other
sources. shows that the German at
tack this morning was an imposing
operation.
Specially trained storm troops who
had been carefully rehearsed, were
brought up from General Won Bellows
divisions to partake in the assault
and the men were under orders 20 in
flict a decisive defeat on the Ameri-
cans as IL was recognized their NOR
ale and confidence had been infinitely
raised by their continued successful
progress
In Strong Positions.
The enemy found the Americans In
strong natural positions. but the Ger
hAAl6 were DOuhAAAA AAg otPPAANN "ANs-
machine guns and flame projectors.
Artillery in adjoining sectors were
ordered to concentrate a destructive
FIRE for several hours.
The Germans were found to be car
rying six days rations and a tremen-
dous amount OF machine-gun ammuni-
tion. They had figured on storming
Belleau wood and Bouresches, on dig
cling in there and upon holding to the
positions until they were consolidated
with the old lines.
Krupp guns were moved up to sup
port the operation. The attack was
utterly crushed at Belleau wood.
French and American artillery blasted
the ground beneath the feet OF the
attackers.
Foe Losses Heavy.
The Germans lost very heavily, not
only from the cannon fire but from
the continuous blasts from the Amer
lean machine guns. To the eastward
the Germans succeeded IN debouchIng
from the Bouresches railway station,
penetrating along a sunken road.
After American machine gunners had
poured in a whitening fire the Ameri-
can infantry debouched from the
ruins Of Bouresches village and swept
the station at the point Of the bayo-
net. Many German bodies were
found along the road, transfxed with
the cold steel. Not a single American
was bayonetted.
. German machine gunners abandoned
their weapons and fed. Minenwerfer
squads threw down their mine throw
ers and took to their heels, rushing
across the field that bordered the
road. Later they were rounded up
there.
Throughout today German batteries
maintained q harrassing drumfire
against the American positions. It
was eXasperating, but a complete fail
ure 50 far as results were concerned.
Men Lied To. ....
German prisoners reveal that Ger
man officers have been feeding their
men with wild stories about the al
lies being finished" The officer de-
scribed the killing OF Germans in the
recent battles on the western front
as a slaughter"
Frenchmen who have witnessed the
Americans in their successful combats
north OF Chateau Thierry, on the
Marne front, are enthusiastic over
them. This is a description that one
gave OF the American methods:
Baseball has made the Americans
the premier grenade throwers Of the
world. / saw Americans. at a given
signal, shower grenades unerringly
ninety feet at a line OF German he'll
NETS peeping above a shallow trench.
Later the trench was found to be
filled with dead. Also football has
made natural strategists OF the Amer
lean officers.
The poilus are fred with enthusi-
asm at the way the Americans go into
battle. They lunge forward, yelling
like savages. and they are gluttons
for bayonet fighting. The cold steel
has no terrors for them. They are
proud Of their wounds. They know
what il is to be a German prisoner,
and they fight to the death rather
than surrender. They are dead shots,
and there is no danger that they are
afraid to expose themselves. The
Germans are open mouthed with as
at these veterans from
America" 81