The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-04-06

CTS WILL IGLAG04U61s was 0QH4G0
little before dawn, on Thursday.
March 81. The Germans had
concentrated for their assault
upon the right of the British line
on a front of fifty miles between
the Scarpe and the Disc, a total
force, including reserves, of over
seventy divisions, to be rapidly
followed by at least another
thirty divisions. That was con-
siderably more than half Of their
total forces upon the Western
front-rearly half of their en-
tire armys organization. It in
Guided vastly more than half of
all their artillery, and far more
than half of those effective,
highly trained and carefully
chosen units, with which a
violent shock could be delivered,
and which were In a condition
and had 9 morale permitting
them to sustain heavy losses
without disorgsnization.
The Germans object was to
separate the British from the
French armies, protecting them
selves after this separation had
been accomplished against a
French attack from the south by
the marshy valley of the Disc,
which lay on the extreme left of
their assault. After they had
produced this rupture they in
tended to roll up the British line
and to destroy it before any Al
lied concentration against them
could take place, during the sew
eral days required for such a
concentration. Rapidly of
movement was the very essence
of success for them, for the price
TO be paid in lives was very high
indeed. Therefore, all available
strength was employed.
Main British Line
Remained UnbrOken.
The main British defensive
positions were pierced Just west
of st, Quentin on the afternoon
of Friday, March %, as I re-
counted in my last article, but
the British line was not ruptur-
ed. It reformed and, therefore,
also, the Allies were not separat-
ed. The German drive contin-
ued with q slackening pace, but
uninterruptedly, nevertheless.
From a bulge containing an
angle of perhaps $50 degrees, the
Allied ine-as Peronne, Bap-
aume and Albert were success
lively lost-came to form a right
angle Of 80 degrees. With the
French evacuation of Mont
didier, on the seventh day of the
battle, the situation had grown
critical in the full sense Of that
word. That is to say, that the
judgment that history will pass
on this battle still hung even
for either party.
On the other hand, the Brit
ish and the gradually increas-
ing but yet few French units,
which were maintaining and
taking over the right Of the line,
had lost perhaps 10000 men
(mostly, of course, wounded) |
in addition to the dead and
wounded they had carried back !
with them on their retreat. On
the other hand, the enemy had
lost in far higher proportion, |
not quite thrice, but
certainly far more than twice
the number that had been lost
by the defensive forces.
The main Allied reserve were
intact. But the greater part Of
The enemy's forces available had |
appeared on the battlefront, /
and had suffered the great
strain and losses inevitable in
such an action.
But most important Of all, /
since the line of battle hadI
this unexpected con-
formation Of a right angle,
there had appeared on the
southern face Of the line a sec
sor no longer protected BY the
narshy valley of the Disc, but
exposed after so long an inter
val to the concentration Of
forces still held in re-
Ierve, and stretching over more
han twenty miles Of open coun-
ny. If the French pressure here
against the Germans should be
beyond the enemy Is
bower to contain it, he viii be
h grave peril. Lf the enemy
can extend his front
lere and get elbow room es-
oecially if in doing SO he could
till break through the main
rout between Montdidier and |