The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-10-12
SUPPORT OF LOAN VITAL ID VICTORY, SAYS GEN. MARCH No Time to Hang Back With Idea That War Is Over,
 Urges Chief of Staff MORE THAN 1,900,000
 TROOPS EMBARKED Without Financial Backing of People at Home Nothing Can Be Ac-
 complished by Soldiers at the Front

With more than l,9JU,OUO American troops embarked for the front and an army of 2,000,000 men in preparation to make victory certain, Gen eral March. chief of staff, at his weekly conference today, sounded an urgent call for popular support for the fourth Liberty Loan in order that the American armies may have full support.
 This is no time to hang back with the idea that the war is oyer,' General March said, 'The thing to do is to hurl at the Hun our maximum resources in men and money and make victory cer- tain"
 The chief of staff prefaced his re- view of military operations with an out line of the absolute need that ample funds be forthcoming to back up the fighting men at the front.
 'srhe war department" he said, has had the draft ages changed so as to secure more than two million additional first-class fighting men and has de- manded of Congress over $S.000, ,000,00o to raise, equip, train and transport this victorious army to France The Fourth Liberty Loan is now before the people of the United States. Without this financial backing nothing can be ac- complished."
 IA MILES IN THREE DAYS
 Turning to the great war map, Gen- eral March pointed out the sweeping advance of the Anglo-American forces in the Cambrai-St. Quentin region. With the capture of Le Ceteau, he said, the British had gained l4 miles in three days. More than they gained in any consecutive three days since they first started their drive east of Amiens in August"
 "The enemys resistance, temporarily at least was badly shaken and disor- ganized," General March said.
 "At Le Cateau the British are only If miles from Aulnoye. This town is q very important strategical point. It is the junction of the main railroad which l have spoken about before. running from Valenciennes through to Metz, and the other great northern artery called the Liege-M -Maubeug railway. These two roads joint at this point. An advance of about nine miles in this direction win put that junction under gunfire, and it is point of vital importance
 RIGHT FLANK CLEARED
 "On Tuesday and Wednesday the French and American forces attacked east of the Mouse and advanced one and one half miles on q front of four miles, clearing the right flank of the main American advance Here. as at Le Ca teau, an advance of 10 miles would sever the Metz Valeneiennes railroad. The largest bombing expedition of the war took place Wednesday in this sec tor when 32 tons of bombs were dropped on the cantonments near Damvillers.
 Tn the north the British advance along the Escaut is but 2 miles from Valenciennes. The communications of Douai are threatened and the enemy is beginning to withdraw. From Lens to the Scarpe the British on Wednesday advanced one and one-half miles on ten-mile front.
 "Between the Argonne and the Mouse in the American sector. there has been stiff fighting for local points of ad- vantage, and the pocket in the line on the Argonne. south of the Grand-Pre gap, has been wiped out.
 "The constant pressure on the line is keeping the enemyfs reduced forces continually in action. preventing ade. quate periods of rest for exhausted di- visions.
 DIVISIONS ANNOUNCED
 General March announced the Ameri can divisions which cleaned up the St Mihiel salient in the fight which pre- pared the way for the present opera. tions north of verdun. Pointing from left to right on the map, he said the di- ,vfe;o,r xrera in line AS follows.
 Fourth (regularD
 Twenty-sixth tNew England National Guardl.
 First regular9
 Forty-second (Rainbowa
 Eighty ninth Kansas, Missouri, South Dakota. Nebraska, Colorado. New Mexi- co and Arizona National army)
 Second (regular)
 qxlis is the first information made pub lie as to the constitution of the army with which General Pershipg achieved a brilliant and swift victory in his first wholly American effort.
 EAST OF ARGONNE
 Locating various divisions. in response to questions, General March said the Twenty ninth (New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, Maryland and District of Co., lumbia National Guard) is on the line in the yosges. and the Eighty second fGeorgia, Alabama and Tennessee) is east of the Argonne.
 The first courier from General Persh- ing carrying the hospital records of the expeditionary forces for slightly wounded men. has arrived General March said the lists included approximately l600o names. This number. he said. was the accurnu- ,ation for all the period up to the time 1t was decided to bring these lists by couriers-