New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-08-12

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staruy arriving reports from officers,
who, with doughboys, are locked in
intensely heavy combat with the Prus-
SLAMS in the vicinity Of Fismette, across
the Vesle from Fisnes
These reports, brought by telephone
and carrier pigeons. read: "Thc enemy
is attacking with heavy forces. Our
artillery barrage is giving him heavy
losses"
Ten minutes later = message told
that the enemy had gained foothold
in Fismette.
Fifteen minutes later doughboys were
reported counter-attacking through the
streets from house to house, bombing
ont the Prnssians who had lodged
themselves in buildings on the out
skirts
Thirty minutes later the enemy had
been cleared from the town and an
other message reported-"Enemy at
lacking again in force"
The second attack came through the
American barrage with heavy losses,
but gained fcothold, this time deeper
in the village. Then the doughboys
made another COUNTER ttnck, wherein
the house-to-house fighting was re-
peated- At nightfall the struggle con-
tinued. with slight gain in ground
for the enemy. But all the messages
told repeatedly Of the fierceness of the
combat, in which the Prussians gained
the major part Of the village with
ghastly losses.
This little battle is IN the strangest
contrast to that proceeding to the north
in Picardy, where Franco-British forces
on both sides of Montdidier have broken
enemy lines, advanced swiftly through
enemy artillery and are proceeding in
some places practically without oppo-
sition.
Immediately north of Fismette lies q
gently rising hill which ascends to the
plateau above. A great quarry near the
top allows the enemy to place there
counter attacking troops almost i'm
mune from shellfre until they start
down the slopes to the village.
1t is on this hillside that the Ameri-
can artillery has done bloody execution
for twenty-four hours, and those ac-
counted for in the close fighting in the
village are numbered by the hundreds.
The mystery of the Crown Princes
sacrifice of his best troops in a now
secondary sector deepened to-day, when
Franco-American airplanes in force on
special recommending tour discovered
certain spot north of Fismes where
enemy airmen were lowering thickly and
anti-aircraft guns grouped in huge
circle sent showers of shells into the
sky. The enemy airplanes came down
to attack almost as soon as the Allied
planes appeared, and in tho mix-up two
German machines went down out Of
control, American f1iers Rickenbacker
and Chambers Smythe taking credit for
the victories, which, however, were IN
confirmed.
Whether the Kaiser or the Crown
Prince was spending few hours watch
ing the guardsmen trying their hands
on the Americans, or whether the sac
rfice of life in the vicinity of Fismette
is due to the presence of monster gun
emplacement, doubly protected by an
array Of air forces, is an unexplained
mystery.
But the doughboys on land and in the
air can be depended upon to delve
further into the mystery.
However, during the more important
battles on other sectors the Vesle lines
are playing an invaluable role by tieing
up some of the enemy's most highly
prized troops, who are forced to defend
ground which the Crown Prince must
know cannot be maintained indefinitely
because of it's constant exposure to the
puntire of the Allies.