Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1918-09-13
First American Army Under
Command of Gen, PerShing,
in Action Against Enemy
on St, MihieI Salient.
CAVALRY 0UTSTRIPS
TANKS AND F00TMEN
In the North Field Marshal
Haig is Hard After Huns in
Cambria Region, Advanc-
ing on Foes Base.
10y @oFN'Ha JOURNAL SPECIAL LsAsEo wtsrt
BULLETIN.

''' ~oFN'Na JOURNAL SPECIAL LEAsEo wtRxt
BULLETIN.
washing on, Sept. f2.--Amerfcan
troops operating in the st. NIlhiel Sector
made considerable gains today. Cen.
eral Pershing reported In his COM
hlhnique TO the war departmen, late
tonight Already 5000 prisoners have
been counted. and the movement stlu
is in progress.
The American first army under
command Of General Pershing is in
action against the Germans on n twen-
tN-mile front on the famous ST MI
MEL salient in Lorraine, which had
stood a sharp wedge IN the French line
southeast of Verdun since the COM
mencement of the war.
in the preliminary thrust ground
was gained on both sides OF the trian-
gle and also at its apex az st. Mihiel
ana at last accounts the Americans.
with whom some French troops were
biisaded, were fast sweeping across
the salient in an effort TO close the
mouth OF the big pocket before the
Germans can eXtricate Themselves
from the perilous position they are in
as result of the suddenness of the
dow and tho element of surprise it
carried with II.
Although the advance of the AmerI-
cans was swift and sure and gains in
excess of four miles on the souther,
side Of the hattie area were made the
cavalry far outstripped the tanks ana
footmen and was last reported oner-
atlng along tho railroad near Wig
neules, almost in the center of the
salient and some ten miles northeast
OF st. Mihiel, and also northwest OF
nt-A-Mousson through the forests
and along the railway line running
northWard to Metz, the great German
fortress. the southern outer fortifica-
tons of which are less than ten miles
distant.
Several Towns Captured.
Thiaucourt, Boulllovill Panness and
several other towns In the south were
captured in the initial dash. while ON
me west at the northern edge of the
pocket, the village of Combles was
captured and the environs of Dom
martin Ia Montague were reached. To
the south everywhere the Americans
penetrated into the heights of the
Mouse and the French fought their
way into the outskirts of st. Mfhiel.
Unofficial reports are to tho effect
that the town has been recaptured by
the French
The fighting front at the COM
mencement of the battle aggregated
twenty miles-eight miles on the wes-
tern side and twelve miles on the
southern side. The fighting was pre-
ceded by an extremely heavy artillery
bombardment and the troops and
tanks advanced under barrage which
nIff Nutf H. s.s.V
precision. From the war mans IL
would seem almost impossible for the
Germans to evacuate the salient, as
they apparently are trying to do, with
out huge losses in men and material.
The first reports show that the Amer
leans took 700 prisoners in the first
stages of the battle and had suffered
remarkably small casualties.
Foch's Strategy Unknown.
The strategy of Marshal Foch in the
present maneuver cannot be foreseen,
except that it has as the first objec-
tive the leveling of the st. Mihiel sec
tor and the Strengthening of the allied
line from the region of yerdun east
ward. The obliteration of the salient
would be necessary before a direct
thrust toward German territory from
this region would be possible. Wheth-
er Marshall Foch has In view a cam
paign up the Meuse valley or Metz and
the Moselle valley in the region OF
Cambrai. Here again he has adj
advanced his front toward the much
desired German base, penetrated into
the old British defense line, crossed
the Canal du Nord north of Havrin-
court taken Havrincourt and another
section of the Hindenburg line and
sent thousand Germans into the
British prison cage in the rear. The
Germans fought hard at Havrincourt
to stay the British, but all their coun-
ter-attacks were beaten off
Further advances of the British also
are reported in the region south of La