New-York tribune., 1918-06-30
Getting There

This week marks the first anniversary
troops in France. The actual anniver-
sary was celebrated by real, if re-
stricted, success in .Belleau Woods, near
Chateau Thierry, and by the announce
ment that our army had taken over
third sector along the Alsace front. AS
it stands, we can hardly have less than
eight divisions on the front, and of
these four or five are in line between
Verdun and Belfort, the marines are
about Chateau Thierry and the first
American division to arrive in France is
holding Cantigny, won by its own ef
forts
Eight divisions as our divisions are
organized mean only little less than
a quarter of million men, and half as
many more must, at a conservative es-
innate, be in active service with French
or British units, while official announce
ments from Washington indicate that
100000 Americans have been sent to
France, and General March has esti-
mated that of these two-thirds, or 600,-
600, are fighting men, the balance being
occupied with communications and nom
combatant tasks, which are quite as i'm
portant as the more appealing labors
under fire.
Now, there are two dangers which we
all, as Americans have to avoid in talk
ing of Americas effort. We are only
beginning, our engagements with the
enemy have been hardly more than skir-
mshes, our losses measured by contem-
porary standards are insignificant, our.
officers and men are still far from
being first rate troops in the matter of
training and experience; in morale and
in physical material, however, they are
the best in Europe, because we alone
still have young men to send to
the front and our men are not yet
wearied by the strain of four years OF
ceaseless struggle.
On the other hand, it is just as neces-
sary to avoid too great depreciation OF
what has been accomplished in getting
our men across and what the men are
already doing themselves in France. 1t
is natural for French and British news
papers to lay all possible stress upon the
numbers and efficiency of our armies
for the last reserves has come. The
Germans are making every possible eff
fort to minimize our power of contribu-
ton, because they recognize that if they
could convince French and British pub
lies that our aid was not to be effective
this year there would be real and
considerable decline in morale which they
could turn to their own advantage
Eight divisions Of first rate troops.
several Of them already we'll trained, all
of them partially trained, each division
having the numerical strength of two
German divisions; four more divisions at
least already fighting; a total of more
than twenty divisions of fighting men.
numerically equal to fifty German di-
visions, already in line on about to reach
the line, is contribution no man would
have believed possible six months ago
and contribution which has totally
upset German calculations as to the
present campaign.
More than this, our men in individual
units and as divisions have done better
than was expected of them The little
affair at Seicheprey, which is already for
gotten. made a profound impression
upon the French. There was some feel
ing in our High Command that our
first line stayed in position too long.
that it should have retired more prompt
ly, but French officers and men who saw
the performance praised the courage
and tenacity of the men who "stuck it''
unreservedly and insisted upon decora-
ting the colors Of the unit involved.
The thing Americans can feel about
their army in France is that its arrival
in large numbers in the last few months
is one of the great achievements of mill
tary history, that the way it is taking
hold has brought new hope and conf
dehce to our allies, and that we are al
ready real factor in the war, as no one
expected we could become in this terrible
and critical year. Large American
units have not fought in great battle,
but we have done what was asked of us
and more and, as at Seicheprey, at Can
tigny and in Belleau Woods, we have
done 1t in a manner which has not es-
capped the attention or praise Of British
and French officers, who at this time in
the war are not over-easily pleased.
AZ II now stands. our troops are nut