The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-10-20


Scene of Mazur
Osowiec was to be invested and stormed.
1t was now certain that strong forces
were gathering In the neighborhood
of Lomzs. and the portion of the goth
A G. stationed there was no longer
sufficient.
In the meantime the development
movement of the 1eth army had been
completed. (The striking force OF
about 10000 men was operating 100
miles to the north of the other thanking
force.)
BY the night of the 1oth-11th. after
extraordinary forced marches and in
credible efforts. the center of this army,
moving on the Tilsit-Kalwaria road
near Wirballen, and when Lyck fell on
the 14th the infantry columns were
already due north of the great Angus
towo Forest near Suwalki-S einy.
NORTHERN BLOW A SURPRISE
The retreating Russian army was at.
tackled vigorously in the flank and
forced southwark. They were APP
parently taken by surprise again, just
as at the beginning of our offensive
from upper Siless and Hohensalzs.
In this connection our intelligence
service did good work by spreading
false rumors and preventing the enemy
from obtaining inform ton. The Rus
SLAMS md the Entente did not succeed
in getting news OF these movements. 1t
Il, indeed. extremely difficult to OBJ
tain accurate informs ton about the
enemy, especially in time for 1t to
be Of any use.
If 1t were otherwise, conducting a
campaign with inferior numbers would
not be such an extraordinary difficult
a IA nv yy,otf ut
Tannenberg. (The luck lay in having
the Russian wireless code, furnished by
the Czarina)
Some parts of the Russian army
which had retired toward Kovno thus
stood on our flank, and attacked us
necessarily with a view to holding up
our advance. 1t was in vain. They
were thrown back on the Kovno- olita
line by the troops protecting the flank
of the 10th army.
On the evening of the 14th it seemed
as though 1t would be possible to com
plete the envelopment of the enemy
due east of Augustowo. General Won
Eichhorn diverted his left wing in this
direction. On the 18th and 18th the
advance guard of the 21st A. G. ad-
vanced on the Seiny-Augustowo chaus-
see. far into the forest but here they
were overrun by Russian columns
taken prisoner.
TRAP CLOSED ON RUSSIA
Up to February 1S forces of the 10th
army pushed on boldly along the
northern edge OF the forest to the
vicinity OF Gordno. Here they took up
q position facing west with their rear
close to The fortifieatiors. This bold
and ventureSome movement cut off the
enemy's retreat. Other German troops
penetrated the forest from the north,
and after the capture of Augustowo
reached the Grodno-Lipsk chaussee
md the Bobr below krasnbor. fighting
all the way. At Lipsk the ring was
closed.
The position of our troops before
Grodno was exceedingly haza rdous.
On the Goth and 21st violent attacks
were made from the fortress where the
Russian reinforcements had assembled.
The Russians made repeated attacks
from the Augustowo Forest into which
they had poured in their retreat The
German troops stood firm, though suf-
fering heavy losses.
! 1t was a brilliant piece Of work for
the 21st A &C., and its leader, General
Fritz Won Below, who aftcrward made
good ms commandex-in-ehief In the
west, had reason to he proud of his
troops and his own foreefnlness. The
share of the glory with good con-
science.
A few days later the masses of Rus
sian troops surging in the Augustowo
Forest and defending themselves des-
perately surrendered. 4, The battle was
at an end " i4ess $500
ANOTHER ARMY CRUSHED
| The tactical results Of the winter
campaign In Masuira were impsrtant
10000 prisoners and many hundred
guns. The Russian 10th array had been
| anihilated. ana Russis's strength was
once more perceptibfy reduced.
| Meanwhile hesattack~on Osowiec and
the Bobr had not made any Roadway
In spite of our powerful artillery 1t de-
| fled frontal attack, as the commanding
heights on the southern bank OF the
| Bobr could not be reached at all points
Under these cirrunstan 1 could
not coneeaI from myself that this great
victory had been deprived of its full
| strategicsl results., Army headauar-
| ters were called ON to make grave nm
| difficult decisions.
In the first place the order was given
| to discontinue the attacks on tht sBobr
and Osowiec.
| The 10th army could not remain
| where it was. Very strong forces were
needed to protect our flanks on the east
| the Olita-Kowno direction but they
were not available. Communication
| with the rear and the conditions under
which the army was living had be-
| come too difficult owing to the in
| ciemency of the weather. They could
not be borne for lonK,
I HAS TO WITHDRAW ARMY
TIE r. ads and tracks were too bad
sAa Weather too unfavorable and the
hogse too exhausted. Our transpor,
eauic ~ get on at all on the high
r9a4s ash their thin surface of worn
stonea ssides we had very little
1 a vai1ahis
I yse ArA.s had to return to conditions
/ 0fdss ss.Sis It ceuld live and recuper-
B.. sss- All tt made 1t urgently neces-
| sary tart TAG 18th army shoulA face
y osss $50 wss hdraw.
A. sae yer beginning of the opera
| TINS orders I'D been given for the
| CO assrrcticH ct rear positions east OF
| Auyastcwn ssNl tkki reaching as fal
as the sssegnsa -he work was immed-
lately glt q nAsd by labor companies
as sapn Ss W. hsi conquered this dis
trict Thsse 10 ions--although only
in al sArlx stag now offered q cer-
ain time = ,ort. The 10th army
receive ar1zss IL its right wing tc
wheel ss fet'fs to ne prepared line
At til SAGE 4isne he 10th army had
received lnStf xeSienA to release forces
which sre Erg nifty required further
i west Ia ~ N9.i sian counter at
lacks hae tesau ezstest our long flank
on the sc sthsTS sxank r of West and
East PruSssa. afs.fs the Russians
ware kaanfr "a S3xr 80 the north OF