Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-10-04
No Wonder Germany Quit
by MAJOR FRANK c. HiAHIN
OF the Army Recruiting Station

by MAJOR FRANK c. HfAHIN
II OF the Army Recruiting Station
Our dear friend, Lieutenant Gen
eral Fuchs, Commanding the Army
Group holding the st. Mihiel Sal
lent when we attacked the morning
OF September 18th got quite excited
that morning and told the truth in
his reports. Late in the afternoon
and during the night there was an
entirely different tone to his re-
ports. AT first he admitted We were
breaking through and had annihil-
ated the nth Division, but in the
latter reports all was rosy except
for one danger point. He made a
great to-do because the 5th and
192nd Divisions had repulsed our
attacks with great slaughter. Now
| 1t so happened that those two divi-
sions were at the tip of the Salient
end TO attack was made there. The
| French sent over some patrols to
see if the Boche had retired yet,
and from time to time they kept
| feeling out the Boche. In his later
reports he carefully abstained from
| mentioning that part of the front
| where we really were attacking 9TH
er than to say that the situation
was not quite clear. He was very
much afraid that we were going to
| Ireak through the Michel Stelluns
and was so pleased because his de-
fense splans, carried out to perfec-
ton by the 31st and the 123d Di-
Visions had stopped our attack. The
poor simp wouldn't state that on
| the r'ght where he thought we were
! going to break through, that we had
| rot moved from nine o'clock that
! morning as we were on our ob)ec-
tlves. There absolutely wasn't a
| thing in front of us except the re-
serve er:illery on the Michel StSi-
inng. II was after IL a. m. before
AIRY OF hls 123rd division Appeared
in front of us and then 1t was only
small patrols He reported that at
diffcr' nj points our attack had en-
t.rely broken down and that the
aSs:tulting troops had been diIni-
hilated in the barbwire. AS a mat
ter of fact at no point was the at
tack held up in the wire and st no
point was it even delayed for more
than q few minutes. He repo tied
that the 35th Austro- Hungarian di-
vision had entirely broken up our
attack on their front, and I happen
to know that he afterward cited
that division for it wonderful de-
fense. Our official report shows
that we took 2,596 prisoners ont
OF that division and had six men
Filled and forty-one wounded in all
tho troops who met the Austl ians
Just think OF that. a total OF ~
casualties to take over twenty-five
hur dred prisoners. He repo, ted
that as a result of their heavy and
accurate fire our batteries had been
silenced and the fire had COM
pictei.' subsided on the entire front
of attack" If we were held up
and annihilated in the barbwirc 1t
IS very strange that the entire army
lost a little less than 1000 inen
killed, wounded. and missing. and
that VIC took about 10000 prison.
er.. That we could have done what
he feared. penetrate the Michel
Stellrng, there is no doubt
run,l.er of my patrols went throug
il the morning OF the 18Th and did
not get back until late in the ar
ternoon. The Boche were at tnat
tilae Just starting to man the Stei-
lrns with widely separated COMBAT
Creep. Even at that Late hour we
could have broken through in force
and we were all perfectly furious
a. not being allowed to go on. we
could see no reason why we shoul1
; net have penetrated that poSlti On
, and dug in on the north side o1
, /. instead of on the south SIDE. vi
. course we had no idea the Meuse'
, Areorna offensive was coming tWc
weeks later. and would need every
avaiIahle man. whereas II we hao
broken through the Boche would
hnvo made such desperate efforts tt
: DIR We us south of the Stellung as tt
, have made impossible the Meuss-
Argonne success Now on the morn
, 'pg of September 13th. Genera
: Fuchs rerorted that the casuaiue'
[ for the 18th had been Al killed
3 eI13g wounded, and 1,153 missing. 1T
r this report he made no mention o.
/ the 77th and 10th divisions which
had both been practically wiped ou
\ | of existence. He reported two gum
/ hid burst and been abandoned
E otherwise he lost no artillery as the
5 retircr1ent and evacuation had pro
: oeeded according to plan" and We
my battalion alone took 21 perfect
5 " good undamaged guns witt
\ oodles Of shclls for them. III III
/ only had 1.152 missing where dit
Y we get our 10000 prisoners. II n
: only had ~ killed where did ~
: get the 800 odd dead Boche w
n Hurled in one trench in my Dat
Il talon sector. strongly suspeo
n that General Fuchs reputation 70
truth telling is not of the best"