Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1919-08-04
COURAUD AND e.
YANKS WON WAR
Colonel Hayward Asserts Foe
Was Lured Into a
ShambleS.
KNEW ABOUT GERMAN PLANS
Through Prisoners French General
Learned of Exact Hour of Huns
Great Offensive and Beat
Them to 1t.

New York.-The story of how Cen
eraI Gouraud obtained through prison
ers word of the exact hour at which
the last great German offensive of the
war was to be launched, and how, with
the aid of American troops, he hurled
back the advancing hordes, was told
by Col. William Hayward of the Three
Hundred and Sixty-ninth infantry (cQl-
| ored) the former Fifteenth New York.
This German drive, launched on July
10, was the turning point of the war,
Colonel Hayward declared. Reinforced
| by released prisoners from Russia, the
foe was at the zenith of his power.
The blow came east of Reims.
I'VE knew this attack was coming,
and knew it was to be the maximum
German effort" Colonel Hayward said.
About one hour before l o'clock on
the night of July IA we captured Ger
man prisoners in raid. They told us
when the attack would come.
Beat Them to It,
1.-THE artillery preparation was to
start at midnight and last for five
hours and twenty-five minutes. So
General Gouraud started our artillery
fire five minutes ahead of theirs.
"That put them up in the air. Fritz
had to send to Hans to ask what the
change in his plans meant.
"When the French knew when this
ho%
remain a thin blue line. 1t seemed
that all the soldiers and all the can
mons in the world crawled over and
took position back of US.
General Gouraud saved the world
for civilization. | have heard stories
about how hard he had to work to
convince General Petain and Marshal
Foch that his plan was right.
''But he took chance-the greatest
chance any soldier ever took in the
world. He took his troops out of the
! front line trenches over front of fifty
kilometers.
"Some of these trenches had cost
thousands of lives Men had toiled
for weeks and months to gain these
positions. He abandoned them when
he was sure where the attack was
| coming.
"And when this occurred he had
| the Three Hundred and Sixty-ninth
| American infantry on one end of that
! fifty kilOmeter line and the One Hun
dred and Sixty-fifth on the other.
"When the troops were withdrawn
from the front line only patrols were
! left. On my regiments front, instead
! of 1900 men, only sixteen volunteers
! were left. They were left in specially
reinforced trenches with signal rock
cts, gas shells, and a few machine
guns.
"And so the German fire fell on
| these front line trenches for five hours
and twenty-five minutes-and those
shells fell on empty trenches, except
for those patrols who stayed there ex-
pecting to be killed. but who, strangely
enough, practically all came back to
| US in the morning.
| Cut TO Pieces.
| "When the hour for the German in
fantry attack came they set off the
| gas bombs and the signal rockets. Our
artillery saw the signal rockets and
cut loose on the massed German in
| fantry.
"The German masses were literally
smashed by the terrific French artil-
lery fire, and the gas shells our boys
had left smothered them with the dead
ly mustard gas.
"They never got through to our
second lines. Our boys sat on the para
pets of the trenches and watched the
| SHOW.
"But on the other end they did get
through They crashed into the Rain
bow division and the One Hundred and
Sixty-fifth infantry (the old SiXty-ninth
New York;, met them hand to Hand
in some of the most terrible fighting
of the war-fghting fit for that terri
bic battle
General Gourauds army stopped
the German rush and in an address
to his troops General Gouraud pointed
out that the American troops in his
army were my little old Three Hun
dred and Sixty-ninth, the One Hundred
! and Sixty-fifth, and others of the Rain
bow division, and some railway ar
tillery batteries"