, 1922-10-08
Guess We Were There

TUE BRITISH have a very peculiar idea Of the
l. part We played in winning the world war, and
London Times, on the subject of the celebration OF
battle anniversaries. The London editor asks;
why have we in England no celebration 81 the
Aarne. No celebration of any among the won.
drous feats of arms in which we and our Freach
allies shattered and ground 70 powder the over.
Weening hosts OF aggressive and vainglorious Ger
many"
Americans have little interest whether these events
are celebrated in England or not, but they will
more than lift a casual eyebrow when they read
of how Eve and our French allies ground Ger
many to powder. There has been more than a sus
picion in the United States that American soldiers
took e prominent part in the shattering and grind
ing process. Indeed II has been accepted as a fact
In this country that II the American army had no,
made its heroic drive through the Argonne forest
and severei the principal line Of communication
by which Germany was feeding Its army Ia the
west the process Of shattering and grinding might
have been reversed.
The Germans did some SCATTERING and grinding
of their own in the spring and summer OF 1918. /
wac in full swing when the American army wa,
thrown into the breach in July Of that year and
turned the tide OF defeat into victory. Early in thai
year the "overweening hosts OF aggressive and
vainglorious Germany In three days drove tn,
British army from Belgian territory that II haf
taken many weary months and many thousand
of lives to win. A little later the French and Brit
ish together werc forced back towards Amiens over
a tremendous stretch OF terrain in a dashing drive
by those same "overweening hosts" In June thr
Germans went through the French lines from tho
Aisne TO the Marine and set the stage for a march
on Paris down the Marine valley. That, in brief.
was the way eve and our French allies ground
the Germans to 1918!
When the march to Paris was scheduled to start
the American army was on the ground and the
Germans had not proceeded far when they were
thrown back in confusion at Chateau Thierry and
along the line south Of Scissors where Marshal
Foch had decided to strike his decisive blow. Amer
lean divisions bore the brunt of that attack, al.
though aided by British and French soldiers. 1t
marked the turning point of the war. Shortly
thereafter came the battle of st. Mihiel when Goo.
900 men under General Pershing in two days swept
the Germans from a salient that they had held in
the face OF the allies for four years.
Then began the greatest single operation of the
war, the Meuse- Argonne offensive. Twenty.one
American divisions, many OF them for the first
time under fire, met and conquered 40 veteran Ger.
man divisions through the most difficult country
that any army ever fought over. The battle I lasted
six weeks, during which the Ar.cr'c"n> took cG.mm
sixth of November General Pershing 'ound him.
the enemy's main line of communications and moth
ing but surrender or an armistice could save hi
army from complete disaster he reported. Tho
Germans chose the latter alternative and an arms.
tice was signed five days later, on the eleventh.
1--WE and our French allies" appear TO have had
some assistance as they shattered and ground 10
powder" the German hosts. II history does not
deceive us, American soldiers not only saved the
allies from what appeared certain defeat in 1915,
but turned that defeat into victory. We expect no
word praise for what we did, but il would he
some consolation IL British editors would admit
that we were ~among those also present.