FIGHTING LINE IN FRANCE

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2407, 12 March 1915, Page 6

FIGHTING LINE IN FRANCE

GERMAN POSITIONS

RUINED TOWNS AND VILLAGES

A special correspondent of a. London daily, who visited tho lighting line in France, writes as follows, under date January 16: —

In tho course of the journey which I am now making I have been able to ascertain the precise line of the German positions southwards from Roye, and cast agqin to Soissons along the Aisne. Roye itself is still in tho unhappy state of being taken and retaken almost daily. South of'that the Germans hold Beuvraigues. At Lassigny the situation is curious, and illustrative of tho fact that tlie whole line lias become much more irregular in outline than it was. The town of Lassigny is held by the enemy, but it is an advanced point, becausp from Canny-sur-Matz through Gury to Plessis do Roye there is a ring of French positions from which the recent temporarily successful attack on Noyon was conducted. Continuing south the French hold Mareuil-la-Motte, Elincourt, and Ribecourt, but the Germans are in Dreslincourt. They have again taken Noyon, with which I shall deal later on, and they of course hold Guiscard, with the outlying villages of Bussy and Vauchelleß. Opposite Ribecourt the enemy is in Chiry-Ours-camps and Pimprez. Going towards the east along the lino of the Aisne the Germane hold Carlepont, part of Tracy le Val and Nampcel. Here his line slopes sharply southwards towards the river, for he is in Antreches, Moulin-sous-Touvent, and St. Christophe, overlooking Vic-sur-Aisne. Thence the enemy's line now runs to CufGes and Crouy as a result of this week's operations. Along the Aisne valley new places are coming within the zone of bombardment, and this week Attichy for tho timo was damaged by shell. On Thursday many of the inhabitants had already left, and others were preparing to follow their example. The German fire has done extensive damage to such towns as Ressons, Ambleny, Saconic, Pernant, and Vauxbuin, which are at a considerable distance to" the south' side of the Aisne. Ruined Towns and Villages. It is astonishing, however, all along this countryside to note the courage, or one might say the Stoic philosophy with •which the _ peasants continue about their normal avocations. The air may be alive with shell, the village under fire, yet one finds work in tho fields going on much as usual. East of Soissons in the course of this week's operations the Germans have occupied. Missy-sur-Aisne, but previously they severely damaged the church there, a fine example of medieval architecture chiefly noted for its facade, on- which are. carvings i illustrating the. life of Saint Radegonde, considered to be very fine work. Vailly, another of these devoted small towns, which have been taken and retaken many times, is practically a heap of ruins, especially the part overlooking the river. Btaisne remains .fairly intact, but such places as Ciry-Salsogne, Sermoise, Chasseiny, etc., where the British troops once operated, are all destroyed. The chauteau of Presles no longer exists. All along tho Aisne the aspect of the villages is sad in the extreme, yet quite a proportion of the inhabitants, and especially the older folks, refuse to leave their homes. Naturally they havo to be fed by tho military, because the/ have no means of communicating with tho outer world; since all movement of civilians within the extremo zones of tho armies has now become practically impossible. Beaurieux is still in French hands, for the advance here has been pushed on up the- Foulon,. Valley, where the trenches arc barely forty yards apart, and by Craonelle the Allies' line goes to Berry-au-liac, Cra'onno is neither French nor German , for any practical purpose, because the situation of_ the town renders it untenable by !. either side. To the north, to the east,' and to the south-east of Berry-au-Bac lie the plains of Reims. Situation Unchanged. In short, from Peronne, Roye, round the corner, and along the Aisne to Vailly tho situation to-day is practicallywhat it was in September, neither better nor worse, l'he only difference is : that the line has become a little less straight in outline, and displays a certain number of more or less sharp deviations, which apply both ways. Just at the moment all eyes are turned towards Soissons, where the more spectacular events are in progress, but at various other points operations are going on which have quite as important a bearing on the general scheme of things. As already indicated, there was reason to foresee this- comparative success by the Germans in the region of Soissons. It is the German tactical reply to the menaced advance by the French in the crucial Berry-au-liac corner. General von Kluck, I- am assured, has concentrated from his base at. Laon at least two full army corps, and was able to do this rapidly. The effcct of -it can bo appreciated when, according to the official communique, _ the French had only three brigades in that particular district. It is considered by competent judges that the French advance, which comprised the assault of tho 132metre hill, was pushed forward a trifle rapidly, so that the foremost troops laid themselves open to severe attack by the enemy, posted upon dominating positions on both sides. Further, the official communique distinctly indicates that the French were not in sufficient strength to consolidate any advantage gained into any real break through. As already pointed out, the mere carrying of a certain number or a certain length of trenches cannot result in a decisive advantage unless strongly backed up aiid developed with determination.

Von Kluck's Objective. In military-circles General von Kluck is admitted to be the best tactician the Allies have had against them in France, and it is considered that his present object is not to break through with any intention of advancing upon Paris, but that, should be succeed at Soissons, he would rather bear eastwards in the hope of retaking Reims and the Champagne country, which has always been coveted by the Germans. Not only so, but south oi' Reims the enemy could, find stronger defensive lines than he has now. This battle at Soissons, therefore, is bound to be fiercely contested, because the French from their Berry-au-Bac positions liavo also hopes of profiting by a weakness in the German line. _ Incidentally, there is a similar situation to the west, where the enemy trying to break through to Amiens has to counter the French effort from Tracy-le-Val. In this ho has so far been successful. The fighting north and north-east of Soissons this week has been particularly

severe. To appreciate it, it should be noted that Cufiics and Crouy, those two places so prominently mentioned, are only a mile and a half from the city. The French never succeeded entirely in taking the 132-metre hill, and when von ICluck's fresh men arrived in masses they were a bio to sweep the little plateau clear. Fighting is now taking place in tho suburbs of Soissons, and my information is to the ell'cct that picked regiments of Prussians are engaged, men who will face tho most desperate kind of liand-o-haiid work. Tiiey arc helped by geographical conditions. In their attack they Were able to use three excellent arteries of communication. First, the national hiß'li voad from Soissons to Chaujiy, tying to the west of the 132-metre^.

hill; second, the main railway line running north along the small River Lette, in the Crouy Valley: and third, the national high road from Soissons to Laon, to the eastward of that. The withdrawal of the French troops across the Aisne also gives the enemy possession of the high road from Soissons to Neuchatel. Behind the German advance lay the higher hills, where their heavy guns are posted, by the aid of which, and with possession of the 132-nietre hill, they could' sweep the valleys leading I southwards to Soissons and the Aisne. The French Positions. The French strong positions are on the southern side of the Aisne, along ctests which dominate the high road from Soissons to Reims by way of Braisne and Fismes. In most places tlio heavy guns can sweep tlio river banks, but von Khiclc will in all probability not try to cross at Bucy-le-Long, near Crouy, where his forces are right on the,river, but rather faiths city of Soissons itself, where lie would be more protected against artillery fire- Apparently the recent increase in the French heavy artillery has been met by a still further increase the German big guns. The enemy was beginning to oe put in an inferiority in this respect,' but the balance has been very fully restored. If thero be anything in which the belligerents must strain every nerve,'it is in maintaining the utmost effort in the matter cf turning out artillery and aeroplanes. Superiority in these is of extreme importance. The full effect of this German effort on the Soissons district extends eastwards to Missy-sur-Aisne, now in the enemy's hands,_ and the ruined fort of Conde, which lies to the north of the river and was at one time the objeot of much fierce fighting until the Germans were forced further north towards the end of September. The enemy is also strongly posted on t'he hills at Braye, where he has much much heavy artillery. These places are all in proximity to Vailly, which was the British base when our forces hand; ed over that part of tho country to our Allies in the first days of October to proceed rapidly to the extreme left to counter the attempted German move through Flanders. The British had pushed well north of tho Aisne here and held strong positions, leaving heavy guns to continue the good work, the heaviest, or at all events, tho longestranged, guns then operating oil the side of the Allies. >

Of course, the devoted city of Soissons. is still under bombardment, which lias naturally become more intense during this German attack. The townspeople are bein<* encouraged to leave wherever possible, because any second coming of the Prussians is always accompanied by increased efforts of wanton destruction. The River Aisne is in flood, of course, and at many points is already overpassing its banks, but it is openly stated that the of the pontoons was not caused by the flood, but by German artillery, fire. , in t-kis respect the most -nsettu weapon from the German standpoint is an Austrian howitzer of some 305 to 310 millimetres, which seems the most mobile big gun they have. The Aisne, though in flood, is never a rapid stream, and with an efficient force of engineers, in which the French are particularly strong, there was no necessity to fear that such an elastic thing as a pontoon bridge' could not be maintained with attention.' The .approach of the German artillery, however, ■ rendered it dangerous to depend' on the bridges.