The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE TUESDAY, AUGUST 27, 1918 "WE SHALL CONTINUE."

Taihape Daily Times, 27 August 1918, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

TUESDAY, AUGUST 27, 1918 "WE SHALL CONTINUE."

(With which is rceorporated The Taihape Post and WalnratJflo News)..

"All goes Well," is the exclamation ■made by Generalissimo Foe'h to a number of war correspondents who interviewed him on Saturday." Our operations have developed well; we shall continue them," he added, and then the great soldier went on to give that praise 'his armies had so admirably earned. The correspondents had been seeing the outward signs of success, and now they were being let into the secret of the inner .meaning, and no words could have impressed them more; than those four so emphatically spoken, "Wc' shall continue them." Now, whatever doubt there may have been about Foeh's intention to persist in his offensive, pushing it right home to the full accomplshment of the vast strategic plan that is daily being further unfolded to US, there can be no such doubt after reading FocVs plain, unqualified utterance of last Saturday. Even the tyro in military movements will have quite realised thnt there has been momentous meaning in each of the offensives Foch has launched, and there is no greater corroboration of this than the intelligence cabled stating that the Germans are already fortifying the lino of the Meuse. From the fact that this very line is already receiving marked attention from our aeroplane bombing squadrons it is strongly suggested that occasion may arise for an offensive up the valley of that river from, the neighbourhood of Verdun. The Crown Prince's army to the westward of Verdun, at Rhcims, is in obvious difficulty from Mangin's wedge and flanking movement, which will necessarily render the adjoining front'dangerously weak. With their right flank in flight for safety, the Germans eastward of Ehcims will need a pivot somewhere near Verdun to swing back upon to maintain some sort of line with the retreating Crown Prince. It is a great deal to hope for, but a successful mission up the- Meuse would almost certainly result in pushing the last German out of France. However, developments in the south-eastern corner are not far enough advanced to enable any reliable opinion to be formed, at the same time we need not overlook the fact that the four offensives hitherto launched have all been surprises most 'disastrous to the enemy. At Bapaumo General Byng is taking his revenge; in three days he has brought his army to the outskirts of the town, capturing many important positions, inflicting the maximum casualties, besides bagging over five thousand prisoners each day. It is very plain that "fjhlcre is siomethinjg desperately the matter with the Kaiser's armies; it is said that they are waiting and hoping for Foch's enterprise to frizzle out, but that great general strikes mortal fear into them by his statement, "Wc shall continue." There are signs that Ludendorff immensely under-estimated the Allied strength, and as grossly overestimated his own. He tried to hold lines in "his rear time after time which the Allies promptly over-ran, until ho can see nothing safe nearer than a iine along the Meuse. If he has decided upon the Mouse line, he might just as well have made it a line on the Rhine, for he will be in such a dishevelled condition by the time he reaches the Meuse that chances of successful holding will be very much against him. We are not sure that war students of Germany are not at this moment receiving their last lesson from a hated Frenchman, for their armies are disrupted and in confusion; their generals are abashed iand perplexed, and the High Command sees no other way out than a rapid retreat to the Meuse, which they have commenced too fortify in readiness for the,

remnants of their armies that may be left. At every point of 'attack our arms are most gratifyiugly successful; we have four separate offensives now proceeding, and, from what General' Foch says, we may expect others when opportune occasions arise.