The Daily News. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 1918. CAPTURE OF ST. MIHIEL.
; One of the most sensational and ' successful operations of the war ( on the west front was the capture ; of St. Mihiel. It is not surprising ; that there was an intense thrill | throughout America at the news ; of the first offensive of the First j American Army, .and that the suc- : «ess achieved led to the somewhat | sanguine statement that the offenj sive .is the forenmner'jof an Amerij «an invasion -of Oeniiany is only of the spirit in ; ;**£«fsh. 4fae apapfcood of the United
| stud its determination to Mp in [bringing lie Germans to their knees, That our American Allies should have signalled their creation as a distinct army toy such a magnificent exploit is a source of ranch satisfaction to tlae armies of the other nations opposing the common enemy on the west front. It marks a new era in the struggle, and emphasises the torn of the tide. It is quite evident that the ■Americans, who have held several miles of this front almost from their first arrival in France, had studied the locality to some purpose. In 1915 the French vainly tried to reduce the St. Mihiel salient by attacks on the southern Hani:, and they also attacked the western flank, notably at Les Eparges. There is no question that the French failure was due to the enemy s great strength, which has now been considerably reduced. It would seem that the Americans discovered the most vulnerable P and hit the very heart of th& salient at Thiaucourt, with the result that that stubborn wedge collapsed. At the same time it was most fitting that the French should have taken part in the accomplishment of the task which had previously defied their gallantry. That the blow was a staggering one to Germany may be taken for granted, and her absurd attempt to explain away the defeat, by claiming that it was a premeditated evacuation, only shows how the Teutonic authorities catch at any straw, for it is estimated that there were six enemy divisions operating at the salient, with a total strength of 60,000, while the fact that over 15,000 prisoners were captured completely disposes ox the 'evacuation according to plan escuse. Moreover, it would hardly be likely that the Germans would voluntarily open up a way for their enemies to Metz, and as long-range guns are now bombarding that important fortress town the significance of the new movement at once becomes apparent, ■the salient was attacked from two points, and the French appear to have worked in complete co-opera-tion with the Americans in their irresistible attack. St. Mihiel is on the east bank of the Meuse twenty miles southward of Verdun. Immediately south-west of the town is the central fort of the chain of fortifications of the line of the Meuse, of which the great fortresses of Verdun and Toul form the two ends. The strength or the German position is mainly attributable to its good railway communications with Toul and Verdun, the railway from Metz acting as a feeder to four branches one from Thiaueourt south; one from Vigneulles south; one southwest, and another west, Thiaucourt being the key. This brief description will at once convey a general impression of the importance of the victory, whereby the whole of the remarkably complete railway communications of the salient have been crippled at a single blow, and the first step taken towards that great outflanking movement which bids fair to be the beginning of the end. All the speculation as to where the Germans may find a strong line whereon to make a stand against frontal attacks may be dismissed as having no value in the face of the great outflanking ' movements which can now be undertaken. Metz, the chief city of German Lorraine, is now actually under hre, and it may well be remembered that in the first weeks of the war the Germans, pursuing the French, whom they had beaten near Metz, crossed the Meuse and established a position at St. Mihiel, which they retained until the advent of the Americans, and thus guarded the left flank of all their armies in France, so long as they aid not fall back behind the Meuse. They also by the possession of St. Mihiel kept the war out of their own borders at this strategically vital point. When' the Americans claim that theij* success is the forerunner of the march to Berlin, they mean that not only has the outflanking of the Germans, become possible, but also an entry into German territory by an invasion of Alsace-Lorraine It is significant that the Franco-, American victory at St. Mihiel immediately preceded the launching of the Austrian peace offensive, undoubtedly engineered by Germany. It is hard to believe these two events were coincidences; rather may they be regarded as cause and effect.
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Taranaki Daily News, 18 September 1918, Page 4
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813The Daily News. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 1918. CAPTURE OF ST. MIHIEL. Taranaki Daily News, 18 September 1918, Page 4
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