North Carolina Newspapers

THE UNION COUNTY PAPER EVERYBODY NEEDS IT "THE UNION COUNTY PAR EVERYBODY READS IT he Monroe Jo J i m mm m PUBLISHED TWICE EACH WEEK TUESDAY AND FRIDAY VOL. 24-N0.47. MONROE, N. C, TUESDAY, JULY 16, 1918. $1.50 PER YEAR CASH. KPKCTKI KEXKWAL OF GER MAN' offkxsivk has um;i .n Heree lUttle lit Igr-ss on lioth Side of the Famous City of liheiiii Amrt-lfuns Fighting . . . :.:ntly. Are Successful. Dy the Associated pies.- The x pecte-d renewal of the German oCen Hive in France .u begun. F.etce bat tlts ore in process ou uoth sides of trie famous cathedial city of Rheiiii. which sioce th? ttrt offensive along tie marne has stood the apex of a sharp sul ent Into tli. German Imp West of Kheims ihe Gennaus with the- pressure of larg? numbers of troops, the unleashing of which was preceded by a veritable hail of high i xplosives aud gas shell?, have been enabled to cross tie Main at several places. East ol the city, Hwever, ttiey have been relel lor tne smallest oi gains by the tenacious ic-sistance if the aefeadets id the lin AIt. ;,eiher the two battlcf.unU aggregate about 65 miles in length. A MER1CANS S U CCKS J FU L Ann-lean troops are fighting val iantly on the sectors they have been holding and at two points have met with iiotahle suites. At Vauv they not only broke doi a violent attack ty the enemy, but draw 1:1m back several hundred junls -uid (n!y it- turned to their former positions when the advance of the German. southeast of Chateau-Thiery across the Marne i lade the reeiceirpation e-f tienches of straectie valu-?. Along the Marne. between town of ed with Americans who first dclusr josoy and tne river auriueiin. wnere ed their onnonents with machine eun tiie Germans crossed the Maine, the hre. then leaped forward to disiupt Americans, in a strong counter auacx completely, the blow at this section f.fivej by tne enemy to tne rigtit nana that had been in careful preparation i i me tireaui. .i ouier punu.s hi'-iis ror more than tn rtv davs. ALL DOUBTS AT REST Meanwhile meaner reports from London said the Marne had been rrosse-d by the enemy at several points. Details were awaited with been stopped, but hurled back by American counter-attacks along the .Marne. At the White House, the president lead the account with Interest that did not wane. At the war depart ment Secretary Baker. Gen. March chief of staff, and other high officers at the department received eagerly the brief glimpses of the battle flash ed across the country in press bul letm from the battle- front. Ever line of the Associated Press report which was promptly relayed to them as the wires brought it in, was stud ied with growing delight as it be came evident that the enemy had met with a. decided check in the first rush of his greatest effort thus far. GENERAL LIGGETT'S CORPS CREDITED The fact that credit for stopping the heaviest parts of the assault thus far reported belongs to men of the first American army corps added to the feeling of elation officials had difficulty in concealing. The prompt and haid-driven couiv ter-attacks of the American troop at two points sent a flow of enthusi asm through the whole war depart ment when the word first came. Be- foie the results were known, the fact that the counter-attacks had been launched was cheering. It showed t hr Americans were meeting theii firr-t ereat test like veterans and that the German attempt to overrun them had tailed to disorganize or demor alize their fighting power. Then came word that at Vaux, not lne:r only had the enemy been stopped but his advancing infantry had colid- the river they used to the groates :idvantage their machine guns against enemv elements which were crossing the river on pontoon bridges, killing or wounding many of them. In the rnnntei-.atfurW niar Fnssnv hetween i mm ..t.H i 5io nermann ueie madi.. " apprehension. Hour by hour prisoners by 'the Americans. The cap- Mjie story filtered in but the bulletin UmA enntinrent Included a mm-1 tJEt told Of the hul ling ba k of the i,ite i..iPnHe Aafr The French ten- fp in the Conde sex-tor where his .ral in command on this rotor sent n,sn had pushed bark the Amer n cnnrratiilH'nrv lneRsaee to the ten- M" ollt '" salient they held e.l in command of the American "PPosite Jaulgonne, did not come un irnnna til tonight. Its message set nil doubts ,.r. x-,-,.T,,.J t.vl-i! ' iMt. Again the enemy had been l.i; .n."LUWO out-matched by the Americans. He The Germans In addition to their Vas driven back to the river rim tremendous expenditure of explosive and many prisoners, trapped prob and gas snens useo numerous lanits aDiy Dy the destruction- of their against the lines of the defenders and bridges behind them were taken. also ppent'i witn numerous navai mina Kinvha nl tuent a nf towna nnd cit in. t-Av hchlnd the battle line, droi)- Tonight Secretary Baker. General mine unon them shells from 10 to Marfh an r officials were late in 12-inch nieces tne department, studying the map The details of the stragetic scheme I"n '' this first great trial of the Germans have in view have not ul American army was iaKing snape, vi hoen nnfniHrd it seenif. anna- " mo uetaii9 came, tne rrencn rnt however, that the main object- official statement fully confirmed the ive in the first stages of the offensive cheering unofficial reports that had Is the throwing of their lines south- previously. , u snoweu ine v.er- ward on both sides of Rheims, envel- hd been virtually held fast .ping that Ity and forcing Its capitu- along the whole great extent of the Tt.e nininir nf the amitherii fighting line they had selected . At ir.b nr the Maine and Riralehtenini! 'h close of the first day of the bat ..t.o,H" ,.t thir hattio line to- tie the enemy was no nearer his ob- a v.rfn oiu n.nv he in the run- Jective. apparently, then when he ..ra.,. nf the fiernian hleh command. Poured his masses forward at day iic if these movements would be break !,r Pre.it sfmcetie value to the Ger- Further desperae fighting is ex ....... it h ! intenrie.1 hv them nltl- pected. It is not conceivable her ' ...1,. i oMemnt tndiive on to that the German high command will be content to'abondon a project of av, r nnnvT.- the scope of to-day's enterprise with u.n uinr.u rivw.o out repeated effort9 to overcome his Wfnle tne uermans are initial failure. The outstanding fact their drive In the south the British however. Is that for the first timi uround Ypres is pecking away at the sinre fnt German thunderbolt was German lines with success as regains haunrhed against the British In March the raining or ground ami tno iaKing the cnomy has failed to make any of prisoners; the French and Italians appreciable advance in 12 hours of in Albania are keeping up their spec- fighting, although it has always been tacular drive against tne Ausuians neld ,nat no major offensive proper nnd the Fiench and Italians in me nv sheltered under artillery prepara mountain region oi tne iianan men- ton couid be stopped short . ...o horaeaini' the eneillV uH.h natro attacks of considerable ENEMY MEASURE TAKEN violence and bombardments. In the What tomorrow may bring forth tew Instances where the Austrlans in cannot be told. No detailed statement this region lately have tried to take of conditions along the great battle rtragetie positions they have met with front has come in. There Is a firm imat instant renulse. In Palestine, conviction here, however, that the Tnrkiah nnd German troops penetra- enemy's measure has been taken defi ted British positions north of Jericho, nitely and that the line will hold no but almost Immediately were ejected matter wnai rorce ne nuns against it riih the loss of more than 500 men Territory may be surrendered, but de made prisoner. Including 260 Ger- cisive military victory is believed to ...ana v be farther away for the Germans to British and American troops are night than it has been at any time now in control of the entire Murman since the high command sent Its rorce rni in northern Russia, according forward in March. tn unofficial advicn. It is through The care with which preparations this territory that it is hoped uili- for this assault were made is sharply ,,.neiv to lcn.l alii to Russia by way brought out by the intensive boin- of the Arctic ocean. In violent fight- bardment of the positions in the rear inir with the bolshevik troops in mid- of the Franro-Amerlcan-Italian lines die Russia. Cze'ho-Slovak forces have with great German naval guns, which rantured the important comnieiciai nurlea sneus into towns more man u city of Kazan, wnicn lies on me v oina nines oarn gi me ueieiiuuig mun, VTKKX HIT roiri.KTF.I LKTTF.lt OF AI'I'KFjflATlOX IjMlies Are Kept Verj liUk) Sailor IWty K reN.ses Through The Jour nal His Appmiation of the Kind ness Shown Him by Moiimm Lariie. liver, 43 miles east of Moscow. ;KltMAN AUK HI RLKI) HACK Probably much of the 3-day period the Germans have taken Jo niuke ready was devoted to moving tnese . ..... ,..,w Neaponi into position and setting HY THK AMMlll." mM-i-ir.i . . . f . fi Te work had te be done by night to avoid !ev Kerelveil With Much Klutioii at the ceaseless watchfulness of Ameri can and r rencn airmen WaKlifiifttoii Wilson MihIi Inter ested All Official IMlghtci! Washington, July 15. An air of elation was apparent In government circles tonight as Associated Press dispatches from France unfolded the rtory of the valiant stand of Ameri can troops along the Marne, where they hold the left flank of the great battle front, while the French army, The guns probably come from the reserve stock and are handled by de tachments of sailors from the fleet. There is no warrant, officials believe, in any sugestion that the Germ;n fleet has been stripped of grent can non to provide the means of blasting away from the attack. FOCH FULLY FOREWARNED The fa?t that stubborn resistance aided near Rheims by Italian divis- met every t'.eriuan rush all nint;g the Ions, stood fast over the far greater line shows that tloentM Foch was extent of the line they defended i 'illy forewarned oi the general terri- against fierce assaults by the enemy, tory In which the aUa(k was to Official advices were slow and no develop. It appears certain that he formal report on the German effort hud his reserves clos" up and out- to drive the jaws of the great plneerl generalled the ej?niy in movement about Rheims on a 6o-i factor. mile front was available at a late Officials were M.onely Inclined to ri our. Piess reports made It clear, nizht to helkve that the present Cer- however, that thu enemy had not only man effort is Intended only as a fore- to the German jeople, The Canteen Hut Is almost complet ed and nas been In use for ten davs, The past tew days have- been very busy ones with the workers. Mrs. D. Warren's team, under the direction of Miss Elizabeth Sikes, served tea, watermelon and candy to eleven trains on Saturday, averaging 500 men to the train. Mrs. Chas. Ice man's team gave cakes, tea, water melon and cigarettes to five trains Sunday. A cumber of ladies remain ed at the station until a late hour Sunday night to welcome the first N C. boys from Camp Sevier into the lnr Heel State. In addition to serving troop trains Mrs. Nan Carlile and several other Red Cross workers meet the regular trains to offer fruit and smokes to the sailors going tc and from the na val stations when on furlough. Pos sibly some think this is useless, but. according to a letter received by The Journal from Mr. Matthew Pitts who passed through Monroe some time go, "it shows that the people on the outside are behind us with their very noarts and oiils. Here Is a splendid opportunity for the farmers interest ed in this phase of Red Cross work to help by donating any kind of fruit they may have. The Canteen work eis will appreciate any donations of this sort, because the fruit can al ways be us?d. The letter from Mr. Pitt follows: To the Editor of The Monioe Jour nal: Dear Editor: It was my pleas ure while on my furlough some time ago to stop for a few hours in your beautiful little city. It Is my wish to express my thanks through the col umns of your paper for the loyal treatment I received while in Monroe. My stop there, though a very short one. was exceedingly enjoyable. I wish to say on behalf of myself as well as all enlisted men that such treatiient as I received at the hands of a few good people that I ac- identally met at the depot in Monroe, goes greatly to lessen our home-sick ness and loneliness. For when we stop over in a place and are treated as I wa3 in your little city it shows that the people on the outside are behind Us with their very hearts and souls. I suppose some of the readers of your paper will be interested to know little something about life in this grand and glorious navy of ours. I like naval life fine. I have been across the deep blue sea only once but I think I will have an opportuni ty to go again at an early date. 1 am at present stationed at the Naval Base. Hampton Rhodes, Va. It Is a iieautiful place. We are quartered in large barracks. Sixty men are quar tered In each barrack. Everything is iade just as home-like as it Is possi ble to do so under such circumstances. My special rating Is musician. I am a solo violinist in the Naval Base Or chestra. We have a fifty piece Or chestra here and do our bit by playing almost eight hours per day, except, of course, when we are allowed a day off for the purpose of washing our clothes and writing letters to our lov ed ones at home. We have a branch Y. M. C, A. building on the reserva tion. This Is the place we all make lor just as soon as our daily duties are over. Here we are allowed to en joy ourse-lves nnd write letters to our home folks. Things are very home like nt the "Y," as we sailors cail it. And If a fellow Is tired or homesick after a long day's work or drilling he looks forward to the hour that he can spend at the "Y" with great, enjoy ment. There is a very large Aeronautic station connected with the Naval Base. One can look skyward most anv hour between suns and count nt least five flying machines. Hesides all the different modes and types oi flying machines they have dirigible balloons. It Is very funny to see a clumsy balloon trying to compete with a sueed.v monoplane. Thanklnir the k nd peonle of Mon roe aeain for the kind treatment I received while In your city, I remain Matthew Pitts, Naval Base, Hamp ton Rhodes, Va., care of Band. LT. PARK KH'S K.VPKIUKNt KS IX FIRST AMERICA X ATTACK Hun Attempt to Shell American Hon. iiltals. With the American Army on the Marne, July 15, (By the Assiclated ress. The Germans apparently de llberately attempted to shell several of the American hospitals near tne Marne front today. A number ol hells fell Intermittently a short dis tance from them. They did no dam age beyond disturbing the patients. 'inner for a laicr assault to th-j north tow aid the channel ports. If it proves successful in dislodging thj traneo- It.ilimi defendern of Rheinii by later direct assaults or by pressing their iiu'er movement, it is argued that ihe Franco-Bri'Nli reserves h ick ol Amiens might U' drawn into he de fense of Pails, weakening r'.te line in e Albert rc-t'-m which is lejrarded as the certain prime objective of the hole German p'un of campaign. The German .iHeial statement ic- Ight added to t.it Impression that a striking drfensiie victory had been wen on the fir it day of the battle. Its meager claim that "parti of ttie tv..m.h tw.tlllnnu" had he n n r.ti'3- this vital j(ed was ln vivid contrast with the ex tent of the eflort made, it was read Mr. PiukerV Platoon in Kii-a Wave of the Att4M k I'w.iMl of Hio Men. Went Oxrr the Top with "lUbbii- Hitiifing" Yell Krh American the Kiiller.t .f Ten German (Note It will be reuiem:.e-red that &am Parker sail, d for Fiance with me nrst contingent of U. s. Reserve officers last Septen her. In a lettw to nis brother, Mr. J. J. Parker, he gives an unusually clear description of the nrst actuaJ drive made solely by Americans against Germany. In ad dition to the details of the attack Mr. Parker gives us a splecaid character ization of the American soldiei his eagerness to fight, his indomitable courage a-nd happy disposition as con trasted with the heartlessness of the. German Brute. C n anothe r page of The Journal a young Raleit-h lieuten ant pictures his experience in this same attack but not in such a graphic way as the Mon oe boy does.) Piobably you think I have forgot ten you; but you will understand why I have not written in the last few days, if you do not already under stand by having ueesed it iiom the I newspapers. The past two months have been filled with adventure and it ended in a glorious climax the fust attack of the American soldiers in the war. No doubt but you have had e;ulte minute details of the attack in the papers; so win right shy ot the thint.' that the censor might cut. I will tell you just about my personal experiences My platoon was in the first wave of the attack; so I was one eif the very first to go "over the top." I had held a sector immediately in front of the town for several days, w hich gave me splendid opportunity ao know what was to go up against. 1 knew where machine guns were located and prac tically every point where the enemy held the line with any forces. The day before the attack was to come off was sent into the sector as an ad vance officer lor my Company to make the necessary arrangements for the 'jumping off.' On this day the Germans pulled a nasty deal, which they paid for on the day following. They made a raid on our sector and killed quite a number of men. I was p the trenches at the time the raid as pulled. This little stunt of the enemy didn't do mu;-h but raise the wrath of the Americans for the day following. In this scrap I saw some real fighting. Our men put It r.ll over the Boche. After a severe bom bardment of the tienches, about 75 of the square-heads attempted to come over. 1 ne'y did not get across No-Man's-Land and very few got back alive into their own positions. Their e-fforts failed, and worse than that, it put more red blood in the hoys' eye for the next day. In this I got a little scratch on my led arm. A fragment of a shell flew past my arm. It cut quite a slit in the sle-eves of my coat and shirt, but only grazed the Mesh. On the morning of the attack, of course, everything was all set. The boys were in the trenehes, ready to go "over the top' at Zero hour. This was our first real attack and natural ly every one was not chatting as if at a dinner party; however, every one was in good spirits and waited an xiously for the minute to hop over the parapet. For an hour before the cur tain to the show to rise, our artil lery hammered the enemy positions; then came down our barrage. Every one was on his toes and when the s(eond came around to go 'over the top' every man sprang eiut of the trenches. Attack formation was quickly taken up and we began nio- ing off in proper order. Every man was still quiet, not knowing just what to expect. We had not advanced very far before the Germans began jump ing out of shell holes and beating it for the rear. The boys couldn't stand it. They, let out a terrible 'ralibit- hunting' yell and began cutting them down with their rifles. It was great sport then, all the seriousness over, "You have wondeted why I chose the Infantry to all other branches of the service. Now you know. I want ed the satisfaction of meeting the Roche face to face, and this is the only branch of the service whore oiie can have this superb satisfaction. through him. About fifteen of the square heads then came running out nn ineir nands up. I will never forget the expression of one of them tie was scared plum to death. His nands were just about as near heaven as he could get them. He cried out in English: I have a wife and five children.' I took him prisoner. Didn't nave the heart to shoot him. ' Many things happened in the ad vance which were exciting and inter esting. Every soldier was happy And those that gave the last full measure of devoiion' did It without a groan or complaint. I had several to call out to me in a perfectly cheer ful voice: "Lieutenant, they got me. The men that died, died happy. 1 have never seen such spirit, and If I live to be a thousand years old and am in a battle every day of it. I never expect to see a better spirit. It could- not be beat. It was wonderful. We lost men, of course. My platoon was not only in the first wave, but had to do out-post duty while the others dug-in. after the objective was reach ed. The Boche made several counter attacks, eine day alone they made six. but they did not phase our men in the least. "After the show was over and we were quie-t again in billets behind the line at the first check of my plantoon 1 found that I had only eleven men left. But I have taken these eleven men and built another platoon. The spirit of my old platoon is still liv ing and it will not be long until the organization Is at pa"- again. But it seems that no one will ever be able to take the places of some of those good soldiers that were lost. "As a point of prsonal pride. I want it renu-mbered that 1 was in the first wave of the first attack that the United States made egainst Germany, and that the operation was entirely successful." HIMtE.VtiUU. KKPORTKD DEAD OK APOI.KITIC STKOKK AMERICANS IIOI.D LIVER FRO N'T ( apt in e Between t,HM) hiiiI 1,.00 I'l iMtneifi on Maine r 'am. mis Cer- man Tenth Division Tries All Day to Cross Without One (Jelling Over. With the American Armv on the Marne, Ju.y 15. iBy the A.-cdated lVess. ) The Geiman prisoners e;ap- tured in the courter-attack bv the Americans nt the bend on ihe Marne number between 1,"00 and 1.500. They include a complete brigade staff. The fighting continues with fierce intensity in this district while ihe bat tle rages wltir -vial ferocity -'n the nght. where Ihe- French am reported io have d';'Vi::el a smashing blow against the enmv. From this sec tion of the battle :ront it appears that the ijeii iiii iilTensive. at least liii' the iin.e iVlng bis Lcn badly shattered. The AiiH-r;ttsp r. : omr.rin.t the river front at the benu. At the left of the bind, the famous German 10th divisions ha;i made repeated attempt? i ii day to c-ess, but all asaults have in en smanr.l ly tlir splendidly qI recled fii; of the American gunn'-rs, and not a s 'I'-ii- German had suc ceeded in getting over at this point jp to 9 o'clo.k tonight. Sii Misel o Hate Die-d Following a Strong Interview wild Knieror WiHielm About a Certain Offensive. Amsterdam. July 13. (By the As sociated Press).Field Marshal von Hinde-nburg is dead, according to the newspaper Les Nouvelles. His death is said to have oi-curred alter a stormv interview with the German enineror at great headquarters at Spa. Thi emperor and the field marshal are de clared to have had serious differences of opinion concerning the German of fensive toward Paris. The field mar shal died of e"ongestiou of the braiu. 1 he violent interview between von Hindenburg and Emperor William oc curred on May 16, Les Nouelles says. n was followed by an apoleutic stroke which ultimately resulted in the field marshal's death. The newspaper says its information was obtained from "good sources in the occupied districts of Belgium." In the last six months the-re have been several rumors of the death of Field Marshal von Hindenburg, and nere have been many reports that he has bee-n in poor health. A dispatch received in London Friday from The Hague quoted a Dutch traveller from Germany as declaiing that a report that the field marshal was ill and un able to participate in the work in army htvadquurters had spread all over Germany. German newspapers were not permitted to mention the rumor. The traveller added that General Lude-iidorff, the first quar termaster general, had taken over the field marshal's duties as chief of the general staff. Keeping step with reports of the field marshal's lieaih, have been dis patches from Germany indicating that the field marshal and the emporor had had disagreements concerning the German offensive in the west. Lust know now that I am a better man than he is, and that the average- American soldier is far superior to the best German In a hand to hand encounter. My men can rotint on an average of ten of the enemy per man. In other words, I started the scrap with 35 men and I estimate that my platoon can easily account for 350 of the enemy. If they get me now 1 can 'turn in' with the satisfaction of knowing that I have done as much as the average officer to put an end to Prussianism. But they are not go ing to ge-t me. I hope to cause them much more grief when I have another opportunity. The Boche Is a heart less, bloody brute as long as he Is behind a machine, but when you go at him with a determined bayonet he is a coward. On one occasion in the scrap I was rushing one of Fritz's trong positions. I was doing the operation with about twelve men one section of my platoon. The enemy saw me rushing. One big bur ley cuss, with whiskers, thought h ould stay us off. He threw a gre nade right between my sergeant and me, but It did not explode until we ad rushed past. The big brute saw- that his grenade did not phase oui hunch, that we were coming on after him; so he jumped out of the trench Confe'derate Veteran Answers Roll Call. Mr. Asa Collins, a Confederate vet eran and one or the best known cit izens of the county, died al his home in Buford township Sunday morning about 2 o'clock. Death came sudden ly and without warning. At 10:20 Saturday niutit Mr. ( o!l;ns was in Monroe in ino spirits and seeiii'ngly good health. He readied home and letired about 11:30. Ahout two o'clo.'k h-s wife was awakened by nis struggles and called to her son-in-law for assistance. They raised him to a sitting position on the- bed but he ex pired a few minutes later. The deceased was born in Lam s Creek township in 184 6. He joined the Confederate army when he wan about 19 years old and served until the close of the war. He was mar ried to .Miss Kate Snyder, daughter of Rev. Solomon Snyder, after his return from the war. To this union twelve children survive: Mes.srs. T Gilbert Collins of Marshville town ship, L. W. Collins of Monroe, H. G. Collins of Albemarle, J. S. Collins of Monroe township, and Clayton I). Col lins of Camp Jackson: Mrs. W. B. Griffin, Mrs. Maude Hinson, Mrs Fannie Prwson. Mrs. Blake Whitley and Mrs. Dessie Knight, all of Buford township, Mrs. Vergie Preson of Mon roe township, and Mrs. Effie Crook of Goose Creek township. His wife and two sisters, Miss Sophie Collins, who made her home with he-r brother, and Mrs. Liza Broom of Wingate, also sur vive him. Mr. Collins was a brave soldier and a good man. He Joined the Baptist church In his boyhood and remained a consistent member until the time of his death. Although 72 years old at ihe time of his death he was very ac tive and was directing the woik on two farms. He had always enjoyed fine helath and his r.id''- death came as a shock to hif. lv. ry f -lends over the county. Funeral seiviees were conducted nt Faulks church In .Marshville tow nship Sunday afternon at five o'coick. Rev. E. C. Snyder. Elder Walter Edwards and Rev. J. A. Bivens conduetel the service. Burial was in the cemetery Id mar Law Tells House of AmerU eans' Success. London.July 15. Andrew Bonar Law, chancellor of the exchequer, an nounced in the house of commons tonight that the Americans had cap tured a thousand or more prisoners south of the Marne after having driv-e-n back the enemy. Mr. Bonar Law read the follow ing communication to the house: "The enemy attacked early this . morning on a front of 90 kilometers, prettily evenly divided east and we.a of Rheimi. The city !tse.l!' '-vas not attacked "West Of Rheims the Germans pen etrated on a front of 25 kilometer (22.37 miles) to an average depth of from four to five kilometers." "South of the- Marne, by a bril liant counter-attack the Americans troops drove the enemy back and took a thousand or more prisoners. "East of Rheims the enemy ha been heavily repulsed and has suf fered a complete check." Sir Walter Runciman said that the nouse would wish to olTei congratu lations not only to the French but to the Americans troops, who hud justified themselves, not for the first time, on a critical occasion. Before reading the communication Mr. Bonar Law said it had readied him from the front shortly before 11 o'clock. "I may add," he said, "in addition to what I am going to read, that the prime minister lias bee-n in tide phonic communication with head quarters and tiie report given him as coming from General Foeh is that lie is well satisfied with the results of today's fighting." Itallle (iae No Sign lit Niiilit of Di minishing. With the American Army on the Maine, July 15. (By the Associat ed Pi ess I Along the front as far as the eye can see the big guns were still (lashing and roaring tonight ami the battle gave no signs of diminish ing. American staff officers, never theless, expect that the positions will be even more improved by morning. Along one extended sen-tor of the Marne front, the Americans were In the open ground, making use as best they might of whatever shelter of fered. The Germans were on hills on the oppsite side of the river, show ering high explosives and gas shells upon them. But the boys from the United States went forward never theless, with gas masks adjusted, and crawling at times for considerable distances on all-fours. In this way they advanced bit by bit. and when they came within range close enough lo come to grips with the Germans, they drove the enemy back in quick order. ln a measure they repeated today the heroic deeds of those who de fended the road to Paris in the sec ond battle of the Marne. mull Olfltia' ;he Credit to the Anirili nils. P.i is, July 15. In the desperate flght'ng which Is reported in the offi cial communication from the war of fice tonight the American troops are given the credit for driving back the Germans who had succeeded in cross ing the Marne southwest of Fossoy. In the long sector between Dor- mans and Kheims Pr-inie-Ilati-in at that churrh. A very larpe crowd troops are. reported to be resisting the oernian assault valiantly and east of attended the funeral. Bombardment of Paris Has Started Again. London, July 15. The bombard ment of Paris with the German long Rheims the enemy attack has met what Is characterized as "an irreduci ble defense." as an admission of initial falJ-jr?. thewitn h8 hands up yelling 'Kaiur-rade.' no extent of whidt is not to be revea.od Ser?eant gaid .y a hell of Kan).lr, I rad," and shot bis bayonet Raymond Jovner of Nnifnlk hn range guns began again this after- rcnorte-d as mlssine. enlisted in th noon according to an Exchange Tele- marine corps at the aae of IS Ha aph dispatch, from the French cipi- was a mr-mber nf the firct mnin,.i clar tal. to sail for France.