Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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[jHy Experiences in tl?e World War II Hy Ueneral John J. Pershing j ass V CHAPTER LVI ri;e i-'irsi army attacked yesterday ,'llf reduction of thfc St. M thiol .(it i? read* my diary ^leinhi'i' Id, written at Llgny-eu. >ur troops behaved splendidly, leoretary <?f war visited two corps lquait?'is; returned to Wgny nfuch -lited at our success, * ' ytiila and I went to the town ofUIhiel today and were warmly (ed by "tlie people. This Is my idiiy and a very happy one." ,e attack of the Infantry ou the hern face of the St. Mihlel salient pd at live in ihe morning and bethat I went with several stuff >ra to old Kort (ilronvllle, situated ; commanding height overlooking battlefield from the south. The odary at tuck on the west wus rhed at 8 u. m. as an element of rise for artillery preparation Weather Gives Advantage. drlw.lht" rain and mldt prevented rom getting a clear view, but the ress of our troops cou^d be fold by the barrage which preceded i. Notwithstanding a heavy ralnthe night of September 11-12, the mrrzivo us nn advantage, as the stpartly screened our advance from enemy. Overcome Entanglements. 'hanks to the thorough preparation orelmnd, the wire entanglements e more easily overcome than we expected rained ;tm ms of pioneers and eners, with bangalore torpedoes, cutters and axes, assisted In ilng gups In the masses of barbed I covering the German positions, leading troops themselves carried 5 rolls of chlckerv-Avlr^v which was vn across entangliffnents here and s. forming a kind of bridge; for nfnntry. ( J all their offensives the allies had days destroying^eutauglements artillery flremr had used a large *r of heavy tanks, but we had ? few light tanks, Ineffective for work. The fact that we had wred the enemy artillery was an dage, as It enabled the leading < deliberately to do their work ot serious loss* quick passage through these en" "n? -cj- our iruuyar caxiicu uv surprise among the French, who a large number of officers and ^missioned, officers, to St. Mlhlel "al days later to see how it had done. One of these officers, after rcconnaissanee, remarked in all "uness that the Americans had ^vantage over Frenchmen be,e of their lopg< legs and large feet. "foopa Overrun Objective*. waking our dispositions for bat'Ur older divisions, the First. Secf|ud Forty-second,# had received lons on the southern face oppothe ?|x?n spaces, to enable them '"k (lie wooded areas quickly, "ding the advance of less expepd units assigned to these areas. e whnio !inc. pivoting as planned le Kig) y.second division on the ftdvaii' ?>d resolutely to the nt'he entire operation was cart 'rough with dash and precision. nfteriK 1,,|| tj,e troops had pushed 1 their scheduled objectives and kethrig |1(l(| reached the second ??Jective on most of the southron t. dixUion of the Fourth corps ma"> and those on the left of ^ C0,'I)S tldggett) overwhelmed h e ^rrisoiis. and quickly overer positions, carrying the flght' ? the open. The German resistf'ls part of the front whs dls0(1 ".V the rapidity of our ad"n<l was soon overcome. Al* enemy was expecting an s 10 t5!<1 n?t think tt would take " s,,<>n and It therefore came "irprise. the First division, on the - " ink of the southern nitnek, 11 ,l,r"Ugh the hostile for sit inns, the squadron of cav of i to the Fourth corps wiir - " "'J-h the breach. ? At 4 :4.~? jl'1'- "<l forward to recoiiimltei tJ1 1 xv,,l'd Vlgnoullos, hut eti iMJU-hlne guns In. position EL r was forced to r?M I re. Wostern Attack Slower. Olt l lie western face of the salient progress was nor so satisfactory, The Twenty sixth division, in its attempt to make a deep advance toward Vigiiculles, met considerable resistance, and except for a haltaliotV of the division reserve had not reached i -the day's objective. The French at the tip of the salient had attempted to follow up the Hanks of our successful penetrations, but made only small advances. Upon the request of (Jen. K. J. Blond I a-^, commanding the French Second Colonial corps, a regiment of the Flghtieth division (Cronkhlte), In reserve, was t^ent to Ids assistance. On the ufternoon of the Twelfth, learning that the roads leading out of the salient between the two attacks were tilled with retreating enemy troops, with their trains and artillery, I gave orders to the commanders of the Fourth and Fifth corps to push forward without delay. Using the telephone myself, i directed the commander of the Fifth corps to send at least otie regiment of the Twenty-sixth division toward Vlgneulles with all possible speed. That evening n strong force from the Fifty-first brigade pushed boldly fonynrd and reached Vlgneulles at 2:15 a. m. the 13th. It Immediately made dispositions that effectively closed the roads leading out of the salient west of that point. Ill the Fourth corps the Second brigade of the First division advanced in force about dawn of the 13th, its leading elements reaching Vlgneulles by 6 a. in. The salient was closed and our troops were masters of the field. Could Have Passed Hindenburg Line. The troops continued to advance on the 33th, when the line was established approximately along the final objectives set for this offensive. In view of the favorable situation creuted Just west of thd'Moselle river by ou?successes farther to the left, a limited attack was mude on that part of the front by elements (ft the Eighty-second and Ninetieth divisions, with good results. During the night our troops all along the line were engaged in organ Izlng their new positions for defense, -nrjeDaratory to the withdrawal of dl-... visions and corps troops for participation in the Meuse-Argonne battle, September 14, 15 and 16 local operations continued, consisting of strong reconnaissances and occupation of better ground for defensive purposes. Beginning the 13th, several counterattacks were repulsed. The line as finally established was: Haudlomont. Fre8nes-en-\Voevre, Doncourt, Juulny, ' Vandieres. Reports received the 13th and 14tli Indicated that the entemy was retrent ing In considerable disorder. Without doubt an immediate continuation of the advance -would have curried us well beyond the Hindenburg line and possibly Into Metz, and the temptn tion to press on was very great. Hut we would probably have become deeply involved and delayed the greater Meuse-Argonne operation, to which we were wholly committed. During the fighting from September 12 to 10 the Herman One Hundred and Twenty-fifth, F.ighth landwehr. Eightyeighth and Twenty-eighth divisions, re enforced the enemy's line and several other divisions arrived In reserve positions. September 16. In frout of the First army, there were ten German divisions and two brigades in line and seven divisions In reserve. French Overjoyed by Release. Nearly 16,000 prisoners were taken and some 450 enemy guns had fallen into our hands. Our casualties numbered about 7.000. As the enemy re' treated he set tire to many large sup ply dumps and several villages. The few remaining French inhabitants \Vho found themselves within our lines were overjoyed to be released from the domination of the enemy, hut many were left destitute by the burning of their homes at the very moment of -deliverance. On the 13th General* Retain eame by my headquarters and we went to. gether *o St. Mlhlel, where the' peo' j>le. Including children carrying French *,(%? , .. ?. .. ,i,?V v? .... u' ll. well Ih? Imagined when one realizes that they hud been held km prisoners, entirely out of touoh w^h their own countrymen, for four yeurs, though ai wo ye within sight of the French linen. On my visit to several corps and <|I vision headquarters the following day I found all Jubilant over the victory titid overflowing with Incidents of the lighting, reciting many en sen of individual heroism among the troops. CHAPTER LVII In accordunee with the understand lug of Septemlmr 2 we were now moving rapidly toward otjr siM'ond great "henslve. Ouestlnns concerning the roncent ration and supply of the elements of die First army In the luirtle ureas were help a worked out hy the statr of that nrrny, who were given every possible assistance hy the stalT f!. II. Q. The general plan of action of the allied armies, as agreed upon at the conference of commanders In chief July 21. was. to state It simply and briefly, that the offensive should continue, each army driving forward ns rapidly as possible. The allied and American operations during the sum titer had resulted In the reduction of the Chateau Thierry, Amiens and St. Mlhlel salients and th" great offensive was now under way. Immediately west of tin; Mouse river the*battle line had remained practically unchanged since 1017 It was on this front tho American army was to play Its groat pa rt. The disposition of the Belgian, British. French and American armies on he wide front between the North Ren md Verdun was such that they would naturully converge as they advunced. So long as the enemy could hold his ground on the east of this battle line frontal attacks farther west might drive him back on his successive posl lions, yet a decision would be long delayed. Yanks Face Strong Position. I!!s main line of communication and supply ran through Carlgnan. Sedan and Mezleres. If that should he Interrupted before he could withdraw his armies from France and Belgium the communications In the narrow avenue which lay between the Ardennes forest and the Hutch frontier were so tlimited that he. would he unabtefTide quately to supply his forces or to evacuate them before his ruin would he accomplished. As our objective was the Sedan)'arlgngn railroad. It was evident that the sector assigned to the American army was opposite the most sensitive part of the German front then being attacked. The danger confronting the eneim made It Imperative that he should hold on In front of the American army to the limit of his resources. Germans Strongly Fortified. The area between the Meuse river nnd the Argonne forest was Ideal for defensive fighting. On the east the heights of the Meuse commanded that river valley nnd on the west the ruggefl, high hills of the Argonne for est dominated the valley of the Aire river. In the center the watershed between the Aire nnd the Meuse rivers commanded both valleys, with the heights of Montfuueon. Cunel, Homnnge and of the FvJs de Bnrrlcourt standing out as natural strong points From thesfc heights observation points completely covered the entire German front. The terrain over which the at pick was to be made formed a defile blocked by three successive harriers, tbo heights of Montfnucon, then those of Cunel and Romnnge and farther hack the ridges of the Bols de Barricourt nnd of the Bols de Bourgoyne. The Meuse river was unfordable; the Aire river fordable only in places. In addl tlon to the heavy forest of the Ar gonne there were numerous woods with heavy undergrowth which were sedous obstacles. %t nCBC uaiaror rrrruiiDCtr'Trc* c -avi x:ii(? c rr ened by every artificial means lmagln able. * A dense network of wire entangle ments covered every position. It wa> small wonder the enemy had resten four years on this front without being molested. Hindenburg Position Is Objective. In accordance with the principal mission, which remained the sam. 'hroughout this great offensive, th. main attack of the First array was t? he launched west of the Meuse river. Its right to he covered by the river nnd by the opera Hons- of the French Seventeenth corps on the" east of the river, that corps being a part of, ot?r army. % Our left was to be supported by a simultaneous attack hy the French Fourth army. Our attack to Include the Argonne forest was to he driven with all possible strength In the gen ernl direction of Mezleres. The first operation of our army was to have for Its objective the Hindenburg position on the front Brleullessur-Meuse-Kornngne-sous - MontfauconGrandpre, with a following development In the direction of BuznncyMezieres In order to force the enemy he.vond the Meuse and outflank his positions on the Vouzlers-Itethel line from the east. In conjunction wltji our advance, which would outflank the^enemy's position south of the Alsne, the Jfrenrh Fourth army, hy attacking successively the positions, between the AlRne and the Sulppes rivers, would be able to occupy the line Vouzlers-Itethel. After that It would operate In the direction of the plateau east of toe Rethel-Slg n.v-l'Ahhn.ve road Aim at Tactical Surprlce. Our purpose was to effect S tactical surprise. If possible, overcome the enemy's first and second positions In the area of Montfnucon nnd (Goto Ihime Marie) of his third position before the enemy could bring up strong ^ ' V * V - S , ' 4 ' I' < ..II li.'liu. , ''' l,?'1 '?' Mwi> would require ? rapid in'\ niuv of trii tilth's through it densely fori | tied /on,.. From u\ <4Ht Iblrtte of the enemy's reserve* ami their location p Wl,? r?iillr.t?d that ?\?> must rapture Momfaijcon und hci 'j> t oll' Duma Marl,' by the end of th,. second day. 11 was thought reasonable to eoiini on the vigor and aggressive spirit of | otir troops to make up iti n measure for their Inexperience, hut at the naaie time the faet was not overlooked that of teehnhal skill might consideralily reiiuce the chances of complete success against well organized de fenders. (ieneral I'eialn had already given it us his opinion Unit we hIpjuIU not l>e utile to ?get farther thun Motdfuucon before winter. CHAPTER LVIII The Mouse Argonne offensive opened tin* morning of September 26. To call it a battle may tie a misnomer, yet It was a buttle, the greatest, most prolonged In American history. Through 47 days we dere engaged In a persistent struggle with ttie enemy to smash through tils defenses. The attack started on a front of 24 mites, which gradually extended until the enemy was being actively assailed from the Argonne forest to the Mo selle river, 00 miles. In all more than 1,200,000 were cmployed and the attack was driven .12 tulles to the north and 14 miles to the northeast before the armistice termlrutted hostilities. , The outstanding fact that I desire to emphasize Is that, once started, the battle was maintained continuously, aggressively and relentlessly to the end. . All difficulties were overridden In ; one tremendous sustained effort to terminate the wur then and there In a victorious manner. Battle Opens Favorably. After hoiii-H1 violent artlllevy preparation the attack began at 6:80 a. in. At the same time, to divert ttie enemy's attention elsewhere, local raids and demonstrations were made on the Mouse Moselle front. The French Fourth army (Gouraud), to our left on the west of the Argonne forest, began Its attuck half an hour later.' The battle opened favorably. Our attack at that particular place and at rtiat time evidently cume as a sur prise to the enemy, and our troops were enabled <julckly to overrun his forward positions. . The vast network of undestroyed barbed wire, the deep ravines, dense woods and heavy fog made It difficult to co-ordinate the movements of the assaulting Infantry, especially of some divisions In battle for the first time, yet the advance throughout was extremely vigorous. Third Corps Reaches Second Line. The Third corps (Bullard), nearest the Meuse, carried the enemy's second position before dark. The Thirtythird division (Bell), wheeling to the right as It advanced, occupied the west hank of the Meuse to protect the flank % of the array. The Bols de Forges, with Its difficult terrain and strong machine gun defenses, was carried In splendid fashion. The right of the Eightieth division (Vronklte) had by noon cleared the Bols Jure In the face of heavy machine gun fire and established Its line north of Dannevoux. On Its left, after an all-day fight, the division forced Its r-way through the strong positions or*,, hill 202 and ranched ,the northern slopes of that hill. The Fourth division (IBnes), on the left of the Eightieth, took Septarges and firmly established Itself In the woods to the north. It was abreast of Nnntlllols and Its left was more than a mile beyond Montfaucon, but through some misinterpretation of the orders by the Third corps the opporwas lost. Three counter-attacks against the division during the after noon were broken up. Fifth Corps Falls 8hort. In the center the Fifth corps (Cameron). with the exception of the Nlnety-flrst division (Johnston) on Its left, fell short of Its objectives. The Seventy-ninth division (Kuhn). on the right of the corps, took Malancourt. but In the open ground bevond encountered considerable opposition, and the ndvnncod elements were not In position before Montfaucon until late afternoon. The nttnek of the dl-' vision launched against this strong point early In the evening was niQt by the fire of artillery and machine guns from the southern slopes of the hill, which held up further progress. The Thirty-seventh division (Fnrnsworth), In the center of the Fifth corps, after over oming heavy machine-gun (ire, pushed through the the Bols de Montfaucon. and Its attacks In the afternoon carried the line up to and west of Montfaucon. The left of its line, facing stiff opposition, cleaned up the woods in Its front and established Itself Just south of Ivoiry. The Ninety-first division (Johnston) overcame strong initial resistance and advanced rapidly to Eplnnnvllte. which It entered but did not hold. Crossing Into the sector of the Thirty-fifth division, during the day It occupied Very. Flr?t Corps Makes Progress. On the left of the army the First corps (Liggett) made excellent prog rcss. The Thirty-fifth division (Trauh) cleverly captured the strong position of Vauquols and took Choppy against stubborn opposition. Elements of the division reached the corps objective east of Chnrpent rv, hut were soon withdrawn to a line west of Very. On the left the division captured that pari of Varenties east of the Aire river, hut w.as hold an ween Vnrenno? 1 and ('hoppv. At this time a fresh ?yu? ^=ssa=#==5B= ??HS5iTe*a s I;, and fmi--1| Hi.. I , "nl il?t? high ground south I J" Twenty eighth Mivtsi.m <- n Iht? right brigade captured t|?. v:(" ,,,n h!,lf ?ni| i'i1 a i. 'U? farther 'I !,,. i..f, '' facing i h<> ,.|,MITII K|ia,'s .if ' A rtr? which OoriHIituhMl III,. 'A S f defense ?r tfiai fores' "US unable lo o\ ermine Hi<> intense ir.it hin?. i|ii lire from the vicinity * "'l' Maliaut. Til,. Si'\ rid \ <ll\ si.HI (Alexander) ill II,,.' ,|itli. 1,1,4* ' n-tin ,,f ,ju. Aru< 1111<* iiiii<I,. progress. Advances Continue. I * the evening of S,.|ii,.fuller -j; ,I ii/.), ? ?u-?.^ was ?hiviisi ,,r ,1,,. First and (lie Third on lis Hanks. Tho Se\ ?'?i> ninth division <aj,ij Mont fan ' ii iln- morning ,,f September -J7 ?M(| m'vl ?'?> *'?? lHlolti niid | he i "is <|,. Ii.-uut? were passed despite <It?l?-nil I tit'*! resistance. In ilu< Tlilrtl corps tho Eightieth ,1! vision lutd taken (ho Hols do la Colo i.iiinont aft or hard fighting, but at tack after attack made will determination across the open spaco toward Hrleulles sur Mouse wiir rolled hack by fhe Kallin^r tiro of tho enemy from the town ami its vicinity nnd hv the artillery tiring from oast of tho Mouse. The Thirty third division nmln tallied Its position September 27 and and on September 21) relieved tho Eightieth division by extending its loft along the northeastern edge of Hols de la Cote I.amont, where It occupied difficult ground under the. dom Inn ting heights east of the Mouse. The Fourth division captured Nun 11 Hols September 27. but was forced by enemy counterattacks to retire, l'he town was retaken and held on the following day by troops of the Fourth and Seventy-ninth divisions. A (or three days of almost continuous lighting the Fourth had taken the Hols <l?' Hrieulles nnd entered the Hols do Ogons, but could not hold the latter against counter-attacks and the dead ' Jy machine-gun and artillery tiro <?f the enemy. The fortitude and cour age of tho Fourth division Iti those oporutlons wore Inspiring. Meet Strong Resistance. The Thirty-seventh division on Ren torn her 27 attempted to advance ho .voud the Ivolry-Montfuucon road hut oaeh time it reached there was driven I back by heavy shelling. On Sept em ' her' 28, however, it pushed forward to a position north of the Clerges-Nnn I t.'llols road. Cierges was entered, hut I not field. The following dny the division again allotted Herges, hut the advance was abruptly halted by concentrated artillery tire. The Ninety-first division on September 27 encountered strong opposition at Eplnonvllle, which was reached, but could not he retnined. Kellsfontaine was taken, but was evacuated, as an. artillery barrage was to be laid on the road through the town th? following day. Eplnonvlllo was finally captured September 28, nnd the Hots de Cierges was occupied after hard fighting. Two attacks o( the division from the Hols de (Merged on September 20 crumbled under fierce artillery and enfilading machine-gun fire, but on the third nttnek, despite severe losses, Gesncs was taken. The full advantage of this impor taut gnin was lost, however, through the Inability of the Thirty-seventh division to advance Its left. This placed the right flank on the NinetyIn a dangerous position, and It had to^he withdrawn. During the nft ernoon the Thirty-fifth division was subjected to a heavy counter-attack, which also Involved the left of' the Muety-flrst, hut made no progress against It. Battla Grows Mora Intanslva. Three new German divisions had nppeafed by September 30 on the ,*? ..mA tfc*. tie continued with Increased Intensity. 'Hie Thirty-fifth division was stopped by heavy fire soon after Its attack opened. September 27, but later In the day It captured Charpentry and advanced to the ridge northeast, though suffering severe casualties. Montrebeau wood was taken Septem her 28. and early next morning a de tnchrnent reoched Exermont valley, but. being nearly surrounded, with drew to the starting point. Encoun tering very heavy artillery fire and an advance of the German Fifty-sec ond and F^fth guard divisions, the I .i.rty-flfth withdrew from Montrebeau wood, which It had taken the d.i.v before. The Thirty-fifth suffered heavier casualties than any other di vision during these four days of con ' I munis fighting. I he Twenty-eighth division, though subjected to strong artillery and ma chine-gun fire from the bluffs of the Argonne. captured Monthlalnvllle Sep temher 27. It could make slight head v \ against firm opposition from p<> sii;o.*is in the vicinity of champ Ma he lit. hut carried them on September 2N. and also captured Apreniont. On September 211, niter repulsing a Ger man counter-attack, a slight advance was made against the defenses of He ('bene Tondu. I he Seventy-seventh encountered stiff resistance In the Argonne Sep temher 27, and was held to a small gain, hut moved forward about a mile on September 28. Next dny Its right was advanced with little opposition. During the first four dnys of fight Ing the First army, west of the Meuse. had made a maximum advance of about eight miles, reaching the Hols do la Goto I.emont-Nnntillols-Apromont. The enemy had been struck a blow so powcrftfl that the extreme gravity of his situation In France was obvious to him. (Continued next r/eek) Charles A. Penn, vice-president of the American Tobacco company, died h nday in ? New York hospital after an illness of a few days. Hi# remains were interred at Heidsville, N. ( ., on Saturday. He was 63 years id age and was one of the leaders in the tobauco industry. The (ieoitfe Washington Memorial hi idge over the Hudson river and joining Ne wJersey with New York, was opened to traffic Saturday after ' l,e bridge was built at a cost of $110,000,000 and has the longest span between towe s of any bridge in the world, It,f?00 feet. This Woman Lost 6-1 Pounds of Fat Mrs. H. IVu-e, of Wood, ide. I, |, writes: "A year ago I weighed I JO pounds. started to take K ruse hen and now 1 weigh 1*26 and never felt better in my life ami what's more 1 look more like 20 years old than the mother of two children, one nineteen and the other eighteen. Every one of my friends say it's marvelous the way I reduced/' To lose fat with speed take a half teaspoonful of Kruschon in a glass of hot water before breakfasit every morning-?don't ntiss u morning-?an 8f> cent bottle lastfc four weeks -get it at DcKaib 1'harmacy or uny drug store in America. If not joyfully back a^u'r 'be first bottle?money JR DeKALB COUNCIL No 88 Junior Order U. A. M. pGfK Regular council seoond and ' ^ > fourth Mondays of each month at 8 p.m. Visiting Brethren ar? welcomed. A. W. HUMPHRIES, L. H. JONES, Councillor. Recording Secty. ROUT. W.MITCH AM 1 Architect [ ! i j Crocker Building, Camden, S. C. [ 51 KERSHAW LOD6E No. 29 A. P. M. Q/k Regular communication of this lodge is held on the w first Tuesday in each month t 8 p.m. Vlaiting Brethren are welcomed. W. R. CLYBURN, J. E. ROSS, Worshipful Master. Secretary. 1-14-27-tf R. H. HAILE FUNERAL DIRECTOR FOR COLORED PEOPLE 927 Broad St. Camden, S. C. We have secured the services of Lovett Proctor, Licensed EmbaInter for S. C., who will be with us permanently Jo do our embalming. Residence Phone 293-J Office Phone 145 666 LIQUID OR TABLETS Relieves a Headache or Neuralgia in 30 minutes, checks a Cold the first day, and checks Malaria in three days 666 Salve for Baby's Cold. TAX NOTICE Books fbr collection of School, .Coundfe. and.. State taxes., year lft31 will open September lbttt and stay open until December 31st, 1931, in-0 elusive, without any penalty. Any information concerning this office will be given % mail. When inquiring about taxes please etatfe school district in. which you live or . own property. Following is a list of total levies for each school district for School, County and State taxes. DeKalb Township Mills School District No. 1 48% School Dietriet No. 2 . m-TT.. 46% ? School District No. 4 48% School District No. 6 48 School District No. 25 31 School District No. 43 31 Buffalo Township School District No. 3 40% School District No. 5 28% School District No. 7 37% School District No. 15 28% School District No. 20 28% School District No. 22 51 School District No. 23 28% School District No. 27 41% School District No. 28 28% School District No. 31 36% School District No. 40 51 Mi School District No. 42 28% Flat Rock Township School District No. 8 41% School District No. 9 41% School District No. 10 32% School Dietriet No. 13 28% School District No. 19 41% School District No. 30 28% School District No. 33 41% School District No. 37 41% School District No. 41 41% School District No. 46 86% School District No. 47 V 28% Wateree Township School* District No. 11 35% School District No. 12 46% Schhol District No. 16 32 School District No. 29 34% School District No. 38 28% School District No. 39 33% Yours respectfully, S. W. HOGUK, Treasurer, Kershqw County, Camden, S. C. September 14th, 1931. o Desperate Fighting In the Argonne.