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.\LL .MERCHANDISE ADVER TISED IN THE TRIBUNE IS GUARANTEED .«. -.__ I AX Vil Ño. 20,062 ATems . Editorials - -Advertisements ritrone WEATHER Rain to-day. To-morrow fair. «Mod¬ erate shifting winds. Full -.«.port on Vat* 13 , [ Copyright 191S. The Tribune Ass'n] MONDAY, MARCH 25, 1918 Tt-n #«_«-»:i««'In «Greater New York and IWO Cfc>TS}w|thüi commuting distance THRKK TKNTs Klwrvliere Million Germans Force British Armies eyond Somme; Americans Join Battle Gun Shelling Paris Located 76 Miles Away Monster Cannon Is in St. Gobain Forest, West of Laon Capital Bombarded Again for 5 Hours Shells Fall Every Twelve Minutes, but City Remains Calm r BERLIN via London), March 24.. "We have bombarded the fortress of Paris with long-distance guns," says the official war statement given out licre this evening. PARKS, March 24. . The German "monster cannon" which has been bombarding Paris has been located in :he Forest of St. Gobain, west of Laon, and exactly 122 kilometres f approxi¬ mately 76 miles) from the Paris City Hall. The gun bombarded Paris during the greater part of to-day (Sunday). The day was ushered in by loud explosions from the 10-inch shells, and immedi- ' atcly the alarm to take cover was j founded. This occurred at 6:55 o'clock and many persons sought shelter, but j greater numbers of them appeared in the streets on their way to the churches, which were almost as well tilled as usual. The women who sell ¡aim leaves on Palm Sunday did their usual thriving business. A. first the shells began arriving at intervals of twenty minutes, and the detonations, considering the Sunday calm, seemed louder than those of Saturday. Their power to disturb the equanimity of the populace, however, seemed less, the people refusing to be distracted from their Sunday habits^to any great extent. "V, Bombardment Ends at 1 o'clock For the benefit of that portion of the populace which had been led to be¬ lieve the Germans had broken through the line and were bombarding Paris from nearby positions, a semi-official note was issued during the day. This warned the people against believing pessimistic reports. "The French front is Intact." said 'he note. '"Any assertion to the con- trary is a lie." The bombardment of the capital ended around 1 o'clock, and as late as1 :> o'clock no explosions had been heard for more than an hour. The "clear! ügnal" was sounded at 3:30 o'clock. Although during the earlier hours of '.he bombardment the shells arrived at twenty-minute intervals, later in the day they began arriving every tifteen minutes on the average, and some of thern even fell twelve minutes apart. Comments of French Press The comments of the French press this morning were about evenly divided between the big gun which is bom¬ barding the city from back of the German lines and the terrific battle raging on the British front. The tone of the comment on the bombardment is one of astonishment at the feasi¬ bility of the performance, while as to 'he battle, the favorable ending of it ¡s confidently* expected. The newspapers do not conceal their admiration for the mechanical feat of 'he Germans in constructing their new weapon, but speak passionately of the useless barbarity of the bombardment. The "Matin" »ays it is consoling to note that the number of victims is >mall, but it asks for reprisals on German cities. Professor Paul Painlev«-, former Premier and president of the Academy of Science, told the "Excelsior", that by using tungsten in the fabrication "f the projectile the tungsten shells; would be of about half the diameter! f'i »tec! shells of an even weight, and« that therefore the atmospheric resist- «fice would be less, this accounting for1 the extremely long range. He also touched upon the possibility of a pro-; ;'-,'.<-.r being employed on fhe projectile. Of No Military Value .Alfred Capu:-, in the "Figaro," al ¡Bdei tp the making of the gun as a ffreat mechanical feat, but points out Wat a* a military factor the weapon entirely inefficacious. The "Petit Parisien comment«, upon the bombard- Bent a» an extremely minor incident *i compared with the gigantic battle u profre»n on the British front. .. Lc .I et.t Journal" nays that Jules yrn<: had foreseen this gun, and it Melare« moreover that ¡t Is a French irivention. "More than a year ago," it! a-J-Sü, we discovered the secret of fir-1 'rig our cannon more than 100 kilo-; metre». The secret lies in the greater «uppreiision of the atrnoitpheric resist¬ ance fhe "Kcho de Paris" declares nw bombardment is designed to give we Impression that Paris is within BW range .ï th« German guns. "It is . political cannon," the newspaper «.ys. ..,'""'-mier Clemeneeao's newspaper, J-iiomme Libre/' says that the pass¬ word Of the hour s» confidence. "Ger- many,- if, ¿«elare», «.,.. wished to; «lake it a complet« offensive on all iront»» '-be Ian«), waU-r and air fronts, *« w»J! »» the «front of the rear.' W« -"*«. '«ting an «nemy who wishes to end .t a« soon a« pe-Mlblc. That suit» us.. Y:'"r/ «hell that fall» into Paris drives '¦««per into .¦» th« confidence in an un-mate victory." Battle Won by Grace of God, Kaiser Reports to the Empress AMSTERDAM, March 24..The Berlin "Tageblatt" says that when Field Marshal von Hindenburg received the first telegrams re¬ porting on the offensive he remarked to Emperor William: "Well, your majesty, I think we may be well pleased with this initial success." The newspaper adds that the date for the offensive was fixed long ago and began at exactly the time set, even to the hour. Another dispateh from Berlin says the German Empress has received the following telegram from Emperor William : "I am pleased to be able to tell you that, by the grace of God, the battle of Monchy, Cambrai, St. Quentin arid La Fere has been won. The Lord has gloriously aided. May He further help." Two U-Boats Are Sunk by U. S. Vessels: Steamship Floridian Sinks One and Destroyer Another AN ATLANTIC PORT, March 24.. Two U-boats were sunk by American ships in the past fortnight, nine pris- oners from one submarine being brought to a French port, according to passengers arriving here to-day on French and British liners. The German prisoners were taken by the crew of the steamship Floridian, after the latter had sent the submarine to the bottom. They are the first U-1 boat prisoners of the war falling into 'American hands. The second undersea- boat was accounted for by an American destroyer, convoying one of the liners reaching this port to-day. W. S. Hembling, returning from France as a representative of the United States Army Ordnance Depart¬ ment, brought the first eye-witness story of thé arrival of the captured German sailors at the French port. His account was vouched for in every de¬ tail by two companions. "I was at the dock when the Floridian reached France on March 12," said Hembling. "I saw nine German sailors being hustled down the gangplank, and they did not receive any too gentle treatment. "I was told that two days before, on March 10, the Floridian had been at-i tacked by the U-boat. From all ac- counts, meagre because of the censor- ship, the Floridian rendered the sub¬ marine helpless with a few shots, then send her to the bottom. "The captain of the submarine, ac- cording to the captured sailors, stuck to his post until he saw that capture was inevitable. Then lie ended his life by sending a bullet into his brain. All of the crew, with the exception of the j nine prisoners, were drowned. The nine made up the gun crew of the U-boat, and were on deck when she went down for the last time. They were picked up by th. Floridian's crew, while sti'uggling in the water." The Floridian was of the American- Hawaiian Line, before she was trans¬ ferred to the transatlantic service. The second submarine, sunk by the American destroyer, showed its peri-1 scope a thousand yards away from the British liner arriving here to-day, ac- cording to a naval officer on board. The liner, at the time of the sinking, had 700 wounded Canadians on board. Karly on the morning of March 14, the day after the steamship left a Brit- ish port, in convoy of American war¬ ships, one of the Canadian soldiers on deck reported a periscope on the star- board bow. Almost simultaneously the: periscope was seen by the destroyer1 nearest it. The destroyer quit the convoy at the alarm, and made full speed "for the spot where the submarine had been sighted. The undersea boat had van- ished as quickly as it appeared, but the destroyer reached the spot, and dropped a heavy depth charge. The liner, which was Speeding on its way, was shaken throughout its length by the concussion of the charge, and passengers, roused from their sleep, came on deck in alarm. After the first charge the destroyer was seen to circle about the spot, then to let down a sec- ond bomb. Oil quickly appeared on the surface of the sea, and the de- stroyer rejoined the convoy, satisfied that a hit had been registered, and the U-boat sent instantly to the bot- torn or her seams opened so badly she cou.d not rise again. # Explosion Wrecks Part of Chemical Plant in Newark' NEWARK, N. J., March 24. An ex- plosion, possibly caysed by enemy aliens, wrecked a "washing building"! of the Butterworth-Judson Chemical Company's plant at Avenue I to-night and started a fire that consumed six bnildings before it was brought under control. An electric wire found leading from the ruins of the "washing building" to a spot out on the meadows has led the police to believe that the disaster was of incendiary origin. .Seventeen men are employed in the building, v/hich in used for the pur-i pose of washing impurities from picric acid. Two of these, William Butter-1 'MVA, chief electrician, and Patrick] Flynn, were »lightly injured. The fire, which started in the ruins,, jumped to neighboring frame build¬ ing;, arid rapid work by the fire depart¬ ment alone «aved the entire plant from destruction. The structures consumed are one-story affairs about 100 feet! long by .'50 wide. The plant is com-' poned of sixty of these isolated units, Damage has not been estimated. The Butterwortb Judson plant is only h few hundred yards from the Federal Shipyard!. Says British May Repeat Marne Victory Military Expert Declares Open Warfare Welcome to Allies [Staff Correspondence] WASHINGTON, March 24. . A mili¬ tary expert who has been with the French, British and Italian armies and also with the Germans earlier in the war said to-night that the public must be warned both against attaching too much importance to a British retire¬ ment of ten or fifteen miles and against jumping at conclusions as to the ulti¬ mate meaning of the German advance. He said that when he was in Paris the idea of the French military leaders was that the surest way to inflict a crushing defeat on the Germans was to get them out of their trenches, and that the German offensive may there- fore be very welcome to the Allies, who will make the Germans pay dearly for every foot of advance and get them into a position in the open where the tactics of the-battle of the Marne may be repeated. The British, he declared, are the war's greatest defensive fighters. They are now taking the German attack in a superb manner. The French army so far has been unaffected, and the French reserves are ready for the offensive they will likely be called upon to make at the critical moment. The French, he says, are the best of all of the ar- mies in an open offensive, and the French leaders he talked with felt that J if they could ever get a combat of mo- bile forces again on anything like equal tenus they would be able to re- peat the triumph of the .Marne. «¦\merica cannot shift the burden of! the future. Her part remains to be played. Washington does not wish to mini- mize what the part must be. It wishes rather to emphasize it. ¦-.- "It Is Going Well," Says Red Cross Man at Front P.«\RIS, March 24..A inpssage has been received by courier by Homer Folks, head of the Department of Civil Affairs of the American Red Cross, j from Edward Eyre Hunt, who is di- recting the Red Cross relief for civil- ians just behind the new battle line, In his message, Mr. Hunt said: "I have seen something of this situa- tion to-day and shall see more to-mor¬ row. It is going well. Do not let any one make you think it is not." Mr. Hunt reports that events have made it advisable for the Smith Col- j lege unit, the Quakers and the other j Red Cross organizations to move further from the firing line. All those engaged in this work are safe. German Admiral and Troops Lost With Ship LONDON, March 24..^inlanders ar-! riving at Stockholm on the gunboat Svensksund say the German transport Frankland struck a mine and sank at Xoorland, according to an Exchange Telegraph dispatch from Stockholm.! The transport .was crowded with sol¬ diers, cannon and munitions, and, ac- cording to the dispatch, the entire crew, all of the soldiers and Admiral von Meyrer were lost. A Stockholm dispatch dated March 22 said that another German transport had been blown up by a mine near the Aland Islands and that the transport Frankland, which came up to its res¬ cue, was damaged severely by another explosion. ... «- British Down Nine Fliers on Italy Line LONDON, March 24.-British air¬ craft on Saturday destroyed eight enemy airplanes in-the Italian theatre of war, an official statement issued here to-day said. A ninth machine was driven down out of control. The «British squadrons suffered no loss. The Italian official statement, given out in Koine to-day, said a French patrol had taken prisoners at Monte Tomba and there hud been slight ar¬ tillery and reconnoitring activity along the whole front. KuMer Train Service to Atlantic City. j.".i ...rnplf.t« U .«In service in Atlantic ilty ()urln« ««»ter period, uk Ticket Aa-cnta E>«nniylvanla »iaiir«»a«i f«>i Special K»«i«i Time Table..AUvt. «\ Foe Says U.S. Troops Aiding British Failed Berlin Announces Counter Attack by Franco-Amer¬ icans Was Repulsed Rushed to Stem Drive at Chauny Town Later Taken; Par¬ ticipation of Pershing's Men Unconfirmed LONDON', March 24..American regi¬ ments taking part with French and British units in a counter attack on the advancing Germans before Chauny were thrown back, Berlin announced of¬ ficially to-day. A later statement by the enemy said Chauny had been capt¬ ured. The Berlin statement that United States troops had been engaged in op- posing the great offensive as yet lias not been confirmed from any other source. ; The German statement probably is true, however, for an American division of New England troops has been train¬ ing with the French on the Chemm- des-Dames, only a dozen miles in an air line from La Fere, the southern limit of the German offensive front. Chauny is on the Oise River, seven miles southwest of La Fere. To reach it the Germans advanced about five miles from the positions before the of¬ fensive. The British and French lines before the offensive are understood to have joined at La Fere. On Saturday the Germans «.fficially reported forcing a crossing of the Oise west of this city. A? the British right fell back before the German masses the French left wing would have to withdraw simulta¬ neously or the enemy would have an opportunity to encircle it. The French presumably would then reinforce this point with troops taken from the line further east or from the reserves in the rear. This they seem to have done, selecting certain American regiments for this duty. It is going too far to say certainly, however, that these regiments came from the Chemin-des-I)ames. They may have been fresh regiments. Londoners eagerly discussed the par¬ ticipation of American troops in the lighting to-day. The American Em- bassy here slated it was entirely with- out confirmation of the German state¬ ment and could not say whether United States troops bad been engaged. Reported Action of l/.S. Men Unconfirmed May Be Engineers WASHINGTON, March 24..No con-! firmation of German reports that | American troops have participated in the fight on the British front had reached the War Department up to« a late hour to-night. Major General March, acting chief of staff, who re- mained at his office much of the day and night, said that no advices to this effect had been received. It was recalled that American rail- way engineers, in training at the Brit- ish front, were involved in the Ger- man counter attack on the Caijibrai ; some months ago, but there has been nothing to indicate that any other than engineers or other special units have been employed at any time with the j British forces. Officials generally displayed the most; eager interest in every item of news as to the German drive. The govern- ment may have received some con- lidentiul advices from General Pershing! on the situation, but General March said nothing was to be given out when he left his office. Other officers pointed j out that any information as to British or French operations must be made public by the officials of those two countries, and that whatever General Pershing may have transmitted would! be regarded as confidential in the ex- treme. Wilson Eager for News The intense interest in press reports displayed by President Wilson himself indicated that official information was meagre. The Associated Press dis¬ patches were transmitted to him dur- | ing the evening. The official British and German re- ports were taken here as showing that a second phase of the great battle had begun und was continued throughout the day, with no decisive results. It was evident that the Bhitish second defensive system was being severely tested by German attacks, though no détails were transmitted which would permit military officials to estimate the scope of successes clnimed by the Germans and to some extent admitted by the British. It appeared, however, that the British line in general was still intact at the close of the day. The announcement from Berlin that Paiis had been bombarded by long- range guns seemed to settle any doubt there has been as to what transpired in the French capital yesterday and to¬ day. The range of th<> new weapon. seventy-six miles exceeds anything ever dreamed of by ordnance experts here so far ns known. _-a- H'UITK SULPHUR HPRIN08, W. VA. Th.- Graenbrler, European plan. Wonderful curative waters. N, V. Offloe, The Pla/e. -Ailvl. British Flyers Shoot Down 54 Enemy Craft Successful Raids Made on German Towns and Works LONDON, March 24.- -An official re- port on the aerial operations says that fifty-four enemy airplanes have been brought down. The text of the statement reads: "The enemy's low-flying airplanes were most persistent in their attacks on our infantry in the forward areas. Many of these machines were attacked and brought down by our pilots. A| total of twenty-nine hostile machines) were brought down and twenty-five others were driven down out of con- trol. Two enemy balloons also were destroyed. Nine of our machines are' missing. "Our machines on Saturday carried out another successful raid on factories in «Mannheim. Nearly one and a half tons of bombs were dropped, and bursts were seen on a soda factory, the rail- way and docks. "Several fire'i were started, one of which was of great size, with flames leaching to a height of 200 feet and smoke to 5,000 feet. The conflagration was visible for a distance of thirty- five miles." "The weather Saturday again favored operations, and our airplanes were constantly employed in reconnoitring; positions of troops, in photography and bombing and in reporting suitable tar- gets for our artillery. Many thousands of rounds were fired by our pilots from low altitudes on hostile troops massed in villages and in the open continuously throughout the day. "More than fourteen tons of bombs were dropped on enemy billets, on his high velocity guns and on railroad sta-j tions in the battle area." "Our bombing airplanes were at- tacked by thirty-two hostile machines, and a fierce light ensued. One of the enemy's airplanes was brought down in flames and another was downed, und fell in the centre of Mannheim. Five others were driven down out of con¬ trol. "Despite this severe combat and the enemy's heavy anti-aircraft gunfire all our machines returned except two. During the night ten heavy bombs were dropped on an important railway bridge and works at Konz,' just south of Troves, in Germany. Eight of these bombs were clearly seen to be bursting among the railway works." "Nearly two tons of bombs were dropped from low heights on a hostile airdrome south of Metz. Six bombs were seen to burst among the hangars and to set lire to some of the huts of the airdrome. All uor machines re¬ turned. "From nightfall until early morning! our night Hying 3quadrons bombed areas or. the battlefront in which hos¬ tile troops were concentrated, ns well as enemy ammunition dumps and large guns. More than fourteen tons of bombs were again dropped by our ma¬ chines, two and n half tons of which were loosed on the docks of Bruges. All our machines returned." Official Statements LONDON. March 24..The British and German official statements follow : British (night)..Fresh hostile attacks developed this morning in great strength on the whole battlefront, and they have continued throughout the day. South of Peronne the enemy succeeded, after heavy fighting, in crossing the River Somme at certai points. These are being dealt with. North of Peronne enemy attacks were directed with the greatest violence against the line of the River Tortille (a tributary of the Somme). Our troop^ on this portion of the battlefront have been withdrawn and are ..ghting on new positions. Further north repeated assaults'by large bodies of German infantry have been repulsed with heavy loss to the enemy. In this fighting the 17th and 40th divisions greatly distinguished themselves, beating off many hostile attacks. British (day)..There has been no material chnnge in the situation on the. battlefront during the night, although further fighting has taken place at a number of points. Our troops are holding the line of the Somme River to Peronne. Small parties of the enemy which endeavored to cross ir. the neighborhood of Pargny were driven back. On our right we are in touch with the French, and to the north of the River Somme, at Peronne, our troops hold their positions after beating off a number of attacks on different portions of this front during the early part of the night. Heavy fighting is still to be expected. German (night). Between the Somme and the Oise our corps are fighting their way forward. Chauny has been taken. Our booty in war material is enormous. The English in their retirement are burning French towns and villages. We have bombarded the fortress of Paris with long distance guns. A gigantic struggle is taking place for Bapaume. A battle is in progress on the Transloy-Combles-Maurepas line. The Somme has been crossed at. many points in our atack between Peronne and Ham. German (day).. The battle near Monchy, Cambial, St. Quentin and La Fere has been won. The British Third and Fourth armies are portions of Franco-American re¬ serves, who had been brought up, were beaten, and on the line of Bapaume- Bouchavesnea and behind the Somme, between Peronne and Ham, as well as at Chauny, were repulsed with the heaviest of losses. The army of General von Below (Otto) took by storm Monchy Height, and south thereof carried forward the attack in a westerly direction beyond Wan- court and Henin. It is now engaged in a fight northwest of Bapaume for the third enemy positions. Strong British counter attacks were repulsed. The army of General von Dermar-Witz, following upon the heels of the vanquished enemy, pressed forward in close pursuit Friday night as far as the third enemy position in the Equancourt, Nurlu, Templeux-La Fosse, Bernes lin". Early yesterday morning they renewed their attack against the enemy and defeated him, in spite of his desperate defence and continual counter attacks. A junction with the left wing of the attack of General von Below was effected. Between Mnnancourt and Peronne the troops of Generals von Käthen and von Gotard have forced a crossing over the Tortille sector arrtî on the Somme batlefiolds are fighting around Bouchavcsnes. Peronne has fallen. Other di¬ visions have pressed forward to the south thereof as far as the Somme. As early as Friday evening the army of General von Hutier, pressing closely forward, took by storm the third enemy position, broke through it and com¬ pelled the enemy to retire. In eeaseless pursuit the corps of Generals von Luettwitz and von Oettinge have reached the Somme. Ham fell, after a desperate fight, into the hands of our victorious troops, English reserves, which were thrown against them in a desperate attack sus- tained sanguinary losses. The corp3 of Generals von Webern and von Conte and the troops of Gen¬ eral von Geyl, after a fierce battle, crossed the Crozat Canal. French, English and American regiments which had been brought up from the southwest for a counter attack were thrown back on Chauny in a south¬ westerly direction. For the achievement of a formidable success the troops of all the German Continued on Next Page «: -. Peronne,Ham And Chauny ¡ Have Fallen - Haig Falls Back Slowly as Fight Rages on Fifty- | Mile Front 30,000 Prisoners Taken, Says Berlin Enemy's Advance One to Two Miles on Most of Line The greatest battle in the history of the world continues to jago along a front of more than fifty miles. The Germans have advanced in a day from one to two miles on most of the front. Peronne, Ham and Chauny have fallen. The Somme River has been crossed at many places, ac-~ cording to Berlin. The enemy claims the capture of 30,000 prisoners, 600 guns and enormous booty. The maximum advance of the enemy is about fifteen miles, directly west of St. Quentin. Ninety-seven enemy divisions (1.« 164,000 men) have been thrown into the struggle. The British are falling hack slowly, slaughtering vast numbers. The enemy loss, according to one esti¬ mate, is 30 to 50 per cent of the divisions involved (349,200 to 582,000 men). American regiment?, says Berlin, took part in an unsuccessful counter attack before Chauny. The Germans have recaptured about a third of the area they evacu¬ ated in the great retreat to tho Hindenburg line in the spring of 1917. The British 3d, 4th and 5th armies seem to be engaged. Berlin announced last night that a gigantic struggle is taking place for Bapaume. Another battle is being fought on the Transloy- Combles-Maurepas line. Field Marshal Haig announced last night the enemy had been re¬ pulsed with heavy losses on the northern part of the line. The Germans had crossed the Rivers Tortille and Somme, he said, and were being heavily engaged to the west of these streams. Both the British and the Germans state heavy losses have been caused by airplanes firing machine ííuns and dropping bombs on the heads of massed troops. London announced fifty-four German ma¬ chines had been brought down. The Canadians on Friday night di¬ rected the greatest gas bombar«l- ment ever made on the enemy be¬ tween Lens and Hill 70, north of the scene of the offensive. British Fall Back As Planned; Shock Troops Hold Foe By Tho Assoialcd Prrts*t WITH THE BRITISH ARMY IX FRANCE, March 24..The British and French, who cooperate at the junction of the two armies, were viewing tho trend of the German offensive with op¬ timistic eyes this morning. Hard fight¬ ing was in progress, but the latest re¬ ports showed little or no change in the situation in favor of the enemy since yesterday, while on the other hand the defenders had pushed the attacking forces back after a bitter struggle and were holding strongly along the whole new front to which they had; with¬ drawn. Fighting of a most desperate nature has been continuous since the initial attack, but so far the British have used few troops other than those which were holding the froni lines. These shock troops have been making as gal¬ lant, a defence as was ever recorded in the annals of the British army, and, as a result, they have enabled the main body of the forces to fall back deliber¬ ately and without confusion and oc¬ cupy positions which had been prepared long before the German offensive be¬ gan. German Losses Appalling The Germans, on the other hand, op¬ erating under the eyes of the Efnperor and the Crown Prince, have been hurl¬ ing vast hordes into the fray with ut¬ ter disregard for life, and hare fol¬ lowed into the abandoned position-*, getting further and further away from
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