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Show GRAPHIC STORY OF THE VICTORY OF TOLIES British Official Press Bureau Bu-reau Issues Statement Compiled From Information Infor-mation From Field. LONDON, Sept. 14. 1:52 p. in. The official of-ficial press bureau gave out this statement state-ment this morning: The following report is compiled ; from information sent from the headquarters of Field Jdarshal John French, commander in chief of the British expeditonary forces on the continent, under date of September . 11. A summary of the operations of the British army in Franco was issued is-sued by the war office on the 6th instant, and one account, mated to be incomplete of further operations, was issued from the bureau on Saturday Sat-urday night, the 12th instant. Today it is possible to give more complete reports of the movements of the British force and of the French armies in immediate touch with it. This account is compiled from data received from the front and carries the operations from September Sep-tember 4 to September 10, both days inclusive. It will be remembered that the general position of our troops on Sunday, Sun-day, September 6, was stated to be south of the river Marne, with the French forces In line on our right and left. Practically there has been no change since Saturday, September 5, which marked the- end of our army's long retirement from the Belgian frontier through northern France. Flanking Attempt. On Friday, September 4, it became apparent that there was an alteration altera-tion in the advance of almost the whole of the first German army. That army, since the battle near Mons on August 22, had been playing its part in a colossal strategic endeavor to create a Sedan for the allies by outflanking and enveloping the left of their whole line, so as to encircle and drive both the British and French to the south. There was now a change in Its objective snd it was observed that the German forces opposite the British Brit-ish were beginning to move in a southeasterly direction instead of continuing southwest on to the capi- I tal, leaving a strong rear guard along j the line of the river Ouvcq (which ; flows south of and joins the Marne at Lizy stir Ourcq) to keep off the French sixth army, which by then had been formed and was to the northwest of Paris. They were evidently evi-dently executing what amounted to a flank march diagonally across our front. British Ignored. Prepared to ignore the British as being driven out of the fight, they were initiating an effort to attack the left flank of the main French army, which stretched in a long curved line from our right toward the east, and so to carry out against it alone an envelopment which so far had failed against the combined forces of the allies. On Saturday. September S, this movement on the part of the Germans Ger-mans was continued and large advance ad-vance parti es crossed t he Mam e southward at Trilport, Sammeron, La Ferte Sous Jouarre and Chateau Thelrry. There was considerable fighting with the French fifth army on the French left, which fell back from its position south or the Marne toward the Seine. On Sunday large hostile forces crossed the Marne and pushed on through Coulommiers and past the British right farther to the east. Thev were attacked at night by the French fifth army, which captured three villages vil-lages at the point of the bayonet. Allies Advance. On Monday, September 7, there was a general advance on the part of the allies. In this quarter of the field our forces, which had now been reinforced, re-inforced, pushed on in a northeasterly northeast-erly direction in co-operatfon with the advance of the French fifth army to the north and of the French sixth army to the eastward against the German rear guard along the river Ourcq. Possibly weakened by the detachment detach-ment of troops to the eastern theater of operations and realizing that the j action of the French sixth army ! against the line of Ourcq and the advance ad-vance of the British placed their flanking movement in considerable danger of being taken in the rear and on its right flank the Germans on. this i day commenced to retire toward the northeast. This was the first sign that these troops had turned back since their attack at Moris a fortnight before, and from reports received the order to retreat when so close to Paris was a bitter disappointment. From letters let-ters found on dead soidiers there is no doubt there was a general impression im-pression among the enemy's troops that they wore about to enter Paris. Hand-to-Hand Fighting. On Tuesday. September S, the German Ger-man movement northeastward was continued. Their rear guards on the south of the Marne were being pressed back to that river by our troops and by the French on our right, the latter capturing three villages vil-lages after a hand-to-hand fight and the infliction of severe loss on the enemy. The fighting along the Ourcq continued con-tinued on this day and was of the most sanguinary character, for the Germans had massed a great force of artillery along this line. Very few of their infantry were seen by the French. The French fifth nrmy also made a fierce attack on the Germans in Montmtrail, regaining that place. On Wednesday, September 9, the hattlo between iho. French sixth army and what was now the German flank guard along the Ourcq occurred. British Cross River. Th1 British corps overcoming some resistance on the river Ptit Mnrin. crossed the Marne in pursuit of the Germans, who now w ere hastily retreating re-treating northward. One of our corps was delayed by :in obstinate rieiVnso inado by a strong rear guard with machine guns at La Ferte Sous Ju uar re. where the bridge had been dest roved. On Thursday, September 10. the French sixth army continued its pressure on the west, while the fifth army, by forced marches, reached the line of Chauteau Thierry and Dor-mans Dor-mans on the Marne. Our troops also continue t he pursuit on the north I of the latter river and after a con-f con-f sidrrable amount of fighting captured cap-tured some 5no prisoners, four guns, six machine guns and fifty transport wagons. Many of the enemy were killed or wounded and the numerous thick woods, which dot the country north of the Marne, are filled with German stragglers. Most of them appear to have been without food for at least two days. Indeed, In this area of the operations, opera-tions, the tier mans seem to he demoralized de-moralized and inclined to surrender in small parties, and the general situation sit-uation a ppears to be most favorable to the allies. Brutal Damage. j Much brulaf and senseless damage has been done in the villages occupied 1 bv the enemy. Property has been wantonly destroyed. Pictures In ehateaus have been ripped up and houses generally have been pillaged. U is stated on unimpeachable authority au-thority also that the inhabitants have been much ill-treated. Interesting Incidents have occurred during the fighting. On the 10th of ' September part of our second army corps advanced into the north, found itself marching parallel with another infantry force at some little distance away. At first it was thought this was another British unit. After some time, however, it was discovered discov-ered that it was a body of Germans retreating. Measures promptly were taken to head off the enemy, who was surrounded sur-rounded and trapped in a sunken road, where over 600 men surrendered. surren-dered. Fought to the Death. On September 10 a small party under un-der a noncommissioned officer was cut off and surrounded. After a des-I des-I perafa resistance It was decided to go on fighting to the end. Finally , the noncommissioned officer and one maji only were left, both of. them being wounded. The Germans came up and shouted to them, "Lay down your arms." The German commander, however, sig- naled them to keep their arms and then asked permission to shake hands with the wounded noncommissioned officer who was carried off on his stretcher with his rifle by his side. The arrival of reinforcements and the continued advance have delighted our troops, who are full of zeal and anxious to press on. One of the features of the campaign cam-paign on our side has been the success suc-cess obtained by the royal flying corps. In regard to the collection of information it is impossible either to award too much praise to our aviators avi-ators for the way they have carried out their duties or to overestimate the value of the intelligence collected, more especially during the recent ad- ; vance. ; In due course certain examples of what has been effected may be specl- j fled and the far-reaching nature of the results fully explained, but that time has not arrived. Service Appreciated. That the services of our flying corps, which has really been on trial, are fully appreciated by our allies is shown by the following from tiie commander com-mander in chief of the French armies received September 9 by Field Marshal Mar-shal Lord Kitchener: "Please express most particularly to Field Marshal French my thanks for the services rendered on every day by the English flying corps. The precision, exactitude and regularity of the news brought in by its members are evidence of their perfect organization organi-zation and nlso of the perfect training train-ing of the pilots and the observers." To give a lougi: of the amount of work carded out it is suficlent to mention that during a period of twenty days up to the 10th of September Sep-tember a daily average of more than nine reconnoissance flights of over 100 miles each has been maintained. The constant object of our aviators avi-ators has been to effect an accurate location of the enemy's forces and, incidentally, since the operations cover so large an area, of our own units. Air Tactics. Nevertheless, the tactics adopted, dealing with the enemy's aircraft to take them instantly with one or more British machines. This has been so far so successful that in five cases pilots or observers have been shot while in the air and their machines brought to ground. As a consequence the British flying corps has succeeded In establishing an individual ascendancy i which Is as serviceable to us as it i is damaging to the enemy. How far It is due to this cause it is not possible at present to ascertain ascer-tain definitely, but the fact remains that the enemy have recently become much less enterprising In their flights. Something in the direction of the mastery of the air already has been gained in pursuance of the principle that the main object of military aviation avia-tion is the collection of information. Bomb dropping has not been indulged in-dulged In to any great extent. On, one occasion a patrol bomb was successfully suc-cessfully exploded in a German bivouac bi-vouac at night, while from a diary found on a man it is discovered that a high explosive bomb, thrown at a cavairv column from one of our aero-planes aero-planes struck an ammunition wagon, resulting in an explosion which killed fifteen of the enemy. |