| Show Big Guns and nd S Science cien ci Will Save S ave u. u S. S S Soldiers Vivid Word Pie Lu of Curlain Cu Lain of Fire r nrc 99 I ells H How ow FRENCH VIX FIXED DAN JiAN N EXPLOSIVE S FRENCH 0 SHELLS WITH WIm DESTRUCTIVE ZOI ZONE OP OF YARDS ris ARTILLERY ITTEM 1 1 BARRAGE 75 L ADVANCING JUST AHEAD OF W I. I S 'S GE MAN SI tSE SEVE VE TO R l I l i cr Al I s V VI 1 j rr I SAFETY ZONE ZalE I 1000 rr 3 I 1 BRITISH FIXED BARRAGE 5 jn 6 cn HIGH EXPLOSIVE BRITISH SHELLS WIlli WITH DESTRUCTIVE ZONE ONE OP OF SYSTEM o I ADOPTED B. B Y I I U S J 1 y lV 1 1 0 S d 4 I 44 lit l WAITING V TO 10 COUNTZ COUNIE i mcg ARRAGE 4 ATTACK ROLLING 3 A DF WALKING TROOP lI l- l I 1 p I r e I. I 4 f 4 I wp S s These two two diagrams explain graphically the important difference between the French and British systems of barrage fire Note the safety zone betwee between n the French rolling barrage and stationary barrage and observe how the British method leaves no cover for the German reserves By L. L H Harper Leech WASHINGTON D. D C. C Sept 17 American soldiers in France will act almost wholly on the offensive They enter the war on the western front long long- after the defensive has passed with the Through careful studies by American American Amer Arner- ican lean artillery experts the the American army is being equipped so the major part of the work will devolve on the artillery De Despite the fact that the troops will constantly attack it ia is expected the number killed in action will be less than 11 per 1000 men engaged Making haste slowly will save thousands of American lives American Ameri Amen can officers have havo benefited by studying the tho artillery methods of th the French Frenchi i and British Their experiments have hav advanced the art of attacking in In- In trenched positions to an exact science of of which the saving of men is the biggest factor The British artillery experts have reduced their losses to one-half one those of a year ago On the other hand the French system system tem tern of artillery attack which grew out of their defensive methods earlier in inthe inthe the war proved costly in life in this years year's offensive Their terrible losses caused the re removal removal re- re moval of General Nivelle from command command com corn mand and the French political crisis I in the thO spring The modern system of a attack is based on two kinds of artillery fire which screen the infantry Two kinds of guns produce the two two- different barrages or curtains of ot fire fire always sprayed between the at attacking attacking at- at tacking troops and the enemy When the troops advance at a walk they never run their light field gUns behind them them British British three-inch three and guns gun's guris- guris French sev millimeter five guns guns- throw in advance of them the rolling barage This rain of sells sohl advanced in exact time to the mens men's advance ex explodes explodes ox- ox in a veritable sheet of flame and shot only yards ahead of the troops These shells are shrapnel They burst high in the air and from the J front end of the shell Their crag frag ragI rag rag- ments and contained shot descend I downward and forward on the enemy but not backward The rolling barrage is stopped I when the attackers take talce tI the e enemy's I first line i In the meantime the heavy guns back backof backI j I of the field guns have been hurling the theother theother other barrage high over the heads of I the troops and over the rolling barI bar bar- rage This rain of sells falls behind the German first line line between between it and I the second and support lines I These huge shells are loaded with high explosives and shatter in every I direction They are designed to prevent prevent pre pre- vent reinforcements to the German I first line trenches to head off counter counter counter coun coun- ter attacks and to smash the communication communication tr trenches and machine gun nests back of the first line For this b barrage th the French built huge guns throwing twelve and even inch shells with a shattering and killing effect for radius To keep ep from killing their own troops the Fre French ch had to hurl hirl these shells at pt least half a mile beyond the French line or half a mile back of the German German German Ger Ger- man first line I Thus there was always about half a amile amile mile of ot comparatively safe sar territory between the rolling barrage and the stationary barrage The Germans learning learning- this began beg to plant large numbers of men and machine machine machine ma ma- chine guns in shell sheH holes pits and subsidiary subsidiary subsidiary sub sub- trenches for half a mile back backof of their first line trenches i When the French Frenc troops reached the tho German first line and t their rolling barrage was lifted they were confronted confronted confronted con con- fronted with Germans who had re remained remained remained re- re alive in the half mile safety zone between the two barrages In Inthe Inthe Inthe the fighting which resulted the French suffer suffered d enormous losses especially from the German machine guns For their advance barrage fire the British artillery is composed of five six and seven-inch seven guns with shells of a shattering radius less les than half that of the large French shells The small distance between the two British barrages affords no safety I I strip for the Germans Germani Therefore when the Germans expect a British advance they pull back their I men to their reserve lines and counter counterattack counterattack counterattack attack when the British have seized the first line When they a French assault they mass large largo numbers of men and machine guns right back of their first line The British advances have been slow piece by piece with small losses Frequently the I French Tench have made further further further fur fur- ther progress but at frightful cost in bloody hand to hand fighting The French barrage has often killed many of their own men when they rushed ahead too fast into the wide ex explosion cx- cx z zone ne of the big French shells The adoption of the British system has bas caused changes and delay in the American plans but it is well worth I while |
