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Show m greatest of" VIOfiLDBATTLES Tremendous German Offensive Along 50 Mile Front Exacts Terrible Toll of Life. BRITISH FORCED HACK BUT FINALLY STOP HUNS Most Critical Stage of World War, and May Hasten the Ratification of Peace Terms on Some Ranis America's Amer-ica's Small Part. The past week has been one of the most momentious, appalling and sang-uinary sang-uinary periods of the worlds greatest war, which has raped in Europe for nearly four years now. The gigantic offensive threatened by Germany for so long, and which people had begun to doubt was intended, has been launched on a front of more than fifty miles. According to the best advices obtainable from allied sources, the Germans, directed by the Kaiser in person, have used not less than 70 divisions, or over 800,000 men in the onslaught, and it is believed that at least half of this number has been sacrificed in this groat enterprise, the effort to reach Paris and force a "German "Ger-man peace" upon the allies. In this the enemy has signally failed up to the present time though he hag succeeded in pushing the British Brit-ish line back a considerable distance, in some places slightly farther west than the line at the beginning of the battle of the Marne in 1916, but it is still a long way in advance of the high water line of German occupation occupa-tion in 1914. The British and French casualties were yesterday estimated at 150,000, including 45,000 prisoners claimed by the German war office to have been captured. The German loss is esti-on esti-on both sides drawn into the ranks, At the present time, with both armies ar-mies practically in a state of exhaustion, exhaus-tion, and with all the reserve troops n both sides drawn into the ranke, practically a deadlock seems to have been reached. Though greatly out-- out-- numbered at every stage of the drive, the British, on whom the weight of the blow descended, have resisted heroically, he-roically, though giving ground slowly slow-ly foot by foot, and exacting a terrible terri-ble toll in lives from the enemy for every bit of ground gained by them. Berlin claims the capture of nearly one thousand cannon, thousands of machine guns, a number of armo'od "tanks," and the demolishing of nearly near-ly one hundred allied air planes. The English claim that between :4lf and 220 German air craft have been demolished or forced to descend From Berlin it is claimed that American troops were included with the reserve troops brought up tn hold the line, and that while they fought valiantly, they were no match for the Prussians, and were "given i taste of real fighting." General F instoji has littlte or nothing to say in relation rela-tion to the participation of American troops. In fact, it seems as if "Inc cat might have gotten his tongue,"' for the War Department has .ben obliged ob-liged to wire him for reports a lime or two and the response then appears to be very meagre, or the news -jets no farther than the war depa-fciuiit The sections of the front he' I by American troops is not involved in the big German offensive, and ii' our boys have participated in the great battle it is in the reserve divisions, and possibly an engineering corps or two who were assisting the British at the time the big drive was commenced. com-menced. While Berlin claims that everything has gone according to their plans and calculations, and they express great pleasure over the victory they claim to have won, from other and possibly possi-bly more reliable sources it is learned tht their great offensive has fallen short of what had been anticipated and is in reality a great disappointment, disappoint-ment, if not viewed in the light of u j , complete failure. German prisoners j captured admit that the advance is j a long while behind schedule, and express ex-press astonishment at the stubborn , gasistence made by the armies of the j in'ies. There seems to be small chance of their boast that the German army would be in Paris by April first, be- i (Continued on fifth page.) THI (JREATESTOF WORLD'S BATTLB8 (Continued from first page.) ing realized. In order to replenish thir dcci mated ranks, the Germans have been ol Mged to draw reserves from every portion of the western front, and it seems an opportune time for the allies al-lies at other points not involved in the great offensive, and particularly the Americans, to strike a telling counter blow. Over in southern Russia the Hol-. Hol-. hoviki are keeping the Germans and their sympathizers in the Ukraine province very busy, and are resisting the German Invasion very effectively, refusing to ratify the German peace treaty. In the far East, the .laps are alert and ready to thwart any attempt on the part of Germany to get possession possess-ion of the vast stores of wheat and other food stuffs at Vladivostok, placed there by the allies before the withdrawal of German) from the alliance. During the heavy fighting the ait-craft ait-craft have taken a prominent, part in the Operations, not only by observing enemy movements and directing ar tillery fire, but also by dropping great quantities of high explosives upon strategic points, and by harrassing massed bodies of infantry with ma-chins ma-chins gun fire at close range. A sensation of the great conflict is the bombardment of Paris by cannon of a range heretofore undreamed of. It is estimated that the euns throwing the projectiles into the French me-tropolis me-tropolis ate located about 76 miles distant, or three times as far off as the longest range of caution hereto fore devised While the damage Inflicted In-flicted by these long range guns is not serious, as compared to the destruction de-struction that can be accomplished b) bombs dropped from air planes, yet it seems to open new possibilities for the future in the race for the development devel-opment of the most hellish engines for the destruction of human life and property. It is said that the guns are an Austrian invention. Things have been happening fast the past week in the great war arena. and it does not appear half so much as if the war would cover a protracted period now as it did before this great drive was launched. Germany seems disposed to force the issue, which may indicate that her own people and the Austrians are growing tired ami sick of the war and unless they can see a prospect for an early victory or at least a favorable peace, they may revolt re-volt ami overthrow the militarj ma chine which is dictating to them. Now is the crucial time, a we sci it, and unless Allien.'.', can help materially now, he ma be too laic If we had been prepared and could have made ourselves felt earlier in the war, it is quite possible that Russia would not have dropped out. if we are too long in getting mi. l.r way now, England and Prance may be exhausted and forced t" accept inch peace terms as they can procure, when it will be up to the U, S. to try to break the ( let-man let-man autocracy alone. If anything can be done to speed up the program in this country, it should be done, for delay is exceedingly dangerous. It is just a little humiliating and dis-concerting dis-concerting t know that the American troops have cut so little figure in a contest of this magnitude and at a time whi o 'on. h at A by the Aliie- It i. even said that tin- Sammies over there are still dependent de-pendent upon the Preach for all their cannon Ws had been nattering our selves thai the Anaiican army the b.st equipped and provided for of """ mmm wm mmm i Hl any of the participants in the great H struggle. H The groat conflict over there has H had the effect of drawing from cover H many alian enemies in this count and in some instan.es they have been H summarily dealt with, This is ns it H should be. except that we believe we H would be justified in treating traitors in this country just as we would be dealt with in (Jcimany if we showed any pro American proclivities in that H country. It is hardly necessary to say what our fate would be. Even at Salt Luke City Oerman Sympathisers are very active, and a lay or two ago a large number of officers nnd men at the recruiting H headquarters had a narrow escape i from death by the gas route. Some M kind of an infernal trap was set by the alien enemies which resulted in the serious Ittnesi of several persons. H There wits some attempt also to oh- H tain information ns to what was trans- piling at the hendfun, ters b the MS of a dictating machine. H It is about time there was a thor- H ough house-cleaning of this sort of trash and n few examples made that would put the "fear of death" in all such disloyal subjects. We are alto- M gather too tolerant in this country for the good of our government. H |