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Show VERDUN LOSSES OF THE GERMANS At Least 200,000 Killed and Wounded, Making Greatest Great-est Battle Losses of History. Paris, April 7, 3:20 p. m. The German Ger-man losses before Vordun up to the present time havo reached tho hugo total of 200.000 men, one of the greatest great-est battle losses in the whole range of warfare, according to estlmatos niado public here today from a semiofficial semi-official source, "the result of carefully made estimates in high quarters in which the figures have been rigorously checked and verified." "Documentary and verbal testimony gathered and authenticated permit the giving of precise details concerning concern-ing the losses suffered by the Germans Ger-mans and by us on the Vordun front," Bays the semi-official communication given to the Associated Press. "During "Dur-ing the period from February 1, It is known that two army corps, namely, the Third and the Eighteonth, luive ibecn withdrawn from the front, having hav-ing lost one-third of their froce. They have reappeared since and have again suffered like losses. Losses of Units Cited. "The Gorman reinforcements arc practically used up as fast as they are put in line. The total effectives of the Eighteenth corps have in this way lost 17,000 men and the Third corps has lost 22,000 men. "Concerning the One (Hundred and Twenty-first division, which took possession pos-session of north Vaux about March 12, we have preclso Information. More than one-half of the Seventh regiment of its reserves was put out of action by our machine guns in the Ineffectual attack against the slopes of the fort. Tho Sixtieth regiment met similar losses, of which the total reached 60 per cent of the regiment's effectives. "Tho Mlnftpfnth fJprmnn Snfnntrv had already suffered similar losses In attacking the village of Vaux on March 9 Its Thirteenth company was surprised an annihilated. In entering the village houses, Its First battalion was reduced 60 per cent. "Three regiments of the Eleventh Bavarian division, which led the attack at-tack on the Malancourt and Avocourt woods on March 20 and 23, wore each reduced by one-half. Their losses varied between 50 and 60 per cent. The same is true of the losses of the Fourth regiment of the second division divis-ion of landwehr engaged under similar conditions. "Tho foregoing are ony losses during dur-ing actual attack and do not include the losses of regiments In the trenches or In reserve under the fire of our cannon. They are solely the current actual losses. We know that certain German units havo had very high current cur-rent losses; that Is to say, losses from artillery fire, when no action of the Infantry was In progress. We cite, for Instance, the Thirty-seventh regiment of infantry, which was surprised by our fire while on the march to the trenches. It lost about 500 men, and from this fact was so reduced that it could not; on March 10, take part in the attack on the village of Vaux, as was ordered, In place of the Nineteenth Nine-teenth regiment, which had been decimated deci-mated by our machine guns. Number Engaged. "Summarizing, during the forty days from February 21 to April 1, the Germans Ger-mans had on the Verdun front from Avocourt to Eparges exactly 239 battalions bat-talions of Infantry, and presenting a minimum of 1075 companies of infantry, in-fantry, besides twenty-three battalions battal-ions of engineers of three companies each, which give an aggregate of 1144 companies fully reinforced, the companies com-panies varying from 180 men. The assaulting army, therefore, represented represent-ed at least 295,000 Infantry alone. "Since February 21 the reinforcements reinforce-ments have been frequent and heavy. At least eighty battalions have been sent to the rear to bo reconstituted. Others have received their reinforcements reinforce-ments on the field. It Is, therefore, nearly 450,000 Infantry which appeared ap-peared upon the firing line, and this estimate Is even under the mark. "Declarations gathered from prisoners prison-ers and our own observations lead us to estimate at least one-third of the total engaged as the minimum lossos of the German Infantry up to April 1. It Is, therefore, 150,000 men who have fallen solely upon the first battle line. "But the German losses do not stop there. In a modern battle long-range guns reach far beyond the first line, striking lines of communication and the quarters of troops. As the range of the artillery lengthens the zone of destruction behind the battle line Increases In-creases proportionately. The German artillery, literally piled up In the woods, suffered losses comparable with those of tho infantry. Finally our heavy artillery reached supply camps and innumerable convoys In the rear. "We arrive thus, keeping within a most moderate estimate, at upward of 200,000 men as the figures of our enemy's losses before Verdun." |