Show 0 ak awe general anelia S JK X story of the ae A ee fe J 0 copyright 1931 int in by the north annerl by general ean can Mow N allwoo aill All loo world right eight arel rr el d W in ludins pm ib abo S da I 1 ji whole john J B ashing 01 to la part prohibited sio vf S vl CHAPTER continued foci follia A final decision cannot be imada on that subject that will evl evi denoy depend upon the degree of 0 instruction st 0 of f the units in the crisis that act actually ily confronts the allied armies it Is effectives that we lack the method of emoto employing ya ng these units is s a qi question estion to be handled in due course coarse an and according to their efficiency pershing lne 1 I would like to have the conditions under which these units are to be employed determined now and to fix alx the time during which the regiments and brigades will be used separately Foch alake Mahe your proposition on that subject I 1 then explained the details of the system that was being followed where our divisions were in training with the french and the plan agreed upon with the british I 1 added that it was fully fulli understood that if an emergency should arise while our troops were tn in training they would go into battle as part of the divisions with which they were serving pershing perching refuses refuse to content consent Gen general ertil foci then said 1 I 1 do not doubt the ex excellence cellen of the method hut but in the crisis through which we are passing I 1 return to the decision of the supreme war council land and I 1 ask you to transport during may june and july only infantry and machine gun units will you consent Pers bIng no I 1 do not consent I 1 propose for one month to ship nothing but infantry and machine gun units and after 1 that the other arms and service of the rear troops to correspond roch if you adopt the plan I 1 propose you would have by july 31 more american infantry you said just now that you would furnish the artillery and even artilleryman artillerymen artillery men inen which would bl joined with our infantry to complete our divisions then why not consent to transport our artillery personnel along with our infantry roch 1 I repeat that it Is the infantry of which we have the greatest need at this time I 1 would like to have general bliss tell us the considerations erat ions which led to the decision taken by the supreme war council at versailles bliss the collective note recommended to the united states to send only infantry until the war council should give instructions to the contrary the government of the united states in conformity with this note and with tile the recommendation of secretary baker consented to this plan As far as the employment of the units on the front Is concerned the question should be decided by general pershing according to agreement with the commander in chief to whose army they may be attached foch fears fear disaster pershing 1 have been discussing tills question of training our units for the last eight months first with general petain and then with bl arshal 11 a fg the method agreed upon tends naturally to the formation of conati buted american divisions general foci fochi sold said lie he wished to see american divi divisions sinns constituted and an american army formed ns as large us na possible but tile tha pot policy icy he was then advocating would have made it Illi impossible possIble to form on an american army without serious delay it ever continuing he said but do not forget that tha t we nye are the midst of a hard bottle battle it if we do riot not take steps to prevent the disaster which Is threatened at present the american army may arrive in prance france to find the british pushed into the sea and the french driven back behind the loire while it tries in vain to organize on lost battle fields over the graves of allied soldiers lie ile was assured that it was fully understood that if an emergency arise while our troops were lo in training with the british or french they would go into the battle find and do their part I 1 then gave him the numbers to be shipped during may blay and told him that it had been agreed between abe british and ourselves to consider the question fur for june later I 1 informed him that th atthe the british ship hl ping authorities now thou thought it would be possible within the next nest three months to transport to france men our troops surer surprised ased with reference to the th german eGerman attack at on the twenty sixth blath division the night of april 2021 20 21 mentioned at the beginning of this chapter that point was the focus of a german raid covering a three lillo kilo meter front exten extending aing west from the bols bois de Rem leres it came during a heavy tog fog and was a complete surprise to our troops who were considerably outnumbered was taken by the enemy but operation cooperation co was reestablished established re throughout the division and the original front was recaptured on the following day in this affair we lost one officer 80 enlisted men killed 11 officers enlisted men wounded 30 officers enlisted men gassed and live officers enlisted men missing and prisoners the losses of the enemy ta la killed billed and wounded were reported as even greater CHAPTER the question of the shipment of american troops and particularly their allotment to the allied armies had assil assumed med very great importance to in the minds of the allied leaders accordingly a session of the supreme war council couhill was called at ab beville may alay 1 1018 and premier clemenceau opened the meeting by referring forthwith to the previous recommendation ommen dation of the councils military representatives as to the disposition of american troops the military representatives he began expressed the opinion in their joint noti note no 18 that only infantry and machine gun units should be sent to france for the present since then the agreement between lord billner and general pershing signed at london april 24 1018 has intervened this agreement makes a it had been understood at versailles that america would send men per month which the french and english armies would share equally under the milner pershing agreement it appears none go to france the french have not been consulted we might suppose that in compensation the american troops arriving in june would be given to france but it now appears they are also to join the british I 1 wish to protest that this Is not satisfactory 1 I am not discussing the figure of men I 1 am prepared to accept that these men go to the british in may AW I 1 am asking to receive the same number of troops in june there are close to americans in france at present but only five divisions or about men can be considered ns as combatants that Is not a satisfactory proportion milner defends agreement lord hillner arose much incensed a at t al Clemence Clemene aus caus statement which he considered quite unjust al has intimated he be asserted that there was comet something bing mysterious about the london agree ta I 1 0 44 ali balloon observer aloft ment I 1 believe that an explanation Is necessary he appears to believe that the agreement we signed Is a reversal rei ersal of the supreme war viar councils decision I 1 know only of a joint note am embodying bodying the recommendations of the military representatives but it Is of no value without the the governments besides al clemenceau Clemenc enu seems to be under the impression that half of the american troops were to go to france and the other half to england I 1 do not recollect any such decision all that general pershing and I 1 have urged Is that infantry and machine gunners should be sent to france we had no intention of depriving france of any american troops I 1 do not know that anything has been sold said r regarding garding e their allotment on arrival in france we simply wanted to haden their coming pershing upholds independence in making tite agreement with lord milner I 1 interposed 1 I had in mind bringing troops as rapidly as possible to meet the existing situation lord alicner Is quite correct in stating that there was no agreement as to the allocation of amerl cou con troops either to the british or french armies there Is no agreement between my government and anybody else that a single american soldier shall be sent to either the british or french there la Is lu ln existence an agreement between mr lloyd george and myself that six divisions should be brought to francea france al clemenceau will remember that I 1 spoke to him about going to london to arrange for the shipment of american troops to france and that he approved because it would expedite their arrival I 1 also spoke to general petain about it I 1 Clemen clemenceau cea u Is insistent ai W clemenceau Clemenc enu remembered my speaking of it but di regarding his previous approval continued his objections saying we have been informed that roth ine ina had been decided on at versailles out something has been decided on at london and france was closely concerned in tills this it was decided that six divisions should go to the british well I 1 will not argue about that you announce to us artillery for the month of june where four are in alliance two of them cannot act independently IY nothing has been provided tor for france in june the appointment of general foch as commander in chief la Is not a mere decoration tills post involves grave responsibilities he be must meet the present situation he must provide for the future 1 I 1 accept what has been done for may blay but I 1 want to know what Is intended for june at clemenceau Clemenc enu said the F reach french bad not received certain specialists they had asked tor for and also quoted from the conversation I 1 had held with general foch with reference to sending over troops in hay and june air amr lloyd george then said 1 I nm am of al M Clemence aus auls opinion the interests of the allies are identical we must not lose sight of that otherwise the unity of command has no meaning we must consider what Is best tor for the common cause what Is the situation today the british army has had heavy fighting and has suffered buffered heavy losses all available drafts have been sent to france and we shall send all who are available in may alay and june this would be the case even it all the americans who arrive in europe during these months should be assigned to the british army at present certain british d divisions 1 v 1 have been so severely han handled d 1 e d that they cannot be reconstituted general foch will remember the number yes ton foch answered As we cannot again put them in line air lloyd george continued they must be replaced by new units the germans are now fighting with the object of using up our effectives it if they can do this without exhausting hau sting their own reserves they will sometime deal us a blow which we shall not be able to parry in the meantime I 1 suggest that the decision fo the allotment oi of the american troops for jun june e be taken up when that mouth month arrives in ala way in fact either of our two armies may be hard pressed that Is the one which should be re enforced it Is not desirable now to deel decide de how troops arriving to june should be allotted 11 foch also cites prances frances need to this foch replied it Is undeniable that the british army Is now exhausted so let it receive immediately enforcement re in may but lately the french have had grave losses notably at montal dier and both during the last few days have been fighting shoulder to shoulder so american aid la Is now needed deeded almost ns as much tor for france as for or great britain above tills this queston question of rid to the french or to the british Is aid to the allies we ile a are re agreed that the american army la is to re enforce the british army at once in june we too shall need infantry and machine gun units so let us make the agreement for june at once by saying the same shipment of infantry and machine guns as for way may if there Is tonnage e available we shall devote it after t er that to the elements necessary for or filling up the american divisions I 1 am sure that general pershing with ills his generosity and his breadth of view will grant the fairness of this view and will extend tor for june the agreement decided upon for may whereupon mr lloyd george gave support to the principle saying that british recruits would not be available until august and he understood it was the same for or france when both w would ou be able to furnish their uld own recruits reer its ile he then asked asbed that the may alay program be extended over june in which AL clemenceau joined pershing insists on own army in reply I 1 said 1 I 1 do not suppose that we are to understand that the american army Is to be entirely nt at the disposal of the french and british commands III clemenceau said that of course tills this was not the intention continuing I 1 said speaking for or my government and myself I 1 must insist upon our intention to have our own army tile the principle of 0 unity of command must prevail in our army it must be complete under its own command I 1 should like to have a date fixed when this his will be realized I 1 should like to wake make it clear that all american troops are not to be with the british as there are five divisions with the french now and there wilt will be two more in a short time As to the extension of the may agreement to june I 1 am not prepared prep ared to accept it the troops arriving to in june will not be available for or the front before the end of jolly or the middle of august so we have the whole month of may alay ahead abend before deriding deciding whether an emergency emer geney Is likely to arise in juni jun I 1 have ex led to ta lord milner and genered foci why 1 ilo nut not wish to commit the aim army so long in advance it need be I 1 shall recommend the extension into june jun I 1 con s no reason for or it now CHAPTER 1 I an am comma commander der in chief of the allied annles in fran france c e sa said I 1 d general foch and appointment my has been sanctioned by the not only al of f the british and french governments but also by the president of the united sin stages hence I 1 bellert myself in a position to insist there is a program signed by lord billner allner and Ge general pershing at L london nas I 1 bsh k to be made a party to this arrangement since america has given tile ne tile the ot of the war or else I 1 have no reason for holding ti the position so I 1 ask that an agreement be ma made de tills evening among lord billner billma general pershing and myself extending to june what has been decided on for may alay 1 I cannot forget the responsibilities we weighing ShIng on me because of the fact that the allied governments have in trusted to me the direction of operations in france ot of course nit nil present knew that tha t n no 0 authority to dictate regarding such matters tied been conferred upon him and his ren remarks larks only showed that the allies ahles were really ready to go to almost any length to carry their point clemenceau makes plea premier clemenceau then said bald he agreed with general foch and favored an american army but that the germans were at villers and if the lines were eie broken there the enemy might quickly arrive under the walls of 0 paris and liaison between the allied armies might have to be established on the loire or if the lines were pierced at the enemy could reach the sea what Is important for the morale of our soldiers he said Is not to tell then them that the american so soldiers idlers are arriving but to show them that they have hae arrived in my opinion the plan proposed wei ft as entirely unsound and I 1 thought that the best and quickest way to help the allies would mould be to build up an am american 1 erlean army moreover the implied presumption that the council i might dictate to us either as a counell |