British and French Troops in Smashing Attacks TowaraPe HARRISBURG TELEGRAPH M _____ ®)c otat Inscpcnbciil W I ' \ LXXXVII— No. 174 18 PAGES HUNS BLOW UP AMMUNITION STORES BEFORE ALLIED DRIVE 17,000 Prisoners and 200 Guns Taken in Drive By Troops of Allies With the British Army in France, Aug. 9. The Germans are blowing up their ammunition dumps in the battle area. This is considered an indication that they are pre paring for a retreat. The British casualties since the beginning of the present drive are but three-fifths the number of prisoners counted up b three o'clock this afternoon. Cavalry patrols, accompanied by swift tanks, are reported by airmen far out ahead of the infantry advance. The infantry at many places was apparently checked only by sheer physical inability to push any farther. This afternoon the enemy's transport lorries have been rolling along the few good roads left in the Somme valley. They afforded excellent targets for airmen, who played havoc with the escaping convoys and speedily littered the roads so that they were impassable. Allied airmen have blown up many of the bridges over the Somme river and the enemy's retreat is seriously embarrassed. The British cavalry has rounded up many prisoners, but the larger part of the 14,000 so far taken were captured by Australians and Canadians. An enormous quantity of stores and ammunition has been abandoned by the Germans in their hasty retreat. More than 17,000 prisoners had been captured by the allies in the Somme drive up to noon to-day,according to advices this afternoon. More than 200 guns also have been taken. RAILWAY UNDER GERMAN FIRE FOUR MONTHS NOW CAN BE USED BY ALLIES ! 7 Morlancourt Lost in Drive by the Germans; Desperate Conflict in Progress There Yesterday; Penetration of Enemy Positions Greatest South of Somme ATTACK DE VELOPS VICTOR 10 USL Y Paris, Aug. 9. —The battle on the front south of the | Somme was resumed early this morning and the Franco- ) British forces made favorable progress from the start, reach ing various selected objectives. \ Powerful cavalry forces are in action. The reports received up to 12.50 o'clock show the attack developing victoriously on a gfeat scale. "Recovering from the first surprise, the Germans hur riedly •concentrated troops in order to stop our progress. It was vain. La Net vi!le-Sire-Bernard, Villers-aux-Erables, Mezieres, Plessier-Rozainvillers were successively captured, while on our left British troops also continued their vic torious advance. In the early morning hours prisoners, guns and machine guns were streaming to our rear. "At the close of the day our advance, considered in the front of the attacks as a whole, averaged more than seven kilometers. By Associated Press lines on the Picardy front south of the • Somme have been badly broken by the savage thrust j of the British and French armies. . j A wedge has been driven into enemy territory to a depth of eleven miles along the Amiens-Chaulnes-La Fere railway and early to-day the British were only a mile away from the Chaulnes-Roye railway, which runs; southward from Chaulnes and forms the chief artery of supplies for the German troops fighting in the Mont-' didier sector of the front. 14,000 Prisoners Taken London announces that 14,000 prisoners and guns' "too numerous to mention" have been taken in the first' twenty-four hours of the drive. I he results of the attack, locked against the Ger-, mans on the Amiens front Thursday morning, appear, to have eclipsed those obtained by the Germans on first day of any of their terrific offensives* of the past spring and summer. So far as reports show the prog ress of the fighting south of the Somme, the allies are going forward almost without serious opposition. On the north bank of the stream the Germans have held their lines strongly, but have lost Morlancourt, their stronghold there, after hard fighting. The French, further to the south, have had their advance retarded at numerous points, but the towns officially # reported to [Continued on Page 16.] FRANCO-BRITISH OF SOMME 11 MILES IN DEPTH London, Aug. 9.—The Franco-British advance on the battle front south of the Somme has reached a maximum depth of eleven miles, according to news received here shortly after noon to-day. Advices from the l>attle front outli of the Somme to-day report British cavalry armored cars ad tanks, in advance of the infantry, to have reached within a mile <i the Chaulnes railway junction. On the Lys front the Bri ,: '• now hold Locon, Le Cornet Malo, Quentin, Le Petit Pacaut, and Lesart.. Above Lys region, on the front north of Kemmel, the British carried out a local operation last night in which their line was advanced somewhat on a front {Continued on Page IS.] SINGLE: COPY 2 CENTS DR. M'NEAL DIES SUDDENLY TODAY; 70 YEARS OF AGE Deputy State Superintendent, of Public Instruction Suc cumbs at State College Dr. Robsrt M. McXeal. 201 State! street, deputy state superintendent of public Instruction, collapsed on the < ; steps of vine of the buildings r t 3t=tto j ; College which he was entering at, ; 8.30 this r-.orning to attend a meet-! | ing of high school inspectors on de partment work. Death followed at, once. Cerebral apoplexy was given' as the cause. He was aged "0 years.' Dr. McXeal has been deputy su -1 perintendent of public instruction i since March 15, when he succeeded the late A. D Glenn. He has been associated in educational work in the! state for the last twenty-five years. Dr. McXeal was born in Hunting-, ton county. June 11, 1848. He be- 1 gan his i areer in educational work as superintendent of public instruc [Continued on Page 10.] • Baker Urges Prompt Passage of New Law Extending AgeXimit By Associated Press I Washington, Aug. 9. Prompt en- I actment of the draft extension bilij so that September tive will be rixe-I as registration day, as suggested by; Provost Marshal General Crowder,' was urged to-day by Secretary of ; War Bak-jr. Without the extension,! he told the Senate military commitr j j tee, it would be necessary to invade j ; the deferred classes. REDUCE WAR TAX ! ON AUTOMOBILES AND ON TOBACCO Ways and Means Committee I Rescinds Earlier Action, Reducing Hardship I Washington. Aug. 9.—Lower taxes |on automobiles and tobacco have been agreed upon by the ways and means committee. The committee rescinded the action of a few days ago fixing the automobile tax on the basis of the original retail selling price and decided to rate the tax ac cording to the horsepower of the cars. Tobacco tax. which in some instances was trebled, now will be exactly double what it isMn the pres ent law. The new automobile tax will raise" $50,000,000 instead of the $100,000,- 000 which it was estimated would be produced by the other form of tax. The new tobacco taxes, it is believed, will produce more money than those previously agreed upon, because they [Continued on Page 16.] 1 THE WEATHER] For HnrrUhnrc and vicinity i Probably ahowera thin after noon) partly cloudy to-night and Saturdays not much chance In temperature. , For Eastern Pennaylvnnlni Partly cloudy to-nlaht and Saturday) not much chance In tempera ture) moderate west vrlnda. Temperature at 8 a. m., TB. River ulnar at 8 a. m., 3-5 feet above Itn-nater nark. HARRISBURG, PA., FRIDAY EVENING, AUGUST 9, 1918. ALLIES SHORTEN BATTLE AREA BY 33 MILES SINCE STARTING DRIVE Documents Germans* Used Four More Divisions j Than Contemplated Dur- j ing Retreat; Planned to i Break French Line PLAN WAS TO CROSS MARXE NEAR DORMANS Seventeen Divisions Brought Into Action Before Kaiser's Forces Reached the Vesle; i Flanders Troops Brought North of Fismes i By Associated Press With the American Army on thej Vesle. Thursday, Aug. B.—ln their offensive since July 18 the allies have regained approximately 1,500 square kilometers. More than 200 village* and towns, including Soissons, Chat eau Thierry and Fismes, are agaiu Jin the hands cf the allies. The front has been shortened by fifty-three! kilometers (about 33 miles), i Accordins to information con [ tained in documents in possession of] 1 the French and Americans, the Ger- j i mans in :he rear guard lighting dur-| I ing the re'reat used four more divi-; I sions than they had contemplated j using to break the French line when: (the German offensive began. The enemy plans called for sixteen .livi-1 : sions to shatter the French and to; 'cross the Murne between Doriiians! ! and Chateau Thierry. Information gathered by the allies is to the effect that in falling ba>:k the Germans brought into actioi> at I least seventeen divisions before reaching the Vesle. Additional rein forcements have been brought up i i since the Vesle was crossed. A divi | sion which was resting in Flanders j is known to have reached the region north of Fisn.es Tuesday. IN FRANCE LESS THAN MONTH, WON WAR DECORATION Lieut. Charles W. Myers, of Marysville, Aw arded French Honor, Croix de Guerre Marysville, Pa., Aug. 9.—ln France less than a month when he perform ed such gallant work that he has been decorated with the French war! cross, tha Croix de Guerre, Lieuten-! ant Charles W. Myers, of this place, brings the first military decoration to! Perry county. He is among the first medical officers in Pennsylvania to! be decorated. Washington press dispatches this . morning gave the first official notice of the decoration. They read: Among the five members of the American expeditionary forces to whom have been awarded distin guished service crosses for acts of gallantry, and whose names were cabled to the War Department "by General Pershing to-day, was First Lieutenant Charles W. Myers, M. It C.. Marysville, Pa. At Vaux, July 1, 1918, Myers established, under heavy shell fire an advance dressing station [Continued on Page 16.] Canadian Horse Troopers ' Cut Off Huns in Somme By Associated Press London. Aug. 9.—(Battle Front), via Montreal. Canadian horse troopers, co-operating with Frenrlv cavalry, cut off a large force of the enemy in to-day's operations on thai Somme .'ront. I JOHN A. BEAVER AMONG MISSING ! ON WAR LISTS Lost in Action in France Cas ualty Record Shows; En listed at Chambersburg * JOHN A. BEAVER John A. Beaver, 2032 Fulton street, is listed among those missing in action in casualty lists made pub lic to-day. Beaver was born in Har risburg and lived here practically all of his life. His mother, Mrs. Ella Beaver, lives at the address given in j the casualty list, 2032 Fulton street. I [Continued ou Page 16.] STATE SOLDIERS ! NAMED IN LISTS OF WAR VICTIMS Cables Carry Names of Many Pennsylvanians Killed or Wounded in Action By Associated Press Washington. Aug. 9.—The com bined Army and Marine Corps tas i ualty lists to-duy contained 520 | r.ames, in which a large number of ■ Pennsylvanians, showing casualties i in the 110 th Regiment, are named. | The Army list is divided as follows: Killed in action, 90. Died of "wounds, 9. Died of disease. 2. j Died of accident, 1. Wounded se\'ereiy, 20. Wounded slightly, 2. [Continued on Page 16.] BOILER EXPLODES OX V. S. .SHIP XOPATIX; 2 KILLED B_' Associated Press Washington, Aug. 9.—Two men were killed and three injured in n boiler explosion on the U. S. S. No patin. In foreign waters, announced to-day by the Navy Department. 9 MUNITIONS WORKERS: Put Some-, of Your Cash Into W s. s. j £3T54.19 Now, ssjnl 923 ———— HAIG'S FORCES IN DRIVE ADVANCE SEVEN MILES AND PUNISH GERMANS | First Day's Movement Attend ed by Excessively Small Losses to Allied Troops; j Artillery Closely Follows j Storm Batteries HARD FIGHTING GOES ON NEAR MORLANCOURT Scene of Battle Low and Roll ing Ground, and Especially Adapted to Open Warfare; Tank Chases German Gen eral and His Troops , By Associated Press With the British Army In Franco, Aug. 9.—Fighting their way through \ the Germans at (lawn on u front of over fifteen miles astride the river j Somme, British and French troops; this afternoon had reached points: from live to six miles inside*lines which this morning belonged to 'hsj enemy. The Prussians and Bavarians fieri-j tefore the advancing infantry and | tanks, leaving many of their guns' behind them. Large numbers of "prisoners have; been taken both by the British and [Continued on Page 16.] Spain Calls on Germany to Explain Sea Breach; Cabinet Meets on Question Madrid, Thursday. Aug. B.—Spain ' has addressed a new note to Ger-1 many concerning the torpedoing of Spanish ships. Foreign Minuter Dato made this announcement late to-day after the cabinet had held 1 an extraordinary session. SHOOTS HER TWO ! CHILDREN, THEN TAKESOWN LIFE Gratz Woman Kills Small Son and Inflicts Wound on Another Gratz, Pa., Aug. 9.—Believed to have been crazed by the extreme heat, Mrs. Vesta Umholtz, aged 23, wife of Jacob Umholtz. late yester day afternoon shot her two sons, killing one and inflicting a wound > which may prove fatal to the othnr I and then committed suicide in her home here. Returning in the early evening from his work in the mines, Mr. Um holtz found the dead body of his two-year-old son. Gilbert, who had been shot and probably died instant ly, the bullet entering the breast and passing through the body. Nearby was three-year-old Gabriel, uncon scious. and lying on the bed was the body of his wife, badly burned :iw ! the blaze of the gun had set tire to . the bedclothing. • " When Mr. Umholtz reached home he found the door locked, but finally [Continued on Page 16.] i General Otani Chosen to Command Allies in • ' Siberian Expedition j By Associated Press I Washington, Aug. .—General Ki kuzo Otani, one of Japan's most dis tinguished soldiers, has been chosen to command the Japanese section and will be the ranking officer of tho American una allied expedition lni Siberia, ONLY EVENI.MJ ASSOCIATED I'HESS NEW SPAIMf.It IN II AIIItISIIIIRG BRILLIANT SURPRISE TO EN EM Y FRENCH CHIEFS SAY By Associated Press i Palis, All 3. 9.—The French war' ministry at 12.30 o'clock to-day is-1 sued the following statement: "The brilliant operation which we, in concert with British troops, exe-i cuted yesterday, has been a surprise! for the enemy. As occurred in the offensive in July 18. the soldiers of 1 General Debeney have captured en emy soldiers engaged in the pear-etul j pursuit of harvesting the fields be hind the German Tines. 1 . 222 PENNSYLVANIANS I.N CASUALTY LISTS j | gton Nea> ; the army men named J !; in casualty lists of 52 re from Pennsylvania, ;| cre " state, with some 74 2 j |; from Phil iclphia alone. ' Qtl vere from Scranton, Al- I; ntown, York, Somerse' , I Pittsburgh and other' |i i|| la cities. 7' nothing to indicate to j: | what Br nch of service th belonged; Ijj; • J I iljl i - —The folio . are the quotas of white | l|j sinj to .Camp I gjn the five-day period j> j ; 'commencing August 21 bjjpg, No. 1. 26; No. 2, i\ i h i f< No. } "o; Dauphin, N.. J5; No. 2, 39; No. 3, 37; t ;|; Cu:nbc - No. 1, 2 I jl| STEAM HEAT COMPLAINT FILED ' j> J I Hurnsbtirg—The f. F ' >int of consumers of |i | II *teaim heat of the Ha ' Light and Power Com- !: |j| : -d at the Sti tc Public Service Commission ; !j ! !-te tlv- tcinoon and will be sent to the company for iLj !| .wcr. The complain nst' the new tariff of rates j i.| j;| and is ed by numer< • <r- nmers; i I 42 DEATHS DUE TO HEAT •j u< ithte due to the torrid weather ; j Ijj of the past week rose to 42 to-day when 12 additional J I !| - '♦erc ;e : Mia again sweltered 1 J Id! " raw!'!: temperature, i; | GERMAN GENERAL REPORTED CAPTURED • ]H i | With the British Army in France—lt is reported that :j| !j j *- ■ been captured in the i 1 ' ij; drive. ; | ;jj jiji CHICAGO SC. iEAD DIES* * Rock v die, Ind.—John E 3hoop, superintendent of the ;|l; Chicago public school:, lenly of heart disease in ijj, a hotel h •: to-day. ; jj jjJ ill IIURRIC V DLL IS 27 j , ; ; Lake Charles, La —Ti' t ileath list of the hurri- : !j|> cane v.!:' !-. struck south- I. -uisiana Tuesday was in- J IjL'crcased to-tlaj* to 27. It v '.inced that the soldier ■ ! ! I Ctefßtner' ieid yesterday from in •:|i r d during as Corporal William j :ij: -'v M UI . ,of Reading, 1 1 MARRIAGE LICENSES Joarph L.CC and Ola Davla, HarrUhuriti Henry William Wlth j; 'row and Mar(arr) 1v Cax, Hlitlmitlrc. HOME EDITION | "Our artillery preparation r\.. short, lasting: less than an hour. The 1 enemy artillery had made no coiiti j ter preparation at the beginning of | the action, merely replying feebly. "The original front of the attack ! was only four kilometers, situated south of (he Amiens-Roye ro<id, where our infantry went over the top at 5.05 o'clock, but gradually j the offensive developed all along the | right bank of the Avre in the region of Hargicaurt."
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers