OFFICIAL DIARY OF THE WAR.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XL, Issue 12430, 22 January 1915, Page 2

OFFICIAL DIARY OF THE WAR.

HOW J OFF RE TOOK THE FLOOD TIDE WHEN IT WAS AGAINST .■HIM. Paris, December 4. The ' 'l3-n Ik-tin des Armes'' (the Fiencli War Office paper svippliocl to the service) will publish to-morrow a repoit ort tlie whole op-'rations irom .-lugust. - down to Dec-ember 2. . Germanv has been foiiet] m her hope of crushing France in ihree *veel:s. _ The forces inobiiiscd on Germany > western frontier of the Empire u-pie-sented 50 army c-orp'-*men) and 10 divisions oi civaliy. The v joint ion of Belgian neutrality showed that it wns in the north that the main striiguh- would take place. We could not engage the enemy until th r - British- armv hud come into the line; we. therefore, endeavored to retain as manv German army corps as po.-sihle in Alsace-Lorraine. Tin British being ready, ive took th< oli'en..ive in Belgian Luxemburg, ihat off ive was checked with heavy loss The official review of four months ol war may here lie summarised in diary

form: , ... August 26.—We had either to give b.ittii? in dangerous conditions or fall baek along the whole line. - We fell back - then in owler, attacking the enemy to weaken him., * Auffust- 28.—Attacks at St. Quentin and Guise. ' 'Meanwhile' we were gathering a new. army under General Ma unoury. The enemy,', .however advanced so raD'dly that General- Joftie arranged to fall back to the Aube, and, if need be, to "the Seine. , GERMANS SEEK REVENGE. : September 5. —The conditions which General Joffre had b?en seeking were realised, and he ordered a general, offensive, saying:—"The hour has come to advance, coute que oolite, and men must die rather than fall back. September S and later. —The attack runder General Mnunourv .-oaninst tK'Right began to make its effect-, feft, and the enetriy shifted his front, thus presenting a'. Veai point to the British armv, which .crossed the.Marne and came'to'grips with the German army oil its flank.< - i Meanwhile General d'Esperey, wiUi General Maiino'ury on hi«': winjr. also crossed-"the' river, p.nd' drove bnojc t-luv German forces, supporting on his left the British armv and on his right that "of General'Foch". It was upon this arifiy

that the Gernihns. sowcht revenge for their cheek on the right. i . SeDtember 9—At evening Genera. Foeh'y. left, near La Fere Chnmpenoise. took the Prussian Guard and another German corp? 011 the flsnlc. This aijnaeious 'manoeuvre d-?ei'lerl the issjie.. The Germans fell hurriedlv bacr. September 11. —-General Foeh entered Chalons sur Marne. Meanwhile, on the lio-ht. the army of General Delangle de Carv .advahc"d" and the force under General ; Ruffey moved towards the north, precipitating the German retreat, which was still further hastened by the offensive operations of the forces commanded bv Generals Castlenan and DrtubaiP towards, the East. We had regained the advantage, and ire retained it.

NEW BATTLE BEGTJN. September 13 and onwards.—The German resistance cheeking; our pursuit, a-new battle began. The Germans honed to turn out left; as we hoped to turn their r'ght. There followed a conV. L . in .speed, a real race to the sea. Their movement on their right failed s>nd the victory of the Marne was confirmed. ■ , Sept em He r 20.—General Castlenau formed a new army on the left of that of G-eneral Maymoui'V and strongly established himself in the district of Las-<-ignv, Roye, and Peronne, supported on his right by Territorial divisions. Tliat was not enough. September 30.—General M-'iidluty s army entered the line, occupying the region around- Arras sud Lens, and stretching north to join the divisions advanced from Dunkirk. But. in thcface of the enemy's efforts, our line was still too thin and too extended. At tlv? request of General French it was decided to move the British awny from the region of the Aisne- to the neighborhood of the Lys. The Belgian army, after getting awav from Antwerp, was covered by the British and. French marines and came no to strengthen in the . Yser district that harrier which. _it was intended to create and maintain. October 20.—Not till this date was the British force able to come into action. The Belgian army was short of . munitions. So General Jofl're entrusted General Foch with the ta*k .of coordinating the operations of the armies of the north. On October IS lie placed at his disposal reinforcements, which grew until by November 12 they constituted the Franco-Belgian army under the .command of General Durbal operating .in concert with the Belgians and British between the sea and the Lys, against a dozen German army corps and more than four cavalry divisions. ■ The Kaiser hinrelf was present with the German forces. He reminded them that it was a question of striking a decisive blow, either by reaching Dunkirk. Calais, and Boulogne by the coast-, or V>v , piercing th.a line towards Ypres. For three weeks the Germans launched repeated and furious attacks in dense nii.s=es. November 12. —Tt cou'tl be seen that the balance was on our s'd'e. The battle of Ypres ccst the enemy 120,033 men. During this time (the official report continues) Gene-als M-uidhuy and Castlennu held the Lys-Xoyo ll front. Lat?r they progressed contimnllv. Between the Oise mr-l the' Argonne, Generals "Nlaunoury, D'Eperey, and Do <'"ry were confronted by strong positions. East of Rlieims they romilsed a fierce general attack. The Emperor himself witnessed this repu're as he witnessed, eight days later, the repulse at Ypres. . . Summarising the present position, the reoort says: "Our forces are as lr>rge as thev were, at the beginning of flip campaign, but the quality of the tsoe.p-, has enormously improved. "All our soldiers are profoundly imbued.' with a .sense of their superiority over the en r -my, and have absolute confidence in victory. "The higher command, reconstituted after the necessary changes had been made, lias committed in the last three months none of the errors which were noted and punished in August. "The German scheme h?s sustained th,e following checks, which have far-..r.oary-'-jt. consequences : .The rush attacks on Nancy. The rapid march on Paris-. The envelopment in November. The attack on Dunkirk and Calais. "In their futile efforts the .Germans have exhausted their reserves, and the troops which they are bringing up today are badly officered and badly trained. ' • "More and more Russia is asserting her superiority, and the halt of the Ger. man armies in the East is doomed inevitably to turn into retreat."-