The next great attack of the Allies came on 23 September, the British striking at Loos and the French in Champagne. In the three months' interval between its inception and the battles at Fe_stubert and in Artois a steady series of small engagements occurred at vari ous points in the long line. Sometimes the in itiative was with one side and sometimes with the other, but the result was always the same. A heavy bombardment, a charge of infantry into a demolished trench, and then the inevit able countercharge, with the result that the place seized was held under dittressing fire or given up because its retention cost more than It was worth. But the total result was little more than the steady loss of lives. The gen eral situation was not affected.
The most notable of these isolated opera tions was the German attack, conducted by the imperial crown prince, on the French line in the Argonne Forest. This favored leader had not acquitted himself well in the preceding fighting, and murmuring against him had al ready begun in Germany. It is believed that he was allowed to have another try in the hope that he would restore his damaged reputation. He was reinforced until he had 50,000 men along a front of eight miles, and the move ment was inaugurated on 20 June. The three weeks of fighting that followed was a series of infantry battles in small sections. The terrain lent itself well to machine-gun defense, being protected by undergrowth and many ra vines and rocky ledges. It yielded the Ger mans an average advance of 400 yards on the entire line and was not commensurate with the sacrifice. The Argonne was long a debated region between the two sides, and many lives were lost before it was finally taken in October 1918, when the Americans and French con ducted great flanking movements on each side, while American troops, at great cost, carried the forest lines northward by heroic efforts.
Throughout the summer preparations were going forward for a great Allied advance in September. The place selected for the main blow was in the Champagne sector, the scene of the battles of the preceding February. The object was to cut the railroads that supplied the German lines east of the great angle near Noyon. This done a general readjustment of lines would be necessary. In support of this main thrust plans were made for a strong blow at the defenses of Lens, chiefly to engage the Germans in the northern sector and prevent very heavy concentrations in Champagne. The particular point of the Lens defenses to be at tacked was Loos three and a half miles north west of Lens, although the battle was pressed on a front that extended nine miles north and five miles south of Lens. In this supporting
movement the British had the area to the north and the French the area to the south. In the main attack, in Champagne, the operations were conducted wholly by the French. The battle opened in each area on 23 September.
In the Champagne it extended from Aube rive to Massiges, a front of 15 miles. The new French guns were present in the greatest abun dance and there were vast stores of ammuni tion. The bombardtnent lasted two days. The German trenches had been constructed with great slcill and strength in the chalky soil. They were intricately /aid out and supplied with large dugouts. The advanced position consisted of four or five parallel lines and was 500 yards deep. The bontbardment re duced it to powder. As the infantry came forward on the 25th the position was unde fended except for stray machine guns manned by some survivors in the dugouts. Leaving de tachments to °Mop upl these survivors the columns went forward to the second line of trenches. As the men went they sang snatthes of the Marseillaise and that other song of the Revolution, the Carmagnole. The second line was better defended by the German infantry and machine guns, while the hostile artillery had the French under accurate range. Now the losses were great, but there was no faltering. The men went on to the positions of the guns cheering and throwing themselves on the gun ners in irresistible force. Orders now issued to bring up the guns and the batteries went forward in gallant style under bursting shells. ((For the first time since the Marne,D said an artillery officer, awe were galloping to battle, guns and limber jolting and shells bursting all around us.D A part of the French line pen .etrated the second German line of defense. Late in the afternoon the advance had to be suspended on account of the heavy weather, which made it impossible for the artillery to obtain accurate observ-ations. Next day it w.as resumed, but the Germans brought up rein forcements and the progress was more diffi cult The French guns going forward were heavily impeded by the mud which soon churned up in the chalky soil. In the end, it was decided to give over the attempt to go farther and the French found that their total gain was from one to two miles on a 15-mile front. They had talcen 25,000 prisoners, 150 cannon, and vast quantities of munitions and small arms. Their own losses were about 120,000; but the enemy's were larger stiU.