■ ■ FRENCH FRONT. Nov. A clear idea of the ebb
and flow of the tides of German forces on the eastern ami
western fronts during the various phases ot the war from
the opening of hostilities in I'd 1. till the beginning oi bop
temlier. 1917. is obtained from carefully compiled imp
utation which the correspondence of The Associated Press
is enabled to transmit.
From this it is gathered that when the Germans start
ed the war bv invading Belgium they launched 1190 bat
talions of infantrv formed into 96' o divisions of four reg
iments each on to the Franco-Bolgian front, while on the
Russian front they employed only 322 battalions t m mer
iifto 26* -. divisions of four regiments each. On Septem
I er 1 of this year they had on the Franco-Belgian-British
front, 1.369 battalions formed into 117 divisions, some of
which were o fthree ami others of four regiments each,
while on the Russo-Rumanian front 96,> battalions tonne1,
ihto 92 divisions were in line. It will thus be seen that the
German armies on the fighting fronts have been increased
;r t|ie three years of war from lol2 battalions to 2334 bat
talions. „ , ....
A review of the different periods of the war will show
- )\v these troops have been employed at various times, ac
cording to whether the principal effort of the Germans
lias been directed toward the western or the eastern trout.
- hi August, 1911, the attention of the German high
r iinmand was absorbed by tne attack on Belgium and
franco, while the Russian front was regarded as a sec
ondary occupation. At that time 'lie infantrj effectives
,m the western front nundiered 1,190 battalions in 96 1-2
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divisions, each division consisting ol" four regiments. On
the eastern front, the Germans then had 322 battalions
comprising 2(51-2 divisions.
When the battle of the Yser was fought in Novem
ber. 1914, the Germans intensified their effort in the west
and brought up their effectives to a higher figure and at
the same time increased the number oi battalions on their
eastern front so that they then had 1293 battalions on the
western front and 390 on the eastern 1 ront.
Then came the Russian offensive in Galicia and to
check the Russian advance toward the German frontier,
Germany was compelled to throw more troops on her east
ern front, increasing the number oi battalions there in
September, 1915, to 780. To do this it was necessary to re
duce the number of German battalions on the western
front from 1203 to 1120.
Many divisions were transferred from the eastern to
the western front when the Germans gathered their men
for tiie beginning of the great battle-ol Verdun, with the
result that in June, 1916, there were 1376 German battal
ions on the western front and those on the eastern trout
were reduced from 780 to o74.
The German drive against Rumania was made pos
able by adding more than 300 battalions to their eastern
oattleline, bringing the total on the eastern front to 800.
; This was done without reducing the number of battalions
on the western front below 1300.
When the French and British began their great offen
sive operations in July, 1017, the Germans were compelled
t<, bring fresh forces to the western front, increasing their
| battalions there to 1456 but reducing the number on their
eastern front only to 860. Subsequently the German bat
talions along the Russian battleline were increased by the
addition of more than 100 battalions, bringing the total
there to 065 on September 1 of this year. These were di
vided into 92 divisions of three regiments each. During
this movement the battalions on the western front were
reduced to 1360, divided into 147 divisions and that is be
lieved to have been the number on the German western
front on September 1. These figures do not include any
German troops on garrison duty in the interior of the
country nor those maintaining lines of communications.
Till
IN WA
SOMEWHERE IN ALBANIA, Nov. 9.—(Associated
Press)—Twenty-six Californians who form one of the am
bulance sections of the American Field Service, are the
latest arrivals in Albania. All of them have driven in
France and experienced the intensive warfare that goes
on there, and who find l he work here much harder though
just as interesting.
The shocking conditions of most of the roads is as
largely responsible as any other factor for making the
work more difficult. The country is mountainous and
breakdowns are the regular order of the day. As fre
quently as not wheels come off or break and the ambu
lances have to be left on mountain roadsides until assist
ance can reach them.
Many of the “posts” are perched on hillsides, often in
plain sight of the Austrians, and their trenches are fre
quently in view. By the same token the Austrians can see
the ambulances as they climb up and down. But warfare
in this section is not only “gentlemanly,” so that the Amer
icans are never fired upon, but the transport of munitions
1 up the hills is so difficult that it is never wasted on moving
; objects.
Air raids are frequent and exciting but the natives
seem to get the worst of them. That is principally be
cause the Austrians seem to choose just that time for raid
ing that the French are over Austrian territory, and none
; of the aviators ever seem to get hurt.
The Americans had great difficulty at the beginning
1 with the food, water and climate, but they are used to them
, all now. In between their duties they find time to study
the native population which in general is ragged and pov
erty-stricken. Many of them speak English, since they
have been in the United States as contract laborers
PRACTICE OF IRISH
KEPT UP THROUGH
WAR TIME DANGERS
CORK, Nov. 9.—The members of the Irish Conven
tion braved the dangers of mines and submarines a few
days ago when they went by steamer to the entiance of
Queenstown harbor and watched the Lord Mayor of Coik
perform the quaint and ancient custom of throwing the
dart into the sea to define the limits of his authority as
Admiral of the port.
This practice originated in a charter granted to the
city by King Henry Seventh in 1500. It prescribed that
every three years the ceremony be performed at a point
three miles outside the harbor.
This time, however, owing to submarines and mine
; menace, the Mayor winked at the custom and to the great
| relief of his five hundred guests, satisfied tradition by
| casting the dart at the very mouth of the harbor.
Irishmen of all creeds and classes sat down to lun
!cheon served on board. Noblemen broke bread beside the
democn t and all seemed on good terms. The Protestant
I Archbishop of all Ireland sat beside Catholic Archbishop
Party, of Cashel, while beside John Redmond were the
Earl of Granard and Viscount Middleton.
-*
IUIXU1
DUBLIN, Nov. 9. — The Sinn Fein prisoners in
Mounljoy, having abandoned the hunger strike on ac
cepting the concessions of the government, have now all
recovered their health. They are allowed to mix freely
together in the prison, to obtain food from outside, and to
receive visitors. It lias been arranged that they shall be
l; ansferred to Dundalk Jail which recently has been used
gs a Red Cross hospital.
The death of Thomas Ashe, the Sinn Feiner, as a re
sult of his hunger strike, has favored the spread of the
Sinn Fein movement, since, for the time, it united all Na
tionalist parties in support of the principle that political
prisoners should receive distinct treatment. Great num
G rs of postcarus were issued bearing the photograph of
A -he, followed by an inscription to which the police took
exception, and the cards in many cases have been seized
in the news agents' shops.
Court martials for allegal drilling continue. One was
hi Id in Cork Barracks which illustrates the curious cross
currents of Irish feeling at the moment, for it was shown
that one of the prisoners had two brothers in the army
lighting in France and ihat the prisoner had himself been
in the army and been discharged as under age.
Some of the Sinn Fein Clubs have established local
courts of arbitration to prevent litigants from entering
the courts.
-».> ■ -
NOW
'FLIERS IN FRANCE
Two jumps put Kenneth Marr, former Alaska musher
and dog puncher, well known in Seattle, into the French
Aviation Corps, where he has made a distinguished rec
ord. Marr went to France two years ago with “Scotty”
Allan, also a well-known musher, in charge of 400 mala
mute and husky dogs, which were used in the Alpine re
gions by the French chasseurs. Marr remained to teach
the Frenchmen how to say “Gee” and “Haw” so the dogs
would understand them. From that he went to driving an
army ambulance, and the next jump landed him in the
aviation crops. He is now Sergeant Marr of the Lafa
yette Escadrilla.
Marr has been the hero of several sensational perfor
mances in the air, the last being two weeks ago, when
he went out alone and was attacked by three German air
machines. He sent two crashing to the earth, coming
back and getting the third machine after he narrowly es
caped by a dive of 10,000 feet.