places, driving the Germans back to Clastres and Montescourt; British occupy forty more villages south and southeast of Péronne.

March 22-French cross the Ailette River at several points. March 23-French force Germans back two

miles between St. Quentin and La Fère; Germans inundate the district around La Fère. March 24-French take two forts protecting La Fère on the west and drive Germans toward St. Quentin; British occupy Roisel. March 25-French drive Germans back to the outskirts of Folembray and Coucy. March 26-British capture Lagnicourt, west of Cambrai; French push on in Coucy forest and capture Folembray and La Feuillée. March 27-French capture the forest of Coucy; British take Longavesnes, Lieramont, and Equancourt.

March 28-British press on north of Roisel and

capture Villers-Faucon and the heights crowned by Saulcourt; Germans penetrate French first-line trenches west of Maisons

de-Champagne.

and heights dominating the country toward Cambrai. April 12-British take Wancourt and Haninel, some positions north of the Scarpe River and drive the Germans from their last footing in the Vimy Ridge; French advance between Coucy and Quincy-Basse. April 13-British capture Ancres and the town of Vimy, extending their line of advance from the Scarpe River to Loos, and push on west of Le Catelet; French attack the Germans south of St. Quentin.

April 14-British take Fayet, Gricourt, and Lievin, the western suburb of Lens. April 15-French guns shell St. Quentin; Belgians penetrate Dixmude as far as the second enemy line.

March 30-British occupy Ruyalcourt, Fins, and Sorel-le-Grand; French recapture first-line positions west of Maisons-deChampagne.

March 31-St. Quentin menaced on three sides

as British take Vermand and Marteville; British advance up the Cologne River to within striking distance of the Scheldt, capturing eight villages; French push the Germans back on the Vregny plateau. April 1-British capture Savy and Epehy. April 2-British drive a wedge into the German positions on the ridge protecting St. Quentin from the west, capturing Holnon, Francilly, and Selency.

April 3-French storm the heights south and southwest of St. Quentin and capture Dallon, Giffecourt, and Cerizy, and heights south of Urvillers; British occupy Maissemy on the eastern bank of the Omignon River, Ronssoy Wood, and Henin on the Cojeol River.

April 4-French occupy Grugies, Urvillers, and Moy, south of St. Quentin; British take Metz-en-Couture.

April 5-Germans attack the French west of Rheims and force them over the Aisne Canal at some places; British capture Ronssoy and Basse-Boulogne east of Péronne.

April 6-British capture Lempire and advance toward Le Catelet; French retake part of positions lost north of Rheims. April 8-British advance on a front of 3,000 yards north of the Bapaume-Cambrai road; Germans shell Rheims and French Government orders the civil population to evacuate the city.

April 9-British launch offensive on twelvemile front north and south of Arras, pene

twenty-five-mile front between Soissons and Rheims, capturing the German firstline positions and taking over 10,000 prisoners and reach the second German line at six points in Alsace; Germans destroy St. Quentin Canal. April 17-French pierce new German line on eleven-mile front from Prunay to Auberive, capturing important heights and support positions from Mount Carnillet to Vaudesincourt.

April 18-French again smash the Aisne line and capture Chavonne, Chivy, Ostel, and Braye-en-Laonnois, press forward north of Ostel, reach the outskirts of Courtecon, and take Vailly and Conde-sur-Aisne; British take Villers-Guislain, reporting 17,000 prisoners and much booty in three days' fighting, threatening German lines SO as to make further withdrawals in Rheims region inevitable.

BALKAN CAMPAIGN

March 20-French in Macedonia report the capture of Rashtani, Hill 1248, and the Snegoo monastery north of Monastir; British take prisoners at Brest and Poroy, east of Lake Doiran.

March 21-French driven from heights northeast of Tarnova and Anegovo. March 24-Germans take Rumanian frontier ridge between the Solyomtar and Czobanos Valleys from the Russians. April 2-Russians in Rumania repulsed on four-mile front on both sides of the Oituz Valley.

April 18-Germans burn Braila and Fokshani.

ITALIAN CAMPAIGN March 19-Renewal of activity reported;

Austrian raids repulsed in the Giumella Valley and Lucati sector. March 21-Austrians repulsed on Costabella Massif.

April 17-Intense artillery fire reported on the Julian front; Italians bombard Callano in the Lagarina Valley. April 18-Italians shell Rovereto Station and trains on the Sugana Valley Railway.

ASIA MINOR

March 19-Russians in Persia occupy Harunabad; British cross the Diala River and occupy Bahriz and part of Bakubah. March 21-Turkish force near Aden isolated from headquarters; another Arabian chieftain rises against the Turks; Russians cross the Mesopotamian frontier into Turkish territory to join the British. March 23-Russians attack the Turks along the Shirwan River.

March 26-Russians pursue the Turks into Mosul Vilayet,

March 29-British rout a Turkish army of 20,000 in battle near Gaza.

March 31-British advance north of Bagdad

and occupy Kalaat Felujah, Sheraban, Dely Abbas, and the areas of Deltawah and Sindirjah.

April 2-Russians occupy Miatague Peitaht and Serpoule and force the Turks toward the Mesopotamian border.

April 5-Russians occupy Khaninkin and Kasrichirin and get into touch with British patrols.

April 7-Russians land on Turkish territory

on the Black Sea coast east of Samsoon. April 12-British capture Turkish territory to a depth of fifteen miles in the region of Gaza.

April 14-Turks routed in battle north of

Bagdad.

April 16-British drive Turks back to their positions on the Jebel Hamrin hills.

AERIAL RECORD

Italians bombarded the railway station at Galliano and brought down two Austrian airplanes.

Russian airplanes set Braila on fire April 1. On April 7 large squadrons of British airplanes were sent up over the new German lines on the western front to photograph enemy positions. The greatest air battle of the war followed. Forty-eight German airplanes and ten captive balloons were brought down by the British, who lost twenty-eight of their own machines, but succeeded in taking 1,700 photographs. Allied airplanes raided Freiburg April 14. Eleven persons were killed and twentyseven wounded.

American Aviator Genet killed in France.
NAVAL RECORD

The French warship Danton torpedoed in the Mediterranean Sea March 19, and 296 sailors were drowned.

On March 22 Berlin announced that the Ger

man raider Möwe had returned to her home port from a second cruise in the Atlantic in which she captured twentyseven vessels.

England announced an extension of the boundaries of the North Sea danger area, cutting safety lanes off Holland and Denmark.

The French bark Cambronne arrived at Rio Janeiro March 30 carrying the crews of eleven steamers and sailing vessels sunk by the German raider Seeadler in the South Atlantic.

During the night of March 28-29 German warships cruised in the barred zone off the south coast of England and sank the British patrol trawler Mascot. One German destroyer was sunk and another damaged off the Belgian coast April 8. The American Line steamship New York struck a mine near the coast of England on April 10, but was only slightly damaged and reached her dock unaided. The British hospital ship Salta was sunk by a mine in the English Channel.

A German submarine made an unsuccessful attack on the U. S. destroyer Smith on April 17, about 100 miles south of New York.

RUSSIA

The former Czar and Czarina were taken to Tsarskoe Selo. Other high dignitaries of the old régime were imprisoned. The United States extended partial recognition to the new Government on March 21. The Central Committee and Parliamentary representatives of the Constitutional Democratic Party at Petrograd voted in favor of a republican form of government. A committee was appointed to settle the affairs of Poland and the Provisional Government announced its wish that Poland decide for itself the form of government it desired. Religious freedom was proclaimed April 4 and many other reforms are under consideration, including woman suffrage.

MISCELLANEOUS

Austria-Hungary severed diplomatic relations with the United States on April 7. Austrian ships in American ports were seized.

The German Emperor ordered Chancellor von Bethmann Hollweg to submit to him proposals for the reform of the Prussian electoral law. Strikes in Berlin followed a reduction in bread rations. Thousands of workers left the munitions plants. Greece presented a note to Italy insisting upon the withdrawal of Italian troops from Epirus to Avlona.

A new Cabinet was formed in France, headed by Alexandre Ribot.

Chinese troops occupied without opposition the German concessions at Tien-tsin and Hankow.

T

HE past month has seen the most important developments in the European war since the first months of its progress. These have been principally three, all distinctly hurtful to Germany: The retreat on the western front, which includes the battle of Arras; the operations in the Near East, and, finally, the entrance of the United States on the side of the Allies. All theatres other than those mentioned have been extremely, ominously quiet.

The great German retreat was well under way as the review for April was being written, but it had not progressed to the point where any conclusions were admitted. The German press at the outset confused the entire issue. Its statements may then be ignored.

In the first place the German retreat was not voluntary, but was forced. The battle of the Somme, biting as it did deep into the German lines, produced a wedge which seriously threatened the Noyon salient. Only a little more, and the troops in this salient would have been unable to retire. The Germans saw the threat to this large body of men, so drew back from the danger before it had an opportunity actually to strike them. To this extent the retreat was a strategical move. That the movement was made with a view to shortening the lines and thereby strengthening them may be entirely possible as a subsidiary thought, but it was not the moving factor. The theory that von Hindenburg simply wished to draw the Allies out of the trenches into the open and then defeat them has also been exploded.

The matter of the withdrawal itself is most interesting. It was assumed in many quarters that the line on which the Germans would stand was through Laon, La Fère, St. Quentin, and Cambrai. This

was a perfectly logical conclusion, as it had its basis in the existing railroads connecting these places. In fact, but little has happened since to give rise to any doubt that the German intention was different from that outlined. The distance from Noyon to the new line was very much greater than that from the Bapaume position to Cambrai. Nevertheless, it was the Bapaume line which first gave way.

This would indicate that the German retirement took place ahead of schedule time because of the British pressure along the Ancre, and the way in which the Germans have since been handled by both the British and the French would seem to increase the probability that this was the case. Nevertheless, the preparations for the retreat were thoroughly made and the requisite transport was at hand.

Rapid French Pursuit

The Germans, as they fell back, destroyed all the railroad lines, blew up the roads and roadbeds, and did all else that could in any way hinder the pursuit of the allied armies. That they went beyond this and, in a blind, ruthless orgy of destruction, razed to the ground every building however unadapted it might be to military purposes is beside the point. This is merely another interesting phase of German psychology. But in spite of the fact that the Germans were able to get away with small loss, the French and the British were apparently as prepared to follow as the Germans were to fall back. The French in particular did brilliant work in this respect. The pursuit on the southern part of the line, which was held by the French, was extremely rapid-much more rapid than any one had anticipated.

Not for a moment, it seemed, was con

tact lost. The French engineers followed the Germans closely, reconstructing and rebuilding, and the French infantry and artillery pressed the situation closely. The pursuit evidently surprised the Germans, who, before they had an opportunity to stop and fight, found their line interfered with, if not actually cut. La Fère seemed to be the point at which the French advance was directed. Without fighting any heavy engagements the French reached and occupied the town

of Tergnier, within two miles of La Fère. This completely eliminated the latter town as a point of German vantage.

Further south, along the Aillette River, the French came to their first stumbling block. This river stands as a guard to the great patches of wood south of the La Fère position, and is known as the lower and upper forests of Coucy and the Woods of St. Gobain. This river was crossed, however, after heavy fighting, and, finally, pushing ahead on the

southern end of the line, the French took the village of Coucy. The lower forests of Coucy were occupied, bringing the French to the edge of the forest of St. Gobain. Here the French came to a halt, as it was evident that they had reached the main defenses of the German line to which von Hindenburg had intended to retreat.

Further north the Germans were not so fortunate in checking the French. From just east of Tergnier, the French fought their way eastward, pivoting their line on the Tergnier position, and pressed the Germans back against the Oise River as far north as the town of Moy. This threw the French well to the east of St. Quentin and in a position to work their way, without meeting any natural obstacles, in rear of the town. This they did, driving due north from Moy until they had reached a point just south of Neuville. Their line then swung westward near the suburbs of St. Quentin, along all the high ground south of the city. This was certainly not in accordance with the German plan, as it brought every means of exit from the city directly under the fire even of the smaller French artillery.

The British Advance

The British, on the other hand, had a much more difficult road to travel. Because of the shorter distance which the Germans had to pass over, their retreat, after the line first began to give way, was much slower, and the pursuit was conducted with constant fighting, mostly of heavy rear-guard character. The British object was to prevent the use of Cambrai in the same way as the French had impaired if not destroyed the usefulness of St. Quentin.

The pivot of the German retreat in the north was a point on the southern tip of Vimy Ridge, a position before which so many French had lost their lives, and which was believed to be practically impregnable. No effort was made against it, the British expending all of their efforts toward reaching the line of the Scheldt River. Here the British gave the best indication of their fighting strength. Each day recorded a new advance of greater or less extent on the

entire front from the Vimy Ridge to St. Quentin, where the British and French joined. The result was more than satisfactory to the British commander.

As this review is being written the British have thrown a loop around St. Quentin on the north and west which brings their lines so near to those of the French that it is impossible for the Germans to keep control or possession of the city much longer. More important still, the British are but a little over a mile from the Scheldt River, with the Germans in between. It seems certain that before these lines appear the Germans will have fallen behind the river, from which the British cannot force them except by a flanking movement, to be made at some time in the future.

While the fighting west of the Scheldt was at its height the British, after a terrific artillery preparation, suddenly launched an attack against the Vimy Ridge, the pivot of the German retirement. Here was the first positive indication that the Germans, in addition to being outgunnued and outmunitioned, outfed and outmanned, were also outgeneraled. The Germans gave out officially that by their retirement they had completely upset the British plan for an attack on the Somme and delayed any other attack indefinitely because of the necessity of reconstructing the transport system. The probabilities were, however, that the British never intended to attack on that section of the front affected by the German retreat. On the contrary, it now seems that the British commander, undoubtedly acquainted with the fact that a retreat was coming, had laid his plans for an attack which would produce the same result on the line north of Arras as the Somme had produced in the south.

In one day's fighting the Canadian troops, who held the centre of the attacking line, swept to the crest of Vimy Ridge and well over it, forcing the Germans down the eastern slope. It was here, too, that for the first time the Germans gave indications of going to pieces. There was a temporary demoralization in their ranks which manifested itself in the fighting, for, almost