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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (June 21, 1919)
THE BEE: OMAHA, SATURDAY, JUNE 21, 1919. fRainbow Division Gives German Troops One iPartin Smash and Goes to Argonne After iKilling 50 and Taking 25 at Mihiel , After Battle of St. Mihiel Had Subsided Into a Mere Mopping Up Process and the ;: Last Swat of Argonne Campaign Was Finished, the Rainbow Division Then :: Moved Toward the 'Meuse Front To Tajte Part In IasVGreat Drive of War. i . i :; s By RAYMOND S. TOMPKINS. - , EIGHTH INSTALLMENT. ; J (Cttyrttht, 1919. a Say ana t. Taaaktaa. All Flalrta Rmrvri.) Aftaf In. kattl of 8t MIMal ha siiMa'aS lata s awaplaf sp tracua. wu raUtad la tsa latt Imtallnaat ol tha History af tha Ralabow DMiloa by fUynot4 . Tseaklai. wklk appaartd la Tha Baa, thara aaam aethlap alM to ba doaa thara. but tha Rainbow had a way of aaaslaf In has In. , , Wharafora. batara II latt tha St Mlhlal tallant. It lava tha Hani lint ana Hit iwat. It waa aaly , p raid, but a raid that latt SO Huna daad an tha tlald and 29 prlwntr'i. ta tty aothlap at tha In. .armatlca galnad. Thla laatallatant talla at that laat awat and of tha Ralabaw'i aaxt aim toward tha , . Arpaana-MauM Iroat to takaaart In Uia latt praat drlva ol tha war. i Tha aaxt Inttallmant la Tha Bea will tell of that preat drlva. Only n ne matter .of moving up the supplies and am munition and in keeping the artillery close up behind the ad vancing infantry in this St. Mihiel drive did the machinery of ;the American offensive function poorlyT Had the German ;power of counter-attack not been so demoralized by the sud denness and unexpectedness of the blow, there might have : been disaster, in this fact. 1 1 The roads across No Man's Land had been entirely de stroyed, and the condition of the grdund and the weather :tnade repairs difficult. Colonel Kelly's engineers labored in cessantly to get the' Rainbow's roads into shape, but traffic I poured in on them from all directions and at the village of ;Flirey there was untyelieveable congestion. Everything Blocked in Flirey. In four directions from the cross. J pads in the centep-of Flirey were Ihe masses of from two to four lanes m,bf traffic for distances of from three 'to five miles. Nothing could move n any direction. Staff automobiles Mvere there from' different divisions; heavy artillery, tractors, supply and I ration wagons, -motorcycles and J tanks all locked in the most hope less, tangle. At some points, this part of the American army was at a Itomplete standstill for 24 hours. Several well-placed shells in this mass from the German guns would Itave wrought terrible havoc. But All the German guns that hadn't keen captured were being lately dragged off to the Hindenburg jftne by an army that hadn t time to .calize what had hit it. Intelligence found on captured prisoners showed ;that the Germans did not expect the , littack during the rain, and that they Considered it a rather mean thing to do an advant;:'c that would not -fiave been take by the French and IPritish. They ad been caught in the act of withdrawing their artil- iery from their old positions to the "tine of La Chaussee, where it would have inflicted considerable damage to the advancing Americans. ; Yanks Heavily Shelled. Sack- on the Hindenburg line. However, and under the guns of Metz, they regathered their scat tiered tvits and proceeded to shell t(he new line and the near areas heavily. Day and night they rained -shrapnel and high explosives on the Firpt American army, not concen trating their fire on any particular -points, but covering everything. For Several days after the drive the , St. Mihiel sector was the most active in like matter of artillery duelling on i;he whole western front. Brig.-Gen. Douglas MacArthur. Commanding the" 84th brigade of the Rainbow division, realized this ac tivity in time, perhaps, to save his .Ilife. He had established his head quarters in a chateau at St. Benpit, almost in the front lines. It was lender full observation from the Ger man positions. For a time it escap ed the shelling, because the Ger !vnans never dreamd that a brigade Commander was living there, almost ki the front-line trenches. .-, One day, though, several shells jJlacArthur decided to move out. And the day after he moved the I Germans, having noted the activity around the place, shelled it fiercely and reduced it to a blazing, smoking Ufccap of ruins. : ; Town Blotted Out, 2! General Menoher, the Rainbow f;ivision commander, was al.se orced to after plans for establish ling division headquarters in the St. , Jlihiel sector, but for a different reason. Looking at the map lie had I decided upon the village of Maizer- lis, about a half kilometer from Est sey. It looked like a pretty good I town on the map . But "when he ar rived at the spot, expecting to see a village with at least a few decent :n '. habitants ; in it he found nothing. IJklaizerais was not only a ruin; it wis an almost extinct ruin. Over lithe crunjbled foundations of shell shattered houses grass had grown; a casual observer woulds have 5'markefi it merely as an extraordin ! 'arily rough-surfaced field. As a de ; fctroyed French town Baizerais held "the record far as the Rainbow IJwas concerned, throughout the whole war. General Menoher established his : headquarters In Essey. The ghost "ol ruined Jdairerais must ,have I haunted the foreit of the Lovely ! Willow. If it didn't it should have. Pnr thar tha Germans, feeling se izure in the unchallenged possession I ;of the land for four years, had built themselves a suburban village like Ilunto the places tired city dwellers "journey to on Sundays in contem- Ijnovement. They' had turned the! forest of the Lovely Willow into a ...pretty little bungalow park. Got Huns' Clubhouse ' Genereal Menoher took it over J Hater for Rainbow Division head ; "quarters, and he and his whole ataff I III i .1 f i I j zm tw mMS) - ' i iV ' and detachments from Lieut.-Col.'ji D..U.. I- r: .- V iuuy vnrreu s .Missouri signal Corps about 300 men in all lived and flourished there for several days, convinced before they left 'that the better part of "Kultur," as the Germans practiced it, was the art of being comfortable. Pretty rustic walks with hand railings curled through and around its cluster of cozy houses; there was one of those amusement park rifle ranges with a moving target; the Offizier-Kasino was snugly uphol stered in red. with bright electric lamps, tasteful wall paper, a butler's pantry and electric push-buttons for desper-f?umnioning the drinks or the chick en salad The rest house for soldiers was a pretty little chalet with picture post cards plastered on the walls, show ing the German army being joyously greeted in Brussels and London crmbling' into the Thames under Zeppelin bombardments. s And there were rows and rows of houses for officers' billets," rows of squad cottages like hunting lodges in the Adirondacks; a bowling Jley, an electric power house, a hospital, a central kitchen. It was a tiny model city and to live there after the mud and foxholes, was some what like a vacation for the Rain bow's division headquarters. , Not a mine or a booby-trap had been planted in the whole glace, so rapidly had the Germans left it They had not even taken time to remove the signs from the villages and the bungalow city, calling upon all soldiers who wanted to settle on tha "conquered" land' to file squat ters' claims with their officers! Clamored for Metz. And now, with the new line of. the fjrst American army all con solidated and perfected, the men of the Rainbow division, now holding not only their own sector, but that of the First division on the left as well, wanted to go to Metz. They felt sure they could make it. They growled and fumed constantly about it. But they did nothing ex cept hold on to the new line under the constant fire of German artil lery, until the night of September 22, four days before the opening of the first Meuse-Argonne offensive of September 26. As Soon as the St. Mihiel salient was reduced artillery and reserve divisions were on their way west ward for this, the supreme effort of the American armies. Absolute sec recy was essential. So in order to prey upon the Germans nerves, to keep them in doubt as to the next attacking point, and to obtain infor mation of their plans, several raids were planned and executed. Some of them Bad :;ot been very success ful. It was on the night of Septem ber 22 that the Rainbow division's turn came. Haumont, to the northeast of St. Benoit and Marimbois Farm, to the northwest were selected as the ob jectives. There were to be two raiding parties to strike simultan eously, pne at Marimbois Farm to the northwest of St. Benoit and one at Haumont to' the northeast. They were to be "Goand-Come raids like one in the Bois des Chienstback at Baccarat in May. t Struck a Last Blow Detachments of picked men were made up one from M company of the 167th (Alabama) infantry, under Capt. Maurice Howe, and the other from the 167th (Alabslma)-infantry, under batteries of the Illinois (149th) field artillery regiment was to support the Alabamians and Iowans. And to make a long story short, they rushed over while the artillery poured enfilading fire into the farm and the vi)lage. killed more than 50 Germans while most of them re tired, fearing a general attack, and brought back 25 fine healthy prison ers and two machine guns. It was the best ninht's work around the old St. Mihiel salient since the night the salient had disappeared. Tinley in Charge At about this time there were a few changes among unit command ers. Colonel Mitchell, by the way, had led the New Yorkers of the tttJE mti OF THE TOWN IT, b "S ran 1 165th in the St. Mihiel rfrive'. Col. Frank McCoy having been made a brigadier general and left the divis ion. And nw Colonel Kelley, leader of the Rainbow engineers, was made engineer of an army corps and Col. J. M. Johnson succeeded him, and Lieut. Col. Matt Tinley of Council Bluffs, la., succeeded Colonel Bennett as commande" of the 168th from Iowa, And so the Rainbow division stood just in front of the Hinden burg line, now looking back on their part in the big American victory, now looking longingly toward Metz, while from the north and west there came to it the low rumble of many guns chanting for the armies of Germany their death song. Goes to Meuse Fro'nt Trucks at 4 a. m. and goodby to St. Mihiel! The Rainbow a shock division now. to be held back like a ring champion's best punch till time for the knockout was rushed over to Benoit Vaux in the autumn tinted country behind Verdun. That was October 1. Three days later to Reicourt and on October 6 to the Bois de Montfaucon, a piti able wrck of a ruined forest, gouged and chewed for four days by the guns of the world's armies seek ing to conquer and to defend Ver dun. ' And now Verdun lay behind the Rainbow division, while every day the roar of the battle beyond came down to its dead streets and its brave citadel fafnTer and fainter. And before the Rainbow division lay the line of the First Amercian army fighting the final battle for the world against the armies of German, and the armies of Germany struggling "with the last desperate strength of tripped and beaten beasts. The Rainbow crouched in its black mud holes, waiting for orders to strike, Again it becomes necessary (as the storm necessarily precedes the advent of the bright-hued bow in the sky) to paint in a gray, neutral tinted background. Last Drive of War. When we left the Rainbow divi - sion in the last chapter the breezes frpm the west were bearing toward St, Mihiel the rumble of many guns. It was the start of the Argo:i:ie Meuse drive of .September 26 the beginning of the end. The echoes of the last American barrage in the St. Mihiel salient had scarcely died away when corps and army artillery ami some divi sions in reserve were starting west ward for this, probably the great est single operation of the war. Their trip had ended back -of the line that stretched from the Meuse river to the western edge of the Argonne forest. On the other side of the line was the heart of "New Germany," built by the German army upon the ruins of France and Belgium. During four yeara the German war-making plant had accumulated there; there were his great military railway hues, the northermost run ning through Liege and Namur, the southermost running through Long uyon, Montmedy and Sedan. These lines, the upper one starting at Cologne and curving slightly aouth-west- and the lower starting' tt Coblenz and curving first south and then northwest, met and crossed east of Camhrai. Lines Vital-to Huns Through them all the armies of Germany in France and Belgium were fed, clothed, armed, supplied with ammunition and reinforced with men. With them under control the German armies were wonder fully mobile: divisions could be I5?ts, HARNEY' 111 V n i ojiNa. I mm shifted from one part of the line. to another far away with great speed. Out of control, with the lines of the allies so dose that they were under bombardment ty artillery, they would be useless. Captured at any, point, they would work the complete defeat of Germany. The German high command knew all this as well as it knew everything else about its own chances for de feat or victory which was very well, indeed. It was prepared tr! defend these lines ot its last re sources in strategical cunning and in men and arms. With Metz as a pivot, the Ger mans were prepared to swing back slowly toward the east, withdrawing no more rapidly than was neces sary to keep their railroads and stores under control and, pulling their house in behind them, so to speak, retire eventually to their own borders and fight forever. They had only, while so withdrawing, to pro tect such of their railroad centers as Sedan, Montmedy or Lbnguyon and they would get away in good order. . ..., The objective a! the Aencan offensive (which began September 26, was Sedan, more than 25 miles away from lines that had remained virtually stationary since the fall of 1914. That offensive ended as the war endedf with the acceptance by Germany of an armistice, as shrewd a military maneuver as it maae throughout the whole war. It began discouragingly enough. Endless hills and heavy woods were in its path. Of nine American di visions that jumped off out of the old French trenches on September 26 and started through the barbed wire growths and pitfalls and machine-gun nests of four yfcars' prepa ration." least one came out in three days badly shot up. Many of them had had no, previous experience whatever in tliline, some had never been under shell fire. In the first two days they pushed ahead seven kilometers, but they couldn't keep it up. There stretched up ahead of them on the left the great forest of Ar gonne, turned by boche military in genuity into an almost impenetrable, impregnable jungle of wire, mine traps and machine guns. Hill lay behind hill like a succession of bumps in a roller-coaster, and more deep forests were spread over them. Of roads there were virtually none. Tanks coufd not operate. And 10 kilometers from the line the Ger mans were trying to hold wjth these advantages was the famous Kreim hilde line. ,4 nd so finally the veteran Amer ican divisions had come up. The Thirty-second had gone in and bat tered at Romagne and Cunel with out success. The First division went over to the left, capture'd Hill 212 in dashing style and found itself up against the Kreimhilde Stellung. Thus the Argunne-Meuse offen sive stood on October 13, more than two weeks after its launching. The Rainbow division, having Liberty Bonds Taken at Full Face Value, Not one of these garments is worth less than $35, and some were origin ally priced up to $55 . Tub Frocks A special concession enables us to offer this amy of pretty tub frocks at this ridiculously low fig ure. The variety of styles and materials js bewildering -they will sep quickly at Special value At this, price we feature Skirts, thfit have sold up to as high as $10, for Saturday only, at waited for a week in this hell-hole of a Bois de Montfaucon, with the 32ds efforts just ahead of it bring ing the German barrages on' its im potent head and the filth of an old battlefield soaking Into its clothes and disposition, now got the word. It took over the brilliant but tired First division's line north of Fle ville and Exermont and got to work. It was in the great Argonne drive at last. Stolen Gur's Recovery Leads to Request for Permanent Auto Bureau Following the recovery by State Agent C. J. Wilson during the past five days of 12 automobiles stolen in Omaha, insurance men of the city have appointed a committee to re quest Governor McKelvie to estab lish a permanent bureau for the re covery of automobiles. The insurance committee, made of w H. Ahmanson, E. D. Mo- Call and 'H. N. Wood, will also ask the eovernmfcnt to aid in the pass- ring of a law authorizing the holding of cars with mutilated motor num bers for a period of 60 days. This law is desgined to per mit the identi fication of machines which have Ibeen stolen. i lie recvvcicu iiidLiuiica wcic owned by F. C. Grovey, C. J. Shea'," Nebraska Buick Co., G. W,Jewell, W. C. Bullard, N. E. Fain, C. B. Edquist,' Lloyd Magney, J. E. Schaeffer, Dr. M. Wohl. Two other cars have been found but not yet identified. Resident of Omaha for Half Century Dies at Age of 77 I. Levi, 2211 Howard street, died at his home Thurs'day of TSright's disease. He was 77 years old and had resided in Omaha for 50 years. He engaged in the retail coal busi ness when he came to Omaha and continued the business until 10 years ago, when he retired. He is survived by his widow and 10 children, three of whom, Ida, Clarence and Albert, live at home. Two daughters,' Miss Mable of New York and Miss Agnes of San Fran cisco, will return for the funeral. Five other daughters, Mesdame.s Eldrige, Heinman, Robinson, Frejd man and Wells reside in Pacific coast cities. Veteran Burlington Employe Celebrates 84th Birthday "Steve" Mealy), an employe of the Burlington railroad for the last 37 years, celebrated his 84th birthday anniversary last Tuesday evening with a family reunion. TheMealio home is at the Carlisleaapartments, ( 625 South Eighteenth street. Mr. Mealio is employed in the law department of the Burlington. THE HOME OF COURTESY Saturday Sale of Suits, Capes and Dolmans This Saturday sale of fine Capes, Dolmans and Suits at $15, means muchHo the woman wno can appreciate an extreme bargain. These garments are of the latest design and are of excellent de sign and workmanship. THIS SALE IS FOR ONE DAY ONLY DOORS OPEN AT 9 A. M. Skirt Lingerie Blouses Beautiful Tub Blouses in pretty French "Voiles and Organdies, featured in all the wanted colors;, exceptionally low priced at, from $1.95 to $5,95 WHERE1 QUALITY REIGNS MINISTER'S WIFE ADMITS SMOKING, LIKES COCKTAIL Ajccuses Her Husband, Who Is Episcopal Clergyman, of In troducing Her to Bad Habits. New York, June 20. While un der cross-examination before Su preme Court Justice Giegerich, Mrs. Emilie Neifert admitted that she smoked cigarets and took a cocktail now and then. She is suing ner husband, the Rev. Josiah M. Nerfert, an Episcopal clergyman, for a sep aration. "Didn't your husband object to cocktails, cards and cigarets?" Mfs. Neifert was asked. Absurd," she answered. "It was Dr. Neifert who introduced me to them." Mrs. Neifert alleges her husband was very "chummy" with Miss Car rie Cooper, a pretty nurse, who at tended him during an attack of rheumatism. She defended her two children against attacks in their declarations that they saw thr-ir father kiss and hug Miss Cooper. "Did'you ever call your husband names? Mrs. Neifert was asked. "I've been married 20 years," she replied. "I may have called hiinl names uuiuig uiai nine. vv uu uuta not? Do you refer to the time when I called him a name because of an affair he had in my house with a young girl?" "Yes, I did call him a snake," she added. ' "Well, did you call him a damn able hypocrite?" "I don't remember; perhaps," Mrs. Neifert replied. A, neighbor testified he wouldn't believe Isabelle and Morton Neifert, the minister's two children, under oath. "They tell white lies," he testi fied. Mrs. Neifert was on her feet in a moment. She shook her finger at the witness. , ' "You know you are lying," she declared. "It is the truth," said the witness. Mrs. Nancy Cooper, mother of the nurse, testified in favor of her daughter. " Delay Trial of Striking Teamsters for Contempt Hearing of contempt of court charges against three striking team sters which was set for yesterday in District Judge Troup's court was postponed until June 25. Contin uance until June 20 was asked by the state in order to secure witnesses. Store Closes 5 P. M. Week Days. 6 P. M. on Saturday. Wash Skirts Just the thing for the hot weather; in endless variety of style and of washable ma terials in Gabardines, Tri cotines, Sol-Satin, No,velty Stripes. Special for Satur day only, at , ' $32 to $12:50 WW h fTPBowen' Valua-Clytnf W W '11 To Those Who Desire a Bed Room Suite that represent tha latest style in TOfu without paying aa exer bitant price, and of the Bowen Recogniied High Standard Quality, will find" this store the batter place at which to shop. Thi atre; i showing many beautiful suite handsomely finished that you will e pleased to possess. Then, tco, you are poaftire of raceiv ing full dollar value in merchandise for every dollar expended. These Bowen Bed Room Values Cannot Be7 Duplicated Mahogany Beds, Artistically designed and finished, $22.50 and $35 Mahogany Beds, Queen Ann design $38 ' White Ivory Beds, handsomely finished and desired by many. $80 White Ivory Chairs and Rockers to match $7.50 Mahogany and Walnut, extra heavy 4-poster Beds, ex- , tremely pleasing in de sign $47.50 Mahogany Beds, William and Mary design $35.00 Golden Oak Beds, Colonial de sign. $22.50 and $19.50 Golden Oak, 4-poster Beds .......... $39.50 Fumed Oak Beds, Adam de sign $13.00 Metal Beds, finished in Ma hogany; Pearl White, Vernis Martin and Oak, $7.50, $9.50, $12, $15 and $24 Walnut and Mahogany 4 drawer Dressers $42.50 White , Ivory Dressers, $30.00 and $45.00 Again the Bowen Store Values Predominate Tomorrow, Saturday, June 21st, the Bowen Store offer tsu an ooBortunitv to economize, ret at the same time secure tha. ' best Value-Giving Quality Mattress it is possible to manufacture J and sell at any of the prices given below. If you need a new mat tress, then dcto't fail to be at the Greater Bowen Store tomorrow and reap the benefit of their Mattress Values offered en that date.. Means Better and More Rest. There's a Mattress for you of J xl ! 1. x anu Bb me price you want 10 pay. iney are not a wee dii nigner . just a wee bit better" at Bowen's. . " ' ' A Felt top, plain stripe tick, $3.95 Cotton top and bottom, plain tick, at $4.65 Combination felt and excelsior, plain edge, at..., $5.45 Combination felt and excelsior, roll edge, at ......... . $5.95 Combination felt and wood wool, fancy tick and roll edge, at $9.90 Extra heavy combination felt and wood wool, fancy art tick and roll edge $12,501 All felt mattresses, roll edge; 45-pound, art tick, at.. $8.95 Felir pad to match, at.. $20.00 ataaeVeafaJleSWaaSaMaaeaaaSa Place a Bowen Guaranteed Sagless .Spring on Tour Bed With Your New Mattress and you will have done more for your own gooa tnan you neretoiore believed possible' it s no ex periment; it's a known fact, so why not get a new set of non--rustable coil or link springs that are guaranteed a lifetime " against sagging at any of the following prices; $3.75, $4.50, $5.50, $7.50, $9.00 and $12.50 1 I The Test of a Good Refrigerator J Three questions to apply (and each an important ques-' tion): Will it keep food properly cold! Will it use little Ice? What is the priceT The efficiency and ice con sumption coma first, became the cost of a Refrigerator is little compared to its upkeep with the present, price of ice. All the Refrigerators on our floors have measured up to this test-i-and the cost is no greater. It would be well for you to inspect the Thermo-Cell, Blizzard and Gurney With prices ranging as follows: $9.50, $12.80, $15, $17.75, $29.50 and up. s w mmm - - - -, i-,i.i-.ririi -f n ii'ii-ii'i i-nnn.ru-u-i.riruvut (jsnim furniture Storo furniture- I On Howard, Between Quality Furniture StortifnfWfWfJIWJ Elsewhere White Ivory Vanity Dressers : $75.00 H White Ivory Table to Match $39.10. Walnut Triple Mirror' Dressing Tables . $35.00 Fumed Oak Dressers, with A''t large drawers 122,90. Fumed Oak Dressers with $ ,, small and 1 large drawer, at $24 JO Golden Oak Dressers, each a , big value at these prices, -$14.00, $19.00, $24.50 and.' $27 JO Chiffonettes in brown m-. hogany . $39.75, $55 and $75 Golden Oak Chiffonier, ' 6 v drawers $16.10 i.ij , 1 j . uoiaen jsk vniiionier, mirror, 5 drawers .$13,00 the kind and quality you want,'" J ml - - tt . 1 i 1 , la All felt mattresses, roll edge. 60-pounds, three rows stitch-. ing, at $18.00 ,'. All felt mattresses, roll tdge, 50 pounds, four rows stitchin?, at $22.50 All cotton sanitary couch pads, at $6.60 All felt box -edge couch pads, atr. i- .$7.50 Box spring mattress, fancy tick ing, at . -.$19.50 Felt pad to match at. . .$14.50 ' Box Spring mattress, roll edge, lancy ticking, high-grade, at r .$35.00 the comfort of the body and for ' -I Co; BUY ' n At lr.tr GUARANTEED - FURNITURE 5f A . 15th and 16th Street ' J -1 .1 - ati M H IHmi'MHiiHIil Hi - 0 e . - -v , . A i. r