June 8, 1918 - Don Martin reports Great Victory of Americans on Marne

Don Martin diary entry for Saturday, June 8, 1918:

Throat very sore. Unable to leave the hotel. [Edwin] James [New York Times] went out and said he would give me what news there was of the front. He gave me some but held out most of the good stuff for himself. That was very evident to me at once. However I wrote 400 words for New York and 1,000 words for Paris. Was a rather hard job but I managed to get away with it. Americans are fighting splendidly. Wrote a good letter to Dorothy.

      That ‘good letter’, which was dated June 7, described his experiences in covering the war in a way that seems too mature for an eleven year old, but he meant his letters to Dorothy for the whole family:

         Last Saturday morning I left Neufchateau with another man in an automobile and rode 220 miles before night. The following morning I was in Château-Thierry when the Germans began to enter the city. I saw them come in and saw the Americans help drive them back. Then I got out. Later I stood on a hill just a kilometer from the city and watched the French, from behind where I stood, bombard the city. It was about as if you were standing on top of that hill away across the creek and watching a village up at the end of Burges Street. Shells whistled over my head all the time and with a glass I could see exactly where most of them struck. I stayed till the Germans began to throw shells back; then I got out of danger.

      In that letter he told the story of Floyd Gibbons loss of an eye:

            Thursday I decided to stay in and Floyd Gibbons of the Chicago Tribune said he would cover the story for me. Now Gibbons is in a hospital with his left eye shot away and a hole through his left arm. He probably will live but will lose an eye and be incapacitated for several weeks if not months. However, that doesn’t mean that if I had gone I would have been shot. He was a daredevil and paid the penalty. He was following a regiment of American marines almost into battle, which is no sensible thing to do. I wrote a story last night to be sent to the Chicago Tribune under his name.

       He also let a bit of his pride show through:

           I have seen considerable of the big battle up to date and expect to see considerable more. No doubt you have seen some of my stories in the Herald. The European edition publishes them with my name at the head of the column. I must be careful or I will become notorious.
                                            ---

       Don Martin reported on the “great victory” at Bouresches in the following article dated Saturday, June 8, and published in the New York Herald on June 9.

GREAT VICTORY OF AMERICANS ON THE MARNE SHOWS THEM EQUAL 
TO BEST OF FIGHTERS

Don Martin Tells How, Facing Deadly Fire from Bavarian and Saxon Shock Troops, They Stormed Hill and Plateau, Captured Bouresches and 
Drove Huns Across the Railroad.

SPIRIT, DASH AND TENACITY IN HOLDING

POSITIONS CAUSE JOY THROUGHOUT FRANCE

Top of Plateau Was Blown Off by the Fire of American Artillery and Every German Killed, While Pershing's Men Took Daring Risks but Stood Ground.

By DON MARTIN.

Special Correspondent of the Herald with the American Army in France.

[Special Cable to the Herald.]

AMERICAN FRONT IN FRANCE, Saturday. [Jun 8]

                 An epic of war might be written of the conduct of the gallant marines fighting side by side with the infantry for twenty-four hours, suffering heavy losses but heaping the ground with German dead, capturing two hundred prisoners and driving the Huns back four kilometres (two and a half miles). The Americans stormed a hill and also a plateau in face of terrific fire from machine guns of Bavarian and Saxon shock troops.

             Facing this deadly hail, which would have been sufficient to destroy the morale of average men, the Americans kept going until, after a desperate fight they took the village of Bouresches and drove the Huns across the railroad, where the Huns intrenched themselves. They are still there, and as I write fighting is continuing. The Americans passed the day in consolidating their position.

             The battle on the entire front has lifted the Americans into the spotlight and convinced every one that if needed, the Americans have the spirit, dash and tenacity to fight as well as any living soldiers. The advance coupled with that of the marines has been a big blow to the Huns, causing joy throughout France, because it is now realized that the Americans certainly will be a big factor.

The Attack at Midnight.

           The fighting started with a brilliant attack by the Americans at midnight The men went across a field, through a small wood, driving the Huns helter skelter, killing many. There was terrific fighting in the village of Bouresches, which the Americans determined to take. The Germans were stunned by the boldness of the Americans. They peppered the Americans with machine guns mounted on the roofs of buildings in the village and poured a deadly deluge into our ranks, but the Americans held on.

               Lieutenant W. C. Robertson, with his company, was one of the heroes of the occasion. With rapidly diminishing ranks the men held their position till the relief companies arrived, then forced the Huns back yard by yard till the village was cleared. It was a most gallant action.

       Another hero among the hundreds who will be mentioned was Lieutenant Donald Moore, a Princeton athlete, who when the men in Bouresches ran short of ammunition, drove a truck over a shell swept road in full view of the Germans, delivering more ammunition and safely making it possible for Lieutenant Robertson and the others to stand their ground.

            No less courage was shown on the part of the courier who carried the call for ammunition, having to pass a spot constantly swept by the machine gun fire of the enemy. One officer fell from the shot of a sniper while leading his men in splendid charge. Some doughboys with two lieutenants were carrying their captain to shelter when a shell struck the group. This ordeal, sufficient to crush the spirit of many, only stiffened the resistance and the attacks of the Americans.

Huns on Plateau All Killed

            When the men advancing north of the Bois de Belleau ran into a drenching machine gun fire coming from the plateau they charged. Nevertheless an order was given to the artillery to blow the top off the plateau. The order was carried out. An officer whom I saw after the end of the conflict said the plateau was piled high with Hun dead. The machine guns were destroyed and there were no prisoners. All the Huns were killed where they stood by the terrific artillery blast.

           Many points of land were captured, and the Americans surrounded groups of Germans and captured them. The Huns were paralyzed by the vigor of the Americans’ attacks. They said they did not expect anything like this. They believed they would wade through the Americans without an effort when the time came. They said the first brush with the marines caused a revision of their judgment. The battle makes them sit up.

                 Many of the German prisoners talked freely. They said the Huns intended to attack the Americans on Saturday, but Thursday’s attack upset their programme. Yesterday’s blow has staggered the Hun officers.

Hun Troops Skimped in Food

                Prisoners say the morale of their men is not good. Food is growing poor, and the promises of the government to the soldiers have not been fulfilled. The result is dissatisfaction. They were assured that France would quit after the big offensive; also that the Americans were no fighters, only men with no training.

               In this engagement the Germans used a new device of black smoke clouds to hide themselves when the Americans were advancing. In this case it was no use. The Americans plunged through. The device worked to the Americans’ advantage, because the Germans were surprised to see the soldiers break through the wall of smoke.

                 Every objective was attained by the men, who went further than they expected despite the fact that they were fighting the cream of the German army.

                  As I write, fighting is continuing on a small scale. The conduct of the Marines and also of the rest of the Second Division is such as to earn distinction everywhere. It should be a source of profoundest pride to every American.
                  - - - - - - - - - -

Battle of Belleau Wood, continued

           At midnight on June 7-8, a German attack was stopped cold and an American counter-attack in the morning of June 8 was similarly defeated. On June 9 an enormous American and French barrage devastated Belleau Wood, turning the formerly attractive hunting preserve into a jungle of shattered trees. The Germans counter-fired into Lucy and Bouresches and reorganized their defenses inside Belleau Wood.