Loos, which is
about three miles north of Lens, has been one of the centres of
fighting. This indicates how close the French are to their objective.
Lens is an important railroad centre, and is the point of junction of
many roads which radiate in all directions. As yet the French advance is
not sufficient to denote anything, but another step in the "nibbling"
process by means of which the French have kept the Germans occupied for
some months.
In the German angle, from Etain to St. Mihiel to Pont-a-Mousson, the
French achieved what will probably prove to be the greatest local
success of the past week. That is, the complete occupation of the Le
Pretre woods. Sooner or later the continual French encroachments on the
German area of occupation must cause the straightening out of this line
and the retirement of the Germans to the supporting forts of Metz. The
object of all the French moves against this angle has been the town of
Thiancourt, on the German supply line from Metz. The capture of the last
German line of trenches in the Pretre Forest brings the French within
six miles of this town. When the French reach the northern edge of this
forest, and they must be very close to it now, it will be a simple
matter to drop shells into Thiancourt and seriously endanger every train
that comes in.
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