Montfaucon is taken.

On the night of September 25 our troops quietly took the place of the French who thinly held the line in this sector which had long been inactive. In the attack which began on the 26th we drove through the barbed wire entanglements and the sea of shell craters across No Man's Land, mastering all the first-line defenses. Continuing on the 27th and 28th, against machine guns and artillery of an increasing number of enemy reserve divisions, we penetrated to a depth of from 3 to 7 miles, and took the village of Montfaucon and its commanding hill and Exermont, Gercourt, Cuisy, Septsarges, Malancourt, Ivoiry, Epinonville, Charpentry, Very, and other villages. East of the Meuse one of our Divisions, which was with the Second Colonial French Corps, captured Marcheville and Rieville, giving further protection to the flank of our main body. We had taken 10,000 prisoners, we had gained our point of forcing the battle into the open and were prepared for the enemy's reaction, which was bound to come as he had good roads and ample railroad facilities for bringing up his artillery and reserves.

Transcriber's Note: The following is a transcription of the text of the facsimile.
To see an image of the facsimile, [click here].

FACSIMILE OF PERSHING'S SECRET BATTLE MAP SHOWN AT NATIONAL MUSEUM

There is on exhibition in the United States National Museum at Washington what is probably the most interesting and valuable single record of America's part in the Great War—General Pershing's own secret battle map, transported here from his headquarters in France and set up in the museum exactly as it was there.

It was General Pershing's own idea to have the map displayed to the public to show the people of the United States the actual military results obtained by their armies. For instance, at the hour the armistice was signed the United States forces were holding 145 kilometers of front, of which 134 kilometers were active. This is made plain on the map by the colored pins and tags by which the different allied and enemy armies are shown.

The map itself shows the location of all divisions, both the enemy and allied, on the western front; the correct battle line, commanding generals, location of headquarters and boundaries down to include armies, and various other information concerning divisions, as, for example, whether they were fresh or tired. The map was developed and kept posted to date daily by the third section of General Pershing's staff, and used by them and other superior officers during active operations for strategical studies and purposes of general information.

It is evident that during the war the information which this map contained was such that the enemy would have spared no pains to secure it. Every precaution was taken to insure its secrecy, and to this end the map was always kept locked up, and in addition was kept in a small compartment formed by a closed screen. Furthermore, access to this map was had by only the half dozen chiefs of the general headquarters staff sections whose work was directly affected by the changes shown on the map. This map appears to have been unique. The staff officers from the different allied headquarters who had occasion to see the map declared that it was the most complete representation of the opposing forces that they had seen.

General Pershing, in his letter to the adjutant general suggesting the public display of the map in the National Museum, says:

"It has occurred to me that this particular map with its accompanying installation will have a great historical value. It will be of intense interest to future generations, not only because it was the only map of its kind used at these headquarters, but because it shows in a vivid fashion the exact situation at the hour of the armistice."