g of young men who had enlisted in the course
of the war, in a brilliant charge took a bastion at Klosnowo. The
effect of this first penetration of the Russian main position made
itself felt in the course of the afternoon and night along the
whole front. Further German forces were thrown into the breach and
strove to widen it.

The Russians at many points resisted obstinately, but under the
pressure from the front and in the flank they were finally unable
to hold their ground. The German account speaks with admiration
of the ride to death of a Russian cavalry brigade which attacked
the German infantry southeast of Opinozura without achieving any
results. Cossacks and Hussars were mowed down in an instant.

The German advance taking several intermediate places did not halt
until it stood before the fortification of the Narew line itself.
As a result or this stroke the German troops had advanced some
forty to fifty kilometers into hostile territory on a breadth of a
hundred and twenty kilometers and had captured some 10,000 prisoners
and much war material. By the 18th of July, 1915, German trains
were running as far as Ciechanow.

Advances were likewise made by the Germans to the right of the attack
on the Przasnysz positions on both sides of the Mlawa-Ciechanow
Railway, rolling up the Russian positions as far as Plonsk. On
the left progress had also been made and heavy fighting done, but
the German great headquarters pointed out that in times to come
history will assign the important place to the central feature of
this great offensive by General von Gallwitz, that is the enveloping
attack at Przasnysz and the ramming thrust at Zielona.

The report issued by the Russian General Staff on July 19, 1915,
admitted that to the west of Omulev their troops had withdrawn
to the Narew bridgeheads on the 17th. The points of some of the
German columns on this day, in fact, came within the range of the
artillery of the fortress of Novo-Georgievsk and the army of General
von Scholtz reached the line of the Bobr and the Narew between
Osowice and Ostrolenka. The action at Przasnysz had been decisive.
It resulted ultimately in the relinquishing by the Russians of the
lines of the Rawka and Bzura which had been so stubbornly held
against the Germans in the long defense of Warsaw. The troops directly
charged here with defending the capital fell back to the Blonie
lines about fifteen miles from the city.

* * *