2o6 The Great War were coming from British colonies to swell the great army of the West. At Petersburg Grant had finally succeeded be- cause his superiority of numbers enabled him to ex- tend his line far to the west and Lee, with inferior numbers, compelled to extend his line correspond- ingly, stretched it too far, extended it until it was so thin, Sheridan was able to penetrate it at Five Forks. Such was plainly the effort of the Allies. Yet ten days later, in the first days of October, the move by the left flank was not yet successful. In fact at this time Paris official reports were com- pelled to confess a repulse and withdrawal north and east of Arras. So far the Germans had met reenforcements by reenforcements. The deadlock along the Aisne had been continued along the Somme, even now the lines were approaching the Scheldt with the German communications always intact. While all this was happening in the west of the French battleground, the Germans on the east were now breaking out with a counter-thrust of their own, quite as sustained and, if successful, bound to have an important effect upon the whole campaign in Northern France.