At the beginning of the general advance, the Russians found themselves firmly established in the neighbourhood of Stalluponen. Before them lay a strong German army, under General von Hindenburg. The advantage in numbers was with the Germans, who were in the proportion of roughly three to two. On the other hand they were composed to a very large extent of reserves. The smaller Russian army was composed of fully trained first line troops. The coming operations, therefore, were a test of the comparative values of numbers and training. Sheer numbers supported by perfect discipline, such as that which obtains in the German army, can accomplish much in modern warfare. The advance of the Germans in the western theatre of war had already proved as much. And in these days when the personal factor in warfare, at least so far as the rank and file is concerned, has been practically eliminated, and the tendency is to rely for victory more and more on artillery and material superiority rather than on personal qualities, the age, training and fitness of the troops is of less importance than in the old days when battles consisted of downright fighting. The finest troops in the world are helpless when exposed to an efficient artillery attack. In point of artillery the two armies in Eastern Prussia were about evenly matched, the superiority, if any, being on the side of the Germans. Consequently, it will be realised that the Russians were faced with a difficult task. The advance, which after the taking of Stalluponen had temporarily ceased, was resumed with vigour. The region to the north towards Tilsit was cleared of the enemy. Cavalry patrols scoured the country and there were innumerable minor engagements. In all of these the Russians were successful and the Germans were forced to withdraw their outposts towards the line Stillen, Gumbinnen and Goldap. The only engagement of any importance occurred some miles to the north of Stalluponen. Here a strong Russian force fell on a German army corps, which was occupying a rather advanced position. The fighting continued for practically a whole day, and in spite of fierce Russian attacks, the Germans held their ground. Towards the evening, however, their left flank was turned and soon they were in full retreat towards Gumbinnen. The Russians captured some hundreds of prisoners besides eight field guns, twelve cannons and three machine guns.