FURIOUS BATTLE ON THE SCARPE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3064, 27 April 1917, Page 5

FURIOUS BATTLE ON THE SCARPE

BRITISH LINE STILL ADVANCING TERRIBLE SLAUGHTER IN ifflE GERMAN ' v RANKS The High Commissioner reports :— ■ . ' London, April 25, 12.50 p.m. ' A British official dispatch states: "Eastwards of the Havrincoiirt Wood and "north-eastwards of Trescault, weo captured Bithom during tho night. There was fighting early this morning all along tlie front between tho Cojoul and the Scarpa Rivers, whore wo made progress, and our gains were made secure The prisoners captured siuco Monday morning lota) 3029, including fifty-six officers." . , London, April 20, 0.20 a.m. A British official dispatch states: "Our line was advanced slightly durin» tho day south of Scarne River. Two German fiold mms were captured in yestwday's fishtine in this neighbourhood. Many thousand German dead are lying on the battlefield, which wo occupied. "Several hostile raiding parties wcro repulsed near Lous and Ypres. Our aeroplanes made' many raids yesterday, bombing with good cfVeot railway junctions, aerodromes, billots, and ammunition dumps. In ono raid a largo bomb.struck tho engine of a moving train, blowine tho engine off the lino and wrecking the train. A , hostile troop transport was successfully engaged with, macnine-gim fire."

GRAPHIC PICTURE OF THE FIGHTING \ London, April 25. Mr. Beach Thomas writes:—"Terrible encounters rago across the bare, undulating country beyond Arras, the troops marching, charging, manoeuvring, and fighting in the open. The Germans never used greater numbers of troops in counter-attacks. Monchy was the centre of the storm of Monday's counter-attacks. Sarfc Wood and Vert Wood were shattered and) broken by the terrific concentration of the British heavy artillery. The miserable remnants of the Germans in S'art Wood aid not dare to debouch, but the Germans in Vert Wood persisted, and despite the bloodiest of losses, succeeded in driving us back a'few hundred yards. Later wo ie-attacked, and forced the Gorman storming party from the most important places, while the enemy emptied shells into Monchy, blowing upthe village till only a few skeletons of houses remained. Cuema|)pe "Wβ captured Gavrelle village after slight resistance. The Germans surrendered eaeilv. but immediately afterwards they hurled away masses of fresh troops in vain attempts to recapture it. Two battalions, unabk> to face our shelfire, bolted across the open, where tbo creeping barrage almost annihilated them. The sternest fighting was at Guemappe. .Fierce counter-attacks temporarily drove us tack. Subsequently we renewed tho battle, and restomedi tho village. We found every cellar Mown to pieces by the> eheUfire. "The Germans have never lost more men since the battle of tho Sommo, and their shellfire fatalities were unusually high Tho fighting continues fiercely. The Germane aro bringing up the Guards and other picked troops, and are massine batteries, which pour shells aoross the Scarpe River to arrest tht advance. The battlefronts are without definition. . There are no. Iteaight/coSouB; lines of regular trenches. Tho enemy is endeavouring to S vißage, prove, that slave «*»£*«»«, incorporated in the German Army eystom."-Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn. EBB AND FLOW OF THE GREAT BATTLE (E«c. April 26, 6.15 p.m.) < '..-,„. London, April 20. Air Philip Gibbs writes: "The battle between the Scarpe and the La. «in»« ''Rivera is ebbinir and flowing in an extraordinary manner. {several lines,"—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Aesn. WHOLE GERMAN BATTALIONS BLOWN TO ATOMS NARROW ESCAPE OF HIGH BRITISH OFFICERS. (Rec. April 27, 0.50 a.m.) London, April 26. The "Times" correspondent at British Headquarters states :-"The ferocity of the fighting and the slaughter of Germans is unparalleled. The reniiL of the German counter-attacks at Gavrelle resembled massacres. The ground is neaped wW dead. Our artillery is blowing whole battahons to bits The fury of the Germans has temporarily been exhausted, but renewed concentrations of troops presage a further attempt at the recapture of Gavrelle. Four British high command officers, investigating the results of the battle at tho front, were nearly captured by a German patrol, wbjch demnUtrates tho extreme openness and irregularity of the fighting. The offi--™rs hadi to run forTheirTives. Fortimately they out-ran the Germans, who narrowly missed bagging big game."-The 'Times. ■ \ THE GERMAN COMMUNIQUE V ' London, April 25. \ German wireless official message states: "Fighting for Gavrelle has continued since yesterday.- Southward of the Scarpe the British' attack on a wide front on both sides of the Arras-Oambrai road broke down, after violent hand-to-hand fighting, with heavy losses. We took'6s prisoners on Monday, and destroyed several tanks. The English and French on Monday and Tuesday lost thirty-nine aeroplanes."—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.-Beuter. ■ (Rec. April 26, 8.10 p.m.) ' / London, April 23. 'A' German wireless official report states:—"Three British attacks s northward" of Monohy were repulsed with- heavy losses."—Ausi-N.Z. Cable Assn.Reuter. ' ■ .

PROGRESS ON THE FRENCH FRONT ALL GERMAN ATTA'CKS SEVERELY DEFEATED. The High Commissioner reports:— London, April 20, 3.15 p.m. A French'official dispatch states: "In.tho region of the river Aisne, we mado progress south-eaetwards of Corny-en-Laonnais, and took some prisoners, A German .attack, after a violent bombardment, on the environs' of Hurtebise and the Vauclerc Plateau, was stopped dead by our lire. In fcho Champagne we also made progress, and some prisoners and one gun were taken. Enemy raids near TaVuire, in ilaisons-de-Champagne, failed, leaving many dead iu our wire." GERMANS CAUGHT IN A DEATH ZONE. , (Rec. April 26, 8.45 p.m.) London, 'April 26. A French' official communique states: "Artillery fighting has been continued all along our front north, or Vaux-Hafllon. Tho Germans were defeated with sanguinary slaughter in an attempt against Hurtebiso Farm, which was stopped by pur fire. They Tenewed tlie assault, hut a vigorous counterattack threw them back on their own lines., During tile action our artillery caught and dispersed large German concentrations of troops m tho region north of the plateau of Vauclerc."—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.-R-eutor. ACTIVITY ON THE BELGIAN FRONT . (Rec. April 26, 8.40 p.m.) London, April 25. A Belgian officiaj communique states:—"Artillery duels have been resumed at different points of the line, especially near Dixmudo."—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.-Reutet. GERMAN WAR AIMS , • . PUBLIC DEMAND FOR STATEMENT REJECTED. (Rec. April 26, 8.40 p.m.) Amsterdam, April 25. Router's correspondent at 'Amsterdam states that a message from Berlin in reference to an urgent public demand that the Government should declaro its war aims, semi-oificially announces that the Government lias notliing to add to its previous communication on the subject. It will continue its/ policy undeterred by prossure.—Renter.