DESPERATE FIGHTING AT BULLECOURT

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3091, 23 May 1917, Page 5

DESPERATE FIGHTING AT BULLECOURT

SUCCESSFUL COUP BY ■ THE FRENCH ITALIANS EXTENDING THEIR GAINS ANOTHER DESTROYER SKIRMISH Willi the exception of about 2000 yards west of Bulleeourt, says Sir Douglas Haig in a dispatch to-day, the British now have a firm grip of the much-vaunted Hindenburg line from Arras to a point a mile eastward of Bulleeourt. Reports which have reached Headquarters establish the fact that during the recent desperate fighting on this front the German losses have been severe. The Trench have achieved a Braart coup on the Cornillet sector and the massif of MoixmviHers, and inflicted large losses upon the.German massed counter-attacks. The Italian offensive operations are still making progress. Heavy counter-attacks by the Au.strians ■ have been hurled back, and the Italian positions further extended. No material developments aie reported from the other battle-fronts America's latest war plans provide for the dispatch of several regiments of railway men to France, and for tho construction of a great number of aeroplanes. A cheerful note on the submarine problem by a member of the British House of Commons 'is sounded vrhen lie states that Britain has found a way to deal with the C-boat menace. A. small flotilla of four French torpedo-boats, sighting a stray force of the enemy's destroyers off Dunkirk, engaged the enemy, who went off .it full speed after an exchange of shots.

HAMMERING AT THE HINDENBURG LINE.... SUCCESSFUL PROGRESS BY THE BRITISH GERMAN COUNTER-ATTACKS REPULSED The High Commissioner reports:— London, May 21,. 2.20 p.m. Sir Douglas Haig reporls: "On the Bullecourt and Fontafne-lez-Croisilles section of the Hindenburg line, operations were successfully continued during the night. Several counter-attacks were repelled. We renewed the attack, and, after fierce hand-to-hand fighting, captured a support trench. Further counter-at-tacks were beaten off. A largo number of enemy dead were found, and 150 prisoners were taken. Two German divisions have been engaged since yesterday afternoon." • HAIG'S GRIP OF THE HINDENBURG LINE (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright). (Rec. May 22, 9.30 p.m.) London, May 22. Sir Douglas Haig reports: "Our new positions on the Hindenburg line, northwestward of Bullecourt. were secured to-day with little interference by the. enemv The severity of tho German losses in the recent fighting in this area is confirmed Excepting on a sector of two thousand yards in length immediately westward of Bullecourt, wo hold the whole of tho Hindenburg line from a point one mile eastward of Bullecourt to Arras. We earned out a. number of successful aerial and bombing raids yesterday. Our .aeroplanes actively co-operated with the infantry in attacking the enemy's front-line trenches with machine-guns. Sixteen German aeroplanes were brought down. J'our oi ours .aro missing.'-Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.-Reuter. TOLD BY THE CORRESPONDENTS INCIDENTS OF THE FIGHTINC! AT BOEUX AND BULLECOURT. London, May 21. Correspondents at British Headquarters state that the fighting at Bullecourt and K-oeux continues as-intense as that at Pozieres or tho most serious struggles on the Sonnne. Tho Germans have thrown m largo masses of troops, but Bullecourt and Roeux are more strongly in our hands than ever. . A German officer who surrendered excused himself by saying: It was impossible to do anything else, you attacked in such overwhelming force. A British officer told tie German tho number of attackers, whereupon the German said, "Impossible! We camo into the line twenty-six hundred strong. \s a matter of fact, the Britisli took more prisoners than this, the whole number of attackers. The prisoners include ex-convicts, released from long terms oi prisoninent in order to fight. There is considerable rivalry as to whichi Britsh corps would take the most prisoners. The Canadians reached five thousand, first % neighbouring mixed English and Scottish corps have now a short lead. Ure'ulv two German divisions have been cut to pieces around Bullecourt. Tl e British and Australian success was tho result ot a curious situation. Wo cut into the Hindenburg line around Bullecourt, and ate oil tho end toward* Arras so the enemy was left with an island section of four miles between our hvoforce] This the Germans were ordered to hold to tho death, a special order laying rhev might roly with absolute certainty on rescue as the Germans were much stronger than the British m attack.-Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn. LATEST COUP AT BULLECOURT ENEMY'S TRENCHES CAHMED AFTER DESPERATE FIGHTING. (Rec. May 22, 5.30 p.m.) ' London, May 21. .Alv. Philip Gibbs reports: "The English and Scottish have captured eight thousand yards of the enemy's second-lino trenches westward of Bullecourt, and the Australians eight hundred yards on the right. The fighting was of a most desperate kind."—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn. (Rec. May 22, 11.10 p.m.) London, May 22. Mr Philip Gibbs. in a dispatch on Monday, says:—"The lull between the battles ended on Suitdav, when the English and Scotch attacked the Hindenburg line between Fontaine-lcz-Croisilles and Bullecourt. The heavy guns had been bombarding the enemy, hurling thousands of high explosives into the defences until the German system of parapets, traverses, dug-outs, and entanglements were a mere mass of shell-craters. The garrison, consisting of the 4!)t'h Reserve Division from Posen and Breslaii, was caught in the hurricane of shells, and had to withdraw from the dug-outs. It was impossible for food to reach them. The Germans became physical wrecks as the result of that imprisonment. When the English and Scottish went over the top the surviving Germans surged along the communicating trenches, and endeavoured te man the machine-gun emplacements They fought fiercely. We look many prisoners from the dug-outs in t'lie first line, but' the advance was held up for a while by isolated machme--uns in support line-*. The second British attack, in tho evening, penetrated the'enemy's second line, the British taking 3000 yards of the Hindenburg line „,, the left of the Bullecourt rums, added to the 800 yards viich the Austra- ,,„, were holding on the right of the village. Thus far the- Enghsh and Scotch have experienced no counter-attacks, though several bodies ot Germans, inossiii" for mi attack, were caught by our guh-fii'o and smashed.' BRILLIANT OPERATIONS BY THE FRENCH IMPORTANT POSITIONS CAPTURED. The High Commissioner reports:- ° London, May 21, 3.5 p.m. \ French official report states: "In the region of Champagne last evening « i,.-,+innc mi twn -wctors of the massif at Moronvillers had a brilliant relook several fines of trenches on the slopes of Mount Cornillet, and all Tl • ,„U„„i nhjnrvatinn noiuts in that region aro now in our hands. German Eight hundred prisoners were taken. Tho German dug-outs were cumbered with (l0ft(L " (Rec. May 22, 11.10 p.m.) I London, May 22. A French official communin.no states:—"ln Champagne the enemy violoutly linm'birdi'd the positions we captured yesterday in tho region south of Moronvillor ' Our boinbvrding aeroplanes during the night of May 10 dropped about t-wn'tons of explosives on the railway stations and bivouacs in the region of Epchy ami Bethenivillc."-Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.-Reuter. A GAIN OF GREAT TACTICAL VALUE (Rec. May 23, 0.50 a.m.)' Paris, May 22. Importance is attached to the brilliant operations on the Moronvillers plateau The heights which were captured are ISOfl feet high, and overlook the Su'ippes' Valley and the neighbouring low, land, which is 350 feet below. Sunday s advance"rarried the French well down the northern slopes, and will enable them to shell the German positions at Nugent l'Abbesso, from whero Reims has been bombarded. The advance makes the German salient westward dangerous. —Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.

GERMAN REPORT (Rec. May 22, 5.30 p.m.) London, May 21. A. German official report slates: "The English attacked on Sunday astride tlie Arras-Cnmbrai road, on a front of twelve kilometres (71 miios). Our iiro broko up tho enemy wherever they cinergd from (he trenches. Between the Scarpa and the Senseo brook (he enemy penetrated our lines east of Croisilles. Our counter-attack drove them out. Repeated attacks between Fontaine and Bullecourt failed. We captured trenches at Braye, C'erny, ami flurtebise Farm. Heavy fighting has occurred in Champagne. As tho result of strong French attacks northward of Prnnay road the French obtained a foothold on Mount Cornillot and Mont Kiel. The enemy lost fourteen aeroplanes."—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.-B«uter. AUSTRIAN MASSED. ATTACKS REPULSED . PROGRESS OF THE ITALIAN OFFENSIVE HILL POSITION CAPTURED, AND LINES EXTENDED (Rec. May 22, G. 30 p.m.) London, May 21. An Italian official report states: "The enemy's attasks in dense masses at Pnsubio, west of Monte Dente, and the northern slopes of San Marco were repulsed with heavy'losses. We captured'a hill between Pallsova and Britova, and extended our positions at Vodice."—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.-Deoter.