THE ALLIED MOVEMENT

Feilding Star, Volume XII, Issue 3023, 18 August 1916, Page 2

THE ALLIED MOVEMENT

Franco-british advance. "Important progress reported. Germans lose strong posiTIONS. .BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH—COPYRIGHT] [Australian-N.Z. Cable Association.] Paris, August 17. A communique says: North of Maurepas, in conjunction -with the British we carried an entire line of German trenches on a front of 1300 metres and reached certain points on the Maurepas-Guillemont road. South of the village, on a two kilometres front, -we progressed to a depth of from 300 to 500 metres.

AA'e re-occupied all enemy positions east of the Maurepas-Clery road after sharp engagements, causing heavy enemy losses. Our troops, by one rush, captured a powerfully organised system of German trenches ou a front of 1200 metres south of Belloy San Torre. SIR DOUGLAS HAIG'S REPORT. London, August 17. Sir Douglas Haig reports: There is nothing special to report.

" FRUITLESS ATTACKS." London, August 10. A German communique says: The English continued fruitless attacks at Pozieres. An attack north of Ovillers failed.

AUSTRALIA'S SHARE IN THE COST.

Sydney, August 17

To-day's casualty list partly reveals the cost of the Pozieres-Armentieres fighting, the killed numbering 207 ond the wounded or missing 1368. These occurred .principally between July 19 and 25. -

DISPOSITION OF GERMAN . FORCES.

Paris, August 17

Of 122 German divisions on tbe west front, 20 divisions oppose the Anglo-French on the Somme, 20 are at Verdun, and the rest scattered over the remainder of the front of slightly over 550 miles.

THE MYSTERIOUS GERMAN

IS HE GENERAL MACKENSEN?

(Received August 18, 9.30 a.m.)

New* York, August 17

The Berlin correspondent of the New York Times, who interviewed the German commander-in-chief on the Sonnne, represents him as saying, "I hope the British offensive will continue. I have several hamlets which I will gladly sacrifice for the loss of 20,000 British troops each time." Tho correspondent says there is reason to believe that this mysterious German commander-in-chief on the Sonnne is- General yon Mackenscn.

ENEMY REINFORCEMENTS. PASSING THROUGH GERMANY London, August 17.

Forty troop trains are reported to have passed Cologne for the Somme front.

VIOLENT ARTILLERY FIGHTING

Paris, August 17

A communique reports violent artillery lighting at Maurcpas and Belloyen Santerre. AA 7 e are engaged in organising the ground gained.

BRITISH GAIN 300 YARDS. (Received August 18, 10.35 a.m.) London, August 17.

General Haig reports: Last evening, in conjunction with the French advance on Maurepas, we forwarded the line west and south-west of Guillemont, west of High AA T ood. AYe captured 300 yards of hostile trenches.

DESOLATION OF POZIERES. GERMANS AND THE AVOUNDED. (From Captain Bean, Official Press Correspondent with the Commonwealth Forces. British Headquarters, France, August 1. Pozieres has been quieter lately, but I have not the slightest doubt that the statement that the fighing there has been as iuense as at Vaux is literally correct. I have been through Fricourt, Contal Maison, Mamet?-, and Boiselle. No village is left in any case; but none of them can compare with the desolation at Pozieres.

Australians will be interested to hear of our experience of German treatment of the wounded. This appears to depend entirely on the feelings of the Germans holding each particular trench. In some places they fired on our stretcher-bearers. At other points by waving their hands they guided' them to places where the wounded were lying. At one point they took the rations and water from the" wounded men, stating that they themselves needed them more. They added that our wounded were lucky that they did not receive a bomb for rations. ' At another place thoy gave water to our wounded and bound up a wounded man.

A German colonel who was captured stated that he had never seen finer soldiers than those who took Pozieres.