THE ANCRE BATTLE.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume VI, Issue 285, 17 November 1916, Page 5

THE ANCRE BATTLE.

Most Sanguinary of the War. Enemy Losses 8000 at Beaumont Alone. ( 1 - j , Ti ii »H| British Front Further Advanced. £ [PRESS ASSOCIATION COPYRIGHT.} - [AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND CABLE ASSOCIATION.] (Received 17, 12.20p.m.) London, November 16. Only now are the public beginning fully to realise the magnitude of the British victory. The latest correspondent’s accounts emphasise the completeness of the triumphs and the extreme difficulties of the attack, though the conquered sector was described as one of the strongest on the west front. First-hand accounts show that the mazy intricacy of the trenches baffles description, in places of over a mile in breadth, of a pattern compared to a tangle of quickset hedge bound with barbed wire. The divisions consisted of four systems, each 2DO yards wide. The weather added enormously to the difficulties. An extraordinary story is related of the attackers’ difficulty in keeping touch. Owing to the darkness and fog, it was impossible to tell whether the next trench was full or deserted, or how much wire remained standing. Accurate reporting was scarcely possible, especially in the absence of aerial observation. These difficulties often accounted for the attackers missing batches of Germans and necessitating a methodical rounding up ail day in the mud, which was not bad south of the Ancre, but was serious on the lower ground, especially north of the Somme, where the trenches were full of water. There were several escapes from drowning in the darkness. These conditions were unsuitable for the tanks, but they make the services of two units all the more meritorious. Ail correspondents dwell on the nonchalence and cheeriness of the British troops. Some sat carelessly on the parapets, others strolled in search of relics with a serenity which passed all precedent, but the same quality alone enabled them to reach the goal and face the unprecedented difficulties. y The absence of German artillery retaliation is not explained, since it is known that recently they had about 1000 guns on the Ancre sector. Though there is no disposition to depreciate the German troops generally, the victory again proves the waning of the German morale. Never before has such a number not offered resistance. Thirteen hundred men and twenty officers were rounded up in a series of underground refuges on the south bank of the Ancre, and they made no attempt to fight. It is remarkable how few bayonet wounds there were during the first two days among the British casualties. The vast bulk of the wounds were due to shrapnel and to machine-guns. Our correspondent sums up the victory as one of the most brilliant successes of the Somme offensive, if not of the whole war. Paris, November 16. The “ Liberte ” says that the fight for Beaumont Hamel will go down to history as one of the bloodiest in the war. The Germans regarded the village as even stronger than Thiepval or Combles. When the British carried five lines of trenches they encountered concealed machine-guns behind the village walls, also an intense artillery fire. The hand-to-hand struggle lasted for ten hours. The Germans must have lost at least 8000 in Beaumont Hamel alone.

M. Marcel Hutin, in “ L’Echo de Paris,” says that no doubt Germany will make an unreserved admission of defeat with heavy losses on the Ancre to justify her general mobilisation plans. SIR DOUCLAS HAIG’S DESPATCHES. 567 S PRISONERS CAPTURED. London, November 16. i.-Sir Douglas Haig reports: —We further advanced on the x front northward of the Ancre. Our prisoners total 5678. The troops have shown conspicuous skill, dash and fortitude. Their success was not won without a hard struggle owing to the enemy’s strong resistance and the condition of the ground. Our losses, considering our gains, were not high. One division advanced a mile, taking 1000 prisoners at the expense of 450 casualties. We established the positions won on Tuesday eastward of Butte de Warlencourt. The artillery dispersed the enemy massing at one point for a counter-attack. Our aeroplanes successfully attacked an aerodrome, railway stations and rolling stock. KING GEORGE’S CONGRATULATIONS. (Received 17, 12.10 p.m.) London, November 16. King George, in a message to Sir Douglas Haig, heartily congratulates the armv on the success of the gallant troops during the past three davs on the Ancre. This further capture of the first line trenches'under special difficulties in recent wet weather re’-.ounds to the credit of all ranks. Sir Douglas Haig replied, in most grateful and respectful terms. GERMAN ARTILLERY MAKES NIGHT HIDEOUS. [high commissioner’s message.] (Received 17, 10.17 a.m.) London, November 16. General Haig reports:—During the night there was considerable shelling by the enemy northwards and southwards of the Ancre. Otherwise there is nothing to report. THE FRENCH ON THE SOMME. FURIOUS BATTLE ENDS IN OUR ALLY’S FAVOUR. ■ [AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND CABLE ASSOCIATION.] ■A Paris, November 16. A communique states: —A furious battle continued all day on the Somme front. The enemy attempted a powerful effort with great effectives north and south of the Somme simultaneously, but was baffled by the French resistance. He only gained limited advantages at the cost of heavy losses. The attack north of the Somme was made after an intense bombardment on the front from Les Bceufs to south of Bouchavesnes. The enemy gained a lodgment on the west ana north edges of St. Pierre Vaast Wood. Everywhere else his attacks collapsed under our machine-gun and curtain fire. The Germans south of the Somme renewed attacks in the afternoon on the front from Ablaincourt to Chaulnes Wood. Desperate fighting ended in the defeat of the Germans, who lost sanguinarily and returned to their trenches, except at the eastern part of'the village of Pressoir, where they progressed. There was an intermittent cannonade on the rest of the front. [high commissioner s message.] Received 17, 10.20 a.m.) London, November 16. A French official report says: —South of the Somme, during the night we attacked eastwards of Pressoir. Part of the village was occupied by the enemy, where the French resisted energetically, finally ejecting the Germans after stubborn fighting. DELAYED NEWS FROM PICARDY AND THE MEUSE. TERRIBLE BRITISH FIRE. k FRONT A SEA OF MUD. London, November 7. Mr. Beach Thomas, correspondent for the “ Daily Mail” on the Western front, writes: — The Germans held on in the mud, fighting skilfully and determinedly before the main line of defences at Le Transloy and Bapaume, using picked troops and ingeniously extemporised tracks for the speedy bringing up of reserves.

“ No Man’s Land ” was a terrible spectacle, being covered with thousands of German bodies—men killed in the vain counter-attacks. Thousands more were knocked out by shellfire. There was incessant British artillery fire of all calibres, including high velocity naval shells with a fifteen miles range. Our superior observation confined the German artillery reply mainly to night-time. The whole front was a sea of mud, resembling chemical glue, smearing and adhering to the troops wherever they were moving. DOUAUMONT’S CAPTURE. • STRANGE ADVENTURE TOLD. London, November 6. A French military eye-witness relates episodes of the capture of Douaumont. The charge of the Zouaves was manceuvre-like, and the enemy’s trench was swept instantly, the resisters being bayonetted or bombed. The French had only 15 men wounded, while a single regiment took 1600 prisoners in the day. Two battalions of Germans that were snugly hidden in a subterranean village in a ravine were utterly surprised during their after-dinner nap, and were captured with but slight resistance. The Zouaves roar with laughter when they speak of the incident. A French sergeant had a strange adventure. He was taken prisoner by the Germans, and taken to a dugout where German officers were dining. He explained the position to them, whereupon the whole company surrendered to him.