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Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume VIII, Issue 215, 13 August 1918, Page 4

As stated above, the French between ALoutdidicr and. the Oise, are now fighting back over ground irotn which they were driven by a tierman offensive under von llutier two months ago. This lends interest to the descriptions of the battle-ground •in .1 of the methods of ligating prodded by despatches from the ' Tinies’ ” special correspondent al the time. Of the ground he says that its character on the l*ren<-n right—that is towards the Oise is particularly fat om-able to the attacking force ■'!> t t tne way t is mat up bv a network cd hills rinn deep valley-," wi.i h m O t difficult tor the defenders to see tne enemy •i nd uuiirci lii t 1- i 1 >■.? ut lack 'i and against the u. n_’>. ut being stir•outided. ‘ : TTe riomu on the letr. .ing. on the other hand,’ he writes, •ro'the west . 1 ti> 1 ripiegn*’Montdidier road, consists of wide stretches of gently rolling uplands planted with corn and roots, over

which the defender can see for long distances, especially from the plateau of Mery and Le Polyron, and sweep a wide field with his artillery or infantry fire. It was over this country that, the French made their highly successful counterattack, which, besides the ground gained, brought them in more than 1(900 prisoners and several guns —a notable haul for the defending force on the third day of an elaborately organised and violent offensive on a grand scale.” Then, as now, the enemy : seems to have been both surprised and confused by the unexpected presumption that prompted the big counter-attack. “Even the French themselves,” the correspondent says, “were astonished at the heaps of dead bodies that they found as they pressed forward. They say that some of the enemy seemed absolutely to lose their heads during the struggle, gun teams dashing up .at top speed to drag back guns which were supposed to be threatened, and every one in a state of wild excitement as they fell back, even though they fell back fighting, before the impetuosity of the advance.”

Of the methods of fighting, which are fairly common to all the fields opened up by the German offensive movements of this year, he says that, except for the infernal gases that- the enemy has added to ths arsenal and barbarities of war, the fighting has become once more like the fighting of all the ages. It is man against man, and in the open. Attackers and counter-attackers, having hardly any trenches to depend on, make use of the natural cover of trees and houses and folds in the ground. Creeping unseen through bushes and fields of waving corn, and try to get up to the enemy and swing on him unawares. Some German troops on the front under particular discussion added the refinement of draping their helmets with grass and leaves. “When they can.” he goes on, “they dig, 'but that is not often. The time is too short, the enemy is too near. A great deal of the fighting is hand-to-hand, and will be now, in all probability, till the end. Skirmishing is once more in fashion, and scouting and tracking and hiding and all the arts of primitive fighting have come into their own again. And yet all the time, sidt by side with them, the terrible offensive weapons and machines and scientific contrivances of modern warfare ply tleir deadly business.” Then, after describing the work of the aeroplane and the tanks, he concludes: “But above all things let us rememlrer that it. is men and not weapons that will win the wai —men and numbers. Just now the advantage of numbers is on the other side. That is why the French are defending Compiegne instead ol attacking Laon. But the point, is that with the members that they have they are making,in my opinion, as fine a sti ugg'e as they have at any time during the war. To-day and yesterday and to-morrow all along that 50 miles of front the centre of which is Compiegne they are holding the enemy up and gaining priceless time with their cheerful and confident courage at its very best, largely owing to the influence of General Peta-in. We can ask no more of them than that.” The anxious thought then was whether Compiegne was to be saved. To-day we are wondering ri..’s the enemy means to attempt a stand.