THE WESTERN BLOW.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue LXXIV, 27 March 1918, Page 7

THE WESTERN BLOW.

FERCIVAL PHILLIPS' ACCOUNT.

SITUATION VERY SERIOUS

BUT FATE OF BRITISH ARMIES NOT IN THE BALANCE.

A SPLENDID STAND EVERY-

WHERE

BT CABLE—TOESS ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT. (Received March_27 J ia2o. a.m.) . LONDON A Mirch:26. Mr PercivaJ Phillips, writes: The aeoond battle, «f JthejvSomme is being fought in the^open across dead: country «ony«rted-. inti>.. hills and .Valleys by 4 three years retrench. "warfare.' The struggle which may decide.thOate.,of nations has raged.. for .fiye <rays and By sheer weight' of .numbers the Germans areutrying .to .overwhelm us, but nowhere Jiave.they, succeeded. They hare gone iorward slowly, but the aim of iheirJEmpeYor has not .been achieved. The situation, is exceedingly ■serious, but not so critical that the fate of the British ..armies hangs in the balance. .-..,..., The stand maxleMbycour troops everywhere was splendid. They. are. resisting fresh corps and -divisions, and they have only given groundl when outnumbered by three or even six_to one. The lines, which were -broken, have -been re-established, arid counterattacks by. handfuls of Britons have dammed the flood and pushed it back, for it is nothing but atid al wave which the Germans loosed-in A DESPERATE GAMBLE

The Germans on Sunday night attacked north of Bapaume. Constant fighting occurred on the Arras road. The enemy disclosed, freah. shock.'formations and at' dawn. '. renewed . his blows on both sides of Bapaume. In order to understand what took place on Monday east of Nesle it is •^necessary to recall the.four.days' ".fighting when the Germans attacked between Gouzeaucourt and Yillerety On they utilised. fiTe^divisibhs in the first assault; and . three%! in? two pothers. Later, thej, managed -to<'<get up am the fog without ;2jeing '"seen; and by Thursday night we.kere. behindAVilleret and Hargicourt. There wag intense ; fighting on Friday about Leverquier, .ythe enemy winning; the high ground the end of jfche day, -and we /again fell back. ~., ~.,,.< t<l. When the Germany 'brqke-buir: new fjine at Hervilly '! we counter-attacked tanks, but finally retired across !;,tne.Somme, blowing ,up.aU: the! bridges, Jexcept that at St. Christ, and also the causeways across the ; marshes and dereKofc scanal. TFhe Ger;mans brought up rafts, and small detachments tried to pole themselves . ; ACROSS THE SOMME, but they were scuppered £y machineguns almost before they embarked. A 1 similar fate befell a bridging expedi--6 tion at St. Christ. ♦_ Meanwhile the German divisions were • in action between Nesle .and-.Clery, and .: two of the best German diyisons, in- :; eluding the crack Brandenburg Corps, ■ : were ordered to cross iheaSomme. On "Monday they managed to get a footing on the west bank % means of .rafts and pontoons, supported'by the heaviest bombardment. They .thus made a . dint in our line at Morchain, but our - counter-attacks paartdally the' situation. The Germans, however, kept ; eteadily flowing across the Somme in great numbers, and Ijv eleven in the v morning got a footrnp- in our 'line betweew Marchelpot and Licourt. There was hand to hand iighting at some places. The Bran&eriburgers fought "with great determination '.anfl-appeared fresh. $ tThe result of Nesle .fio-Jitme: is stiU'-™ ,dfl>ribt; When the despatch left the .casualties.. were much heavier ■ than ours. In tie last'two days fcfie majority of British wounded have been .^walking cases. An say:fhe Germans {are trying to smother tis H>y weight. *They come on in greater numbers than, we can kill. ..; f A remarkable feature of the German •advance is the '-::? ju.t 'RAPID MOVEMENT OF KEX^Y GUNS, , 'jfjus phase of open warfare having been carefully rehearsed for months. Qur, airmen see the howitzers limbering along the,roads, and endless columns <>f motor lorries bring shells to the new fefttteryj; positions. The guns .came into action anywhere in open .(fields., and bftt^rjes are seen gallojping Vboldly across rising ground within a mile of . our . troops. Behind tne advancing armies is another army of workmen, repairing railway bridges aaril <erje<jting - and aerodromes. The latest report is that the have captured Roye. British, J&mefican arid French troops are engaged, and the French are bringing up reinforcements.