ATHLETIC ANZACS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17251, 19 August 1916, Page 11

ATHLETIC ANZACS.

A MIDNIGHT RAID. RUSHING THE HUN TRENCHES. (W. BEACH THOMAS, in London “ Daily Mail.”) Writing from the British headquarters, France, on .Tium 2d, Air AY. Beach Thomas in the ‘‘Daily Mail " gives an account of a midnight raid by the Anzacs. A group of Prussians and, at two miles’ distance, a group of Saxons, had a very bad quarter, of an hour this morning, he states. At 32.32 a.in., in the neighbourhood of Anueutieres, tlioy were suddenly awakened from their serenity by a sudden display of fireworks. Coveys of trench-mortar bombs went spinning up in their peculiar vertical flight, like rocketing clay pigeons, and smothered the enemy’s trenches. On the heels of what was called a “Brock’s, benefit” two., Anzac teams left their trenches and did quick time across the interval. They treated tho affair exactly as if it' were an athletic contest. They had trained on the usual system, getting up early, giving up smoking, taking appropriate exercise and food. They had* special bathes, and rubbers were deputed to massage, their limbs. Soon, perhaps wo shall have whole battalions, if not brigades, of this quality. Indeed, some we have already. Men could not. have beon bet ter selected for this super-obstacle, rate. It might have been an event in* he Olympics' Games of 1916, which normally would have been held in Berlin about this date. In that caeo we need not complain of our representatives. In xpjte of some machine-gun fire they were across the gap so quickly as almost to escape casualties. "When they hurdled the battered wire and entered tho trench the race was over, and the enemy gave up. \ Some of them lay down on the ground and squealed. The athletes were allowed to enter the dugouts and take at their ease what booty they required. It was found the easiest thing in the world to capture prisoners, hut all the gymnastic quality, of the Anzacs was needed 7 when it came to getting the captives 1 out of, the trench, so terrified were they of their own artillery or machine-gun fire. But. it was done. “WHERE'S THAT FTYE BOB?” One vast Queenslander, while with the left liahd he pulled his prisoner, .limn as a sack of potatoes, over into cur trench,'stretched out his right hand to a comrade, saying. “ Where’s that five bob?” There were other similarly sporting bets mads and won. Anothor successful giant who had dragged an unwilling victim behind him-with some lack of gentleness apologised for his own athletic superiority. “I wish,” he said, I had run up against a bigger chap.” I will not distinguish particularly between these two simultaneous raid 3. One was a complete walk-over. Virtually the only fighting was a confused throwing of bombs by the enemy at his own men, * causing many casualties to himself . Both were a complete military success The requisite prizes were brought back. * A bomb store and other things of value were destroyed and many Germans were killed by the firing and by tin instruments, blunt and sharp, of the'attacking party. A curious episode was 'the discovery of a body of the enemy’s wirers at work, who, thanks to an ingenious manoeuvre, were entirely wiped out by our mortars.