THEIR FIERY ORDEAL.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLII, Issue 10112, 20 October 1917, Page 5

THEIR FIERY ORDEAL.

NEW ZEALANDERS ADVANCE AGAINST BELLEVUE. “ONE OF THE GREATEST INCIDENTS OF THE WAR.” LONDON, Oct. 18. Bellevue Spur is an ugly V-shaped h ill rising to a height of 200 feet abovethe flooded Rabapeok creek, its sides extending for 1000 vards back into Passchendacle township. At the point of the V, which is about two hundred yards wide, a deep concrete structure stands overlooking our lines, with narrow slits manned by machine-gun-ners and snipers governing every approach. Two irregular lines of wire, each ton feet deep extend across the front of the redoubt down tl»* hill to a valley, where a smaller redoubt bare tho flank. ' Bellevue locks a forbidding stronghold and one winch was the scene of one of the greatest incidents in the wa'f- Against this spur a thousand linc-spiritcW New Zealanders flung tliemdonm on Friday with high hopes ot crowning km unbroken senes of victories with (ho greatest victory of all. The <neiny barrage played heavily upon them for twenty minutes before tho start, but the lads rose eagerly from their line of shell holes and began a steady, advance wave, with our barrage plunging ahead, the men sank sometimes waist deep in tho mud, and the barrage went faster than it. was possible for tho advance to go. The enemy machine gun swelled to a shriek, and many men fell, but the , others pressed on. They reached tho Rabapcek creek and plunged into a deep morass. The enemy s mam barrage of shrapnel and high explosive -hells descended hereabouts, whilst the machine guns, which now thickly studded tn trenches between the redoubts, seemed to dose the passage over the stone road which traverses tho morass. Manv n.neithelcss pressed irresistibly over tho dead and across tho road, while others went plunging through tho water, though wounded. Some of these were hero drowned; Then the ascent of the slope began, and the first wave, now very thin reachid the wire. I'hcir heroic efforts here will m future ho told wherever Australians and New ,-verv means to piorco the who. Wave ■iftei wave advanced to death. Many were riddled with bullets, and others dropped to e ground and began crawling beneath o wire Many were shot and remained Some reached the Other side and charged and fell Ono readied the redoubt and h< - :‘au crawling beneath tho slits round he side, and perhaps he might have du; fortunes of the engagement, with bomb.., hut ho was killed by one. of out own rifle * re ,ides, which we were firing from shell holes Tho great effort ended, ihe watt's had determinedly expended themse ves ano tho survivors remained m the shd >oL, and with the Jaegers sniping -o acauatrl that any head put above ground was in scantly shot, they awaited another eltoi t. This the commanders deemed uiutcsiiabk, and the lino was organised at night time, but later was somewhat withdrawn in ordoi to permit of our shelling the enemy positions. It was a day crowded with heroic incidents, An orderly-room sergeant, altei ! Ihy'doatii of his colonel and the wounding Seif his adjutant, went through a hail bullets to a senior captain and found - 'wounded. He , . to . n inioi* olliccrs and tomid all i "bod and then went to u heutcmni. 1 md informed him he was m command of I To battalion. The journey occupied ninety 1 nms A I ewis gunner who was wou.uiI cd* 11 dm rest oMho crew being killed, coni I ’ ‘uo work his gun upon an enemy muehinfgun He twice advanced to the posiI lion alone, even (hiding another gun when j his own was blown out.