EARLIER MESSAGES. WEST FRONT FIGHTING.

North Otago Times, Volume CVI, Issue 14197, 12 August 1918, Page 3

EARLIER MESSAGES.

WEST FRONT FIGHTING.

HERMAN RETREAT IN FLANDERS. '--M ALLIES fiIIGOERS SOUTH OP SOME. (Pros'; Association Extraoulinaiy.) 1 ' LONDON, August 0. .The Oeimans nre retreatinsr, on ihe • front. ' r ' " s -The Allies havf advanced 11, miles jn ;\Mic ;^r^u^ij]idi;ef hnvp. chp-v •: , ured' lj'resiioy and 'reached Alanines. TH?;An l4 ! jalinus l nre fi?litinp' north of Hie:J?omn\e. The Canadians:have captnr«d" Beaufort. •

' ENEMY 1 * CONFUSION GROWING, BRILLIANT CAVALRY WOBK.' ALLIED PRESSURE MAINTAINED. iAustralian and N.Zt Cable Association) " LONDON, AugiiSt' If). -The-'tlilitptl'' says , t'ijat -th& advance' mtli^grow 2 ; j i'lgfeiiemy British ciiyata ifcn'inrtl|Ve : the: ; a pproacjiing'.Cliaiilfi now ( probably liumbeV ovei British' were .unable lo retain'tho t ; 'of C'h\pi)l)V but Vhe;figljtilg 'fijer/'icontiiines h'eavy.'y .Progress' had l|een} Jn biil e 1 unli et *'"Th;e 'oavalry are cut: ling iip the retfeafing enenij eoiumns. at and -Brie been'cleptroyk , " ' iTheJ Iligh 'Commissionir iepoits' 1 LOND^N/August'!) 1 (2 20 pm,) , Ski ILiig,) Reports- The MeiK^haYe'taken the town of Pies' tmi ' 'if" 1 * "* f , oy. J -' "he British aio eastward of Le amf.'balx, 'Northward of tho iPomine^we> are meeting Ti*iih vigorous The numfier of prisoneis, ''exceeds 14,000, and .-a ! of guns, j not yet estjniated. Oi|r n line >li^s,advanced on 'the' whole* tie rLa we iher to the f liver, a maximum depth ' 2000 . i ' ( Thejadvanje is still progressing. afternoon our cavalry, prjnoured. cars, aj\d tanks had reached' J'rameryille and Lihous, /This meanij pn jidvaiieo lof 11 miles. The greatest depth of the infantry advance is ee\eji nujes/ or fin average of from five to six 'inies,over ,the'whole front. We have, I akfn (between 9000 and 10,000 prison ?rs. ,( i d , s/ j x ' The' Germans jbavehowi beon" dn\en I'eybnd 'gun Amiens, ,} i Tho Germans' will be unable to stay where their lihes'are completely <outflapked on ithe'north' 1 The l Qerman positron on the Aisne is not 'Affected by 'the but the (inertly 1 can hardlj l stand on the Mont i l idierJrojit > jrclilch4uuloiilibdly will be evacuated, i The "Germans continue W ritiie' on Iho< L> 9 ,sati6n tj. and ■ have. withdrawn itpproJfijnatelj 2000 jards on a front »f, six miles., ■ Correspondents ( declare that even the ATessmes .-.battle 'did i not equal yesterday's brilliant success ' j A German captured diary • .frankly? and:bitterly admits,the' Allies' .air, supremacy,.:.Tho Aljies are-droppings liombs past counting day and night, und with clockwork regularity from lieigiits well' beyond the reach of antiaircraft guns. 41 r / > NEW |YQRK) August I), i A London message states that the Hermans aie retreating on the, Flanders iront and evacuating their positions in Ihe iys Valley. The Butish have taken 1 14,000"prisonera, tho mnjoritj whereof were e^ture(\,by r tlje Austialians and Canadians. The ( (British' have leached The French have taken Ftesnoy The Allies liavo taken 200 guns,, and it is ( reported'a, divisional genelal lia- been captured The ( Germans on the Amiens iront are blowing up t|ieii ammunition dumps. ' ' The British casualties are onlv 9000. The Allied an men have blown np the .bridges over. tho-Sommc. ■ " .- French- troops,, north-west of -Mont-'-ilidicr linvc advanced foui miles, and i!aptim%.3ooo j-prisoners..' • The Anglo-French advance has icacli ed \a.;.inaxunum. depth, of (eleven miles. The British, envalrvare within a mile ! l ' 'v : The,;;|anadian (\ca,valry surrounded a of Germans." • ■

THE OPPJCUt REPORTS. * ■ ;i J "' a. 'i ,v. 1 v;-w r ■ r« SMASHING THEiGEBMAN RESIST- " -f *]';?■ (A ustraJian ran d :N.Z. pable. A ssocla tion) , < v , LONDON, August fl. . Sir Douglas' Ilnig^s;reports: Om- progress continues.' The French have taken Frcsnoy-eu'Chanssc. l ' ; - Tlie British arc jioitlwhard ,of Le'Questnel and C'aW. The enemy U viciously resist ing northward of the Sommc. There i-> heavy: fightiiig between Chipilly and Movlaiicourt. Tim Allies surroundGeiiiians, and the, number.of gurisvpiinnot yet be : estimated. . Tllfl 'enemy,has continued to evacu-; ate positions the Lys Vfllley.'Our.linehas'beenndvanced be-t\Yf>ati-tlierLa>ye qnd the Bourree rivers.. Northwardfl/of the maximum d|plh we have penetrated yards, ■ We hold'ljoeon, Le Corriet-Malo, Quen*. iii-le-Pelit Paraut, and LesarU We adynnced oiir |ine a: short distance on' upTrni , ds ! of. ( a-thousand yards front northward of Kemmel.

A' French communique states: There 18'41.0. change on the battle'front south of the .Spinme,.-,,,There, .was'some'enemy! artillery - flctiyity~in, the nighttime. Enemy raids-in the Champagne Regions, Prosnes, Mont Saijsifom,• irere repulsed, .

■l" : " '■ " I/'''" ' • THE ALLIED SUCCESSES.

DESCRIBED,BY CORRESPONDENTS.' ADVANCE ON WHOLE FRONT.

(Australian and N.Z. Cablo Association). • • LONDON, August 51. ■

Mr Percival Phillips, writing ; i;o the 'Daily ; Express;fijtys: thanks to the, al-j most ceaseless - Allied artillery, the eno-' liny.for the most part was unable to do-; velop any formidable system it ('< .erne such', as 'we ■ lijniV to .overcome ok the! Soinree iri lfH6, and in Flanders in 191 S. ■The* consciousness ! of this weakness to (irbbably'responsiblc for the i,«ent with drawnls. 'PliO' pi'eliiuiiiary* bonmavdnieivt; consistedVof three : niiiuVfeswmrbvuidj fire' on the - front -positions. • l'litn the) 'field gilns• and tVcrieli mortars began to-; Ictigtlikn. oiit : their' cfaopiiig .bauage/ whilst- 'the lion vies eoiitinniiil-to pound> VWajf'ai spots iikely 'to 1 pro\a tiouble 1 sonic, 'Hundreds of tanks advanced f eiossing the Avre, witJi;gTatifyjng|ease. A la i go .number, of low-flyiiigr ; aeroplftnes paitici pnt.ed : wlien the plight; broadened suflieieiitlv,;Shedding, a terrible 'hail of bombs and machine-gun lire. It was so Im'zy.avlien the advance began; that■ the gitit;■ flashes »i,wero. often' invisible fifty '.vavcls /I ista n t.. > ; It * >viiSvjust; th o - weather for a Burprisp.-iT.h6;-advance was-uniform-ly irapid everywhere except at Morlnneoiirt, where the enemy's positions were I well fortified. The - fighting there was continuous throughout'- ''the morning Below, the Boittme : thembn literally vanished intp the fog of war. It is difficult to piece together anything like a : the, fight* ihgirolls::iiway wover,' a' -Avido' \wcop of ,counfry,i antlt be go m ps'f i rtt jios's' blc to fol lowJ l 'blit Hhe prisoneis arj? coming in In shoals, in r trim condition, mniy o p 'them indicating that 'tliev had been ov'erriin!;j and" t surrendenng: without ! a' v.,;..-' -j Vi. i.'. / if\ !„• fight. r One geneirtl, icferihig ro the captures' of, guns) laughingly si'id if would'.take 1 dap to count tliAn, A swiff 1 surprise j duve a length of, front and, to such si :dep{lr gives the enemv no time, to- get his batteries awsiv or even destroy. them. .Tho mfantrv in many places- overran our artillery support; but this did not matter, because, firstly, they hadtoilyaneed beyond,where any Geiman guns were posted, secondly, bo causey had plenty of Gorman guns to swing round and serve Our qwn' batteries wprc advanced with wonderful' smartness. 'ln ono,instahce a whole , field brigade got i beyond the onginal front line ; and were in aet'on twenty I minutes ■ aftei-; .>,-, We; were- succesafiilnngetting;two companies of tanks across the Luce River under' covei of the .darkness, which did invaluable work in 1

deal itig out what was foared would' prove a difficult situation, fo the.Jstrong;• German'.positions at ; " Dodo Wood .and. on ' the neighbouring high' ground such casualties as the tanks suf feted were inflicted by gunfire from the south bank of the Somme, We there fore made a.bonverging attack against the Bois de Cressaire ;and Ohipilly, se curing large hauls of prisoners anil Held guns at- both .places. Ourmcn speaV of the wonderful, effectiveness' barrage, The euemj niachm*gnn file was less intense than was anticipated, , doubtless.! owing to thp; smothering rof obserution bj the mist. The prisoners arc a good typo of soldier, but aro depressed with tl|e news of the Marne defeat, i Bouter's eonespondent at French Headqwirteis, at six in the e\ fining, buttle, on t-lio :.Avroline was progicssmg uqII on the whole irpnt,: ( The: attack of our troops estnb-i li^hetl,themselves on the,plateau over-' poking the: Avre Valley fvonv the oast,'.d§pJpj|Vlg*thereon, for- a continuation.of.>lthe. .attack. Tlici c-is every »renson'-£Ol-confidence.- It must be rememberedithat a series of important local opeia Hons neie cuned out on this front be tjWeeii;: the,-.2nd .and- -sth . August,-? sncV ecssfully pushing the Geijnaus and tak iilg. pnsoners General Debiney since then has not relaxed lits lvith the lesult that he held the banks of 'the A\re fiom Biaches'to bejpnd .•Fraigcourt- when the attack began-to- 1 dnr. V-.- f

the marne Victory, ALLIES' BIG ADVANCE. EITECT OP BRITISH SMASH. (Anstiaban.and NiZ. Gablo Association).WASHINGTON, Augilst 9. • . The Allies on the-Name,front have' legained 1000 square-kilometres of* tor-, utoi}, 200 towns and villages have beon sbovtened' by tliivty-ttirco miles; The' Germans. used thirteen 1 divisions to ci'bss the Mimic, and used seventeen in rotieating therefrom. -r'

, Additional reinforcements from Flanders have reached the Ve'sle The United States' army officer? rejoice at Sir Douglas llaig's blow, and Oeelare it.is a complete evidence,of the Allies'.control of the initiative. Geneml Foch has no intention to allow Cionoval von Jjiidemlorff. any'respite in the matter of wheie.to organlsp upw nffpnSvives. ■ .

■ Major-Geneva 1 Sir Frederick Maurice, wiituig in the Daily Chronicle, pays a ■tnbute to the newest tanks i for.thpir noik southward of tlieSomme, where recently they had a dress rehearsal. The enemy, was' alert; northward of the Somme, in the neighbourhood of Moreuil, consequently progress was Jess there than in ' the'eentre,- but in the eon-' trelhe progress made was most importtint.. The enemy at Montdidier 'is al-' ready in a pronounced' salient. The ad-' vauee eastward ■ of Villers-Bretonneiix made the Enemy's main position ! very v uncomfortable. 'Already Amiens is : out of 'range of all except the, longest guns, More 'important still is the' giving of jhe enemy no respite, and keeping him on the defensive'while getting' up the heavies. Oir the Vesle it is'premature to say definitely that we have ■won back the initiative, but this should bo so' if, tiie , battle develops .as ,it pro-, mises. Sir Douglas Hiiig's success was' -due to a" surprise; conaisting of a secret concentration, short but intense bombardment, and the launching of a formidable tankattaek. • .

I - ' 'THE LAST STAND ARMY." , AKOfHERiIDIiE RUMOUR, ' (Australian and N,Z, Cable Association) i,< t - -NEW 1 'YORK,- August I). i'",Tho New York Times, torvospoiident ! American front reports tlfat infor--1 nintion lias reachetl < thc v ;ATlies that' the S* Last- Stand Army", of half ai niiilion 1 incited troups'- is •lifting' fni'nigf]*jjy,'; tillo' Kami's ouleis, solch to defend : tho. ■Rhine. . v ■ , v' ' ■:

Irench military opinion is satisfied tllat tlie Germans must evacuate Montduller. ■ -■

• THE GERMAN SCAPEGOATS. ENEMY RETIRED. »nd N.Z. .(iSDIa Association) t • • BERNE, Augusts. ■ ; , In addition to - General, von r-Plamtz, tvvo Major Generals and sixteen high officers have been retued as a punish meat foi the Marno defeat. GERMANS NORTH OF SOMME. , ONE POSITION WON BACK. (Austr(i)ifln and N.Z, Cable Association) r NEW'YORK, August-fl.j> . The Germans, linv.c recaptured Chipilly by a strong counter-attack. / 1 " ; i■ v. • i |i-;,■ ... } . : ; COMMONWEALTH'S CONGRATULATIONS: GENERAL TOCIt'S CONFIDENCE, , , ..v.'. .Jj (Australian antl N-.Z;-Cable.Association) SYDNEY, Angus 9. .General Pooh, replying to the Comnionwealtb's congrfitulations„ on 1 the recont i successes, says. "I have no floubt weishall secure a decisive vie tor) " v 1 ' )' •' '• ''.-V • j- -.- •-. {■