THE ATTACK ON VERDUN.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XLI, Issue 12807, 27 March 1916, Page 5

THE ATTACK ON VERDUN.

THE ROAD BARRED

KMircd March 26, at. 5.5 p.m. Paris, 3larch 24. General Joffre, in, an Order of the Day to the Verdun army, says:—_''F° r three weeks ycin have been sustaining -lit- most formidable assault the enemy has. yet attempted. Expecting sulci 4-s' Germany concentrated her best troops and inbst powerful artillery, chinking,the effort would be irresast-tF-te. Germaqy hoped the. fall, of \ crdtin would harden the courage of her allies afld convince neutrals <<f her anteriority. Night and day, under an unprecedented bombardment, you have ii.>trict«l .the attacks and jnaiiitamcil vonr positions. We possess ade r t i«te munitions and reserves, and your courage* lias barred the road to \ cr<'.un." ... R.-reived March 26. at 11 .J-» p.m. Park, Iwrcli 26. A communique savs: There has been >nmenrliat violent artillery action >n th<- Argonne, and fairly heavy artillery uetirity against our second lumj wostwariE of the Mouse, ami eastward in the "tVi»per Hill-Douaumonfc regionAmsterdam, March 26A German communique says: Our nrjJlK't has set.fire to Verdun." March 26 (3.-'JO p.m.). West of the Meuse there has been a ~.r v violent bombardment in the course „t r the night in the sector >«twee«i \Lii.incouri and Jvsnes and at Hill JO*. Kast of the Mcus« the night has been tfhitively calm. In the Woevn* tlieri [i;is been some artillery activity. In tht» Bois-le-Petre coups-de-main of tfi.- enemv on trenches at Croix-iles-Marincs were repulsed by the r rencl. 6rf.

THE ZEPPELINS,

RAPID DEVELOPMENT.

i'.nfivcil March -6, at 5.5 p.m. London, March 25. Mr George Prade, the well-kilowii ut'Foiiautical expert, states that he injected the Zeppelin destroyed at .Nc-\i-ny. Its nnmbor showed tliat at least fifty-five had been constructed .luring the last eighteen-months. Germ,inv was now completing one every t,;n it a vs. They had five at Maybacli. Hit- motor and propeller metal wns aluminium, toughened with a slight a11,.v 1,. v oJ copper and zinc, being tapered tmvurds the stem, tlms giving less re-M-tt-nse. Several of tho corpses were carlionised, but apparently the crew numbered twenty-three. Tho vessel carried 1500 kilogrammes of bombs, composed of twenty projectiles each, pt.icvd on a special bomb thrower, and timt bv an electric current controlled l,v « push button in the cabin. The ii. w Zeppelin carried six machine guns i>ur. no cannon. Thu writer adds: "There are three tcnii-, of attacks on Zcjipelins possible, firstly, by gun-planes Oeforo the Zeppolins reach London and Paris; secondIV. f.v anti-air craft gnus wiiile they art- over the cities, and thirdly, b> chasing aeroplanes armed with n u' htnc guns and incendiary rockets, n hi. ft would make their attack during cV return journey at si high altitude. (Ifrmanv has forty of these to-day, meetly patrols. In the North Sea the /.< ppelins' principal task is kevping up • i iiiriuinication with the fleet of sublimities. London, March 25. The casualties resulting fromSunihiair raid on Kent were: Killed, im it I, women 3, children (}, total 13. Tvt.• tuy.seven persons were injured.

IN MESOPOTAMIA.

London, Match 25. tit .Mesopotamia, tlie British operating on the right bank of the Tigris. the small Turkish post at Falaliyh, by a surprise attack aiul nriglit liiiK.h on the 15th and Kith. Our i iiMialtics -were four. n ri March 23rd, General Towi»heiid reported tliat the camp at Kut-el-Anuira bad been bombarded by enemy un raft and gnns at intervals between 'ii- -.'lst and 23rd. The British casii.:lri.-> were slight, and the situation was mged.

IN EAST AFRICA

■-t * < KssFl'L FOREST WARFARE.

I guidon. March 24 i 5.25 p.m.). !u E->st Africa the Germans have reitiMted through Kaheto defensive posii it;r> along the Ruwu rivqr. Direct i'lu.Mtit is difficult owing to heavy rains * k n Mondiy our forces occupied Aru--lia. dislodging an enemy detachment. Hi. Mondav night strong infantry bivouacked in Ruwu forest iu <■!»-.■ ontact with the German en'r t ti> hnients. ; The enemy strongly ati i. but their offensive resulted in "t.v severe losses. In the meantime :« South AFrieau force marched '.urirj£ the night to Puugaiii river. ntrJi ,>f Kalia, m contact- with tho cuc- »'?. «ho held on till Tuesday with a i :f> to retiring under cover of darkAlthough reinforcements reached ■ 11 -> ftieiuy from the south during the ■■I I ''rat ions, we were enabled to inflict losses, which, would have been 1 i puv-iblo had the Germans been free '' > a ; >.uidoii their positions _ earlier, however, obstinately resisted. I'l .virctl March 26, at 5.5 p.m. London, March 25. '-t ueral Smuts reports tliat after the lighting the Germans evacuated ■ii- lUiwu line, leaving a 4.in gun bc- !> tiding to tho Konigsberg. l-"nf Kitchener,-has congratulated '" iwrai Smuts on his brilliant dash and '•iiwjiy. Jlareh 27, at 3.50 a.m. Nairobi, March 26. liie operations on the Buwu River been completely successful, and 'Ur i ncmy's main body is retiring down : ii" Tam;a Tailway. Many European -iivi native prisoners; arc in our hands. f»i.' action is most important. It was ujtt with t"he enemy's main forces .iii'itl dense bush suck near an unfortß--1:■!>: river. . The enemy were ont-.ma-urred and outclassed- We have • nu'lotcd undisputed possession, of tho Kr iinanjnro and Arusha district.

PUNISH CERMAN COMMERCE.

tt- , < March 26, at 11 p.m. ' London,. March 25. Tk' Spectator, in advocating an Entire movement in conjunction with. tho AfhVs against German trade, says: "One of the peace conditions ought-to '*"■ chat Germany's tribute shonld li> in German commodities most- usetf> ns. For instance, tho "imp* of SaxonT shonld be rested in a" Wly representing the Allied Poifcrs."