THE WEST FRONT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17083, 15 August 1917, Page 5

THE WEST FRONT

NOTHING SPECIAL TO REPORT. Australian and N.Z. Cable Association and Reuter. LONDON, August 13. Sir Douglas Haig advises that there is nothing special to report. * FRENCH COMMUNIQUE. ENEMY ATTACKS REPULSED. LONDON, August 13. French communique : The artillery is active between Cerny and Craonne, notably in the sector south of Ailles, where a German attack on the trenches we captured on August 11 was repulsed -with heavy losses. Two enemy surprise attacks at the Bois do Caurieres and Bezonvaux (Meuse sector) failed. SMOKE FROM SHELLS. "AWFUL CEASELESS CONTEST." Australian and N.Z. Cable Association. LONDON, Augdst 13. The whole line in Flanders is wrapped in the smoke from British and German shells The communiques give only a very vague impression of the awful ceaseless contest. The artillery concentrations far outweigh those at Verdun and the Somme, and the numbers of the troops are t'he greatest yet gathered on any battlefield. The enemy's artillery tortures our army, but ours is infinitely worse. INTENSE BRITISH GUN-FIRE. TRAINLOADS OF WOUNDED. The Tiiues. AMSTERDAM, August 13. The British gun-fire b'ecame intense last week-end. Windows rattled day and night in the south of Holland. Trainloads of wounded are traversing Belgium, and the hospitals at Ghent, Bruges, and Brussels are full. Reinforcements, comprising youths of 18, are arriving to fill the gaps. One regiment of Bavarians, quartered at Blankenburg, suffered grievously, and at Westhoeli one battalion had only 80 unwounded men. » ENEMY ACTIVITY. WITH ARTILLERY AND AIRCRAFT. Australian and N.Z. Cable Association and Reuter LONDON, August 13. (Received Aug. 14, at 7.15 p.m.) Sir Douglas Haig; reports : There is increasedl hostile artillery work southward of t'he Arras-Cambrai road, also in the Nieuport sector. The enemy aircraft are aggressive. We brought down 17; seven of ours are missing. FRENCH PROGRESS NEAR AILLES. COUNTER-ATTACKS REPULSED, LONDON, August 13. (Received Aug. 14, at 7.15 p.m.) French communique : Artillery duels continue to be very lively. Attempts to eject us from trenches we captured south of Ailles were repulsed. We appreciably progressed eastward of Ailles. GERMAN OFFICIAL REPORT. Admiralty, per Wireless PressLONDON, August 13. (Received Aug. 14, at 7.15 p.m.) German official : Wo repulsed strong French attacks northward of the LaonSoissons road and south-west of Ailles.