FRENCH REGAIN POSITION.

Otago Witness, Issue 3239, 12 April 1916, Page 17

FRENCH REGAIN POSITION.

PARIS, April 4. A communique states: Our artillery blew up"*an enemy blockhouse and ammunition depot in Avocourt Wood. A violent German attack between Har» court and Bethincourt was delivered against our old positions north of Forges Brook, not knowing that we had evacuated them on the night of March 31. _Our surprise fire from the new positions inflicted important losses. We forced the enemy further back in Caillette Wood, our final counterattack being especially violent. We regained the western portion of Vaux village. BRITISH FRONT ADVANCED. LONDON, April 4. Sir Douglas Haig reports : We captured the crater at St. Eloi which the Germans have held since Ihursday, thus establishing our lines beyond the crater. The artillery on both sides has been active. M. Marcel Hutin writes in the Echo de Paris: "The British have rendered great service in liberating some of our divisions, thus enabling us to strengthen our front at Verdun and elsewhere."

GERMAN OFFICIAL EXPORT

AMSTERDAM, April 3

A German communique issued on Sunday claims' to have captured enemy defences and to be flanking the entrenchments north-west and west of Vaux. It further states: French counter-attacks collapsed before our artillery and machine gun fire.

GERMAN ATTACKS REPULSED

ENEMY USE EXPLOSIVE BULLETS

PETROGRAD, April 4

A communique states: The Germans attacked the Iskul bridgehead, but were repulsed The Germans, during an offensive north of the Baranovitchi railway, fired explosive bullets.