THE WESTERN FRONT.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 14052, 24 July 1916, Page 3

THE WESTERN FRONT.

GERMAN THIRD LINES NOW THREATENED. SHORT LULL IN THE FIGHTING. AIRMEN'S ACHIEVEMENTS. (Australian and N.Z. Gable Association.) LONDON, July 23. Sir Douglas Haig's report shows that the British are now m a position to seriously threaten the German third line. Fourneaux Wood is the highest ground on the sector, and the ridge commands the German positions beyond, where the country is less broken and less wooded. The latest accounts show that the French attacks yesterday were extraordinarily successful. Picked troops were chosen to attack the German positions from Hardecourt^ Height to the river Tallosi. The attackers left the trenches at dawn, and by 9 o'clock had completed the task, which th© staff oxpected to occupy the entire .day. The German counter-attacks left the French masters of all the captured positions. Sir Douglas Haig later reports that the day was without incident, except that our airmen destroyed six hostile machines, and downed several others. Sir Douglas Haig further reports: Tfcijere is a comparative lull m the battle area. An enemy bombing attack on t the north edge of "Leipsig salient succeeded m. entering our front trenches, but was immediately driven out. Our aeroplanes continued bombing important military points. The enemy aircraft was inactive until then. There is much fighting behind the German lines. One of Our offensive patrols encountered eleven German machines. Three were downed; one was m flames. In another encounter, ' lasting 45 minutes, between four of our machines and six Germans, one of the former was downed and another damaged. It is now established that the enemy assault 6n Delville Wood, over a front of two thousand yards on the 18th, was made by at least thirteen battalions from four different positions. The enemy's losses were correspondingly great. PARIS, July 23. A communique states : We progressed m th© Fleury region.