WAR NEWS BY MAIL.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 14185, 30 December 1916, Page 2

WAR NEWS BY MAIL.

VICTORY ON ANCRE WILL LOOM LARGE IN WAR'S RECORDS. BRITISH* ASTONISHED AT MAGNITUDE OF THEIR SUCCESS. HATTLE LECrAN^iN DENSE FOG. (By Arthur S. Draper. — Received by Mail.) : LONDON. November .16.

Enough details of th? great Ancre drive are now. at hand to get a. fairly comprehensive view of this movement, cue of the. very few successful big 'syirpiise attacks since trench fighting began. It is not too much to say that the element of suiT>rise was the outstanding foatur-© of the h:\tUe. The British frankly admit their astonishment at the magnitude -of their success, and affirm that it could not have beeii obtained without the ■clement of surprise.'

Tho battle began m. ,thft |og, a.nd.fpj 1 hours the foft- of unc«ctain,ty sli^'oud«d the result, neitiier side knowing what it Jia.il avoii or lpf(t. Gut, ofcthe,: : niists^ ,'liowever, is growing aa:-.. ''■:-. victpiy for ith^-i British troops that ,w\ll loom large or. the records of tho ; offeiiMvo; . i : BATHED IN SHELLS. ''• For days the.' (whole- Qerraan. line f of miles had been bathed m shells. A fortnight ago the Germans made a small attack near Be'auinont-Hameh They were repulsed 'easily, and did not try again, nor was thei'e any counter-attack by the' British. : Except — for- spdrK^cji^ ;, .bombardments by the Britisli to worry the, eenemyy y aMid- feints at other, ■• points nothing happened north of Ancre. Prince Rupprecht -was evidently confident that bis first. fears of attack m that quarter : were nnprounde.d. , i- , : , : , r , ■ # ! On Sun. lay last'- the British guns resumed the. bombardmpnt ,of th^vGeATOinx lines m this sector^but it was' not ; 'unjt{) £ o'clock Monday morhirg that tlje fire , became , ,unil?ual,ly. , violent, between Hebuterhe and Thiepval. A heavy mist hung over the damp, gold trerfches, „fiU«d with," English country regiments:- In the hilly country nortlv of the Ancre the ground was fairly firm, but to the south the soldiers slip-, per around. in a sea' of mud;, 'The excitement and the cold made even the toughest Tommy anxious for the single sharp word "Advance." It- . came jusb at dawn. , , \

Ovor. the parapefs,. the soldiers tumbled and up the slopes right behind the barrage of the ..British, guns x they, swarmed. -■ ... '" ' '

In n moment they, had , disappeared into the mists. Forward moved the barrage. On moved the riflemen and bombers.

Not/ , suspecting that^an.^iitfantty -sl% tack wa^ being launched, r the r ,Germaiis had sought the .shelter oi -in'eir dugouts at the very start of the terrific bombardment. Suddenly, out of the dense mists appeared the ibrms of the British troops. They were well up to the enemy's trenches--before they came i.nder any German fire.. , . ,

■ Followinc: close upon : , the first ranks came a second and a third wave engulfed m the, 'sea /of rfog nntfU they were almost within striking distance of the foe. The greater , part -of tjie Germans wei-e caught absolutely unprepared -and surrendett^d immediately. The British; wave suvg«d v .foi*ward- .over (hv first and second lines of trenches. , PRISOKERS IN DROVES. By this time the Germans, m the back lines, had been warned, and, rally, ing, opened up a.deadly,,fi^e..on.-the--.'ad-vancing - columns!; ■:;. Pot Hours the British : commandei's . knejv^.al&iosi nothing of what was' going' oh-- beyoed the 'biaiv ket of fog; except what .cams to . tlieni,from messengeri. Soon after the' troop*!' had leaped frora..,'^h^,.ti i euclie.s, however.. German prisoners -began' 'coming back iii b.dves and the chielfs knew , that their men were plunging on to a victory -even £i»ater than they- had hoped for.' The left. wing, of the British attacking force found progress extremely difricult. but the centre and .right wing oushed pn .-resolutely andT almost with&a't pause. Xhe, counteivattack of the German right' wing came -quickly and, was uniformly successful. In and around Ben union t the. Germans had built some of the finest dug-outs m northern France and iiimbst , inip'iieg* nable entaii^lements: . - Here tlie p'ssue wa.-> m doubt for long hours."

The. German prisoners I. continued r to' pour, into the lines,; but it, was not until tho close of the day that the British soldiers, .and commanders -knew that they had won a magnificent success.

AN AMAZTNG SYSTEM. On Tuesday there, was no slackening »")f .the fighting, which was moro violent if nnylhing. Prince -Rupprecht rallied his forces, but the momentum wns still wiLli tho British. By nightfall of. th<» Rficond. day. of the^ Jpattlg ; jthey had swept into Beaucourt and, dug" "the flermans but of their hiding place, throughout the territory captured. '" ■>'

Ihis last, job was no sim.p]e one. r lj\ the process of cleaving the ne\vly-\Von ground the British troops discovered the most elaborate and dnWzing sysTem of underground communications belie^d to oxist m the whole ' w&r Kone. The Germans, apparently; had spent mouths' m labor and a vast, ampjiM i)f mon<\y . in porstrucit jj?g >wha i .t^iey \id&'4 cv.cry reason', fpr.cr^arding; as impl-egj nable defences,^ i^.'lajoyiiintb pl.sdirt and stone . poncrete tiinn^ copnect?^ pv<jry position '.ynts evQry"'' oflier.'. : /. The Gfermans pould pass fi'on^:. trepcli .to trench and from trench to rear :; (jyiUiojjt KhowJnpj their., heads .above the gi'puri'd; The British conqnei'orp'fdund that some of the underground^ passages ran^ for miles. Most of 'them were equipped with conveniences, that only lnetroiidlitan homes can boast 0f.. ,..', The < ; winter months will : bring im fjisqonifort to, th<j British troojjsiand officer^ who are permilled to make their ihom^g within tßese jiving proofs of the .utmost, ip , GeiTnan efficiency. , ■■ (:. ; "•>.'•(' The Germans fOi«ghi ( li^e tigers' to re ;

taiii their hold on these ; higliiy tr^surecl quarters, anVl m many case's ' they', weie able to resist all tK^ British- efforts to dislodite thenr for hoiirg/ J 'Fihally : , however, the 'entire systent* sis far it lay Avithin the zone occiipded by ; > the '3ri. tish troops, was. cleared and firrrily conisolidated against' possible" '• atiaclir. ," '

It ia believed P.rince.Ruppriecht will make \a -desperate, effort,.- 1$ recoup his josses. On the oilier hand, .some.. observers see m the frank admission of Jjudendorff an attempt to ., prepare ,^ German people for,' .the gradual, ratire-. merit, of the army .to the Arras-Sapaunid line. . thug removing "§, big. salien|y- ilie retention. of which, is, growing mbr© pei'floiiti. to Qe'riiians. ; .;, .-'''.;. ;".' .: v