STORIES OF BRAVERY.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 14589, 26 April 1918, Page 8

STORIES OF BRAVERY.

WHAT AUSTRALIANS AND NEW ZEALANDERS DD3.

' LONDON, April 18. I A Queensland lance-corporal from Gayndah declares that his battalion, which' had done proudly m many fights, received a report that the enemy had broken through with armored cars. His battalion with others marched with all speed, and took up positions on the high ground m the neighborhood of Arras. I The report proved incorrect, and the Australians returned to the roads and marched .throughout the night and up till 4 o'clock m the morning. They had the best breakfast possible under the circumstances;. then they were ready for a big day. It waß this day that things happened. | The Australians, many of whom knew every; inch of the country from the experience gained m 1916, were surprised to see shells bursting m unimaginable spots round., Albert— the first direct intimation that the Germans had broken through. The battalion was ordered to do an approach march of two miles by daylight and relieve the Black Watch— their old friends, who had been heroically fighting reprguard actions since the offensive opened. Although the advance was made.i n ..extended order, the battalion suffered considerable casualties from the heavy shall fire. The men lay hiding until dark, and then they took ovei*' the line. ., the lance-corporal and another non-com. commanding the platoon. .There was a rousing welcome from the -Scottish, who .cheered the Australians like brothers. I

,A ? -Brisbane. lad, describing the entry into, the trenches, said : 'I never saw I our hoys take it sd well. They dug m as. best. thsy^could.- under a railway embankment, 'knowing that a real chance foV dinkum fighting was imminent. They hadn't long to wait. The German snipers; .by daylight, were active. We §at up, and by 10 o'clock there wasn't a German sniper left, and we were able to look over safely. It was an amazing fitfght. A few hundred yards ahead hundreds of Germans marked the sky line on ;a low ridge. They had been arriving m motor • cars and lorries, and were marching m solid bodies. We touched them -up properly, but did not prevent them froni assembling m the hollow. "The attack came an hour later from a point 400 yards distant. The Germans came over m waves without much bombardment. Our boys never had any *,of this sort of fighting before. It was go as you please with rifles and machine guns. We stopped them. Our boys were tired of shooting. They were lying out m the open upon the railway firing rapidly, simply knocking down the Germans. It was the most strenuous day I ever had — sudh. killing as the Germans will remember. Our casualties during the attack were ' mostly from machine guns. After hours of tremendous work the attack blew ont. We had retained the positions." | The battalion had a comparatively uneventful time during the next few days m the ragged line; but the men suffered on April 5 under intense bombardment, j Tlie Brisbane lad was then wounded, | but he learned that a German mass at- : tack broke the front line. Australian) supports immediately went np and re-;' took it. !

A Melbourne boy who was seriously , passed was reticent regarding his exploits, but he said that he would W content, if Ihe only came through, if he could have, the opportunity of telling the parents of his mate m Australia how bravely their son died., One lad who was wounded at Passchendaele has a second wound m the same leg to testify, to thie severity of .the fighting at Dernancourt.

Other Australian units were rußhed m the. line north of AJJbert. The New Zealanders also took a splendid part m hemming the tide at a critical moment. A Tasmani&n tells of the heroism of a young officer who had a bullet through the shoulder. When the wound had been hound up he refused to go' hack, sayiiiethat he must rejoin his platoon. He badn't walked 200 yards before a bullet went through liis head. The Tasmanians took up positions where cavalry had bsen patrolling • the previous day. They met the attacking Germans m the open. The enemy's' masses wavered • under the withering flre. The acting-commander of the battalion was wounded.

At another point 12 successive German waves against a "New South Wales battalion crumpled tip.