GENERAL WAR NEWS

Southland Times, Issue 17876, 4 September 1918, Page 2

GENERAL WAR NEWS

EARLIER CABLES MAKING GOOD’PROGRESS. (By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.) LONDON, September 2. Sir Douglas Haig reports: The Welsh and East County troops on Sunday evening captured Sailly Saiilisel and Saillisel, east ot Combles, after heavy fighting. • The English troops have drawn neater Le Transloy and Morval, south of Bapaume, where they took a number of prisoners. The English and Scottish at night time captured Riencourt-les-Lagincourt, west of Bullecourt, and positions to the southward, with hundreds of prisoners. In the sector southward of the Scarpc the Canadians and English attacked at five in the morning and are reported to be making good progress. In the Lys sector we have reached the Lys river eastward of Estaires, and have captured Neuve Eglise, south-east of Mcssines. The French communique states: There is artillery activity in the region of the Somme and Canal-du-Nord. We gained a footing in woods west of Coucy-le : Chateau and captured Crecy-au-Mont. Daylight bombers flying at a low altitude dropped twenty-three tons of bombs on enemy concentrations and convoys. Our aviators also used tens of thousands of cartridges against the Germans. BREAKING HINDENBURG LINE. LONDON, September 2. Early this morning the Canadians attacked on a five-mile front astride the Arras-Cambrai road and broke through the strong Drocourt-Queant line despite the most stubborn resistance. The tanks played a most important part. They penetrated to Dury, also the western edge of Cagcicourt. Heavy fighting is proceeding for the high ground between Duty and Etaing. Possibly the front has been pierced for four miles. There were large numbers of prisoners from seven divisions captured at Noreuil. Villers-au-Flos, le Mcsnil, and le Transloy are outflanked on both sides, and may be regarded as practically ours. We are nearing Beugny, but it is not yet captured. We have captured Sailly Saillisel, which is most important, for it is on the highest ground on the Somme and commands the Tortille river. If we can retain it the German position in the Tortille valley will be critical. General Debeney’s army yesterday captured Hill 77, cast of Nesle. The Germans counter-attacked strong!}' and drove the French from the crest. The French are fighting hard to recapture the position. BITTER BATTLE AT BULLECOURT. LONDON, September 2. Reuter’s correspondent, writing on Sunday evening from British Headquarters, stated; Yesterday saw fighting in front of the British armies from north of Voormozeelc, in the Yprcs sector, to the south of Peronne. On both flanks our troops advanced, victoriously. In the centre they bitterly contested the vast mesh-work defences guarding the Drocourt line. The battle round Bullecourt, though resulting only in slight territorial changes, had been particularly hitter early yesterday morning. The attack her was resumed, and the formidable station redoubt, which previously had been taken and lost,.was recaptured and the Londoners, advancing on a front of 2500 yards, supported by tanks, once again brilliantly emphasised the longaccepted truth that as a soldier the Cockney is second to none in the world. The Germans clearly anticipated the attack, for j.t dawn they opened the heaviest hair ago of considerable depth. On the right another British division was fighting its way valiantly through the honeycombed defences oi Ecoust and Longattc, to the south of finite court. Long after the assaulting waves hiv:'. gained their objectives the mopping-up parties would unearth machine gun burrows containing many dismounted troopers of the Fifteenth Dragoons, which were hurriedly thrown in to replace infantry. This is an indication of the serious shortage of German reserves. MARVELLOUS N.Z. ADVANCE. LONDON, September 2. The United Press correspondent states that the latest battle of the Somme has been definitely won. There remains only a little pressure here and there until Hituitnhurg’s divisions are again all behind the Hindenburg line. German counter-attacks about Peronne merely show that the Germans object to the pace which the Australians are setting, for if they accepted the puce it would mean involving losses of thousands instead of hundreds. Nobody hcre believes in the invulnerability of the Hindenburg line. The New Zealanders, after a marvellous advance to the edge cz Bapaume, refused to consider a proposition that they should be relieved before the city was actually taken. THE TORTILLE CROSSED. LONDON, September 2. The Drocourt-Queant switch line has been definitely smashed in two along n six mile front, A heavy haul of prisoners was taken. Le Transloy and St. Pierre Vaast wood have been captured. We have reached Moislains and Allaines on the river Tcrtille. The United Press correspondent says; Ten counter-attacks pushed the Australians back on the Mont St. Quentin flank, but the summit was held and the Australians recaptured the flank positions and won further ground. PERONNE CLEVERLY TAKEN. LONDON, September 2. The story of the Australian success around Peronne is a splendid one. Between the 29th and the 31st August the troops covered seven and a-h.ilf miles on a front of three miles. A frontal crossing of the river was abandoned owing to the strength of the enemy and the marshy ground. The Germans fully expected an attack upon Peronne from the river, and all dispositions were made with a view to frontal resistance. A cleverly-executed turning movement completely surprised the Germans and threw them into confusion. Our casualties were amazingly small, working out at one tenth the number taken prisoner. Mr Philip Gibbs states: Between the 2Gth and 31st August the Australians have taken ten times more prisoners than the whole of the Australian casualties. This is a record in the present war. PRISONERS TOTAL 128,000. PARIS, September 2. Between July 16 and August 31 the Allies have captured 128,000 prisoners, 2069 guns, 1734 mine-throwers, and 13,700 machine guns. EAST OF BAPAUME. LONDON, September 2. We have captured Noreuil and Villers-au-Flos. The Australians took prisoner 3500 at Peronne. The Canadians to-day broke through the Drocourt-Queant line on a twomile front, and are now in Pelves, southeast of Drocourt. THE CAPTURE OF JUVIGNY. LONDON, September 2. The Americans’ capture of Juvigny was a remarkable exploit. The town lay on the further slope of a hill. Two parties crawled along shell-pits over the crest and got near the town before they were observed. They rushed the town, wherein were a thousand Germans. There was fierce bayonet fighting, and the attack resulted in 250 prisoners being taken. All the rest were killed or wounded.

The Times correspondent at American Headquarters reports: A picturesque feature of the fighting at Juvigny was the galloping up /pf a large force of America's artillery in the “nick” of time to prevent the Germans saving their heaviest guns. This fine example of rapid fighting, supplemented the pushing advance by scores of machine-gun-ners who swept the. fugitives with deadly effect. The artillery laid down a triple barrage, covering wide stretches of the field, woods, and well-wired trenches whereon the enemy especially relied. The infantry following the barrage captured the guns and took prisoner 1000. The French tanks smartly assisted in cleaning up outlying machine-gun nests. The Germans retired beyond Terny with the Americans at their heels. DWINDLING MAN-POWER. LONDON, September 2. Facts ascertained regarding the enemy’s man-power show that there are 196 divisions on the battlefront now compared with 204 when the offensive began. The enemy has been compelled to break up eight divisions for drafts to replace losses. He has also broken up several assault battalions and ‘reduced battalions to three companies instead of four in at least eight divisions. Only two Austrian divisions are on the West front, and their fighting capabilities and quality arc doublfuL Obviously the enemy's man-power situation is not good. It is significant that he has made several changes in his high command. Two army commanders have been retired, and the Crown Prince has been wisely deprived of half his army corps, which has been transferred to von Boehm. THE SCAPEGOATS. AMSTERDAM, September 2. One hundred and fifty senior German officers, ranging from Generals to Colonels, have been relieved of their commands on the Western front. The Crown Prince of Germany and Prince Rupprecht of Bavarir. are not likely to return to the Western front for a long time. Prince Rupprecht is living in a chateau in Bavaria. Prince Wilhelm is at Potsdam. PROPAGANDA IN AMERICA. NEW YORK, September 2. Deprity Attorney-General Becker, Federal investigator of German propaganda :n the United States, says that Count Bernstorff was the sole owner of the pro-Ger-man weekly paper, Fair Play in 1915 and; 1916. He bought the paper for ten thousand dollars and used prominent New York and Cleveland stockbrokers as dummy owners. GENERAL ITEMS. COPENHAGEN, September 2. Lenin's murderess, Dora Kaplan, is a well-known revolutionary who attempted to kill Novitzky, chief cf the secret police, in 1907, and was sentenced to thirteen years’ imprisonment. It is stated in diplomatic circles that Austria is claiming a war indemnity from Russia. The Red Guards assassinated the Archbishop of Riga. NEW YORK, September 2. The Navy Department has announced that twenty-two missing members of the crew of the naval armed guard aboard the Cudahy, sunk in European waters, have been saved. They were picked up by British steamers. Mr Chas. T. Crasty from Paris cables that he learns from a military' source that the Germans have invented, and are now using, small quantities of gas which is completely destroying the eyesight. LONDON, September 2. Mr Perry Robinson states that the Allied troops have gathered the German crops in the recaptured territories.