GERMANS STILL GOING BACK

Sun (Christchurch), Volume V, Issue 1427, 9 September 1918, Page 5

GERMANS STILL GOING BACK

NEARLY ALL THE ENEMY GAINS LOST BRITISH MAKE MORE IMPORTANT PROGRESS GREATER PART OF HAVRINCOURT WOOD CAPTURED By Cable.—Press Association. — Copyright. \X. He N.Z. & Reuter.) (Rec. Sept. 9, 11.10 p.m.) LONDON, Sept. 8. Sir Douglas Haig reports: — By nightfall yesterday we hod taken Villers-Faucon and St. Emilie, and gained possession of the greater part of Havrincourt Wood. There was local fighting yesterday evening and night, eastward of 'Hermies, and in the sector westward of Armentieres, without material change in the situation. Westward of La Bassee our patrols made further progress in the enemy’s positions. GENERAL MANGIN CAPTURES CONSIDERABLE BOOTY. [A. & N.Z.) (Roc. Sept. 0, 8-30 a.m.) PARIS, Sept. 8. General Mangin captured considerable booty in the Lower Forest of Coney, including several batteries of heavy calibre guns quite intact, fin extraordinary number of machine-guns and trench mortars, and several hundred thousand shells. Violent resistance was encountered in Lower Quincy, where the Hindenburg Line was breached. The capture of Conde and Laffaux'and the progress made towards Vailly will be powerful factors in freeing the Aisne and throwing hack the Crown Prince’s divisions towards Craonne. DEGREE OF ALLIED VICTORY NOT YET KNOWN. (“Times.”) (Rec. Sept. 0, 8.30 a.m.) PARIS, Sept. 8. M. Clemenceau’s paper, “L’Homme Libre,” states that the degree of Marshal Foeb’s victory, will only become known after the fresh attacks which the American reserves have made possible. EVIDENCE OF DECLINE IN GERMAN MORAL. :(A. & N.Z.) (Rcc. Sept. 0, 8.30 a.m.) AMSTERDAM, Sept. 8. Evidence accumulates of the decline in the moral of the German Army. At least 70,000 deserters are hiding in Berlin and the other large cities. Leave from the front has been practically stopped, owing to men failing to return to duty. It is no uncommon sight in Berlin to see deserters romub'd up and handcuffed. Sometimes an endeavour to escape is made, and in a moment bystanders are shot. , These incidents accentuate the collapsing civilian moral. PREPARING DEFENCES BEHIND THE MEUSE. (Reuter.) (Roc. Sept. 0, 8.30 a.m.) AMSTERDAM, Sept. 8. The “Tyd” states that the Gormans are busy constructing fortifications on the Dutch-German frontier, for use in case of being overthrown on the line of the Meuse. IN THE WAKE OF THE BESPOILER. (A. & N.Z.) (Rec. Sept. 9, 8.30 a.m.) PARIS, Sept. 8. There is intense indignat ion amongst French soldiers at finding the villages they are recapturing wantonly destroyed. Even the cellar furniture has been stolen or burned, and important buildings have been demolished by mines. REMARKABLE MANIFESTO BY HINDENBURG. AN EFFORT TO CORRECT THE WAVERING NATIONAL SPIRIT (A. & N.Z.) (Rec. Sept. 9, 8.30 a.m.) AMSTERDAM, Sept.-8. Marshal von Hindeuburg's manifesto, urging tfie nation to keep up its spirits, is an extraordinary document. i Hindenburg does not comment on the military situation, which is the real cause of anxiety to Germany. Instead he occupies two solid columns complaining of the so-callecT Entente poison and the dastardly sowing of dissension and distrust among Germans. The climax of von Hindenburg’s denunciation is an angry wail that the Allies attempted to stir up the Bavarians against the North Germans, in order to destroy the Empire and plunge Germany into the helplessness of the Thirty Years’ War. The manifesto is not likely to assist in the re-establishment of the field marshal’s tarnished popularity. A daring newspaper was prosecuted for nicknaming von Hindenburg “Marshal Backwaerts,” which is a play upon Blather's name of Marshal Vorwaerts. THE FERTILE GERMAN IMAGINATION. SUBMARINES PUT GRAND FLEET TO FLIGHT. (A. & N.Z.) (Rcc. Sept. 9, 8.30 a.m.) AMSTERDAM, Sept. 6. Admiral Kirchoff asserts in a Kiel newspaper that a fortnight ago submarines, assisted by destroyers and aircraft, compelled the British Grand Fleet of over 30 battleships and battlecruisers to turn tail homewards after a short fight in the North Sea, in which the British suffered considerable loss. k The British Admiralty comments that nothing is known of such engagement. THE STRUGGLE TO REGENERATE RUSSIA. CZECH FORCES WIN A WAY TO SAFETY. (A. & N.Z.) ( Rcc. Sept. 9. 9.e:> a.m.) PEKING, Sept. 8. Tien-tsin reports state that the Czechs’ success in breaking through the forces surrounding them has created a great feeling of relief in Vladivostock, where it was previously feared that it would be impossible to relieve the Western Siberia force before the winter. Traffic between Irkutsk and Harbin has been reopened. A first result of the Czech’s feat was the isolation of the Bolshevik strongholds at Harbaroosk and Blagovstchensk, and opening the prospect of the formation of a stable coalition with the Siberian Government. hj JAPANESE CAVALRY DRIVES BACK THE ENEMY. (A. & N.Z.) (Rcc. Sept, 9, 8.30 a.m.) TOKIO, Sept. 8. A Japanese official message states:—Japanese cavalry occupied ll«rbaroosk, the enemy retreating towards Bragoc.