THE WESTERN THEATRE.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 13794, 15 June 1915, Page 5

THE WESTERN THEATRE.

PROGRESS IN THE SOUGHEZ SECTOR*

AN INCESSANT CANNONADE

ALL GAINS MAINTAINED

THE STRUGGLE AT HEBUTERN'G.

Paris, June l.'J. A communique states that there was an. incessant cannonade all night nor!\i of Arras. We are taking possession of the ib'.lway station at Souchez. A stubborn struggle #it!i hr«nd grenades is proceeding in the poulitvi part of the Labyrinth. We have-maintained all gains. Details of the fighting at Hebi:r«> show that it was severe between *he 7th and 10th.. The Germans had a sharp salient at Serre, three Kilon^res from Hobuterne. Beth villages r.ve situated on rising ground faciag e.ioh other. The German trenches 1.-y vMway between, fronting Tourve.at. The front was enclosed in a line of big trees, garrisoned by a thousand of J.he 17th Baden regiment. All were placed hors de.combat, r.i'd not a man escaped, while two co-nom-ies of reserves were almost entirely blotted out. In the first counter-attack two battalions of the 99th German regiment were hurriedly brought up from the Arras sector .without food. t-ht-y suffered heavily. Our prisoners to June 11th numbered SO, including ten officers. Our men displayed great dash. ribe assault was fixed for five in the morning. Our batteries prepared the wry, and soon all positions were covered ritJi smoke, the Germans meanwhile keep; 13. up a heavy fire on our trenches. " Precisely at five our first line quitted the trenches, dashed into Furncis, and in ten minutes passed over two German trenches, and reached a point wlnre they were ordered to entrench. A second wave cleaved out the German trqnches behind our first line. On the preceding evening our artillery had cut the communication tren-/li-es, depriving- the enemy of food an-il ammunition supplies. We found Germans squatting and crouching in little groups. Some fired occasional shots. The resisters were dealt with1. The others surrendered. After.the capture of the position we cleared out the choked communication trenches under heavy German cannonading, and consolidated our new position. Lieutenant Warneford, the hero of the Brussels raid, was grounded thirtylivo minutes before he reascended in a hail of bullets from German troops which were coming up.