LATEST BRITISH LINE.

Colonist, Volume LX, Issue 14859, 5 September 1918, Page 5

LATEST BRITISH LINE.

HOSTILE REARGUARDS CAP-

TURED

PROGRESS IN THE LYS VALLEY.

VALUABLE ARTILLERY WORK.

AND AIR

(Australian and N.Z. Cable Association

and Reuter.)

(Received Sept. 4, 11.10 p.m.) London, Sept. 3. Sir Douglas Haig reports:—--After the heavy defeat inflicted on the enemy on Monday our progress between Bsronno (and the Sensee continued, and we have reached the general line Reaumetz-les-Cambrai, Barallo, Rumaucourt, and_Le Cluse. We'captured or drove back with loss hostile rearguards who resisted our advance. Our artillery inflicted heavy casualties upon the retreating enemy. Our batteries, firing over open sights, successfully engaged large numbers of the enemy retiring in close formation over the, ridgo north-west of Equancourt. In their hurried retreat the enemy left quantities of stores and material. Southward of the Lys the English captured Richcbourg St. Vaast and established themselves on the line of the La Basses ,road between Richebourg and Estaires. Wo captuj-ed Estaires and also a number of prisoners and a few guns. Wo advanced slightly in the western oxitskirts of Lens, and eastward and northward of Givenchy-lez-La Bassee. Wo also, made progress northward of Steenwerck and entered Wulverghem. Our aeroplanes worked all day in front of the advancing battla line, while observation balloons followed t-losely. Large formations of hostile machines frequently attacked Our airmen, who persisted in their various j tasks, maintaining contact with the j infantry and artillery. They bombed j and machine gunned hostile troops and transports, and also silenced anti-tank I guns and dropped supplies of small j arms ammunition to the infantry in I the advanced zone. ! There was much air fighting. We destroyed ten hostile machines and drove down two ■uncontrollable. Twenty

British aeroplanes are missing,

We dropped 24 tons of bombs during the day and night.