FRANCE & BELGIUM

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 144668, 30 April 1915, Page 3

FRANCE & BELGIUM

THE RECENT FIGHTING. BRITAIN TAKES OFFENSIVE. DUNKIRK, April 29. On Weclnpsclay the Canadians. worn out with Iho Tour days and nights of unceasing struggle wore relieved, and retired covered with gloiy. Their ranks were sadly thinned. The whole fighting took place along a front of five miles, the most critical days being Satmday end Sunday, when the Germans brought up howitzers and heavy u.’ullory. to” advanced, positions. They covered every high road with a curtain ot lire to revent reinforcements, i]ie, Gormans using new corps lavishly. Many were badly demoralised in facing shelllire for the hv.st tune. There wa;-, a change on .Monday, when the Allies made a general offensive, bombing ti'e junctions, thus preventing the Germans from reinforcing their exhausted troops. Th.- Germans suffered grc.it losses at -Si. Jubeu.

The- British territorials foitglii with t-svafc gallant ry It was their baptism el - lira, for many units. When calk'd upon on I ridav lUlanioon to reinforce the Canndi ills, the lentilerials bnlliamiv assisted, rapturing St. Julieu, and moved up on an open road along the hanks oi" the river Uanneheek. though T fie Gannons -dreeied a murderous ma-chine-gun lire trom ruined houses. Vnierionately. lire territorial.- dirt rot enjoy lire lull trails oi' their gallantry, -is Si. •I alien was found too far advanced on ihe line, which hud In be remodelled nearer Ypces. The British "’ere now , pressing the ofienshe home, the Kroneii making many prisoners, eapinring machine-

«fuus nnd ivuovf.'im’ their o"'!i guns* from tin- swmnqo Tlk' Hclginn:-. ami Kivncli a!>o aUaolcod Urn hi-idgo-h'■:ni jToiu iho north o! St<:Mr:isir;»tlu British r.iiack on tin* ot.lior side ivmhring iho Im i tiian loimi'o pi-rilou>.. British ivporis suito tliHt tlu-.v sooniiid TMII (d*nu:ui prisoner* dnrnig tin* tv.n (lavs lollnuing ilir (u'rman (mock. Fhr Bril oh suco-nsl'ulß' all ark oil Imghcm, uoar Armomu'ivs. also Lpiu-i-t'.h. where tin- inianiry. supported hy mu armoured train and hoavj artillery, smashed their way into the German irontlios with grenade.-,. LONDON. April 29. The .special correspondent with Iho Canadians cables Unit ‘’Never Beaten is a motto Canada can now wear. U was Canada’s battle. The allied iroops arc now thinking only of lor the bloodiest baUlo of Ihe hluudiest war m history. The estimates of tin* Canadian casualties'vary from eight to ten thousand, but it must he renn inhered that hundred:; wove overcome hy gas. DEaeers on the extreme left of the Canadian lines stale that the advancing enemv havonetted scores of unconscious

PROFESSOR DEWAR. uN LIQUID CHLORINE. LONDON. April 20. Professor Sir dames Dewar, who is a lending authority or. Ihe const, itution or gases, says there is little doubt that the latest German weapon in liquid chlorine, which for some years Germany has been mannlacturing tremendously, and practically supplying the world with chlorine They, undoubtedly, have hundreds of tons avail).ble. When allowed to escape in the atmosphere it immediately evaporates and forms n yellow gas! If the wind were favourable it would be tho easiest thing in the world to inundate a country for miles abend. Being heavier than air it drifts in a thick fog along the surface of the ground, and escape from its doadiv effects is well-nigh impossible. PARIS. Apri 12!).

Tho newspaper Lc Tomps says that Hu; use i»f y;asos is the? last orimo lotttor 1 1 1 0 Gormans to penetrate. The CJerman explanation that The Hague rules specify only asphyxiating projectiles is mere hypocrisy, for the rules arc not aimed against any special engine for spreading gases, hut against asphyxiating gas generally. The journal declares that it is necessary to employ some methods of retaliation without delay. If'what is said about t,Turpinite” asphyxiating shells is true, no doubt France will he able to war with these latest methods on terms of certain equality with the enemy. The Germans had metallic tubes projecting from the first linos of trenches. At a given signal they lighted the tubes. Red flames shot up a distance of twelve yards, followed by thick green-i.di-.udlow smoko of chlorine. The Germans letired to their second trenches. T.hey also throw fuses., giving off similar smoko.

Turpin, the inventor of melinite, suggests that pumping liquid ammonia into the poisonous gas clouds and flasks of ammonia would enable soldiers to Inhale llm German poisonous fumes. Thu War Office has ordered masks.

GER.MANS DEFEND BRUTALITY. ROTTERDAM, April 29. Tho Frank!'jrter Zoitung asks whether an enemy really believes that it makes any difference whether hundreds of guns and mortars and hundreds of thousands of grenades are thrown in a small district, tearing every living thing to pieces and making the German trendies an inferno, or, on tho other hand, whether tho Germans fling grenades spreading gas more deadly than tho poison ot tho English explosives, but covering a wider area and obtaining its end more quickly without pain and suffering to torn bodies. THE CROWN PRINCE’S ARMY. ( LONDON; April 29. The Daily Chronicleks Luxembourg correspondent states that tho Germans lost 00.000 men at Sedan on September 1 and 2, 40.000 at Lomnvy, where the Crown Prince suffered a "nervous breakdown, and was only rescued at the sacrifice of an enormous number of men. The CroAvn Prince's military exploits are a standing joke since lie spent the major portion of his time in riotous dissipation at Luxembourg. The burgomasters of a number of cities in Flanders ask what measures they are to take for the protection of German lives and property in tho event of a German withdrawal. PARIS, April 29. Official?—French airmen on the 27th bombed the stations of Rollwillor, Chaubley. Arnaville and Leopoldshohe, and ignited an ammunition store at Chaubley. A dirigible shed at Friod-_

richshafon was also destroyed, -as well as four German aeroplanes. One French aeroplane was lost. GERMAN REPORTS. BERLIN, April 29. A telegram states that a French aviator bombed tho Manser arms factory at Stuttgart. /The damage was inconsiderable. AMSTERDAM. April 28. An airman from a westerly direction dropped six bombs on Fricdrichshafen.' The damage was slight. The aviator was fired at but escaped. LONDON, April 29. The Miners’ Union of France has decided not to celebrate Labour Day and not leave work. It pleads with their comrades to work similarly. FRENCH OFFICIAL REPORT. SLIGHT PROGRESS MADE. (Received April 39, 8.45 a.m.) PAP.iS, April 29. A communique states: —“M e continue to advance on the rigid bank of tho Vser. and captured 150 prisoners and two mitrailleuses. The enemy’s aviators dropped incendiary bombs on Epcrr.ay. which is exclusively occupied by hospital units. ’’ HIGH COMMISSIONER'S REPORT. WELLINGTON. April 30. The lli"h Cmnmissiom'r reports under date London, April 2!):(hi Tuesday the enemy was active in the directions,of Tilsit. Ghavli and •lurlmrg. On the Upper Niem.ni. west .of the Nicmen. and on the Szesauppec the collision elided in the Russian s lavour. North of the Narew. on Tuesday morning, the Germans attacked on both banks oi tile Orzvc. rile IV Us. dans. Using (die bitv,met. iepuls. ,1 attacks in the region of ’tile villages ot .ledno and It in, oc. west of the Mli.uti railway. Attempts to advance by the enemy s advanced guard were repulsed in the region oi the Ur,.ok Pass. On .Monday night energetic enemy attacks against the heights north-east of the villages of l.ubind and Budia were repulsed witn lien, v enemy losses in the entanglements. In the direct ion of Bu y a desperate engagement, is progressing. The Ik igians heavily bombarded Rameappelle. Porvyse, l.ainpernisse and Uosvliqiereii. ' The Belgian artillery vigorously co-operated with the brmrii ill'too attacks on Steenstranie. and the Belgiiiu aviators showed groat activity, In’ Belgium the French maintained tlie around rccapt nivd during the last three (lavs and com tunes to progress with the' co-operation of the Belgians north of the right hank ot the A ser Canal. The French made 150 pmoneis ami look two mitrailleuses. The /.epnelin which lust week homhet. Dunkirk was seriously injured by the French artillery and completely put out of action. It was stranded in the v nous between Bruges and Ghent.