HOW GOES THE FIGHT

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11762, 28 July 1916, Page 4

HOW GOES THE FIGHT

NOTES ON THE WAR. . THE POSITION ANALYSED. CHRISTCHURCH, July 23. The completion of the occupation of PrsiTes, which was announced in a mpwge received late yesterday morning. g:ves the British a firm footing on the higher ground of the plateau, within a few yrrds of the highest point. Hi!l IGO.' Indeed, if the communique means tliat the Anzacs have captured the houses that stragglo north-east along the road to Bapaume, Hill 160 itself may speedily be conquered. On either side of the main road to Bapaume, about a mile and a half from Pozieres, there are the villages of Courcelette and Martinpuich, both brger than Pozieres and therefore likely to involve a longer struggle if they have to be carried by the same methods. But if the British manage to reach even the outskirts of these villages they will be firmly in possession of the main knot of the plateau and will bo able to attack the stiff propositions of Mcuquet farm and the hill behind Thiepval from the flank. Hitherto this intensely fortified position has beaten off direct attacks and Sir Douglas Haig. has preferred to use his weight on the Ovillers-Lon-gueval sector, facing north.

On the right of Pozieres the British have been, able to make little progress frtm Bazeutin against Hill 154,' but to the right again the advanced lines meet in the Foreaux wood, which seems to constitute the-apex of the British salient. Foreaux wood is about a mile and a quarter from Bazentin-le-Petit, n.idway between Bazentin and the village of Flers, where the Germans are said to have concentrated their forces fot the counter-attacks on Tuesday. The Martinpuich-Longueval road touches the southern edge of the wood, and to the south-east this road probably marks the new British front. The British are through Longueval and in the- Delville wood, the scene of so much bittei 1 fighting, and pushed their front east to Waterlot farm, which is halfway to Ginchy. To the south of Longrevnl is Trones wood, wholly held by the British, and the recent fighting at this point has occurred on the Mon-tauban-Guillemont road, to the east of the wood.

The Russians have brought off another dramatic coup in Armenia by the capture of Erangan. For a.couple of weeks they have been advancing rapidly between Trebizond and Erzingan, threatening the main Turkish force in the valley of the western Euphrates with envelopment from the north, end when they occupied Kelkit-Tchiftlik, which is only some twenty-five miles north of Erzingan, the fall of the latter city was to be expected. However, it seamed likely that the Turks would offer a stubborn resistance in the. mountains to the north of the city, nnd in view of the difficulties of transport one could scarcely prophesy that the Russian right wing would immediately descend into the valley of the TVestern Euphrates. Moreover, although the Turkish counter-offensive east of the " had definitely failed it appeared likely that the main body would fall back_ on prepared defences, from which it would be driven with difficulty.

It is apparent now that the collapse of the resistance in the centre was complete, and with the threat of a flank attack by a strong Russian force frcm the north the Turks were impelled to abandon Erzingan. The details, however, have still to be told. Erzingan has long been'a place of military importance. being regarded as the main base in Armenia, though Erzerum, with its f ortifications pre<s"Titrd srreater d;fficnlties to an force. The Fourth Turkish Corns had its headquarters there, and considerable military factories had bnen built to supnly the needs of the army in a country where nlwavs is a serious problem. Sir C. W. Wilson describes Frz ncrnn as lying at the western end ef a rich nlain, through which runs the Western Euphrates. It is surrounded by orchards and gardens. Exeunt for one wide street- it is unimposing. though in recent years the Government has built larg*e premises for the local admin'stration. The bamcks used to be n the town, and the military and li'athe" factories are still there, but the troops were given new quarters three miles to the north, where modern cond tions were observed. Pome of the factories at this new military settlement of Karateluk were equipped with electric lighting and power, and it is stated that British machinery was instared. The plain is almost surrounded by high mountains. Wheat, fruit and cotton are largely grown, and as cattle and sheep are numerous the plain must be considered h'Vhly valuable as a source of food supples.

Erzingan has suffered, of course, bv being remote from sea or rail communication. Tts fate, was fixed by the Russian occupation of Trebizond. which definitely threw the interior districts back on the tedious land commu;r'cat : ons. Trebirrond is connected with Erzingin by a formed road, practicable for wheeled traffic at all seasons, so that actually the best availab'e line of communication in the region was at the service of the Russians. Th's fact must have had a great influence on the course of the campaign, particularly as the Russians had. command of the sea routes. The fu. ks in Armenia hare been reinforced and supplied by rail and road, but the railway extends only to Angora, leavin? a stretch of considerably more than four hundred miles to be covered by road. One traveller has asserted that he could drive a motor-car from end to end of Asia Minor in summer, but the roads are few, are badly cut up by heavy traffic and are impracticable for big guns in man\ pL.ia, tlle Turks pltiuned to send gr, AS lo in view of the Russian advance they would have had to set about putting the roads in order. When JSrzerum fell they hastily gathered reinforcements and despatched them by road, but the guns were put on boats in the Bosphorus, awaiting an opportunity to be transported to Erzerum. TUe Russians promptly put a stop to that scheme bv opening a systematic campaign against the Turkish coastal trade, and unless the guns have been sent on by road since the end of March they must bo still at the capital.

There ia an alternative route to

Mr Nat Woods, business manager of '* H.M.S. Pinafore" opera-, wishes to acknowledge a cheque for two guineas from Messrs "Armiger and Company towards the Naval Heroes and Red Cross Funds.

The committee cf the Canterbury Industrial Association will meet at 8 p.m. on Monday to receive reports of subcommittees appointed to interview representatives of industries, and to receive the report of the sub-committee on the platform for the proposed Board of Industries.

The Auckland "Star" says that an exemplification of the henllhfulness of Auckland as a place of residence was to be gathered from the obituary column on Tuesday evening. Five* persons whose deaths were announced made- a grand total of 400 years. The youngest , yas seventy-ono and the oldest eighty-nine.

Mr Collett, Government Tourist Agent in Christchurch, told a " Star'' reporter this morning that he had received several inquiries from ladies concerning the regulations in regard to passports. The new - regulations have caused concern, especially as the notice is bo short. Mr Collett is awaiting instructions in tho matter. A very successful progressive euchre tournament was held on Monday evening in Freeman's Rooms, "High Street, under tho auspices of the Sproydou men's No. 2 bandage class. Tho Mayor of Spreydon, Mr W. H. ,Winsor, presented the prizes and stopper ended a very pleasant evening. The sum of £lO is in hand for Red Cross purposes. The prizes were won by tho following:—Lady's, Miss Brightmoro 1; Mrs Robinson 2, Mrs Smellie booby; men's, Mr Mr Penny booby.

The Dunedin correspondent of tho " Star" states that an accident, surrounded by most unusual circumstances, jg reported. Mr James Todd was driving an eight-horse waggon to Beaumont. He was getting down from the waggon near Roxburgh when his left foot was securely caught between one of the seat stays and the brake. Being unable to free himself, the unfortunate man hung with his head downwards, his hands almost touching the ground, and had remained in that position for several hours before being discovered. The weather was very cold, and he was thoroughly chilled. Medical attendance was sought. His condition n£-xt day (Monday) was somewhat critical.

Speaking at tho Auckland Orphans' Club, Mr D. M'Laren, of Wellington, said thai;, as a Labour man, he felt proud that the workers hod responded &o nobly to the call of duty, and that the forges and ' anvils and tho Strong arra3 of tho British workers were energetically directed to the manufacture of the mimitioas necessary iu order that a sucoessful issue of the war may be achieved. They were in earnest about th.3 present situation, and devoted to the Empire to which they belong, for which they wore determined to make any sacrifices—as their forefathers had done—in order to hand down untarnished to posterity tho mighty trust and traditions bequeathed to them, and to carry on the struggle until a full and decisive victory is socured for our banner and until'liberty is secured for the world.

Anxiety concerning tho safety of the beautiful bush on the shores of Lake Waikaremoana was expressed by Mr George Hunter in tho House on Wednesday. asked the Prime Minister whether his attention had been called to a paragraph in tho "Hawko's Bay Herald ' stating that a large party ?f Natives had crossed over to the west shore of the lake with the object of felling the bush. He urged- the Minister to take steps to prevent the destruction of the bush, which n-as among the most beautiful in the Dominion. If it were destroyed it would be a standing disgrace to the colony aw a whole. The Prime Minister said that he had seou the paragraph referred to, and a telegram had been sent to the Commissioner of Crowu Lands at Napier instructing him to mako inquiries, and report'to the Lands Department in Wellington. If necessary step 3 would be taken to prevent the destruction of tho bush.

A meeting of lady members of tho Navy League was held yesterday afternoon to consider matters in connection with the patriotic concert to bo held in the Colosseum next, month, on bohalf of the Naval Heroes' Fund. Mr A. Boyle, president of :he Canterbury branch, presided over a fairly large attendance of ladies. After 'the cnair;t'an had addressed th? me£>t ; n<r it was r.-;reed that tho ladies should make such arrangements as might be thought best for the disposal or tickets and fbgs. The Mayor stated that he had received a communication from the Prime Minister in regard to the holding, of a public meeting in Christrhurch on August 4, the anniversary ot the outbreak of war. lla would bo glad to extend all facilities to ladies to dispose of the tickets for the concert and to sell'flags at the meetings which would be held during the day. The Mayor was thanked fo- his offer.

A-letter received in Christchurch from a New Zealand soldier "somewhere in France " refers to tho work which is being done by the Field Ambulance, and refers in very eompliment. ry terms to the invaluable services of the French Red Cross Society, which has done a grant deal to wounded colonials. The writer then mentions how greatly the t:u!dii:-rs appreciate newspapers trom their far distant homes, and. continuing, says: ''l have just received another 'Canterbury Times,' which I receive more regularly than my letters. During the week a big mail bag full of the ' Canterbury Times,' dated April o and 11, was brought into the hospital where lam working. Ido not kiysw whether they were bought for the troops, or whether they were gifts; all I know is that-they wero sent along to onr lospital from headquarte r s. I can :ell you it was good to seo how grateful the patients were for them. It was a sight which I will never forget in a hurry to see about forty patients each reading a ' Canterbury Times,' and the sight of the red covers and the white bed clothes was really unique." Preliminary arrangements are bebg made for a tour of the North of Auckland by a southern parliamentary party during tho coming recess, probably in January- Mr J. S. Dickson and the members represeting the North-Auck-land districts are interesting themselves in the matter, and various chambers of commerce in tho north are co-operating. Tho present proposal is that the party shall travel from Auckland to Whangarei and the Bay of Is'ands. and return to Auckland by way of tne Kaipara district. It is possible that, the Bay of Plenty may also be visited. "A large number of southern members have already signified their intention of accepting tho Tivitation to make the trip.