ARTILLERY DUELS AND FIERCE BAYONET COMBATS

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2341, 24 December 1914, Page 5

ARTILLERY DUELS AND FIERCE BAYONET COMBATS

MANY ENEMY TRENCHES TAKEN SEVERAL COUNTER-ATTACKS REPULSED By Teksrapli—Fre*3 AAsoolaUoa—Oopyrliht . ,_ , Paris, December 22. A communique states:—'There have been artillery duels from tie sea to the Lys, also on the Aißne and at Reims, and fierce bayonet combats at Souain. We carried trenches extending for a distance of two thousand yardß near Perthes les Hurlus, and traversed the entanglements north of Maricourt, capturing the trenches We made further progress at the Forest of Lagrurie and at Tracy le Val; also at Blangy,' and repulsed several attacks at Lahons." • ■ . [Perthes les Hurlus is twenty miles north-east of Chalons-sur-Marne, and Souain is four miles west of it. Maricourt is twenty miles south of Arras and Tracy le .Val is sixteen miles west-north-west of Soissons. Blangy is close to ArrasJ COLOSSAL EXECUTION BY; BRITISH FLEET. >' London, December 22. A British fleet that wa3 aiding the infantry in the attack did colossal execution. Four successive. shells decimated an approaching German column • others levelled many houses, exposing the German positions. ' A small number of Frenohmen crossed the Passchendaele Canal in the night, using a barge as a bridge, crawled up the bank, and bayoneted the surprised Germans out of the first trench. The rest of the Frenchmen tliencroßsed on the barge captured sev.en other trenches. . STRONG NETWORK' OF FORTIFICATIONS CLEARED. ' Dunkirk, December 22. In the advance from Nieuport, the Allies cleared a strong network of fortifications and many rim of trenches. Houses on thejine to Lombaertzjde had been converted into miniature forts, with machine guns commanding a wide sweep. < BRITISH SHARPSHOOTERS' EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE. London, December 22. The "Daily Chronicle" states that the Alliese are gradually driving back the enemy at Lille, through morasses and mud. Hundreds of prisoners have been captured on the Allies' extreme left during the last few days.The French stormed a farm held by German marines. Many of the enemy were killed and the rest captured. • One hundred and eighty British troops held ten thousand Germans for two days until reinforced. One of the best shots, hidden in a clump of trees, with two rifles and a boy as a loader, picked off 120 Gemans in forty-eight hours. INDIANS INFLICT FRIGHTFUL EXECUTION. London, December 22. Regarding the official reference to the Indians' work at Richebourg, the Germans, by a sudden effort, broke through at that point and found themselves confronted by a swollen stream and in the centre a leritalle inferno. Then tho Indians on both flanks assailed the enemy, none of whom escaped a mad rush expelling them from the advance trenches. The Indians swept tho_ bayonets aside with their naked hands and completed the frightful execution with their knives. REPORTED EVACUATION OF MIDDELKERKE. Amsterdam, December 22. The "Tijd" states that the Germans have evacuated Middelkerke. The Allies' aeroplanes are busy examining the region botweon Ibo Ycor ond the Dutch frontier.

A STUBBORN FIGHT WHICH LASTED FIFTY-TWO DAYS GRAPHIC ACCOUNT OF THE CAPTURE OF .VERMELLES. (Roo. December 23, 6.5 p.m.) London, December 22. Mr. Martin Donohoe, the "Daily Chronicle's" war correspondent, writes: Tho fight for Vermelles lasted fifty-two days, and the whole town has been destroyed by explosives from heavy artillery. Towards the middle of October tho Germans snugly entrenched themselves at Vermelles and inflicted heavy losses on the attackers. The fight went on tenaciously from honso to house, and farmyard to farmyard. On dark nights it was the Gorman custom to set fire to a house to serve as a torch to facilitate tho fighting. The French used light mountain guns with deadly effect, and house after house was bombarded and captured. Directly the French gamed possession of a house to an adjacent one, held by Germans, the French sappers cut a hole in the wall, the muzzle of a mquntain gun was shoved through, and harried the The Chateau at Vermelles with its extensive grounds was captured on December 1. The Germans constructed trenches six feet deep and lined them The French found it impossible to drive them out by bombardment, and a direct infantry attack would involve immense sacrifice of life. They therefore mined their way up to the main wall, and blew it up, burying half a garrison. Through the breach the French storming party entered and there was sanguinary hand-to-hand fighting, and room after room was captured. Ihe Germans fought to the last, clubbed, with rifle and bayonet. At the end of half an hour only one German was alive m the Chateau. Uout hundred met their death within the enclosure. Using'the Chateau as a base the French artillery soon demolished the enemy's entrenchments, and ten hours later the French occupied the town. . FORWARD MOVEMENT WORKED LIKE CLOCKWORK BRITISH DISTINGUISH THEMSELVES AT BETHUNE. « (Reo. Deoember 23, 9.30 p.m.) London, December 29. Details of the Battle of Nieuport show that French troops took up a position at the most dangerous point, where they had to cross five bridges, commanded by the enemy, who were surprised The Germans took some time to reply to the furious artillery fire, and the fleet's cannonade then opened up the maximum discharge of all their guns. After some hours the German fare slackened, the Allies pouring shrapnel into the enemy's trenches with tremendous precision. Groups of Germans were blown bodily over sand dunes. French and Belgian infantry from five points attacked the trenches. Ihe Germans never knew from whence the attack was coming, and five separate lines of treucheß were'taken. The forward movement worked like clockwork. Three French aeroplanes reported the enemy's movements on land, and gave warning of submarines' movements at sea, enabling the destroyers to Ward Simultan a eously with the victory at Nieuport, .the Allies cleared the Germans out of the region of Bethune, the Britishers distinguishing themselves. They drove the enemy from a position which was stubbornly contested for four weeks inch by inch, to a distance of. ton miles from Bothune. German aeroplanes, before their troops wore driven bavk, bombed Bethune and killed a number of civilians. _ VIOLENT COUNTER ATTACKS REPULSED. (Rec. December 23, 8.30 p.m.) Paris, December 23. Official.-The enemy's violent counter-attacks south of Noyou were repulsed. -We gained a footing and made progress at Bournevilles, south or Varennes and west of Vaugueois.