UNBROKEN SHEET OF FLAME

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2584, 5 October 1915, Page 7

UNBROKEN SHEET OF FLAME

!A VIVID PICTURE OF. ARTILLERY BOMBARDMENT. Br TeJegraph—Press A»sociation—Conyrijlu (Reo. October 3, 8.30 a.m.) : ■' • , • London, October 3. /An artillery officer,-; describing the bombardment, says: —"We had a grand supply of ammunition. On Friday our machine-guns prevented tho, Germans repairing the trenches. Wo ■ urougllt lip load aftor load of lyddito sho'lsr. to iho gunpits. . . "At midnight all was ready. \ve waited till 4. o'clock, when tlie cannon-, ade tho air was suddenly torn by thousands of . explosions and sholls screaming overhead. "In a section of five miles 3000 shells wore " fired ill fivo minutes, whifch could give some idea of the awful majesty of those few moments, wften lik© an avenging angel with a flaming sword-iho*Al-lies swept- down on the Hun. The flashes wero so continuous that , gave an almost unbroken lignfc. Ail thoguns /were 'firing: their , 'ardest *afc carefully registered points in the _ focrmaa trenches." 1

"This .'officer stated that. for . every yard <of trench four shells must hare fallen within five minutes. ' Each shell had a radius of destruction .of twenty yards. : Afterwards the guns were switched up to the longer ranges, : their business being to search for tho enemy's supports. . ■ . • .-.■■■ ; ■ , "The second bombardment lasted for half an hour. The German' artillery, surprised and overpowered, made a fieole reply. Our men carried the first trenfck with case, and a second, with some loss, and then ' turned their - attention to the trench forts.

_ "At'llooll they had accomplished their Bet task, and had a fine bag of prisoners." ■. ■/ .