THEWANING ASSAULT ON VERDUN

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2725, 21 March 1916, Page 5

THEWANING ASSAULT ON VERDUN

■GERMAN CONFIDENCE SHAKEN

AERIAL BATTLE IN ALSACE

By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright

, Paris, March 19. • Semi-official.—"The latest fighting in thV Verdun region shows that the enemy's ardour is daily waning' and Mb confidence of securing a victory increasingly shaken. It is now foreseen that the successive bursts must gradually 6ase off) because the. enemy is destined to be broken against the fortress." .j■• : ' ' V■■ j / FRENCH OFFICIAL COMMUNIQUE'. Paris, March 19. A communique states: "The enemy made a fairly lively attack on our front .between Vaux and Daraloup, but was hurled back by a curtain of fire. "A French aeroplane brought down a German machine in flames in our lines. "Five double-motored aeroplanes dropped twenty heavy bombs on Metz station and ten on .a munition depot at Chateau and an aorodrome ab Dieuze. -

"Twentj'-three of our aeroplanes dropped seventy-two bombs on the~aviation ground at H-abscheim and the Mulhansen goods station. •. "An aerial battle followed, one French and one German machine bringing down eacli other with machine-gun s. Two German machines fell in flames, and three of ours were seriously damaged and forced to alight in enemy territory." .

" GERMAN SUCCESS ON THE BRITISH FRONT

The High Commissioner reports:—

•London, March 20, 1.20 a.m. "Yesterday, ; the enemy, by exploding mines, recapttifed three craters in the Hohenzollern' redoubt. . "To-day there lias been much artillery _ activity in the region of Arras, Armentieres, Wytschaete, and also many air duels, in which two hostile machines were brought down." \ • —; — ■ GERMAN OFFICIAL COMMUNIQUE. ; 1 . (Rec. March 20, 9.25 p.m.) ; Amsterdam, March 19. N A German official communique states: "North-east of Vernfilles, after artillery preparation, we recaptured the small British gains .which were achieved during the mine fighting on Maroh 2 last. • The majority of the British were buried in the • flattened trenches. We captured thirty of the survivors. The British counter-attack failed. "Heavy British artillery rebombarded Lens. , "On " the right bank of the Meuse there has been Artillery activity, which temporarily increased to considerable violence. "Hand-to-hand fighting developed in several places southward of Fort Douaumont and westward of Vaux, continues. "We drove the French out of their position at Chiaville, north-eastward of Badonvillers, and after destroying the French dug-outs we .'returned to our positions. . . . "Our aeroplanes bombed the railway buildings on the Clermont-Verdun line, and the Epinal-LurevCsoul line. _ ' "An air attack on Metz wounded ,three of the civilians. "We shot down four French in an air battle while they were raiding Mulhausen and Habshedi., Twenty civilians were killed."