GERMAN AŢACK ON MORT HOMME

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2777, 23 May 1916, Page 6

GERMAN AŢACK ON MORT HOMME

. . ' A FIRST LINE TRENCH TAKEN > DESTRUCTIVE RAID BY FRENCH AIR SQUADRON The High Commissioner reports: London, May 21, 4.15 p.m. . v ... The; French official report,states: .'On the left bank of the Meuse the Germans on Saturday night continued their attacks- on Mort Homme. At Aztin repulsed eastwards by ,curtain fire, the enemy captured one of our first-line trenches on the slope, west of Mort Homme. There is a lively artillery action in the region of Tort. Vaux. Following a violent bombardment, a sudden attack of tho Germans penetrated one of our trenches west of Chazelles.' Our artillery and machine-guns forced the enemy to retreat to his own lines, leavin" dead and wounded. ° "An enemy air raid on. the. Baccara t-Epinal-Vesoul region has done insicnifi. cant damage.. . -_ . .. " on i. ?v t ? rday i. "'ftS™ a .sf' opl^;llc ? dropped numerous projectiles on the military establishments at Thionville, Etain, Spincourt, and bivouacs 'in the region of .Azannes-Damvillers. Bombardment of railway stations at (») caused a hasty flight of trains and an extensive iiro in the station buildings." ALL-DAY BATTLE AT AVOCOURT WOOD FRENCH OFFICIAL COMMUNIQUE. ' ' . (Rcc. May . 22, 9.10 p.m.) i Paris liliiV leasi offi cia l states: "The battle between Avocourt WoVand ■ dw, with desperate fighting. We captured two trenches the vicimtj of the Esiies-Haucourt road, and our artillery entirely wrecked a small work which was occupied by the enemy on Hay 18 "The enemy immediately, east of Hill 301,■ launched'an attack which monism, tanly penetrated pur first line., They were quickly driven out ' i- cr offensive by one of the enemy's brigades on the western slopes of Mort Homme was stopped by our batteries, which taught the demy's attacking back inS ' were following in assaulting wares, and compelled them to fait "The enemy violently bombarded tlia Douaumont «ctor' = ( ~„;Te ' Sharll ' y i lt ? c^ 1 Knd the Haudromont. (marries, which were strongly organised-by the enemy. '"i'> vent /J Mtabs ? ver ® dropped on Dunkirk on Saturday, . killing four and wounding fifteen. Another squadron dropped one hundred bombs in the suburbs of Dunkirk on Sunday, killing three and wounding twenty "Tho Allies' ;aeroplanes pursued and brought down two of the raiders as they were re-entering tho iTerman lines. ' GhisHlLt 10 ' dlopped 250 bo, " bs 0n the ene '^ s ."The Germans threw fifteen bombs into Belfort,. the resulting damage bein" insignificant. ,0,0 a Withered by the French Artillery, , The bombardment reached its height at 1 p.m. on Saturday, when much of the Irench first line had become a smoking rubblo heap. The first line was abandoned before the enemy moved out to.attack. Tho assaulting columns advanced at 2 p.m., and faced a thick curtain of fire. Wave after wave of tho enemy broke before the_rest had time to acquire the impetus sufficient to carry it through to tho Trench trenches. J The Germans on the. western section, sweeping over our advanced positions, streamed straight up to the Irench second Hue, and there the effect of the French artillery and lmicluiic-guns was deadly. Tho Germans had outrun their strength, and towards tho end or the day theynvere scurrying back in disorder to their trenches, their flight being marked by hoaps of dead. A FEW YARDS OF NO TACTICAL VALUE. (Rcc. May 22, 8.20 p.m.) About , fifty thousand troops are engaged in repeated assaults on Mort Homme, along a two-mile lront on the east ami 0 n the steeper side the Crown Prince's troops are concentrated at Crow s Wood; They got into tho Trench advanced trenches. l'or this new hecatomb tho Crown Prince has gained a few yards of broken, exposed ground, of no tactical valuta. GERMAN OFFICIAL COMMUNIQUE. By Telegraph-Press Association-Copyright ,London, May 21. . A. Berlin communique states: Alter skilful • artillery preparation, we advanced our linfcs to the southern and sou th-westem slopes of Mart Homme, capturing 111 officers, 1315 men, eight guns, and sixteen machine-guns. The feeble enemy counter-attacks were - fruitless.; "Wo brought down live aeroplanes on the Western front. "Our aeroplanes hotly bombarded Dunkirk at night." THE GERMAN FAILURE AT VERDUN ENEMY'S SELF-DEOEPTION LAID BARE. ("Times" and Sydney "Sun" Services.) (llec. May 22, 5.5 p.m.) . , „ m . „ •- London, May 21. Colonel Repington (the limts military correspondent) expresses the opiuion that the Germans attacked \ erclun because they were convinced that they could striko a decisive blow, sweep on to Lans, and then turn on and' overwhelm Kussia. "Tho dogged valour of the Irench frustrated this plan. Tho Prench momentarily reeled, but speedily recovered and established a defensive line which is likely to prove impregnable against Germany's full might and fury. The Germans cannot resign themselves to tho tact that their supremo effort has failed, as they dnre not face tnc consequences of this failure at home and abroad. "Even confiding Austria does not believe the clumsy fiction that they are progressing on this front according to a preconceived plan. Hungarian critics refuse to believe that three-month pauses are part of tho German Staff's conception, and venture to remark that the battle so far is a French victory, adding: 'It is impossible to pierce the Verdun region.' If this opinion appears in I the censored Budapesth Press, what is being thought in the Dual Monarchy and in the Fatherland Hself?"

Tho "Times" correspondent at Paris says: "Each development of the Verdun battle further separates the Germans from thoir goal. When their first onslaught on Port Douaniont failed they transferred their attentions to pepper Hill , also without success; then they v--cnt further afield, across tho Mcu.se to Dead Man (Mort Homme), but the latter position wasns firm as Donamont. Then they tried to turn Dead Man about Hill 104, but again they failed; then they displaced their centre to attack the Avocourt region, where there has been an uninterrupted fltrugglo bver since. The French are holding their own, and inflicting heavy losses. The arrival of German reinforcements indicates tho importance which • the enemy attaches to these operations, and also tho extent, of his losses. The French airmen spotted great railway activity to and fro, and bombed many of thj railway stations before the reinforcements nrrived." / REPORTS FROM THE BRITISH FRONT (Rec. May 22, 8.20 p.m.) London, May 22. Sir Douglas Haig reports several successful air encounters on Saturday. "Two of the enemy machines fell into the German lines, while a third crashed to earth in cur lines, where a fourth, also landed, undamaged. A British aeroplane fell behind tho enemy's lines. "We repulsed three small attacks her the enemy south-west of Wieltje (which is about two miles north-east of Yprcs). "There has been a heavy enemy artillery bombardment from Yimy to Loos, and also south of Souchez, against our front trenches. "Wo silenced a hostile battery north of Mjitzwood."