ANZACS GALLANT FIGHT AT POZIERES

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2835, 28 July 1916, Page 5

ANZACS GALLANT FIGHT AT POZIERES

■ HEROES OF THE ARMY NEXT MOVE IN THE BRITISH ADVANCE The High Commissioner reports:— General Haig report*: "Tho wholo of Poziores is now Tn on/ hands 10 wards; the Territorials further, advanced and captured two stroDg trenches and also a number of prisoners, including five officers. ' . •"The position elsewhere is unchanged." A' CALM BAY ON THE FRONT. (By Telegraph—Pross Association—Copyright). Australian-New Zealand Cablo Association. ■(Rec. July 27,. 8.25 p.m.) . .Sir Douglas,Haig reports: "With the exception of ow.uional^artiUer'/dueis und. short local encounters at various points, there havo been no inci-lents if Importance to-day." "'*" B 0I THE IMPORTANCE OP THE VILLAGES. '■■ : j'2«°- Js ly 27 > 8.10 p.m.) The Press. Bureau states: "The British have captured l a German di^knil °^\Z h^ h S }Tt tle T 1 "™ Xt kh WM fo ih ° villa™ s,n he Ger man system of defence. It says: 'The conversion of these villages into sW S^.^fiffiSr^ Such villases aro w^^SWSS hands Wltll th 6 ° aPtUre ° f PMiereS thD lM - ° f fteSß villases has ia]hn . hito «»r "The statement in to-day's German communique to the effect that Ihe British attacks on Trones Wood were repulsed is obviously erroneous, and can only be accounted -jfor a clerical error. We have held Trones Wood since July U Our* position now extends to the outskirts of Guillemont." ' HAIL TO THE ANZACS! SPLENDID TRIBUTE FROM A LONDON OFFICER, (liec. July 27, 9.15 p.m.) „„ „ „ . London, July 27. The first of the Australian and New Zealand' wounded from Pozieres have reached London. Pew are gTavely wound 6". the majority being oily slightly injured by wounds inflicted by the German machine guns. The unanimous verdict is that tho Battle of Pozieres was the w°rst of the ..whole war. British and Germans alike fought like fiends. The Anz acs insist that 'a great part of tho "lorv of the battle belongs to the London Territorials. ° A wounded London officer declared that the Anzacs, who had accomplished wonderful things at Gallipoli, had at Pozieres, under conditions of unexampled violence, set the seal on their fame. The British commander shouted: "Hail to the Anzacs!" as their wounded were being brought to the British lines, and'there was not a soldier present who did not echo tho greeting. "Tho Anzacs- are not ordinary fighters. They seem to be supor-soldiers, and do things without talking. The assault on Pozieres was one of the most difficult which have been essayed since tho offeiisivo began. The Germans had. set their heart on retaining ' the village. General Haig's order was: 'Pozieres must be taken,' and when the word was given to charge tho Anzacs swept across the approach to the Gorman lines. There was no shouting or battle-crying. Each Tom, Dick, and Harry with teeth set firmly, wont forth to slayin silence. When the German machine guns opened the bullets whizzed in all directions. They seemed to be pouring i from the skies. . ■ ' "After the second trenches were captured the "-Britishers established themselves under cover of the artillery, but the Anzacs wouldn't be held back, and went forward until they captured tho village street. Here the real carnage began Some of tho crack German regiments were employed, but the Anzacs went for their' men, and put in terrible bayonet work. After a. fierco contest the Anzacs obtained the upper-hand, drove the Germans out of tho main, thoroughfare,'and captured a number of guns. It was the most horrible night any of the soldiers ! had evor experienced. By daybreak on Monday we had obtained a firm footing in the village. ; "The fighting at Pozieres has proved that the Anzacs will face a wall of iron and go through it." THE FINAL CLEAN-UP AT POZIERES. „ , (Eeuter'e Telegram.) (Rec. July 57, 11.15 p.m,) ! London,- July 17 Correspondents at. British headqunrt ers point out thht while the capture 'of Pozieres was being completed British attacks on Foureaux Wood, Delville Wood and. Guillemont havo marked tin\e. The Germans still hold the strongest positions here, assisted by many machine guns. Sir Douglas Haig is determined to havo no reckless exposure of the mon. Tho possession of Pozieres is the first step in tho British sweop down the eastern slopes of the plateau into the low ground leaving Bapauiue, and it also threatens Thiepval, which is the stronghold which is -holding up the British advanco in the Anero Valley. The Anzacs throughout Monday night and Tuesday morning made steady progress, and were practically through the village on Tuesday afternoon, being tnen able to junction with the London Territorials, who had done excellent work on tho Anzacs' left. After hot fighting we captured a strong German position at the cemetery. Our machine guns did great execution among largo parties of the enemy, which tried to escape to the northward from'tho top of the village across the open. The Germans still hold strong positions around the windmill. , DISASTROUS GERMAN COUNTER-ATTACKS Australian-New Zealand Cable Association. (Kce, July 27, 8.25 p.m.) London, July 20. Tho "Daily Chronicle's" Paris correspondent writes: "After four days of hard fighting wo were, in complete possession of Pozieres by Tuesday night. Tho Germans on Monday brought up largo reinforcements, some from Verdun, for their second general counter-offensive. Theso reinforcements were thrown on a front of eight miles, from Thiepval to Gv.illeinont, and everywhere fought with reckless courage. The movement, however, was a disastrous failure, and was nowhere more than a momontary success., "Tho hardest blows fell on the ends of the lino. A desperate attempt waa made to dislodge tho Australians fiom tho centre of Poziores, while a division of Germans fell upon tho South Africans, who were defending Fouroaux Wood, Dclvillo Wood, and Longuoval villago. Our aviators, howovor., gavo us r-.Hico overnight of largo concentrations of Germans at tho village of Mors, and when the Bavarians attacked our trenches bad been reinforced, and our pinners were ready. The Brandenburg Brigade charged eight times before Guillemont, ard each time was driven back with heavy losses. Our artillery was pnUicularly effective. Thousands of the grey coals fen before Pozieres and Bazentin. /'Sovcn German? who were captured near Poziores said that they woro the only survivors of their company. The German attacks continued on Monday night and Tuesday. Most of the' assaulting columns failed to Teach our lines. While tha gallant Australians- were clearing tho last of tho brick heaps at Poziores, other battalions wero advancing on tho rest of tho villago. Tho enemy's salient o.t Thiepval is strongly threatened.^

TRIBUTES FROM THE FRENCH. mt , • t , •,. Paris, July 20. ilie newspapers eulogise tho magnificent resistance of tho Australian and tnghsh troops in opposing to the Genua an unbreakable barrier against the heaviest counter-attacks of picked troops. WHAT THE BIG PUSH. MEANT IN PREPARATION. /■. „JL , ,'~ , „ ''' London. July 20. One of the Australian members of Parliament who recently virilcd the front said the groat push on tho Sommo took man\- months to prepare Forty-six l»iles of wagons were gathered in one quarter for tho carriage of munition-. Phis gives a sense of the proportion of tho preparations. 26,223 PRISONERS SINCE THE BATTLE BEGAN. (Kouter'e Telegram.) ti i » ti • , 'C • London, July 26. !.•«. Z k s ■?«<« w>"«spon<l«nt, TeTiowing the Pozicres figMing, says that hitherto tho British and French have taken 26,823 prisoners, with enormous booty, including 140 guns, and more than eighty square kilometres (about thirty square miles) of ground. J EFECTIVE WORK BY BRITISH AIRMEN. Anstralian-Ncw Zealand Cable Association. (Rec. July 27, 10.45 p.m.) n -j- l • . ~, „ ■ - , London, Ju.lv 27. (~. B»ti3h did a- fine piece of work They dropped bombs on a troop train near Jville, killing over two hundred soldiers. i ~ T !* e ";" mee " correspondent at tho front refors to our complete mastery in the aw. We are ruling tho skies above tho lines, and holding the enemy terrorised far within his own territory. The British machines are constantly threatening the German aerodromes preventing their airmen'from coining out except in-the darkness or in the thickest weather. Our air supremacy is of incalculable value in this artillery war, in whioh observation counts for much." "AS FAR AS BERLIN" (Rec. July 27, 10.45 p.m.) T jt. i • ■ , . ~-, . ; New York, July 27. Lord Dorby, in an interview with an American correspondent, said: "The war may be long or short, but I am convinced that victory is ours. Tho British voluntary armies have proved equal to the best conscripts. We have no desire to partition Germany. Some of the colonics may insist on tho retention of tho Gorman colonies, but that is not what to are in this war for. Personally T want the present offensive to go as far as Berlin." ' OPERATIONS ON THE FRENCH FRONT The High Commissioner reports:— . r.n j.l. c, London,-July 20, 3 p.m. Un tho Sommo tho night was calm. In tho course of fighting yesterday the enabled- to take an island of houses southwards of Estrees. We took 117 prisoners, and brought back three moro cannon, making six taken that day north of Soyecqurt. ," 0n . t i? ri S nt tank of tno Moilso tllero is great artillery activity in the sector of Floury. -~ 3 6 dispersed, by fire, detachments of tho oneroy northwards of La Chaoelletjt. Fine." GOOD WORK BY THE AIR SQUADRON. , Anstralian-New Zealand Cablo Association. . ' ■, ' London, July 26. „„ . A «euch air squadfon dropped forty-two bombs oh military establishments at Thionville and Rombach. The same. 6quadron, before daybreak, flew out and dropped thirty-eight bombs on a, munition depot at Dun, and also bombed the railway stations at Vilosnes and Bneulles, and -bivouacs at Dannevoux. |; THE OFFENSIVE FROM THE GERMAN SIDE

LOSS OF POZIEKES ADMITTED. . „ „.'. , London, July 20. A German official communique state: "Tho British, after a stubborn fHit, have established themselves in Poziercs. ' ". '. "Minor enemy attacks near Longueval and the Fouroaux Wood were rrpjulsed "There is lively hand grenado fighting southward of Estrees." X GREAT MOVEMENTS OF GERMAN TROOPS. (Eec. July 37, 10.45 p.m.) ,„, . Amsterdam, July 27. Ihe Gorman-Belgian frontiers have boon closed to cover great movements or German troopss to replaco the terrible losses on the Sommo. Tho entire German Army is in a state of feverish activity, and there is a feeling that the critical phase of tho war has come. Fresh troops are continually being thrown into tho fighting lino. Remnants of rogiments aro sent back to the front in a few days, reinforced by remnants of other unite PASSPORT RULES TIGHTENED UP. (HcutcT's Telegram.) N • • London, July 27. Tho "Berliner Tageblatt" states that the passport nilos aro boing tightened to prevent espionage and to prevent wealthy Germans leaving the country lo avoid taxation, \