THE WAR

Horowhenua Chronicle, 26 May 1916, Page 3

THE WAR

isiaiuraio TXMURAFU —OOrrBIQBX. i LPBE PBKIB ABBOPUXIOK-l THE BATTLE ROUND VERDUN. t 0 : Paris, May 25. A cominuuiquo states: —Infantry ac t tions were continued east Morthomme. s Our artillery stopped the enemy Jobouching at Cumieres. A counter-attack in. the afternoon enabled us to recapturo tranches at j. the south endl edgo of the village. Two newly arrived Bavarian div e- . ions made desperate attacks on Fort Douaumont throughout the day. After k several fruitless attempts, with enor- } mous iosses, the enemy re-occupied the £ ruins oi the fort. We hold' the im- . .meuiate approaches. A German attempt to utorni the Oailette Wi6od completely iail«d. } r « Ptoris, May *o. The conflict at Veirdun lias not j. slackened. ' One nundred' and fifty , thousand Germany were ©iigagedl for £wo days, the enemy hesitating at no 1 sacfitico to recover: tiio ground lost. Monday's Ibattie . was the fierf) jsl t'ouiigt on the western front. The <iermari ojtensive 'on Tuesday w<^s' particularly successful. Decpite iieroic French rosiatance tho v enemy entered, Cumieres, wJiich consists of rorty mined houses. The position now is not important; as it is "wiiolly dwminit. Ed fiorn the hi2s on either .side. and the 1' rench are firmly dug in th : e hills north of Ohattancourt.; The .Jiittltle Bmoke-oovered hill of Morthomme is flattened out like Hill 70 at Ypres. Siieets <>t fire have siwopt over it day and night and shelter trenches do not exist. Directly , new trenches were dug tons of shollß from 240 guns wiped them out. The enemy pushed througjh the woods irittging tlie base of Hill 304, , and occupied the northern, niortii- , western and eastern slopes, but the French' continued to nold the crast and the western slope. The Crown Prince then flung at least an army corps at Hill 287, which is 300 yardis behind Alorthommo. Wave after wave melted under the oiirtain of fire. French officers aro of the opinion that either the German i-eneral Staff have taken leave of their sense® or 'hoped for great things with amazing massed rushes wJiieh covered the 1' rench front with corpses. A French Btaff ofhoer described thjv spot as a slaughter-houise. Dtfuaumont v ort was the storm centre o p

Wednesday. There* were twelve 4 <t,'timjt night attacks in forty-eigjht hours. The French extensively used flare bombs and star shells to detect ; the movements «f the assaulting < oluin ns. Huge electric aearohliorhts swept the slopes before the fort. Prior to the recapture of the tort all ' *be Frencn trenches had parapets of Ger-iii-an dead. The ' officers ordiered ihe men to remove the mounds of grevclad corpses, which' were piled so tliat tney obstructed the held of "hire.

THE BRITISH Jb WON'T. .London, Slay 25. Sir Douglas Haig reports:—Sm vll parties of British soldiers pushed' torHard to Vimy ridge and engaged in hand-to-hand figthting. There is a heavy ;bomibardment n iiotih sides astride the isouchez river. Amsterdam, May 2 . A German communique .says: — fatrong English forces attacked our new position south-west otf Uivenchy (on | the Vimy ridge). A lew penetrated, but fell in hand-to-hand lighting. All tlie attacks were repulsea with very great English losses, also small attacks at Huliuch and Blairville. ) AUSTRIAN ATTACK. j j Rome, May 2b. I A communique sitatesThere have ( been nirious bombardments in the L%r- \ cui ina- V alley and elsewhere. [ Minor Austrian attacks were rep lised. Hie evacuation oi upper basins j of thy i/osina end Astico ha* now been effected in perfect order. ! The Italians 1 are strengthening their positions and protective line "in the I Ansoro basin. They destroyedi the artillery, which it was impossible +o move. The enemy exeroissd strong pressure east of Valdasse. Our retirement in the Sugan* Valley which began on May 22 continues tsiowly and methodically. Amsterdam, May Z r . An Austrian communique states: — Ouu- troops are advancing on both sides ot the Sugana valley. . The enemy precipitately evaouatnd Borgo, leaving great booty. We captured the fortdfioations of Monteverena*