WAR NEWS.

Hokitika Guardian, 2 January 1917, Page 1

WAR NEWS.

Per Press Association. —Copyright. G-KERAL HAla’S DESPATCH. [REUTER’S SERVICE. —COPV'RIGIIT.] ,/ LONDON, Dec. 29. Sir, Douglas Haig’s despatch of sixteen pages in the “Gazette” covers front May 19th to November 12th, .1916: lie says: All the Allies agreed that the principal offensive bo in the campaign must he in the summer of 1916 Finally, in view of the Austro-German offensives at Verdun and in Italy, and Russia, General- J off re and myself agreed that the combined Franco-Brit-ish offensive should, not bo postponed beyond the end of June. The enemy’s position consisted of several lines of deep trenches with wire entanglements, sometimes 40 yards broad, built with iron stakes and interlaced with barbed wire as thick as a man’s linger. Numerous woods and villages with deep cellars and quarries provided cover for the machine guns and trench mortars. The preparations for the attack com-

menced on June 24th. Gas was dis- - charged in forty eight places on a frontage of 15. miles. The infantry carried out seventy raids. The attack on July Ist from Mari- ' court to Serrc was entrusted to Gen- : eral Rawlinson’s Fourth Army with five army corps. General Allenhy’s < army carried out a subsidiary attack at Gommecourt. As the result of the day’s operations I decided to press on > t!ie front, extending the junction trench to a point lmlf-way between La Boiselle and Contahnaison. In order that General ...Rawlinson might ho free to concentrate his attention on the front where the attack was 1 being pushed home 1 placed the ope) a-; tions from La Boiselle to Serve under General Hubert Gough, who was given two of tho northern corps of General Rawlinson’s army. \ Unfortunately unfavorable weather interfered with the advance in-the direction of Le Tran sloe and Bapaume. ( The constant rain in October and Nov. ember’ turned the liastily-dug trenches 1 into channels of deep mud. The country roads were broken witli, countless shell craters and were almost impassable, making the supply of stores and « ammunition a serious problem. The conditions multiplied the difficult ies of tho attack to such an extent that 1 it was found impossible to exploit the situation with the rapidity necessary

srcuawuii >viwi ” . for us to reap the full benefits of the advantages gained. The delay gave the enemy time to reorganise and rally their troops, the German resistance was again stubborn and they seized every available opportunity to counter attack. Trenches changed hands witli great rapidity. The condition of the ground made it difficult to renew, the supply of bombs and ammunition and to consolidate the ground won. The weather improved on November 9th, with dry,, cold frosty nights and misty mornings. The final preparations were made to attack Ancre, Be.aucowit, and JBoaumonthamel. Realising the danger the enemy multiplied their guns and introduced additional-divisions between Grandccourt and liebuternezo. An attack in a dense fog on November 13tli met with remarkable successes in view of the rapidity of the execution and lightness of the cost .One thousand four hundred prisoners were captured. St. Fierro was taken by a single division with COO casualties. From May to November the role of the other British armies beyond Ypres was necessarily secondary. Their task was to keep the enemy constantly on the alert. This entailed heavy work on the troops and constant vigilance of the commanders, but was carried out • 11. etTi’i’i n«rl nnsfilfisll..

,witli unfailing spirit anci uusumM., bioacl-mindetl devotion for tlie general good. During the four and a-liaif months from July Ist 3GO raids were carried out, wherein the enemy had many casualties and hundreds of prisoners were taken. In the largest undertaken on 19th July in the neighbourhood of Arnientieres the troops penetrated deeply into enemy trenches, greatly damaging his works and inflicting severe losses. During the battle of the Somme there was steady deterioration in the morale of large numbers of the enemy’s troops. Many fought with the greatest determination, but the resistance of the laiger.numbers became latterly decidedly feebler than early in the battle 'lhe great depth of the defences and the frequent reliefs which their resources in men enabled the enemy to effect, to-, getlier with the discipline and training, held the war machine sufficiently to enable the enemy to rally a and rc-or-ganise their troops after each defeat. He explains why the offensive was so long delayed, namely, because of the necessity of great numbers of men and munitions; also the fact that a large proportion of the officers and men were far from being fully trained. For these reasons the longer the offensive was delayed the better, but it was evident from the German attack on Verdun and the Austrian offensive at Trentino, that the strain might be-

j rumiuu, muu *■»*"•*- <=> come too gre«ii> to be borne unless time]y relief action was taken. The details of the stupendous preparations, including the accumulation • of vast stores of all kinds near the front, the construction of new railways of different gauges, gun equipment, trench tramways, dug-out.s for ' ammunition, food and water, engineering material, store miles ami deep ’ communication trenches were sunk and 120 miles of water mains laid. ‘ General Haig defines the three-fold ■' object of the offensive: —First, the re- ’ Jiei of Verdun ; second, to assist the 1 Allies in other theatres by stopping a 1 further transference of enemy troops from the west; third, to wear down the struggle of the enemy. He that all three objectives qf ,

the battle were achieved. Any one of these results itself justified the battle ol tho Somme, and the attainment of all three amply compensates for the sacrifices of ourselves and our • Allies, bringing us a long way towards the final victory. Ho says that the fact that the strength of the enemy in November on the western front was greater than in July despite the abandonment of..the Verdun offensive, justifies the first two claims. Regarding the third, lie admits that • any statement must depend to some degree on the estimates. Nevertheless, there is sufficient evidence to. show that the undoubted enemy’s losses in men and material were considerably higher than the Allies, while morally our advantage was greater. Accordingly arrangement’s were made with the French army for a series of.combined attacks in progressive stages, including Maurepas, Fallmont Farm, Guillcmont, Lease Wood and Guincliy. Apart from these, major operations there was fierce and obstinate fighting on other fronts. Tho British lines . were pushed forward wherever possible by means of local attacks, bombing and .sapping. Our lines wore thus brought to the crest

ol the ridge above Martmpmch, the Pozieres windmill, and the high ground north of the village. On the latter date we reached the defences of Moqcut Farm. The fierceness of the fighting was'shown by the fact that ono regiment of German Guards in reserve opposing Moquet Farm lost 1400 men in fifteen days when the weak salient in the Allied lino finally disappeared on Sept. 9th. It was evident that our new armies were not only able' to rush the enemy’s strongest defences but wear down and 1 ‘ak the German p jwer of esistunce by steady, relentless pressure. Tho enemy knew that the attack was coming but considered the troops already on the spot, aided by the apparently hr.-, pregnable defences, would suffice. General Gough’s arnny before Thiepval was now advancing with methodical progression, wherein great si ill, patience, and endurance were disj. laved. General Cough’s army acted most successfully as a pivot to the remainder of the attack. There was no iced to incur heavy casualties in on attempt to rush the Thiepval defences, though undoubtedly they could be rushed. jW.hen the weather unfortunately broke there) was no doujbt that the enemy’s pow er or resistance had been very seriously diminished. The result was gained by the troops, the vast majority whereof

gained their first experience of .war in the Somme battle. We were compelled to use hastily trained and inexperienced officers' and men, or we would have failed our Allies. * ' The difficulties and hardships were cheerfully overcome. The endurance, determination, and invincible courage displayed can hardly be imagined by those who had not personal experience of the Somme battle. It is impossible to particularise units, brigades-, or divisions without giving informaton to the enemy. It must suffice to say that troops from every part of the British Isles, every Dominion, and quarter of the Empire, regulars and territorials liave f borne their share. All have done their duty nobly. The enemy’s employment of gas and liquid flame necessitated our tle.vising instruments. Great fertility of invention was shown by chemists, physiologists, and pyhsieists of the highest rank, who devoted their energy to enabling us to surpass the enemy in tho use of a means of warfare which took the civilised world by surprise. They enemy suffered heavy casualties by our gas attacks. 'Tho gallantry and devotion of the medical service is shown by the large number of the Royal Army Medicals and the Medical Corps of the Dominions who have fallen in the field. The -health of the troops was most, satis-

factory. There was an almost complete absence of'wastage due to diseases of a preventable nature. The responsibility of the Somme battle was entrusted to General Bawlinson and General Gough, who for five mouths controlled tlie operations in one of the greatest struggles that has ever, taken place. Their thorough knowledge of their profession . and cool, sound judgment in attack and their determination proved equal to every call upon them. Four-fifths of the enemy divisions on the west front were thrown successively into the battle, some twice and some thrice. Undoubtedly Howards the end of the operations the enemy’s power of resistance was very seriously diminished. These results, gained by troops the vast majority of whom were raised and trained during the war, constitute a feat whereof the history of our nation contains no equal. He concludes: the enemy’s power is not yet broken, nor is it possible to etimatc the period before, the objects for which the Allies are fighting will be attained, but the battle of the Somme placed beyond doubt the ability of the Allies to gain these objects. Tlie German army is the mainstay of the Central Powers, and a full half of that army, despite all tlie advantages, of tlie defensive, supported by tlie strongest fortifications, suffered de-

feat at the Somme. Neither the vie tors nor the vanquished will forge this, and though the bad weather ha: given the enemy a respite there will in doubtodly be many thousands in liu ranks who will begin the now campaigi with little confidence in their ability tc resist. Our new armies entered th< battle with a determination to will anti with confidence in-their power ,to do so They have proved to themselves, the enemy and the world that ..this conffi deuce is justified. They liave learnt it in the, fierce struggle and the mail} valuable lessons will help them in the future. -. .. " ‘ *• ..

A Latsfactory fepcrt LONDON Dec. 29. The “Times,” in a leading article says that General llaig’s report epii*elusively proves the Allies’ power to win a complete and final victory. British Front. i (Australia & N.Z. Cable Association.) LONDON, Dec, 29. , The “Seotman” says the extension of the British front was received with the liveliest satisfaction in France. It is regarded ae an effective ex ample of the working of a united command. LONDON, Dec. 30. General Haig says that in the sue eessful raid east of Lo Sars trenches we found that we had caused great damage. We repulsed a raid east of Armeutieres; , , . There was intense reciprocal artillery iug south of the Ancre and Rerles. LONDON, Dec. 30. A Paris, communique states that French raided and wrecked trenches between the Oise Aisne. . The Germans violently bomo^Q^l

1 positions between the Mouse and court. Our aviators bombed different German works, including Neunkirchen. , At Verdun. 5 _ LONDON, Dec. 29. A wireless German official message* 1 claims that they have penetrated i»c French second and third lines at Hill 1 304 and the southern slope at Mort--1 liomme, repulsing counter-attacks. 1 LONDON, Dec. 29 * . A French communique states that ! after an intense bombardment the Gcr- ; mans strongly attacked ou r front over t three-kilometres from Hill 304 to east- - wards of Dead Man’s Hill. The attack . was broken by our fire, and only sour- - fractions of the enemy penetrated on - trench south of Dead Man’s Hill. Hungary’s Coronation. AMSTERDAM, Dec. 29. I The King and Queen of Hungaiy . were crowned at Budapest with the cus- , tomary medieval pomp. . ’ CardinalCzenioch performed the “ceremony in the presence of foreign dip--.* . mats. The Opposition members of the Croa- . tiaii Diet refused to assist in the ap . pointmenb of a delegation to attend j ,tlie coronation, and declared that Hun-

gary was the cruellest oppressor or small ■ nationalities. The. Opposition .quitted the Chamber. Allies’ Conference. Dee. 29 The Press Bureau says that in the past three days there have been continuous conferences in London with the « British Government. M. Ribot and M. Thomas with other French representatives liad a full discussion, and are in complete agrecjiieii A Minister of Munitions has been appointed, with a committee to consider the best means of securing adequate supplies of alcohol for war purposes find essential trades' requirements for munitions and transport. The air services are to be greatly increased. - . f In Austria. MILAN, Dee'. 30. > Latest news from Austria iulieatcs political cliaoe. The resignation of the powerful Min-istry-maker, M. Seicliart, was under . sensational circumstances. He was holidaying when King Charles urgently summoned him to Vienna ae.-, demanded liis resignation forthwith. Seichart’s original name was Singer. His resignation, cabled on 23rd 0. tober, was regardcl as further proof of

VUW'—* j , 0 JL X King Charles’s determination to eliminate German influence, in politics. It is anticipated that M. Sylvester will be President. t Iteicrath resignation is largely responsible for his refusal to summon the Reichsrath during the war at the behest of a German clique. There arc renewed rumours that. Count Tisza’s resignation is imminent A German Outrage. LONDON, Dec. 29. An Admiralty communique narrates an outrage wherein German savagery t in torpedoeing a merchantman reached , its climax. ,* . '* The British .steamer Westminister was going to Port Said when it is said that she was twice struck, unwarned, by a. submarine 150 - miles from land. Four were killed and tlie steamer > sank in four minutes. The submarine shelled the escaping crew and sank a boat in which were the master and chief engineer, who were both killed. 6 Five others are presumed as drowned. The communique denounces this as murder in cold blood. LONDON, Dec. 29. - The '■■British steamer Copswood and the Norwegian steamer Ira have, been sunk. . . j

C- 7 ifA Greex Reqiest. i" LONDON, Dec. 29. \ is The Greek Government has presented ' xf a Note to. the Entente; requesting 'the - o raising of the'blockade. : - " ■ ~V >..• o ■ . PARIS, Dec 30... d The Foreign Affairs Committee orth* Chaihber announced thilt;they had ree ceived information fixing the respon- ' jj,' sibility -of King. Constantine' - and his - £ Greek staff fox’ the events of. y Ist, thus demonstrating the necessity of ? e VetfergeHc action. . V - ; ; v LONDON, Doc v 3Q. V; 4 . 'lt- is ' understood,' - that the second' ' Allied Note to Greece has not been presented,- pending King; Constantine’;*; ■ the**, ' U ; i■ i■ ,v ;" V;: -', * . :■* ; v-'' ■ '- •. AT ••. '-'A