GERMAN MONCHY GAIN

Hokitika Guardian, 13 October 1917, Page 1

GERMAN MONCHY GAIN

EFFECT OF ALASSED FIRE. Fjiaxce, July 20. The condensation of the German artillery and, in less degree, of aircraft is”still the core of all the' fighting news on our front. Our trenches were blown to pieces in front of Monchy, where the German infantry attacked with some success this morning, and all the area behind Lens, especially Angres, is daily plastered with shells; and a heavy bombardment with high explosives and gases both new and old followed one raid in the direction ot Pilkem, north-east of Ypres. The German aircraft are at times concentrated in masses. The other day, for example, 'one of our patrols met 30 German fighting machines in one formation, though even with those odds against them a trio of our singleseated triplanes charged the 00 for the sake of protecting the slower machines that they accompanied. ... Nevertheless, with the exception of a very small affair near Monchy, all the infantry successes have been ours. The daylight raid by Ypres was .singularly daring* Our men went coolly over the top in full daylight against heavily manned trenches, entered them without, great losses, and carried back, still in the" daytime, over 100 prisoners. Snob a feat was thought to be quite impossible a few months ago before the power of curtain fire was fully understood. It. still sounds impossible, but when once the wire is breached the dust, smoke, and confusion of an intense bombardment are such that day becomes a sort of night, and many daylight raids have proved in practice more successful and less costly than night raids. But. of course, only infantry of high quality, well drilled, well led, and stout of heart can hope to storm defended trenches as successfully as these raiders at Ypres. ft. appears from some recent evidence that the enemy is deliberately coaching his men in the silly lie that, they will be killed if taken, but it is chiefly troops fresli from Russia who have been so instructed; the others, presumably with knowledge of the true circumstances, are less willing <0 credit such a. story.