AT GRAVENSTAFEL RIDGE.

Hokitika Guardian, 28 December 1917, Page 1

AT GRAVENSTAFEL RIDGE.

WORK OF NEW ZEALANDERS. In the light for the Gravenstafel Ridge early in October,,the New Zealanders took several hundred prisoners. In his account of the operations of the New Zealanders- Mr. Malcolm Ross writes: All the farms on the way up to the Ridge were full of the enemy, apparently in view of the attack that was timed for about an hour later than that of our men. This would perhaps account for the large number of prisoners that we were able to secure in this fight. One saw them coming down in hundreds during the forenoon. One lot appeared on the sky-line early in the morning ,and came marching down in column of fours with an officer nf their head. As he passed our New Zealand General at a later stage of his journey a peremptory German command rang out, and the column went past at “ Eyes Left,” At intervals smaller hatches of prisoners came down the duck-board tracks and aloiv tlie roads without escort ou our part. 'Hie men who captured them liad been so keen to get on with the attack that they did not bother to send anyone hack, with their prisoners. The prisoners came down. .willingly enough. Many of them were quite young—mere boys. As one of our men put it, they had never seen a razor in all their life. They were, of course, not all youngsters, and subsequently in the later attack on Passelicndael the New Zealanders found themselves up against tougher material of the .Tagor type, men who stuck sturdily to their “pill-box” positions and fought well. There were prisoners very shaken and seared. Some evidently had been told terrible tales of British ferocity, and were surprised that our men should give them cigarettes and help along their woundup One youth walked for more than a mile with bis hands at the ready, and put them up whenever he met a New Zealand soldier. His progress along the duck-walk was comical in the extreme, his anils going up and down, as if he were a marionette worked wit-1 a string. Among the prisoners were two battalion commanders. Generally speaking tlie officers were more subdued, not to say despondent, than any we bad captured in former battles.