FROM OTHER SOURCES.

Hokitika Guardian, 10 April 1918, Page 2

FROM OTHER SOURCES.

LUCK AGAINST THE HUNS. LONDON, April 8. \ A British headquarters report on the evening of the eighth states that the heavy bombardment, mentioned earlier, died down after one hour, apparently being smothered by the violence of our reply. '

Wet, cold and dreary weather has commenced. It is said that the weather during this offensive is the first bit of luck that has gone against the Gormans.

TRAINLOADS OF DEAD. AMSTERDAM, April 8. A frontier 'report states that the whole of Brussels is converted into a large hospital for the German wounded. Trainloads are arriving hourly. Scores of trains laden with corpses have passed Antwerp for Germany. Nobody is permitted in. the vicinity of the stations while the gruesome caravans are passing.

NEW ZEALANDERS IN ACTION

BIG GERMAN ATTACK REPULSED WELLINGTON, April 8. The following message, dated April sth, has been received from the New Zealand official war correspondent, Mi: Malcolm Ross: On the New Zealand front, early, this morning the enemy increased his artillery activity. He shelled our front line and searched the roads and battery positions, and bombarded the villages, in which many civilians are still clinging to their homes. Among the casualties was an old woman. A shell landed in her bedroom and blew off part of her leg and foot. We were aware that the enemy had brought up against us the best pait of the new reserve division, which, had not been as yet in the great push, and his artillery preparation indicated that he was about to attack. At 9 o clock his advancing troops were seen through the drizzling rain and mist advancing from the south of the Sorre Road, on n front of 2000 yards. They probably overwhelmed some of our outposts, holding.

only r. few men. (' At first the enemy came on in parties of fours and fives. Immediately the Now Zealand rifles rang out and the machine guns began to stutter with .deadly effect. The German groups quickly' melted away. Those advance parties were followed by other waves, but they were met with withering fire, and nowhere did they get nearer than y 200 yards of our trenches. Not content with their machine-gun and rifle firo, so eager were some of our men that they “ topped the bags ” and advanced to meet the foe in No Man’s Land, but in this new development the Germans had no heart to face the tall ’ New Zealanders. The attack seems to have been carried out by two regiments, each with two battalions in line. It was met by a numerically inferior force of New Zealand riflemen and machine-gunners, who dealt the German regiments a staggering blow, their dead being strewn about No Man’s Ijand, while many of their wounded were soon limping sadly hack to the trenches from which they came. From the prisoners we gather that after the New Zealand Jine had been stormed the enemy troops were to push on to Colincamps village, which was their objective, an advance of .‘IOOO yards. Far from reaching this they failed to gain entry into a single y sjd of New Zealand trench. All the enemy has done is to make an insignificant i little bulge in his own line at Lasignv . Farm, where he is attempting to dig in, . hut his process is costing him further . lives, for our rifles and machine-guns r and artillery are now playing on the ; farm.

The indications are that' lie must have suffered the best part of 1000 casualties. In addition to what our Lewis gunners shot- down our field guns are now pounding him to some purpose, while the Wavier guns are not neglecting targets further afield.

GERMAN LOSSES. . I'.Veoved This Dav at 11.25. a.m.) I 7 ROME, April 9. V* German newspapers admit their casualties aro heavier than in any previous fighting.

A CRITICAL PERIOD. ' I T‘AUSTRALIAN & N.Z. CABLE ASSOCIATION] (Received This Dav at 10.15. h.ji.i LONDON, April 9. Hun Lloyd George said the hurricane was not yet over. 'The most critical period was coming. Everything depends on the resistance to the coming German assaults.