Official

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXX, Issue 53, 19 October 1914, Page 3

Official

Wellington, October 17

The Prime Minister has received the following from the High Commissioner, dated London, 16tii inst :

A further report worn the general headquarters on October 13th states: “Our men are fairly comfortable in the trenches, and in the numerous quarries cut out of the hillside, as well as In picturesque villages whose steep streets climb the slopes of the hills. “In the firing line the men obtained shelter in dug-outs, hollowed in the rides of the trenches. Quarries and caves provide ample accommodation for' che whole of the battalions. The slopes of the Aisne Valley are very steep. This protects us from the enemy’s shells, many of which pass harmlessly oelow, along the river bank. At all posts subject to shellfire, access to the firing line from behind is provided by communications in the trenches. These are now SO good that it is possible for our men to cross in safety a fire-swept /.one to the advanced trenches' from their billets in the villages. “All day and night the boom of guns and the scream of shells overhead continues. At midday especially the bombardment slackens, and then swells into incessant roar. At first there are short, fierce bursts, as, » dozen heavy howitzer shells fall into the ploughed field, sending up clouds of black smoke and great clouds of earth. Then there is a period of quiescence, soon broken by the smaller howitzer shell, which comes into the villages, tearing up the tiles and stones’ Through this pandemonium the inhabitants conduct their business is though they were accustomed to it. “According to information from tho >nemy, fifteen Germans were killed by i bomb dropped upon an ammunition waggon of a cavalry column. It was drought at the time that this might have been the work of one of our airnen, who reported having dropped a hand grenade on a convoy. I 1 rom corroborative evidence of the locality, it now appears that the grenade thrown by a British airman probably caused the destruction of a convoy carrying field-gun ammunition ,which has now been found a total wreck on. a road passing through the forest of Deretz, north-east of Villers Cottorots. Along the road lie fourteen motor lorries, now only skeletons of twisted iron. “A section of the French Press ■lairns that this damage was caused by the action of their dragoons, and mot of airmen.”