UNDERGROUND WARFARE

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 220, 18 May 1917, Page 7

UNDERGROUND WARFARE

GERMAN TACTICS IN THE WEST,

GAPS IN HINDENB’QRG LINE

Since losing the commanding heights of the California Plateau, Vimy Ridge, the Chemin des Dames, and Craonne, the German defences are taking a new form. The enemy is endeavouring to stay the Allies’ advance by extraordinary engineeringefforts. He has built subterranean concrete trenches, 'and large numbers of underground, steel-roofed and armour plated concrete machine-gun positions, with narrow observation slits, offering the smallest possible target. Nevertheless direct hits have already destroyed a number of the latter, instancing the wonderful accuracy of the British gunners. Mr. Pirrie Robinson, the Times’'correspondent at British headquarters, says that during the last two days the initiative of battle has been with the French, the British standing ready to smash enemy counter-attacks. The German defence is no longer one definite strategic point. There is no definite and elaborately-constructed trench system confronting the 'British. Instead there are innumerable minor scraps of trench and machinegun positions all in open country. The present warfare is a curious combination of open and trench fighting. We are continually confronted with prepared defences, against which attack is humanly impossible in day-time without heavy artillery preparation. A new hybrid kind of fighting has intervened, with periods of comparatively stationary war. But the advance proceeds methodically and relentlessly, and the progress is faster than last summer’s.

Reuter’s correspondent at headquarters, writing on Saturday, says that Craonne and Laffaux are respectively flanking points of the plateau whence the Germans have now been swept. The powerful positions constituting the Laffaux salient, which is the corner-stone of the Hindenburg line, was especially difficult of access as the valley in which runs the Sois-sons-Laon railway had to be crossed. After this Laffaux still had to be stormed, yet the positions were taken at a blow, though the Germans were continuously reinforced by a tunnel connecting the trenches with the quarries in the rear.

Fighting was everywhere very fierce. The correspondent watched a German counter-attack, accompanied by a most furious bombardment on captured trenches. These smoked under a rain of heavy shells as if afire, yet the French did not yield a foot. The main feature of the Craonne sector was the desperation of the enemy, who employed the Prussian Guards to recapture Craonne. Repeated waves of assault were mown down. When the attacks were finally broken the French hunted the survivors from the trenches and shelters where they had assembled for the attack. These were found packed with dead. The French took 1100 prisoners here alone ana as these were takeil only in the last resort the enemy losses may be imagined. The result of the whole fighting is that gaps of several miles long have been torn in the Hindenburg line. This is most notable, as the enemy meant to stand on the Craonne Plateau, if anywhere in Prance.