WESTERN FRONT.

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 220, 12 June 1917, Page 5

WESTERN FRONT.

ALTERING THE LANDSCAPE

TREMENDOUS UPHEAVALS

MINERS WATCH THEIR HANDIWORK.

EON DON. June 10

Mr. Philip Gibbs says: The ground gained at Messines remains firm in our hands, the artillery breaking attempts to counter-attack in most cases before the enemy is able to advance Only at Klevin Zillebeke, on the northern flank of the battle line, did the Germans get a temporary footing, where many of their dead lie, owing to the fierce fighting which is still progressing. I saw new batches of prisoners, mopped up on Friday night; It is no wonder they do not regret capture after their experiences of our gun fire. They are young boys and middle-aged men, all sturdy and strong. They are extraordinarily ignorant of the world-wide hatred aroused and expected admiration for the way they fought. They want the :war to end quickly and care not much wTTether it ends in victory. After'inspecting the smashed German trenches I understand why German soldiers desire to see the end of this kind of warfare. It is a marvel to me that any prisoners -were taken, every yard having been ploughed and swept by shellfire. Messines Ridge is utterly bare, deeply scarred and pitted by the tempest of shells. Some bodies of German soldiers lie in the ruins, but most of the killed lie buried under the masses of earth flung up by the shells buried in tunnels which collapsed, buried by the wild upheaval of the mines which opened the earth beneath them into gaping chasms a hundred yards wide an 4 sixty feet deep. Mining under the German lines was conducted for more than a year by tunnelling companies from Australia and New Zealand, and English mining districts. It was hard, dangerous toil, because the enemy were countermining. There were frightful moments when the tunnellers heard the sound of picks very close. They had to rush out lest they should be blown into the next world. The miners relieved one another in the darkness lest the enemy aircraft should see and suspect. Australian tunnellers waited on Wednesday night in dug-outs not very far away for the moment when a year’s work was to be accomplished by the touch of a little spring on a metal plate whence an electric wire ran to the mine shaft below Hill 60. They waited with nerves strung tensely, deeply excited, though very quiet. They knew exactly the explosive power of the tons of ammonal packed under the enemy’s positions. There was always the risk of misadventure. an appalling risk of failure, because this work, this man-made earthquake, is a tricky business. A long spell of intense silence was broken at ten minutes past three o’clock in the morning. “Fire!” said an officer, The metal disc was touched, there was a noise of the earth in travail, a-rending, a rushing nose, a breaking out, a vast roar like a cliff falling over a precipice. Hill 60 opened and let forth a great eruption of flaming clods. The troops waiting to attack rose at the signal. SonfS -“were flung down by the explosion. Wurtemburgers and Jaegars rose from holes holding up trembling hands and asking for mercy. They shook with the terror of the explosion, some cowering in dark pits which before the explosion were deey dug-outs and observation posts heavily concreted.

NSW ZEALANDERS’ TASK

MOST FORMIDABLE PART OF

LINE TO ATTACK,

LONDON, June 11

The “Times” correspondent on the British front, describing the Baltic of Messines, says: The New Zealanders had perhaps the most formidable part of the line; the village of Messines was the chief objective. The German guns were quicker in getting to work here than elsewhere and the New Zealanders were heavily shelled. The Germans infantry wore strongly fortified, and stiff fighting resulted. The New Zealanders took the village and everything asked, within the time appointed, and then entrenched. The Australians, according to plan, went through the New Zealanders and carried the victorious advance to the present line, a total of five thousand yards. . SIR DOUGLAS HAIG’S REPORT. Sir Douglas Haig reports: There have been no further counter-attacks southward of Yprcs/ but enemy artillery inactive here, also in the neighbourhood of Fontaine dcs Ooisebes (north of Bnllecourt.)

We successfully raided southwards of Souchcz river.

We downed nine enemy acronlar os Three of ours are missing.