BATTLE STILL RAGING WESTERN FRONT.

Taihape Daily Times, 8 April 1918, Page 5

BATTLE STILL RAGING

WESTERN FRONT.

4 Small Gains for Big Losses. 194 Him Bivisioas on West Front Germans Seven Miles from Amiens Second Blow Further North Expected Germans Over-running Finland.

FRENCH STAND FIRM. ;.; HEAVY ATACKS BROKEN, ENEMY'S CRUEL LOSSES. ir " ..-,'. LONDON, April 5. This evening's French communique . states: The enemy continued his attack during the night with undiminished violence, hurling into the battle fresh, forces. We identified fifteen divisions on our battle front, qf which seven are fresh. Despite the marked numerical superiority of his effectives, which were used up regardless of cost, the enemy did not attain his objective, namely, the railway from Amiens to Clermont. This is borne out by orders found on prisoners. Our regiments, by resistance step by step, and energetic counterattacks maintained their line entirely - and inflicted on. the enemy .cruel losses. Whilst,"northward our^Jine,,was, withto the neighbourhood of ; . the castle,'!we the, enemy from Bois to the .west T of. Majlly Meneyal, southeast., of nifuflve milgs northwejst, of .Mqntdidier., A brilliant ,counter:.attaek gave us St.. Aighas Faxmj which we retained against all assaults. . : ..., : . ...■..,.,,. Between Montdidier and.Noyon the artillery struggle attained great intern sity/ We attacked and conquered. the major part of Bois d,|Epinette,, six h.un.:. dred metres, north of Orvillers—Sorel. AU. 11 efforts to dislodge us proved vain. Further east a local position enabled the extension of our position north of Montrenaud, which the enemy, , notwithstanding his mendacious statements never succeeded in recovering. THRUSTING AT THE HINGE. THE ENEMY'S AIM.

LONDON, April 5. This evening the enemy is again thrusting at what he'believes is the junction of the Franco-British armies, in the hope of yet separating them. His assaults agtinst the B'rdtish yesterday iiwere apparently aimed at a converging movement upon the little town of Cor6*ie, and were delivered in dense waves, which machine-gun and rifle fire heavily punished. He succeeded in straightening ogt a little salient in our line in the neipfbqurhood of Hamel Wood and : ,the village. Our counter-attack was not sufficiently strong to restore the ; position. The weather is wet and misty, and j it is impossible for airmen to co-oper-ate. Fragments of projectiles with which the enemy is shelling our back areas bear British marks, showing that the gans and ammunition came from the Russian front. COLONEL REPINGTON'S TRIBUTE TO THE FRENCH ARMY. LONDON, April 6. - Colonel Repington states that the enemy's strategic objective remains unchanged— namely to separate the British and French, drive the latter south and hold the Somme defensiveT/agaiiist the British, cooping us into a limited area northward and cutting us off from our Seine bases. " Probably an inferior German force could hold such a position. Colonel Repington assumes' that there is now no risk of this, particularly in view of Generalissimo Foch's guarantee of the security of Amiens. Colonel Repington considers the relief of our Fifth Army by the French was a splendid achTevemA and should bo publicly recognisclimax of the battle has yet to comw, We musjt expect the enemy to bring/-every available man and seek to overwhelm us, believsuccess is worth the sacrT;*^LC l/ another 200,000 men.

GERMANS* RESUME THE ATTACK LONDON, April 6. Reuter's correspondent at Headquarters reports that the Germans have shown considerable aggressiveness. At 8 o'clock this morning they attacked in the neighbourhood of Dernancourt on a front of 9000 yards, with an estimated strength of six divisions. After desperate fighting they reached the railway.' An attack in considerable strength in the direction of Ablainsville was completely repulsed* We attacked from the sector Fronquevillers. It Is reported that we gained our first objective. Fighting is progressing on a considerable portion, of the front north of thn Somme, but not on a grand scale such as '-would indicate a general resumption of the offensive. ,Reuter's correspondent,'' reporting at 4.45 a,m. this evening, "says:; At daybreak, this morning the Germans were attacking astride the Somme, galley, in the direction of Sorbie- but there is no news as to how the battle ii progressing. The main weight of tfte' thrust seems to be west of Bios de VaireJ The Germans continue to flight desperately for possession ,of the main Amiens road. German publicists are preparing Germany for prolonged battles. The Kaiser,. Dr. Kuhlmann, Hindenburg, and Ludendorff ar* conferring at Imperial Headquarters.

_ A m erican correspondents. state that ,prisoners are unanimous that Germany means to win'the war in three months" or secure peace. "" ' * ALLIES FACING AN AVALANCHEr LONDON, April 6. The "Daily Mail" says the Germans I are daily creeping closer to Amiens. It is impossible to yield much more without Amiens sharing the fate of Rheims. The Allies are not facing an attack, but an avalanche.

SEVEN MILES FROM AMIENS. LONDON, April G. Mr Murdoch reports: A formidable resumption of the battle has brought furious fighting to within seven miles of Amiens. The pre-arranged organisation whereby the Germans evolved order out of the battlefield, and brought .up masses of guns so speedily, gives striking proof that the Huns are making a strong and confident bid for absolute victory. The battleI field extends for many miles on each side of a line with a frontage of fifty miles. 'Everybody \is digging when not wiring, trench holding or piling ■munitions on dumps* Little is visible of the actual area of the fighting ex-

cept brown earth-works, new gleaming wire, and black shell bursts. The lines seem sleepy during the day, but at night there is furious activity everywhere. The Germans have concentrated Gothas and other ' aeroplanes. They have apparently abandoned attacks on defenceless cities in order to produce th# maximum effect on the front. Despite repeated heavy aerial attacks on Amiens railway, the main Paris-Amicj/ns railway continues almost normal running, while trains along the whole strategic railway system on the French front defy constant efforts by enemy airmen. It would be sheer folly to imagine that the Allies can .easily ,/or even certainly hold the Germans. Amongst immediate pressing needs are new crews for the r»• T ne Allies are getting .every Pos.ble to]dier „ t 0 e cQ^at J AmerU dramDg * **" *™ ENEMY ' . LONDON, April 6. The suction is quiet on the British front south of the Somine

Sir Douglas Haig reports: Activity by the enemy',s artillery and trench mortars increased this morning north of the Somme, followed by strong infantry attacks between the Somme and the, neighbourhood of Bucqnoy. Latest reports show that there has been practically no (success anywhere, the fighting resulting in further enemy casualties. We successfully attacked the Ham front in the neighbourhood of Hcbuterne, prisonering 200 and a few machine-guns. The enemy unattached to-day the British front <south of the Somme, It is confirmed that yesterday's fighting was of a most severe and most persistent nature. The enemy repeatedly assaulted our positions east of the Villers-Brettonneoux. Eain and mist yesterday interfered with operations. We brought down seven German machines. One of ours is missing. Two previously missing have returned. We dropped twenty-two heavy bombis at mid-day to-day on a rail station at Luxembourg. Many burst on the railway, and caused a large fire, Daspite considerable anti-air-craft gunfire, all returned. LONDON, April 6. At. 2.25 this afternoon, Sir Douglas Haig reported: North of the Somme heavy fighting continued along the whole front south of Animette, until late yesterday evening. The enemy constantly attacked in considerable strength, with no further success. There was local fighting yesterday, morning south of the Somme, in the neighbourhood of HangardL We iniproved our position by a counter-at-tack.

A. LATER REPORT LONDON", April 7. Reporting at 10.45 this evening, Sir Douglas Haig reports: There was local infantry fighting in the neighbourhood of Aveluy Wood and north of Albert, without change in the situation. Hostile artillery continues active. At least ten German were participating in the unsuccessful attacks, yesterday, north, of the, Sbmme, •Fighting was very, severe in many 'paries of . this front, as, far northward f as Bucqupy.... 3fi ._"',.. _.. ..' . V ; V J ' : :; ' ; NEW'YORK, April 6. The Times Washington correspond- • ent learns that British, French, Italian •and American troops compose the reserve army 'on the West front/ '■:■■. American military authorities believe that there will be practically one 'Allied front from the Adriatic to the North Sea. Allied man-power will be pooled ur.eer the supreme command of Generalissimo- Fpch. -■■ r , BATTLE FOR AMIENS.

... ' GERMANS : GAIN,., GROUND. •\. !'.y '■ ~' ,- v ' 'LONDON, April 6. •■. i The Germans to-day, occupied the rerest' t 'of|;'the wedge-shaped ridge at the confluence of the Noye and Avre rivers. A few /shells have fallen into Amiens, which was hitherto only been | bombed. As the guns arrive it seems likely that the cathedral will share the feat of Rheimis Cathedral. I .GERMAN CHANES OF SUCCESS. . DISAPPEAR LONDON, April 6. French opinion squarely faces the prospect and remains optimistic. A commentator states that the -struggle will continue with sustained violence, but reserves are entering the battle line. The Germans' chances of rupturing -the Franco-Bri-tish line have disappeared. The Echo de Park says the German tactics are always rigid. They continue to pursue the idea of overrunning Amiens from the (south. It is evident that the manoeuvres are similar to those at Verdun.

French correspondents are satisfied with Friday's fighting. Three French divisions withstood eleven German divisions, causing at '.cast 12,000 caualties. The British endured equally the blow in boggy ground. The French continue to predict a counter-attack. PARIS. April 6.

Semi-official: The majority of the fresh German divisions appear not to have been drawn from reserves, but are troops from other .sectors, indicatthat the German general staff is now economising in men. LONG-RANGE GUN SPOTTED. Received 9.15 a.m. PARIS, April 6. Aeroplanes have spotted one longrange gun hidden at Betonne tunnel, St. Gobain Forest. It is only brought to the surface when firing; countermeasures are under way. DUTCH FRONTIER CLOSED, Received 8.40 a.m. AMSTERDAM, April 7. The Dutch frontier has been closed until the 15th in order to conceal the movements of troops and wounded.

HUN TROOPS HELD BY HALF THEIR NUMBER. BRILLIANT FRENCH COUNTERATTACKS. Received 8.55 a.m. LONDON, April 7. ' Reuter's correspondent with the French army says the results of the first two days of the renewed battle brilliantly confirmed Generalissimo Foch's assurances that the enemy was not only held, but held by half their number of Anglo-French troops. The disproportion on the purely French line from Thennes to Grevesnes is even greater. Fifteen German divisions of which seven are entirely fresh, attacked this front. They were charged by a few French divisions, who not only held them, but were able to counterattack and recapture part of the ground carried by the enemy on Thursday. The enemy's objective was again the Amiens railway and towm. Fifteen attacking divisions included some of the enemy's best troops. They repeatedly returned to the assault far into the night. The battle was suspended today on the German side owing to the exhaustion of the German troops, whereupon the French successfully counteri a backed, at several points, notably at Mailly, Cantigny and Raineval. The front line now passes Avre close to its junction with the Luce, thence running ] west to Castel, thence between Marisel, . Rouysel around Raineval. The gain of ground is practically all on the northern angle. The bulge has no importance for the issue of the battle. HINDENBURG'S ECLIPSE. | LUDENDORFF THE REAL DIRECTOR. Received, 8.55 a.m. LONDON, April 7. A United Service message, dated 6th April, at 11.10 p.m., states that a feature of the battle has been the emergence of Ludendorff from Hindenburg's mastery. It has long been recognised that Ludendorff was the real brains of. the German Staff, ana; he is-,now..acclaimed the director>.Df the; i♦'Battle, of Final, Decision." „\ Allbattle questions are to Luv dendorff. The weather'has improved} but 'Visibility is poor. The main 1 attacks' ! today were' over ground; which Corbee stands upon as a J miniature peninsula, formed by the junction of the Ancre and Sommedrivers.

HUN" OFFENSIVE RENEWED. SMALL GAINS EEPOETED ON SOUTHEEN PEONT. ' ' Eeceived'9:lo a.rm ' ' ' '".'_'j "'J'/,* April 'i/' I The battle on Thursday was oft a. considerable scale. The enemy attacked heavily' in the neighbourhood of Albert, but aa'ade no progress. The enemy then" attacked the Anglo-French in the Mont-' didier region, where he employed twenty divisions, and drove us out of Hamel and gained Vaire Wood. Meanwhile the enemy drove the French from, the angle between the Avre and Luce .rivers, and extended his gains west of Moreuil. The enemy's objective was to cross the St. JustaAmiens railway and cut in the lino to Paris. , The attempt failed, notwithstanding the large force employed. The enemy can hardly regard his effort with satisfaction, although he employed twice the force we did.

The enemy on Friday attacked in considerable force from Dernancourt -long the line through Beaumont, Hamcl and Bucgnoy to Moyinneville All these attacks were repulsed except where he gained footing across the Ancre at Dernancourt. There is some public 'misconception about the army manoeuvre. Some regard it as a great army massed at a central point and marching towards the battle. This is an erroneous picture, as such an army would be a cumbrous thing to move. What really happens is that reserves are distributed at principal entraining centres whence-they can rapidly be moved where needed. From the fact that the* French army is now fighting over one half of the present battlefield it may be inferred that the French reserves have come up.

It has been veriously reported tEat Austrian and Bulgarian troops are assisting the Germans, but beyond the fact that a certain force of Austrian artillery is engaged, it is known that no Austrian or Bulgarian troops are employed. THE LATEST REPORT. ALLIES' POSITION IMPPEOVED Received 11 a.m. LONDON, April 7. Sir Douglas Haig, at 12.35 p.m. yesterday reported: Counter-attacks yesterday successfully re-established our positions at Aveluy Wood. We repelled attacks opposite Albert. Minor operations in the mooring south of the Bomme improved our position.

NEARLY 4,000,000 3.ol* ti ON THE WEST FEOInT, Received 9.30. LONDON, April 7. Mr Hamilton Fyfe states there arc now 194 enemy divisions on the Western front, of which S 4 are on the , battle front. Tv,-o divisions recently , arrived from Russia. WHERE THE SECOND BLOW WILL FALL. BETWEEN AREAS AND .THE Q [ SEA."' -"- Received 10.10. - r . LONDON, April 7. ■ Military critics say we must watch further north for fresh.'outbreak of the German offensive. It pointed out that the excellent communication and the busy industrial district between Arras and Lille will probably induce the enemy to make formidable use of this advantage. Therefore it is not unlikely that a second main battle will burst , northward of Arras around La ■Bassee.