WESTERN FRONT.

Taihape Daily Times, 17 August 1918, Page 5

WESTERN FRONT.

LASSIGNY MASSIF CAPTURED. LONDON, August 15. 3 The entire Lassigny Massif has 3 been captured by French troops. THE HEBTJTERNE WITHDRAWAL. ( ] SALIENT DISAPPEAES. 1 ] LONDON, August 15. ; Eteutejr's \correspiond(ent at BVitish Headquarters, referring to the withdrawal northward, says that Ludendorff's recent order that ground must be given up if holding oh entails undue expenditure of man-power, is largely responsible for 'this new development. Moreover,, the wonderful success of the,light tanks probably impressed the German High Command with the desirability of getting behind the river wherever practicable. We have ' now pushed points far towards Buequoy, and the Hebuterae salient has practically disappeared. The Australians slightly 'advanced their line on the main battle front. NEARER NOYON. DIFFICULT FIGHTING AHEAD. LONDON, August 16. 1 I Mr. Campbell states: The French ! are a long step nearer Noyon as the result of the capture of Ribecourt, ] but the ' ■appearance of fresh ; enemy : ] divisions supporting machine gunners ' means' difficult fighting ahead. ' POCH'S MANOEUVRES. LONDON, August 16. : Router's correspondent at the French headquarters states: General- Humbert received <so*r'espOnd"ehjts. '-He summed up Foch's manoeuvres as follows: The Fourth British Army and the First French Army was to attack simultaneously in the general direction of the Amiens-Roye road. At the right moment the Third French Army would intervene, pushing in the direction of Eoye, when the Germans, menaced by envelopment, would be forced to retreat, our general objective I being to drive him back between Amiens and the Oise. General Hum,- , bert was allotted the attack, after the Germans were reeling under the blow of De B'enty's and Eawlinson's armies he moving reinforcements into the sector between Montdidier and the Somme, The 'operation resulted as Foch had foreseen. Humbert attacked at dawn on the 10th. The thinly-held German line was incapable of resistance. The Germans had taken the precaution of evacuating the Mondi-dicr-Assainv&ljljQiTS salient. General Humbert, finding the resistance weak- ] er than he expected, pressed on in the ' direction of Eoye. The situation de- | veloping rapidly, a change of plan I was feasible. It was no longer necessary for Humbert to advance in the direction of Eoye. Therefore, ? -6n the 11th, he swung round so that the whole , line fronted east instead of north-east, and began the battle which resulted in the capture of the key points of the Thiescourt massif. On the 12th the enemy received reinforcements, and began to offer obstinate resistance. Further German divisions have been brought into the line of the Thiescourt hills, which will not surrender without hard fighting. A French communique states: As a : result of a local operation, tre made some progress in the wooded massif between the Matz and the Oise. North west of Ribecourt, we captured Attache Farm and Monolith Farm, both ' being energetically defended. We took , some prisoners. . ,- ■ ; Wireless German official.— We eva- , cuated a projecting sector near Puis- • ! seuix and Beaumont Hamel (north of I Albert, and west of Bapaume).

HAIG'S EEPOET. Eeceived 9.15 a.m. LONDON* August 16. Sir Douglas Haig reports: We advanced our line slightly at nighttime north-east of iMorlancourt, and repulsed an attack on a post in this vicinity after sharp fighting. Local fihting occurred on the north-eastern outskirts of Thiepval Wood. Our patrols there crossed to the left bank of the Ancre. Our patrols further north progressed between Beaucourt-sur-Ancre and Puiseleaux and Miraumont. There is increased hostile artillery activity south of the Somme and between \a Bassee Canal and Ypres. GERMAN WITHDRAWAL I-A;-- •.:, CONTINUES. . BRITISH CAPTURE POSITIONS. , Eeceived 9.15 a.m. ■■ NEW YORK, August 16. The German • withdrawal on the Western front continues. The British have gained a mile south of Morris, capturing Vieux Berquin. SITUATION. COMPREHENSIVE SUCCESS. • LONDON, August 15. There is no present indication of the Germans retiring behind the Somme. The enemy made a further retirement in the north-eastern part of the Lys salient, from a mile to two miles, over. ,a nine miles front. He is also withdrawing from the Serre Salient, straightening .out the bulge there. The impression, is increasing that the,, enemy intends to abandon the offensive. .

The Germans have been compelled to, use thirty-five >3ivisions of reserves between the. Oise and the Ancre, and now only have on the whole of the West front sixteen fresh divisions in reserve, of which eleven belong to Prince Rupprecht. The latter only holds the line from the sea to Albert. The front from Albert to Soissons is held by von Bochm. It is believed the latter was selected because he did well on the Somme battlefield in 1916. In view of there being only sixteen fresh divisions, it is : doubtful whether the Germans will put up.another big attack this year. A German attack on the Murman railway will probably be made in September. The enemy is preparing to advance from all -Finnish railheads. The Bolsheviks who retired before our forces perpetrated every form of atrocity, on the inhabitants. O'ur forcewhich landed at Onega B'ay tried to cut off the Bolsheviks from Archangel, but the latter reached Obeserskaya, a hundred miles to the southward, and held up our force, which inflicted heavy enemy losses. They made a fairly good resistance under German officers.

Between 600 and 700 guns have! been captured by the British Fourth ! Army and the French First and Third Armies, of which 450 were captured by the British. The German losses since the Bth are greater in proportion tu the Allies' losses than in. any previous battle. Their dead especially, enormously exceed ours. There are indications that the enemy intends to fight approximately on the line now reached, except to the southward, where the French are in possession of Lassigny Massif. This will compel him to retire, probably behind the Divete river, a small tributary of the Oise.