IN THE WEST.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 March 1916, Page 5

IN THE WEST.

BATTLE OF VERDUN. FOURTH DAY OF LULL. FRESH ATTACK EXPECTED. Reecived March 15, 9.20 p.m. London, March 15. This is the fourth day of the lull at Verdun. The German communique doss not even mention this section of the battlefront, Imt nevertheless the French staff is not deceived, anil is expecting a renewed attack and is preparing for it. J The German headquarters staff is abI sorbed in the doings of Fokker pilots Immerman and Boelke, who brought down four more Allied aeroplanes, making their r espective scores ten and eleven.

THE ALLIED LINE. DEFENCES MARVELLOUSLY DESIGNED. FORTS UNIMPORTANT. Received March 16, 12.20 a.m. Fremantle, March 15. ir... Frederick Villiers, the veteran war correspondent, who has visited Verdun, states that the defences are impregnable. There are over seventy miles of barbed wire entanglements outside the town. He thinks the war will last some time, and that the British fleet will have to play a more important part tn bring Gercuny to her knees. Mr. Vifliers docs not hesitate to say that the chances of the Germans breaking the Allied line at Verdun are very remote indeed, the defensive works being marvellously designed. There is a ring of forts, but these are not expected to play a very important part in the defensive operations, so that if one reads of a fort having fallen it should carry very little significance. COUNTRY LIKE A VINEYARD. ONLY BARBED WIRE SUPPORTS. . The hills are apparently bare, but, as one approaches, line upon line of what, at first glance, seems supports for vines can oe seen. The whole country for miles around looks all the world like an immense vineyard. The only difference is that the supports are made of the very strongest barbed wire. VALUE OF MACHINE GUNS. At the highest parts machine-guns are hidden, and should the Germans succeed in destroying the entanglements by using up immense quantities of high explosive shells, they will find it a difficult matter to get past those machineguns. It hag been found that one machinegun is capable of holding up a battalion. FRENCH 1916 CLASSES NOT USED. Received March 15, 5.5 p.m. London, March 15. The Times correspondent at Paris says the 1916 classes have not been used at Verdun. VIOLENT CANNONADING. THE FRENCH REPORT. Received March 15, 9.15 p.m. Paris, March 15. A communique says: There was a violent cannonade west of the Meuse, near Vaux and Damloup. A strong enemy reconnaisance in the Haudremont wood was checked at Baisle. ' There have been bombardments with heavy shells, with redoubled violence against our positions from Bethincourt to Cumieres. The Germans launched a very strong attack on this sector, but they were repulsed on the whole front with heavy losses. They gained a footing at only two points in our trenches between Bethincourt and Morthomme. We captured much material by a surprise attack on the trenches between Vosswihr and Oarspach, in Alsace, without loss. Three German aeroplanes were brought down in the German lines in the Verdun region and another in Cernav district.

THE BRITISH FRONT. SUCCESSFUL BOMBARDMENT. Received March 13. 7.45 p.m. London. March 14. General Haig reports that the explosion of an enemy mine did some damage to a portion of a small salient of our trenches. We carried out a successful bombardment of the, trenches north of Ypres. IMPORTANT DECISION PENDING. Times and Sydney Sun Services. London, March 14. The Vossielie Zeitung says that in the Western theatre an important decision, perhaps the final decision of the war, is impending. Verdun represent* only one piece on the board.