WESTERN ATTACK.

Taranaki Daily News, 28 September 1916, Page 5

WESTERN ATTACK.

COMBLES ENTERED. A SALIENT FORMED. London, September 20. Sir Douglas Haig says:—"We have entered Combles and are overcoming the resistance. Paris, September 2(!. Prior to yesterday's infantry attacks toe Germans had commenced to evacuaii Combles, withdrawing many guns and much material. From July J to September 21, there have been 250 enemy aeroplanes destroyed or brought down.

THE TOWN WHOLLY CAPTURED.

1200 PRISONERS AND jrUCH BOOTY TAKEN. Reuter Service. i 'Received Sept. 27, 5.5 p.m. London, Sept, 27. A French official report states that Combles has been wholly captured, 1200 prisoners 'being taken, besides thirty machine-guns and an enormous quantity oi booty.

IMPORTANT CAPTURES.

THIEPVAL AND A HIGH-RIDGE.

'Received Sept. 27, 7 p.m.

London, Sept. 27. General Sir Douglas Haig reports: We captured Thiepval and the high ridge eastward, including the Zollern redoubt. The successes for the two days' are of very considerable importance. "Received Sept. 27, 10.5 p.m. London, Sept. 27. As the result of the capture of Fregieourt and Morval, the Anglo-French occupied Combles. We beat off heavy counter-attacks in the neighborhood of Morval and Les Boeuffs, with ".evere enemy loss. We stormed the fortified village of Guedecourt and drove the Germans hack in disorder.

Tlie Zollern redoubt was very strongly fortified. The elaborate system of 1 envily wired _ trenches was defended with desperation.

HARD AND FIERCE LIGHTING. | i RRITISH IRRESISTIBLE ASSAULT. 'Received Sept. 27, 8.45 p.m. London, Sept. 27. Mr: Philip Gibbs says that the enemy massed many machine-guns against us. It was hard and fierce fighting. The enemy did not yield, easily on the first or second lines, though afterwards, wiien our men were atop of them, some ran as hard as they could. The enemy guns were quick to barrage our lines. Our men along the MorVal-Les Boeuffs road went through a curtain of fire and tlie trenches in the villages in a rapid and irresistible assault. The trenches were attacked by a body of troops already sorely tried by great and successful achievements elsewhere, They were tired in body, but in, spirit they 'Were alert and keen. They advanced grandly. The whole operation was carried out without heavy casualties, except at one point, where machine-guns in strong emplacements caused a temporary check. By :).:!() all south-westward of Morval and thi! whole village of Les Boeuffs were in ,pur hands. At 5 o'clock airmen reported that the Germans were withdrawing their batteries higher up between Les Boeuffs and Guedceourt. Wc had not progressed sufficiently to prevent the enemy from being able to maintain his defence of the village of G'ueuecourt, though the BritisV forced their way to the outskirts in the face of the macliinc-gun fire.

BLOODIEST BATTLE EVER FOUGHT.

ARTILLERY AND INFANTRY IN PERFECT HARMONY, FRENCHMEN'S .TERRIBLE STRUGGLE. Received Sept. 27, S p.rc. Paris, Kept. 27. Eighty-lour hours bombardment of unprecedented violence preceded the general attack on Monday. The deafening roar of the guns suddenly ceased at 12.30, and from Martinpuieli to the Somme there was deadly silence. The French and British sprang from the trenches and advanced to the assault.

The ensuing battle was possibly the bloodiest ever fought. The understanding between the artillery and infantry jrtas so perfect that the seventy-fi'vei. sometimes hurled volleys only twenty-five metres in front of the assaulters.

The British met with the first success, the French having a teri'ible struggle with a 'Prussian brigade between Le Priez and Rancourt.

Tho British carried Hill 150, east of Flers, in the most brilliant manner, and penetrated the ruins of Les lioeulfs, but it took three hours' hard lighting before they penetrated the part of the village en the ugast road between Fregieourt and Les Uoeuffs. The entire village was captured by six o'clock.

, PUSHING FORWARD. STRONGLY ORGANISED AROUND SEIZED. Received Sept. 27, 11 p.m. I'ilris, Sept. 27. A Paris communique states: The French, pushing forward in the afternoon, seized h small wood northward of Fregicourt, and the bulk of the strongly organised ground between that wood and the western point oi St. Y'aast wood, eastward of the Bethune road'

A DOUBLE MOVEMENT.

ENEMY SOUNDLY BEATEN. A DEEP WEDGE DRIVEN IN. COLONIALS SHARE IN VICTORY. deceived Sept. 27. 11.45 p.m London, Sept. 27. The Allies celebrated the anniversary of the offensives on Artois, in the Champagne, by a brilliant advance culminating in the capture of Combles and Thiepval.

The twelve miles' offensive "was the inoct extended yet attempted on the Soinnie. It included a double movement against Bapaume and Peronne. The first two days of the battle was an excellent example of the close cooperation which exists between General loch's and General Sir Douglas Haig's armies.

It is impossible for the Germans to plead that it was a surprise attack, for tin' eighty hours' cannonade gave them ample warning; yet the enemy, in a few hours, lost two important fortresses, l.ve fortified villages, eight miles of trenches, and 'between 4000 and 5000 prisoners, apart from the garrisons of Combles and Thiepval, whereof the number is still unknown.

Lastly, the offensive hag driven a deep wedge into the angle of the high roads leading to Bapnume, whereon the whole Gorman position on the Somuie pivoted. The British advanced posts are now within three miles of Bapaume. The Regulars, Territorials, and men from Overseas all shared in the victory. As a whole the victory was a cheap' one. The rapidity of the Allied success is due to the fact that the British are reaping the advantage of the capture of the heights from Thiepval to Combles earlier in the month,

The weather-is glorious, and excellent aviation work is being carried out.

HOW THE ATTACK WAS MADE. Germans counter-attack again AND AGAIN, ' SHATTERED $Y THE ALLIES. IMPORTANT CAPTURES OF MEN 7 AND MATERIAL,

Received Sept. 28, 12.3i5 a.m.

Paris, Sept. 27.

At the commencement of the battle on Monday, the British attackers massed 500 yards beyond Flers and on the crest beyond Ginchy, overlooking the Guede-cOi:rt-Les Boucffs valley, which there bends its line southwards. The Britishers massed at Leuze and Bouleaux woods, threatening Morval and Combles, while the French gathered at Le Priez Farm and the suburbs of Rancourt, which also overlooked Combles, lying in a pocket if lo'.v hills.

The German resistance was everywhere determined, but there wag most desperate fighting at Les Boeuffs, Morval and Fregieourt. The Germans knew that holding these was their last hope of saving Combles. British guns in Bouleaux wood had already made the Morval road useless, so that the road running from Fregieourt to Sailly was the only German retreat after Les Boeuffs was taken. The' Germans counter-atteaked again and again, but in the end were forced to fall back on Sailly.

Seeing the Germans running, the British, regardless of their own shell barrage, stormed* through the northern part of the village and got well out beyond. The defenders of Morval were covered by the height called the "Old Telegraph Hill," where the enemy had erected a number of batteries and machine-gun posts, also an extensive system of wired trenches. This was a tough morsel, 'but fjie British rushed the formidable line of trenches and then well-fortified themselves in the sunkeon road, but three hours before the western part had been taken, the southern side of Morval being exposed to enfilading lire from Combles, thus increasing the British difficulties.

Finally a. mass attack at 5 o'clock shattered the German resistance, and by (I o'clock the remnant of the defenders were fleeing round and along the Sailly road.

'.Meanwhile, the French made a less sensational advance east of Combles, though they had equally fierce lighting. The Germans early realised the hopelessness of the struggle, and, while the French 'were attacking Rancourt, they hurriedly removed some of the many guns that were defending Combles. The French met the most desperate resistance at a farm between the Fregiconrt road and the main road to B»paume, which was strongly fortified with guns and machine-guns. The French artillery had for days vainly sought to demolish the defences of the farm. Once the infantry entered, but were forced ■back, and finally it became a matter of bayonets against a hail of lead from maeliine-guns. The bayonets won. ■By 4.30 in the afternoon of Monday the Germans had been Hung beyond Hie Fregieourt road, and were lighting in the suburbs of Combles all night long. Kxcept a narrow ravine running to the north-eastward, which was everywhere under the Allied guns, Combles was completely encircled, and Generals Foch and 'Haig determined not to delay the capture" of the town. 'Regardless of the concrete subterranean shelters covering the 'bombers, the machine-gun emplacements, and the extraordinary tangle of liarbed wire, the British attacked the west or tlve town, while the 'French seized the cemetery easily, and by night the whole of Combles was captured, the railway dividing the sections falling between t.lie British and I' rench attacks. Many of the garrison while attempting to escape strayed into the British lines, others being killed by the Allied bar[rages.

The captured guns and booty liae not vet been counted.

UTILISING FRENCH MAN POWER. I'asir, .September 26. A committee of the French Chamber passed a resolution demanding that young men in factories without families iiiould be replaced by the fathers of big families now in t'ae firing lin%

ENORMOUS MUNITIONS SUPPLfES.

CAPTC'RED AT C'OMBLE.S. Received Sept. 2", f1.40 p.m Paris. Sept. 27. A communique state*: The battle was renewed north of the Sommo. TluAllies largely increased their gains and readied the objectives lixed for tlie second day's lighting in some hours. The French in the morning captured that part of Combles east and south of the railway.

Their patrols co-operated with the British, who were cleaning up the land north-west of Combles. .Shortly afterwards the whole village <vas captured. The booty was large, as the Germans had accumulated enormous munitions supplies in the subterranean gullcies. A hundred abandoned German wounded were collected.

Combles was full of Gorman corpse The rain has ceased.

OFFICIAL REPORTS. AXCiLO-FPPKCH PROGRESS.. IMPORTANT CAPTURES. ' London, September 20. Sir Douglas Haig savs:--The preparation and execution on Monday of the.atinelc by artillery and infantry and their co-operation were in all respects admirable. We captured much war material, but the amount cannot yet be estimated. We made further progress (luring the night, and morning, capturing a strong redoubt which held out between Les Boeufs and Gneudeeourt, tailing the g'«. rieon prisoners. Our troops entered Combles from the west, overcoming the lc-istance there. The Gcrixau losses were very severe.

A French communique says: We completed the capture of Fregicouvt and penetrated Combles cemetery The &mme prisoners already' number SOO. The cijcmy made a violent attack on 1 hiaumont Wood and Fleury, but failed, with serious losses. Yesterday our aviators fought 47 combats and onr squadrons bombed many railways and factories. A GERMAN REPOR'. London, September 20. A German communique says:—On tha fourth day of the artillery battle between the Ancre and Sommc the French ami British made combined attacks, as the result of which the enemy obtained !>v capture, the villages of Gueudecourt and Bouchavesues. The line must be.reorganised, but before all we must think of our heroes faced by the Anglo-French forces massed for the Employment of materials prepared by the war industry of the whole world for many months.

THE ENEMY'S TURN.,

GERMAN" REPORTS. SHELLS RESEMBLING" FIRE RAIN* OF GOMORRAH. Rotterdam, August 25. Ma\' Osborne, in a disjifitcli from the Somme, front to tiie Yossiche Zeitung, says:— "Day and night the British ami French inns continuously hurl their murderous lead. Shells burst all around, many exploding before positions where masses of dead are lying. They fling, too, tornofi limbs, so when day comes, niul the men are able to eat, the very sight of meat is horible to them.

The noise tears to pieces ail nerves and senses. It continually drums in one's ears. Not a few find their hearing comvletely gone. The worst of all is the effect of the heavy mines. True, they can be seen coming, and one can get out of the way, but if one runs to the right there is a Hostile flyer above the trenches who directs the fire of the guns so one has to run to the left. "So it goes on, and one is hunted up and down like a wild beast." Rotterdam. August 25. George AVagener, in a despatch to the Koliiisehc Zeitnng, says:— "Everything has to be done at night; the bringing up of reinforcements, removing the wounded and burying the dead. To procure warm food for the men lying out in those horrible conditions is seldom possible. The want or drinking water is one of the most terrible trials, even leading the men . urijik dirty water out of the shell lionv., where there are human bodies and other Ihinys. When an attack begins the terrors of these places are beyond description. Like the fire rain in Gomorrah the drumfire of the enemy pours from Heaven. The little shelter that there is in. the trenches or holes is quickly flattened out. With thunderous roars'heavy shells from the gigantic mines wipe out everything in the neighborhood with their explosion. At the same time a rain of shrapnel falls and poisonous gases roll forward." V.C. AWARDS London, September 20. Naik Shahamad Khan, of the Pun.jaubis, has received the Victoria Cross, lie was in charge of a. machine-gun which was covering a gap in our lines. He was within 150 yards of the enemy's entrenchments and beat off thret coun-ter-attacks Hp worked the gun singlehanded after all the men, except two belt-fillers, bad become casualties Sli# ha mad held the gap for three hours until it was made secure. When the gun was knocked out he and the belt-fillers held the ground with, rifles and later brought the gun and ammunition and a severely wounded 'man back. Finally Shahamad returned alone and removed the remaining arms and equipment. His great gallantry and determination saved our line.

The 30 D.S.O. awards include 10 Australians. The ill ililitiiry Crosses include! 192 British, 49 Australians, six Canadians, and four South Africans.

BELGIAN WOMEN SENT AWAY (Times). Amsterdam, September 26. A correspondent of the felegraai learns that Belgian women who have hitherto been refused permission to leave are now being expelled to Holland.