NOTES ON THE WAR.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 April 1917, Page 3

NOTES ON THE WAR.

THE VJMY RIDGE. FORTRESS O.F TREMENDOUS STRENGTH. The Vimv ridge, against which the important British attack was launched on Monday moraine, is a spur of the Artois plateau, extending si\- or oight kilo-south-cast from Souehez, wliif'h lies in a depression forming the valiev of the Soiii'liez stream. It is not 5119 ft above -sea level at- the highest point, hut for all that it provided the enemy with direct observation and its slopes were intensely fortified, so that it formed a fortress of tremendous strength. The Arras-l.ens road crosses >t> but the railway route hetvviieu the two towns avoids it, passing to the east, and Vimy itself lies between road and railway on t'he eastern slope. At the northern end is Givcneliy-cn-Cohello; at the southern end are Villerval and Bailleul, and the village of Tbelus lies on the western slopi\. while Farbus is over the erest. North of Givenchy are Angres and Lievin. jn the midst of a district that is eloselv built over, the whole area around Lens being devoted to mining and iron steel trade-?. Pits, furnaces, slag heaps, brickfields and factories provide the Germans with excellent cover and readymade fortifications for their machinegun posts, and the fighting that occurred from time, to time among the mines and factories showed how expensive it would be to blast a path through. The Vimy ridge covered Lens from the south, and to the north the line bends back to the north-west in a series* of highly organised defences similar in character to the famous Labyrinth. The offensive was developed on a front extending from GivMiehy-en-Go-hello along the western slope of the Vimy ridge, past La Folic farm, the scene of so much bitter fighting in the past, and then east of Roclincourt and east of Arras and across Observation ridge to Neuville Vitasse and Tienin on the Cojcul. The enemy's salient on the Beaurains ridge soon disappeared, NeuvillcVitasse was captured and so was Tilloy, a coi'plo of miles south-east of Arra'i. and later the British reached Feuc r ny Chapel, a mile and a-half beyond Tilloy. At the same time the Germans were forced back out of the eastern suburbs of Arras, Blagnv, ,St. Laurent, Athies, and Fouchy falling into the British hands. The present front is t'hree miles east of Arras—at least it was about there on Monday night, and' the offensive still continued. North of Arras the village of Thelus, the hamlet of Les'Til- ■ Inula and. La Folie farm were captured, but the communique records no progress beyond the ridge. The front taken over by the British between Lens and Arras was established after the fierce battle for Souehcz and the Labyrinth, first in May and then in September,, 1915, The final line established by the French was the result of tile September push, undertaken in coiljunction with the British who were attacking Loos; This front remained until May of last veai\ when t'lie Germans made a strong attack to recover the northern end of the Vimv ridge, and the British communique briefly announced that they had in part-auenreded. This May battle has never been fully explained. Apparently the result was accepted by the British, who were content to leave Hill 140 to the enemy, and no serious counter-attack was delivered. The British, of course, had bigger business in preparation at the time and Sir Douglas Ha'ig did not intend to be diverted from his main plan. On the rest of the British front local attacks were delivered at so many points as almost to convey the imnre-s----sion of a genera! offensive on the whole front. Along the napaumc-Oainbrai road the village of Boursies was stormed, bringing the advance within eight miles of Cimbrai, and the activity affected a front of perhaps five miles, the hamlet of Demicourt, arid t'he village of Hermies.also passing info the possession of. the British. Progress was made, too. in (he western portion of the Huvrineourt wood, the positions in which are liable to attack now from north, west and south. Between the Havrinoourt wood and the Hargicourt heights no important fighting occurred, but to the south again an advance was achieved on the front between Jeancourt and Fnyet, the villages of Le Vergnier, Pontiro and Freslio.y changing hands. The effect has been to develop a pronounced salient between St. Quentin and the Vllleret-'Harsfcourt iiiils, and although the depth of the latest advance was not great, it will lmve been made against desperate resistance.