Thank you for correcting the text in this article. Your corrections improve Papers Past searches for everyone. See the latest corrections.

This article contains searchable text which was automatically generated and may contain errors. Join the community and correct any errors you spot to help us improve Papers Past.

Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image

THE MESSRS BATTLE.

SOUTH ISLAND TROOPS IN, THE ATTACK. ' PRISONERS AND MACHINE GUNS <- CAPTURED. (From Malcolm Ross, Correspondent with the New Zealand Forces in the Field.) Northern France, 20th June. This is the story of the troops who attacked on the left in the Battle of Messmes. They did their work cleanlv"nd well, taking all their objectives in tune. Three shells that fell in their midst early in the night, while the men m a Canterbury Battalion were bavin* (heir tea, paused 24 casualties, but, iri the assembly trench they had no losses. About four minutes before the time, our .machine-guns opened, and had the effect of causing some of the nearer troons to rush up to the trenches before the moment of attack. Apparently a watch had been wrongly set, or someone had mistaken the time. However,, no. great harm was _ done, and, nvhpn our creeping and stationary barrages opened out in full blast, with the heavier guns firing-farther n field, the men worked quickly across No Man's Land, hugging the barrage till it ■ "lifted." Then they took their part of the trench with little resistance. ' -Still hugging the barrage, they again moved forward and captured the first position. The troops destined.for,the second line, just in front of,, the.,town, then passedj ■through, capturing on the way a strong point and taking seventeen prisoners with three machine-guns. As soon as the barrage, lifted the second objective was rushed, and captured according to time-table. Tn one place it was found ■ that tho enemy had put new' wire in front of this line. The enemy did not retaliate to any great ex tent "with his artillery on this sector (ill 0 a.m. He! then,commcnced to shell from the southeast, umhlading 'the position with five-j point-nines and four-point-twos. He shelled,continuously until 8 p.m. on.the, following day. Our men, however, stuck it . out bravely,; though . suffering casualties. They consolidated the trench, making good reverses, and wiring it up. Only one "tank" was seen. It was coming straight at a Battalion Headquarters, and was stopped , only just in time to prevent its crushing lis the dug-out. The men; had plenty of rations that night, in spite of the enemy's shelling. On the following night there was '"mm and clean . socks for the men." Thio and a fair night's sleep made them cheer--ful and keen. The wounded were quickly evacuated, and the dead were buried in groups by the chaplain, who succeeded in getting mijp references of all graves. More Canterbury men followed, and captured and occupied the part of the village alloted to them. These troops also captured and consolidated portion of the system of trencher-! on the left of the town, and took a strong point known as Swayne's Farm. They experienced no enemy's shell fire until the trench on the left of the town was taken. In .spite of the dust and the darkness the advancing troops maintained' ' their direction in fine style. The fust serious opposition mot with was. from two ma-chine-guns that opened from shell-holes after,the leading troops had passed on. These were rushed and crews killed. Then two of our platoons rushed their machine-guns up close to the barrage, and were closely followed by one company and two platoons of another company. Such was the onrush of our men that tho enemy had little opportunity of getting his machine-guns into action for any time. Five were attacked while getting into action or immediately afterwards! and the remainder were captured before they could fire a shot. Some snipers were quickly , overcome, and a feeble attempt fit bombing by the enemy was nipped in the bud. A considerable number of the enemy were killed, and about 200 prisoners captured in the village.

The enemy was in some force in trenches at the cemetery at the back of the village, and here our advancing troops were momentarily, held up, but supports reinforced tho attackers, andthe place was rushed. The enemy seeing it was all up with them, turned and ran, but several were killed and (Mtv taken prisoner. In a trench on the left of tho town several Germans were killed and fifty taken prisoner. These troops dug in' on a line under heavy shell fire; On the left of the Canterburys, Otago and Southland -men took the first. objective up to timetable, with little opposition. Emplacements sheltering ma-chine-guns that had just begun to open fire were luckily'smashed by our artillery, and two other machine-guns wero captured by the Southlandera before the Germans could get them into action. An Otago company also captured "two .ma-chine-guns in an emplacement;.in a German support trench and" two others in the Hospice—a strong point from which trouble might have been expected. ./

'. Supports now came up, find advanced towards the second objective, as they did i? 0 {jetting in. touch with the troops on their left.. Those, troops also took their sector of the objective, to time. Other troops, jn conformity with the troops' on ■ our left, took '9' sector of trenches far. ther to the.left, without opposition, except from one strong point where, a ma-chine-gun opened on them from an emplacement, til! one'of th» tanks turned on it,and crushed through 'the'template-' ment walls. great deal of the success of these, as of t)ie other New Zealand troops that took part in the operations, was attributable'to the very oavcfuPtraihinßundertaken.in a district far behind the front.,.:' ! ' " '.'' '-"'"',.'•,". "'""■ '""' : ! Some' of them had, in the battle, to move diagonally across No-Man's Land r to their fWt objective at an angle of about 45 degrees, and then ciiarige dirge-' tion to reach their second objective. Owing to the semi-darkness, the smolse from the great roirib bursts, arid the smoke and dust from our barrage, the objectives were completely hidden,-but the troops wore so familiar with the lie of the land that, they were able to hit exactly the flanks of their objectives, and to take them" without * for one minute delaying the advance of the troops in the rear. Altogether it was a very remarkable performance. HEROIC DEEDS. All the men fought with gamoness and determination. One of the runners in the Otagos, although wounded, continued to carry messages through an intense enemy barrage from his company to battalion headquarters. Though wounded a second time, Jio returned to his company with am important despatch. He remained on duty until ordered to the dressing station by his company commander. • A Canterbury corporal rushed through a part of the barrage, and, assisted by; a private, captured in a .dugout two machine-guns and thirty prisoners before ■ they' could get tkair gun into >. action.

line had been taken, was scat forwawfc with his platoon to consolidate on a fcnft two hundred yards in advance. His platoon commander was, severely wound- ' cd, and the sergeant then took command ■ and ably led it to the position to be consolidated. He displayed gTeat .bra\w » ery under a severe bombardment, aAi ■ set a splendid example to his men, • During the whole of the sixty hours that ■ lii 3 company occupied its position he did excellent work. , A private in the Canterburys, single-' -' handed, attacked a machine-gun that was'holding rip the advance. He shot-' two of tile gun's crew, and then closed '■ with a third, whom ho overpowered: " The remainder of the crow then surren- !> dered. A sergeant in the same unit, «■ when his officer was wounded rushed -■' forward with ten men, and was pfobjably ithe first man to enter Messines, where ' he and his men captured four machineguns and between ■sixty and seventy '• Germans. In the capture of the final " ■objective just beyond the village his ' bravery was equally conspicuous. Another Canterbury man, who went into action as his company commander's observer, entered an enemy dug-out and brought out eighteen prisoners. La*T . in the day he stalked arid bombed an enemy sniper. Ho then led a party, against a machine-gun that was being • tired from a dressing station, captured - the gun, and killed all the crew save -' one. On two other occasions during ; the morning he led a patrol .with con- > sideriible dash, and .returned with important information. In the same unit there was a capfcaiii *> commanding the leading company of the • battalion, w-hich.was ordered to capture ■* and clean up the left side, of the town. lie led his company with the greatest ■ gallantry rinder '.heavy shell-fire. Be moved calmly through the village, supervising the work and encouraging his men. He assisted in the capture of two machine-guns, and throughout the. whole operation snowed an absolute disregard for his own safety. A lieutenant, who had previously done fine work in charge of special patrols, led his platoon with splendid bravery, until, he fell . severely wounded. Another lieutenant when his senior officers were wounded. took command of the company, which had. severe casualties,' reorganised it, and,led it through Messines, capturing on the way two machine-guns. >Bt» then supervised the organisation to the east of Messines under very heavy shellfire. A private, single-handed, tackled three Germans who were bringing a machine-gun into action out of a trench. He bayoneted the crew and captured ihe gun. He continued fighting brave* ly until next day, when he fell severely wounded. A private rushed through part of own barrage and assisted the corporal already mentioned- in the taking of the dug-out, with two machineguns and thirty prisoners. The Southlanders also frequently distinguished themselves in the fighting. <I ■' have heard the story of a corporal, who, seeing some of the enemy in a trench, to,., the right of the position which his company occupied, rushed into the trench "and demanded their surrender. As they declined to surrender he promptly cleared the trench with his bayonet. 'Then, when both his platoon officer and sergeant were wounded, he assumed command, and carried on, in a cheerful manner. The sergeant of the same unit assumed command when his platoon ofiicer was wounded. Later, when acting as company-sergeant-major, ,hc was severely wounded, but would npt allow , himself to be moved until he had handed over all papers and records to the next senior sergeant. There was a lieutenant who was wounded through the hand by a piece of a shrapnel shell during tie' advahcßl' l \ This happened soon after he -had 18ft, , the assembly trench, just before dawn. Noticing that the commander of the adjoining platoon ■was severely wounded, he, although suffering great pain from ' > his own wound, went forward with the two platoons. Ho Ternained with "%6k men of those two platoons' on the cap* hired line supervising the consolidatioi* until 3 p.m. that day—nearly twelviS , hours after he was wounded. By that time he was suffering such pain that he had to be sent down to the Regimental Aid Post. ' During practically all -.tie time he was in command,of the two pl«» toons they were subjected to heavy dwflN fire. i • ■ V/ On Ihe left of these Southlandelß, ' owing to.the nature of the operations necessitating a refused flank, there waSj* as the 'morning progressed, a somewhat complicated situation to be cleared tqS? Some Otago men were detailed to forts - to a flank after crossing the first objee4 ' tivc for the purpose Of capturing por-. . tion of other German, trenches, farther) forward. The captain in charge of- this' operation carried out his advance in'fine style! in spite of hostile machine-gun fhjtt consolidating the -position. A little lat«f -, finding that the company on his righ6> hudi only one junior officer remaining unhjt, lie at once took charge of the two' companies i and rapidly '.reorganised the consolidation of the whole section of the lino. During -the wtojc lime the posi-v tion was being heavily',shelled, but it»,i was bravety held and made quity* secure/ in the OtagW wjiile,&dvanc- • ing with his mates to the oaptufe of the town, noticed that a trenchJn fiont wasi being held'by an enemy machine-gun'. | He 'immediately charged forward to put'f ' the gun out, of action. Willi the gjjiVi wore six Germans. "Five of these lie | bayonotted. The sixth he brought.jrjtf' along wilh 'the gun. By his braVe acloil f he undoubtedly prevented many casual"! ties on his'iside, ?nd probably'also thef hblJing-up of the advance in that quar-if ter for some time. < < ■ _^l

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TDN19170901.2.37

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Taranaki Daily News, 1 September 1917, Page 5

Word count
Tapeke kupu
2,025

THE MESSRS BATTLE. Taranaki Daily News, 1 September 1917, Page 5

THE MESSRS BATTLE. Taranaki Daily News, 1 September 1917, Page 5

Help

Log in or create a Papers Past website account

Use your Papers Past website account to correct newspaper text.

By creating and using this account you agree to our terms of use.

Log in with RealMe®

If you’ve used a RealMe login somewhere else, you can use it here too. If you don’t already have a username and password, just click Log in and you can choose to create one.


Log in again to continue your work

Your session has expired.

Log in again with RealMe®


Alert