SUPREME HEROISM.

Taranaki Daily News, 24 October 1917, Page 6

SUPREME HEROISM.

OF THE NEW ZEALAND TROOPS. &TTACK LAUNCHED UNDER MOST TRY IXC CONDITIONS. ■(Special from the X.Z. Official 'War Correspondent, Captain Malcolm Ross). October 17 (by cable. All accounts prove the superb heroism of the New Zealand troops in the most recent phase of the Flanders battle. Under the most trying conditions, the attack was launched at formidable, positions, and wave after wave of infantry rent forward in an attempt to storm the dominating concreted machine-gun positions, the only shelter from which (vas in waterlogged shell-holes. Owing to the unprnpitious weather, great diffilulty had been experienced in getting the funs up to forward positions, and when 'they commenced shooting some of them, imperially the heavier pieces, shifted upon their foundations, so that the usual effectiveness of the barrage was interfered with.

After the men had fought almost to a itandstill, the officers, leaving what shelter they had in the shell-holes, went forward to reconnoitre the position, and were shot at by snipers and machinegunners from the heights above. accounts for .the large percentage of cas'lalties in the officers.

The farthest point reached was by the Rifles on the left, at the cemetery and Wolf Copse, and by the Canterbury and 'Otago troops, who made an indentation just below the Bellevue Spur, from which lame hot machine-gun fire. Forward of this, on a ridge to the left of Passchendaele village, were two pillboxes, from which came a destructive fire. Under the conditions that existed no troops could have stormed such positions, and it was wisely decided to break off the attack.

During the afternoon the battle quiet l ' oned down, and both sidAs devoted all ftheir energy to clearing their wounded—an extremely difficult task, requiring, in the special circumstances, a very large /increase in the number of stretcher-bear-ers. These were procured from the reserves and other units, and worked heroically and untiringly, with the result that our sector was quite clear of wotmd°.d forty-eight hours after the battle. Operations have quietened down, but the enemy artillery is again 'becoming active, and yesterday morning mixed his shooting with a large number of gas shells. His aircraft have also been active with bombing raids, and have fired •on the troops with machine-guns from low altitudes. The ground, though drying slowlv. is still waterlogged, so that in some places it is impossible to dig below two feet. in the front or support lines.