WITH THE AUSTRALIANS.

Taranaki Daily News, 22 May 1918, Page 5

WITH THE AUSTRALIANS.

STOPPING THE GERMANS RUSH STOPuI'BS OP MANY FIGHTS. The considerable number of wounded Australians soldiers arriving at the base hospital testify to the severity of the recent fighting. Tlhey say that April has been a month of fighting that Australians will never forget, but it is some consolation to know that the Germans also have cause to remember it. An officer, describing the hurried movements of Australians to the points of pressure, says: There was never a prouder moment in my life. The fleeing peasants, recognising the Australians as old friends, turned to their homes greeting the troops with cheers , saying: 'We feel safe now."' The officer remarked that the Australian force never had a greater tribute. The battalions which first went into action at Villers-Bretonneux claim to have frightened the life out of the Germans, who thus were stopped for many days. They showed their annoyance by drenching the countryside with gas. This fighting was undoubtedly the most severe the Australians have yet experienced, but the officers are unanimous that everybody rose to the occasion. A senior officer who has led the men since Gallipoli, declares: "I knew what they could do, but their conduct when they first attacked the formidable German positions in the neighbourhood cf Vil-lers-Bretonneux amazed me. The air was sizzling with machine-gun bullets. The Australians advanced without a particle of cover, many gaps o:curring in the lines, but the boys kept on steadily. They have the satisfaction of knowing they upset the enemy's supreme bid for Amiens."