NEW ZEALANDERS IN ACTION.

Digger (Invercargill RSA), Issue 24, 27 August 1920, Page 2

NEW ZEALANDERS IN ACTION.

* * 5 NEWS FROM FRANGE. * * # * GREAT DAYS WITH THE DIVISION. J 5 * * fExtract from "N.Z. C-hroniele," Dee 6, 1918.) j* * Z. * *

THE TAKING OF LE QUESNOY. The storming and captnre of Le Quesnoy by the Rifle Brigade was one of the most picturesque and romantic incidents of the war. The old fortress which has stood many seiges is still wonderfully strong with precipitous ramparts of weli-pre&erv-ed bastions crowned with tall trees, and a dry moat fronting the inner ramparts. Many besiegers have" had a tilt at it in olden times. In 1793 Austrians stormed it after ten days' bombardment, which laid the town in ruins. Though ultimately it fell to one battalion — the 4th — the credit of its capture belongs almost equally to the other battalions of the Brigade, which fought so gallantly and gradually enveloped the town in the face of determined opposition. The dawn was just breaking as our troops, who assembled overnight in the rain, advanced to the attack behind a magnificent barrage. Mingled with the bursting ordinary shells were shells of the medium and Stokes trench mortar, while, from others, descended a smoke curtain which screened the main advance and protected the flanks from a possibly deadiy hail of machine-gun bullets. The fire at zero hour was truly terrific. A high embankment of the raiiway fronting the outer ramparts was our first ohjective. This was strongly held, and gained only after stubborn fighting, during which several Germans were killed and wounded, and others taken prisoner. Approaching the ramparts a-nother battalion — the 2nd — found a 77 mm. gun firing at it over open sights, making advance exceedingly difficult. Meanwhile other battalions were gradually encircling the town to the south and south-west, and the 4th Battalion, whose advance let us now follow, pushed patrols under cover of the barrage and smoke screen right up to the | foot of the outer ramparts, and, in places, j on to their bastion heights. When the j smoke had gradually drifted away, tliere ! canie the stuttering noise of machine-guns, I as belt after belt of German machine-gun bullets whistled through the trees at the advaucing men. One platoon found itself cut off. Its eommander was killed while endeavouring to extricate his men, and, in a hollow between two brick wa-Ils, a daring sergeant remained with his men for six hours. As the sun rose and the bombardment slackened, the civilians saw our men on the outer ramparts and greeted them with d'istant cheers and the waving of flags, inspiring them to renewed efforts. But it was not till after mid-day that patrols began to mark down machine-guns and snipers, and systematically shifted them from the cover on the enfringed bastions. The positions were bombarded with the only available Stokes mortar, and, one after another, occupied. A narrow 30ft ladder was hauled along, and on this officers and men climbed to the top of the precipitous "W" shaped bastions dominating the lir.e of advance. Messages sent into the garrison to surrendel- were so far without avail. One dropped by aeroplane told them that they were entirel'y surrounded. Later, an ultimatum, demanding surrender within two hours, and the opposition perceptibly slackened. But on some of tlie ramparts the men had apparently not received the news, and maintained a defensive attitude. This was the position when the 4th Battalion decided to scale the great moat and formidable rampart of brick crowned with machine-guns still in action. Only in one plaee was it possible to reach the bastion by means of their 30ft ladder. This was the spot where the low wall abutted on to the main rampart. In single file the offieers led their men to the final attack. The track beaten hy their feet leading between the trees and along the top of this narrow wall can still be seen. With Stokes mortar and the machine-guns the men drove the enemy on the reverse slope from the summit of the bastion. Then the ladder was placed against the wall. It barely reached to the top. Two secondlieutenants with three men ascended. Leaving the last rung they foung themselves confronted by a few Germans, who, 'finding our bullets whistling about them, sought. safety in flight, down the slope into an underground cavern, where otner Boches were sheltering. Following upon

this initial success practically the whole battalion streamed quicly in single file along the lower wall, and up the single ladder. Headquarters, which throughout the day consisted of one signaller with a telephone and battalion eommander and was being advanced by slow stages from point to point, now mounted tbe parapet, men paying ont the telephone wire as they climbed. Patrols were pushed down the reverse slope, and the enemy sheltering underground began to surrender freely. Within a few minutes the whole battalion engaged in the vicinity had swarmed up the ladder and were pushing into the beleagured town, through Rue Caillon, which was first swept with our machinegun fire. The inhabitants, realising that at last deliverance had come, rushed from cellars and. houses, and soon from every building the tricolour was flying in the hreeze. Along the street, thronged with an excited cheering multitude, the Diggers marched, embraced and kissed, and showered with autumn flowers. Enthusiasm knew no bounds. Here and there a rifle still cracked, our men taking no risks when they saw a Hun who had not surrendered. The excited civilians stuck flowers in the men's tunics and in even their respirators, and followed, cheering, to the main square, where the German eommander, with a hundred men already drawn up, surrendered to a young captain, whom he formally saluted and to whom he handed his revolver. - Meanwhile other Germans had deliberately fired some of the houses, and dense columns of smoke arose and drifted across the northern ramparts. Two offieers were sent with a hundred Germans to fight the fiames. Other prisoners were rounded up in the main square. Close at liand was a great barbed wire enclosure, where Ihe Fr.ench men and women said our prisoners had been left in the rain without food or cover till some of them liad died of hunger and exposure. They were surprised that we should treat the Germans so humanely. The battalion brought its steaming cook-j ers into the town, and the men, after their strenuous fighting, enjoyed a hot meal. The inhabitants pressed upon them the best accommodation their homes could alford. Many a Digger used to damp clav, slept tliat night in a warm, soft bed. This morning the Divisional General and the Brigadier formally visited the town. Tlie former, after a brief stay, rode off to the Forest of Mormal to see how his still-advancing troops were getting on. Beyond Quesnoy he established Divisional Headquarters in his motor ear. ihe Brigadier remained to receive the congratulations and a civic welcome. The band of the 2nd Battalion played the "Marseillaise" and our National Anthem, amid renewed jublications. Then the battalion, somewhat reduced in numbers, foi-med up in the square, and, headed by the band, marched past the Brigadier. Swinging down the main street, the little column was showered with flowers and flags. White-haired old men doffed their hats, but younger people, less sedate, followed, cheering and waving their tri-colours. Thus in a cold drizzle, hut still in, great heart. with band playing and flags flying, acd a solitary English gun firing at a disf.mt target, the New Zealanders marched out of the old tov^n which they had deiiveivd from a ruthless enemy. WORK OF OTHER BRIGADES. Yesterday and to-day will for ever remain Red Letter days in the history of the Division. Apart from the capture of Le Q.uesnoy by the Rifle Brigade, the splendid advance of the other Brigades must be regarded as almost unique. In two days the Division has advanced between eight and nine miles, fighting all the way. From west of Quesnoy it has passed through the great Forest of Mormal to within a short distance of the canalised Sambre. Y'esterday Auckland and Wellington troops, under cover of a smoke barrage, broke through the German lines to the north of Quesnoy and stormed Romponeau, Villereau, and Herbinges, through difficult country largely covered with orchards and hedgies and dotted with farms. Penetrating right into the enemy battery positions they captured many guns, and by nightfall had established themselves half a mile inside the forest of Mormal on its western side.

Many German dead in the track cf these troops' and horse teams lie beside tbe abandoned guns. The advance was continued to-day by the Ota.go and Canterbury troops, who gained objectives east of the forest 7,000 yards ahead and within about half a mile of the Sambre. The feature of this fighting was that they had to go the whole day through the forest without artillery support. It was an advance guard action almost the entire distance with only i machine-gun support, and the artillery could move only along the outsidc roads and could not see what was doing in the forest, where the enemy had posted machine-guns at stars formed by the crossroads. Progress was by no means easy. To-day about 150 prisoners wrere captured. ON THE OUTSKJRTS OF LE QUESNOY. In the telegrams already dispatched I have referred to tlie work of the three | battalions of the Rifle Brigade. It may now be added that the lst Battalion tiad a very ha.rd rovv to hoe owing to the difficulties on their right flank. It was not want of valour of their neighbours, but I rather a thin barrage on this part of the line that was responsible for this. In this { battalion a eommander and no fewer than ten offieers were wounded, and though the eommander continued to fight, so great was the loss in offieers that it was undoubtedly a great handicap^ Of all the battalions, the 3rd had apparerftly the easiest run through. - It- nevertheless had some extraordinary experiences. It had a icw casualties from the enemy shelling about three in the morning in getting ready for the assembly. It followed the lst Battalion. and in an early stage of the advance got into a dense fog. The fog was so dense that the left company could not be seen, and two runners were sent out to fmd it. Presently one of tliese runners came back with three automatic revolvers slung about him, and a broad smile under his tin hat. It appeared tliat in the fog his mate and ho iiad suddenly stumbled upon a German machine-gun position. "I'm sorry I could not find the company, sir," | he said, "but my mate is bringing up tne machine-gun and what is left cf the crew." . Sure enough the other runner soon appeared with the machine-gun and thcse of the crew that had not been disposed of j with revolvers. The runners had rushed J the position, and thos,e of the enemy who had not been killed had "kamaraded." There was another incident that had a toucli of comedy about it. The Battalion Coromandel' sent a German officer into Le signallers and three runners advanced their headquarters to an orchard. The Battalion Commander was stan'ing on the road when he saw looming up through the fog a number of men, whom at first he took to be Tommies advancing from his right rear. Taking a second look at them he saw that they were Boche. Most of his men were sitting with their backs against apple trees aiid smoking cigarettes. Realising the danger, he ealled to them . to prepare for action. They were eight to about eighty, but they sailed into the enemy with their revolvers, a second-lieu-tenant rushing in with such vigour and determination that the Huns were taken completely off their guard and at once put up their hands, aetually taking the revolvers out of the hands of tlie offieers. They were Germans trying to get back to their gan-ison in Quesnoy. Amongst them was the messenger from the lst Battalion whom they had captured, and he, too, quickJv kamaraded, being afraid that his comrades would shoot him. Afterwards it was seen that these Germans had a machine-gun ready to fire. This Battalion Commander sent a eGrman officer into Quesnoy with a message asking the garrison to surrender. A platoon officer took him up to the inner gate, before v^hich the German Durst into tears, being afraid that hi.s own men whould shoot him as a deserter. The Diggers, however, insisted that he should go. They saw no more of him, About three in the afternoon two more Germans were sent in with a message to say that if the garrison did not come out in batches of fiv,e at a time the New Zealanders would slaughter the whole lot. These two peace envoys returned and said that the German soldiers were willing to surrender, hut the commandant would not agree. Apparently, however, ohis dire threat liad the effect, for afterwards resistance gradually slackened, and the New Zealanders were over the top of the higliest wall and into the citadel. One tank that the N ew Zealanders directed to a machine-gun nest' that was liolding up Tommies on the flank did rcally good work. Two scouts did a very plucky thing. They ran into a party of 20 to 30 Huns, killed 12, and brought in the rest as prisoners. Another thing was the dropping of ammunition by our aeroplanes, a kinuiy and daring action, though our men were not in need of it. The advance was so fast that those behind did not know of its extent, and ar-

tillery offieers who came ut> t ■safe to come as far with thei if il ^ told that the line wa, alread! 8U'" % the New Zealanders could '° fat ^ the enemy running away but «l at them. B, nificent and even terrori,in„ t men, who in some places ^ before starting after it. qh°U£ t S coircussion were so great that'! ^ offieers told.me they ^ aches so severe that they C0)1i,, W for nights after it. During tho ? S eral batches of Germans came i]/ ^ white flag as our troops advar.ee,:. "'1 1 he German pioneers a^d personnel have been depleted to T'"^] front line, and generally there ^ ganisation in the front lme unik ?'l enemy appears to be retreating "t Mons and Maubeuge line. ln q ' to time orders have been issued in V% German emi'ssaries appearing on tlL with the white flag to ask a°n armi^' In the recent fighting we have had 1 v and many good men have gone undery never in the history of the Division ] J the Diggers been in better heart a„,i ^ moral is truly wonderful.