The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-12-11
ENGLISH SOL LDIERS
 BRAVE IN BATTLE

Berlin, Dec. I1-Englisf soldiers are good fighters and resourceful, an editor of the Zeitung Am hTittaz who is serving as first lieutenant in the German army, writes his paper in an account of the engagements around Ypres.
 .F-un of fight and confident of easy Victory he says, Tour young regi- ments started to march against the enemy We were quite certain that Providence had endowed the English with long legs to facilitate their run ming away the faster. Thus we ad- vanced by long and short marches through Flanders, the great cerne- tery. We were delighted with the beautiful Flemish landscape and with the inhabitants whose language we soon managed to understand, even as they speedily came to understand ours.
 we thought of the English soldiers as the comic papers are wont to DOT tray them. There were a. few who warned us against possible underesti- nation of the enemy, but their mis- givings were quieted by our pointing out that these were rnercenary troops, hired at few pence a day bare of patriotism and incapable of sacrifice
 Sooner than we thought we were upon the enemy. First we came up- on a dead Hnglishman, then two
 
 English prisoner. The prisoner nat urally was of great interest to our soldiers. Wonder if the mercenary can shoot?' we asked ourselves. An hour later some of his comrades gave us an answer to that question. They gave us a clear, practical demonstra- uon-such a clear demonstration that our battalion was reduced to half it's original size in g. few encounters. We suddeny realized that the English mercenaries could not be routed with mere hurrahs, and that these smooth faced gentlemen used the long legs not always for running away, but sometimes for desperate and danger ous charges.
 .'This English infantry which op- posed uB at Ypres must be considered among their best troops. They de-. tended their positions with energy and skill and when driven back fired again and again to recover the lost ground In these endeavors they were support ed efficiently by the fire of their field artillery. They had also transported heavy naval guns to Ypres. and the English shells and shrapnel caused enormous damage among our troops
 AS the surrounding of the English forces by our troops made itself more and more felt, the English infantry tried again and again to break through our lines, particularly in the N1c1n1ly or BGc6iaGF6z though without success. In one Of these attacks five hundred English soldiers and twenty officers fell into our hands.
 The English trenches were mostly so arranged as to be quite invisible to the naked eye. When we had got into the first trenches we were astonished at their systematic construction as re- gards depth, side protection against 1 splintering of shells, breastwork and flooring. The trenches were nearly l all excellently arranged for a. long l stand. We were particularly aston 1 ished at the iron and steel work built into the breastworks. The floors were ! designed with an eye to maximum comfort. Our men captured there a great store of excellent preserves, corn l beef and ham, and many also secured l one of the shaving outfits which every English soldier carries
 | When we had taken a position it ! frequently occurred that we found a 1 disproportionate number of dead to l the very few living defenders. We 1 soon discovered that 8 large number 1 of dead were shamming and these | were easily tick1ed into life with a l bayonet.
 'sIn some cases the English had dug 1 trenches but had not occupied them I and to deceive us had put large round
 turnips and similar objects along the
 hreastworks-',