Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1915-05-19
DESCRIBES THE ASSAULT.
Official Observer Describes Attack
Of British Upon Positions
Of Germans.
MOVE AsToNIsHEs ENEMIES

PARIS. May lS-The official eve wit
ness with the French army gives a de-
scription OF the attack on Neuvlue ST
Vast.
From 10 10 O'Clock in the morning
OF May o." he SAYS. the artillery pre-
pared for the infantry attack with thou
sands OF proiectiles. Nearly every one
Of these going home, the enemy was
demoralized. At 10 o'clock according
90 the pre-arrangement, our infantry.
masscd in the rear leaped out OF the
trenches without further order Barbed
wire as thick as a mans finger, pro-
tectins the euemy's works, had been
annihllated by our fire. Bridges. pre-
pared in advance for crossing the
trenches, were thrown aside i'm the ar
dor Of the assault. the men leaping across
the gaps and rushing across the hill
separating them from La Targette,
without fllnohing under the heavy rifle
IRE and machine gun fire.
Amazed at Assault.
THE Germans, astonished at our as
sault, seemed nailed TO the spot. and
when the two forces came into contact
only those machine guns which were in
protected positions continued to fire.
They we're. however. unable TO check
the advance OF our men, who reached
the houses in La Targette. There hand
to-hand fighting in the streets and or
chards ensued and our advance was
somewhat stayed. But the town was
soon surrounded Fighting their way,
the French troops finally reached the
first house OF Neuville.
at the same time our attacking forces
on the center. battling with the same
spirit. crossed the road to Bethune.
Among the tombs in the cemetery a
desperate engagement ensped. This ter
ritory was twice taken and twice lost,
but we held the ground in the neighbor-
hood, capturing five lines OF trenches
and then dug in. All this took place
within two and half hours.
Open on Enemy.
while the men stopped to breathe.
the artillery came up in the rear, and
with the same precision as in maneuvers,
although under a heavy machine gun
fire. placed their pieces and opened on
the enemy
Startled by cries, our men discovered
D detachment of German light cavalry in
Iconcealment, with seven three-inch gunA
and 500 shells. They were taken prison.
ers and sent to the rear. There were
German dead everywhere in the trenches
end while the infantry was finishing the
destructive work of artillery. piles were
gathered and buried.
I'm the succeeding days our effort was
directed at conquering Melville. Herr
the large. deep cellars of the houses were
not sufficient for the enemys fortIfica-
lions; they covered the top OF the cellars
with material three feet thick anG dug
new shelters in the cellars themselves,
strongly protected, to which they fled
during the bombardment. From one end
OF the village to the other these cellars
were connected by underground passages.
through which the soldiers clrculated,
rising up like woodchucks here and there
where least expected.
Every House Armed.
Every house was armed with machine
guns in these reinforced shelters, but in
the face of these defenses, from Monday
TO Friday. our infantry continued to-as-
sault without cessation.
ION Saturday at nightfall we held the
greater part OF the village and the frog
rCss we had made outside the place re-
suited In strengthening our position
During the night OF May II violent
counter attacks occurred to the cast of
the village. Our troops allowed tho Ger
mans to advance 10 within twenty wards