The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1915-04-30
HAVOC WROUGHT BY BY MINES MINES
USED BY TIE BRITISH
Thrilling Attack and Capture Of
Hill Near Ypres.

Il
London, April Is. Trenches, para
pets and sand bags disappeared, Z" say,
the British official eyewitness, 2 de-
scribing British mine explosions which
preceded the recent attack and capture
by the British Of Hill No. go, south.
east of Ypres.
The whole surface OF the ground. .
the narrative continues, assumed
strange shapes. Here it was torn into
huge craters; there large mounds Of
fallen debris was seen.
AS the reports of the explosions died
away, our men, led by their officers,
rushed across the intervening space OF
some forty to sixty yards lying between
our trenches and the gaping craters be-
fore them, the frontier covered by the
attack being only some $50 yards in
length.
Where the mines actually had ex-
ploded nothing was left OF the occu-
pants of the hostile line, but in the
neighboring trenches our assaulting in
fantry witnessed an extraordinary scene.
Many German soldiers, possibly owing
to the fact that they were working,
were surprised while in their shirt
sleeves.and without equipment. Stunned
by the explosions and subjected to
rain of hand granades they gave way
to panic.
Cursing and shouting they were
falling over one another in their hurry
to gain exits leading into the communi-
cation trenches. Some of those in the
rear were driving their bayonets into
the bodies of their comrades in front
of them.
OF all this, our infantry had only
momentary glimpse before they fell up
on the enemy with the bayonet, burst
through the maze of trenches, poured
into the craters and passed on down the
communication trenches until at last
they were stopped by barricades defend
ed by bomb throwers.
TERRIFIC ARTILLERY FIRE.
The first line of trenches was cap
tured in few minutes and fifteen pris-
oners fell into our hands, but it was
then that the real struggle began, for
the Germans quickly recovered from
their surprise. Soon the German gun
ners opened fire. Soon our whole posi-
ton became obscured in the smoke of
bursting shells. Meanwhile, our bat
teries had begun to support the attack
and terrific artillery fire was main
tanned far into the night. The flares
OF the guns we're so nearly continuous
that they resembled the effect of mus
kerry fire. Under this fire our men had
to work, throwing up parapets toward
the enemy, blocking their communica-
tons and generally rendering their posi-
ton defensible.
Nor was the enemy's infantry idle.
Advancing up the communication
trenches they threw hand granades over
the barricades and also into the mine
craters on the crumbling sides of which
our men were trying to obtain foot
hold.
Throughout the night the fighting
eliminating early in the
of the 18th in two massed at
lacks of the enemy. These we're beaten
off. Despite losses which left the hill
side covered with dead, the enemy con-
,inued his pressure during the whole of
Sunday until we gradually were driven
rom the southern edge of the hill. At J
p. m. reinforcements reached our !
ront line and swept the Germans from {
he foothold they had gained. |
Prior to this the close proximity of
he contending sides had led to slack S
ming in the bombardment, but it then t
,roke out afresh and with almost as
,reat intensity as on the preceding even
ng. Our position, however, was more :
Z
ATTACK BEATEN OFF. G
The narrative says the bombardment '
Vas maintained Monday, April 10, and
hat the Germans extended their she'll c
ng to the entire Ypres area, including b
he town itself, in which, it is asserted, g
fteen children were killed. Toward =
vening the Germans again attacked +,
Hill No. 60, but the eyewitness" as L
erts, again did our machine guns do
execution and the attack a
,as beaten off. :" G
Another attack at O'Clock in the :
vening, the narrative continues, "suf- I