Omaha daily bee., 1916-04-01
DESCRIBES CROWN
PRINCES ADVANCE
Associated Press Correspondent
Tells Of Viewing Burning City.
Of Verdun from Teuton Line.
GERMAN PROGRESS CONTINUAL

HEADQUARTERS OF the
ARMY OF THE GERMAN CROWN
PRINCE, before Verdun. March 81,
--(Via London and Berlin.) Ger
man artillery is playing heavily on
the north front of Verdun. Vast
clouds Of smoke mark the site of the
burning suburb behind Forts Relic
Vile and Froideeterre. set afire by
the BON bardment of these two forts,
which bar ingress to the city along
the east bank of the Meuse,
Eight miles westward. across
the river. mass Of smoke columns,
floating like hazy forest of cypress
above Bethincourt, Malancourt and
Hill No. 304, testifies to the hail of
high calibred shells which is falling
on this northwestern outpost of the
French positions.
which of Two Attacked Question.
Which OF these two points will be the
scene OF the next phase of the German
offensive is a question which doubtless
is puzzlng the mind of General Joffre
and General Petain
The Associated Press correspondent has
made an inspection OF the ground gained
by the Germans on the Nerdun front in
the fortnight since the laN previous
visit of the correspondent, on the prev
ious occasion the Germans had advanced
their lines east Of the river to the center
girdle of forts and had carried Douau-
mont and the adjoining redoubts. The
French then retained the west bank of
the river for a distance OF three miles
north of the line OF Douaumont and were
maintaining harassing artillery fire
from the heights on this bank against the
German flank and rear.
French Cleared from Region.
1t was necessary TO clear the French
! from this region before the German
attack against the fortress could proceed.
This has been accomplished. OF the old
positions the French now hold only a mar
row tongue of land between Dead Man
hill and Avocourt wood. This position
is naturally strong. with Hill No. 3Oi
as the backbone and the two fortified
villages of Malancourt and Bethncourt
at the end. But from the intense artil-
lery fire falling upon It today from three
sides it appeared that the French retain
It only by grace of the Germans and
must abandon 1t whenever an earnest
attack is delivered.
French Gunners Active.
French guns are no less active than
the Germans. although their fire is more
scattered. This is because the task OF
the French gunners Is to search out
German batteries hidden over the entire
landscape and restrict their activity as
mvch as possible.
yhe French gunners seem to be per
forming their task well. They know the
position of many batteries and shoot
with uncomfortable accuracy. as the cor
respondent experienced recently when G
shell dropped squarely in the battery
by which he was standing.
An officer from the headquarters of tho
crown prince explained to the CORE
spondent the operations leading to the
occupation OF the region west of the river
The French positions here. from which
the German operations on the east banl
had been subjected to a flanling fir,
were on Goose Hill and in CumiereI
wood. with strongly fortified supporting
points for infantry in the villages oi
Regnieville and Bethincourt. Every
house had been converted into a minia
ture fortress by walling the cellars will
masonry and cement and providing en-
brasures for machine guns and rifles