Omaha daily bee., 1916-11-15
GERMANS ON ANCRE
TAKEN BY SURPRISE
British Troops Raid Trenches
and Eat Breakfast Prepared
for the Teuton Troops.
FOUR THOUSAND TAKEN

xSO" 4hSoRaNo lA4A1@N
Copyright 1915, by Associated Press)
With the British Armies in France,
Nov. l3.-(Via Eondon., Nov. AZ
The Germans were apparently COM
pletely surprised by this mornings
attack in the valley Of the Ancre. An
evidence Of this was found i'll the
fact that the garrison of the trenches
around Beaumont Hamel we're pre-
pairing for breakfast at the very mo,
ment when the British infantry
stormed the position. The British
after partially clearing the under-
ground galleries and rounding up 700
prisoners, proceeded to eat their pris-
oners' breakfast, telling the captives
that they would be fed when they ar
rived within the British lines.
A total of nearly 1000 prisoners
has so far been sent to the cages,
including a regimental commander,
who was captured in dugout with
major, an adjutant and number of
other officers. The majority of the
prisoners are Silesians, and, according
to the British officers, very inferior
fighting material The German high
command depended apparently on
the supposedly impregnable charac-
ter of the old front line and its
strongly fortified villages, rather than
on the stamina of the troops. The
British officers believe the Germans
withdrew their best men for service
elsewhere on the British front, where
the new and shallower positions to
which the defenders have been forced
demand greater resisting power on
the part of the infantry.
British Losses Are Light.
The British losses are unusually
light, owing largely to the unexpect-
edly feeble character OF the German
machine gun fire at Beaumont Hamel
and St. Pierre division. Large num-
bers of German dead were found
strewn in the wrecked trenches of
the original main line. This line
consisted of four parallel rows of
trenches, the last being flush with,
the western face of Beaumont Hamel.
For some days past the sector at
tackled today and the area behind
have been subjected to successive
bombardments which rose to a record
pitch yesterday and resulted in the de-
molition of a large part of the defense.
The garrison accepted the mornings
deluge of shells as part of the usual
daily program and did not fully real
ize their danger until the British in
fantry was seen approaching in the
darkness.
The British advance north of Beau
mont-Hafief~ was held drup ors'a front
about 1000 yards west of Serre. The
first detachment captured some Ger
man trenches and passed eastward
toward the village. Suddenly hidden
machine guns and infantry snipers
scattered in great profusion in the
craters and other shelters began fir
ing in the backs Of the troops and
necessitated their withdrawal
Cleaning Isolated Pockets.
North of the Serre the British
gained ground, but owing to the fail
ure of the advance Immediately south,
the position was subjected to enfilading
fire from higher ground in the neigh
borhood Of the, village. A number Of
isolated pockets are being cleared Of
Germans in the intervening ground
between Beaumont-Hamel and Beau
court-Sur-Ancre. The British are
firmly established on the western out
skirts of the latter hamlet. The re-
naming fragments of the old German
line south of the Ancre which were
"pinched out" by the British flank
pivoting to the northeast around the
elbow of the stream had been partially
isolated since the capture of Schwaben
redoubt. Three hundred Germans, the
only survivors of the bombardment,
were captured in an. extensive system
of riverside caves. Prior to the at
tack the only Communication between
these caves and the German rear was
by causeway across the Ancre which
could only be traversed at night.
Positions of Great Strength.
All the positions of the Germans
north of the Ancre were Of excep-
tional strength, Beaumont-Hamel
equaling Thiepval in the extent and
security of its labyrinth of dugouts,
while the German engineers have
been laboring constantly for more
thanetwo years to make the defenses
of which this was an important part
impregnabie. There was profusion
Of connected gun redoubts. elaborate
and electric light systems
and great caverns capable of shelter
ing companies Of infantry. Prisoners
says it was believed that the Beau
nt-Hamel line could not be taken.
The barrage fire accompanying the
attack and the subsequent lombard
.ments of the next line OF works were
described by survivors as the most