Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-09-16

and then the keys of that strident pi-
ano were struck in a chord. When
dawn came all the keys began to bang
at once.
But before the general attack began
there had been hellish little prelimi-
nary side show near Thiepval The
Germans had there a warren of deep
dugouts and galleries which they
called their "wunder werk." Before
daylight the British got in there. under
cover of their gunf1re, bombed their
way through galleries which became
catacombs and made themselves master
of the position after hours of ugly
work.
Germans Make Small Gain.
hour before the time set for the Brit
ish attack. the Germans who had no
idea the British were coming on in an
other big push. made a small attack in
the neighborhood of Mouquet farm
They took section of trench, and
were holding it at the moment when
that wave of British. six miles long,
began to move. The British reserves in
that area swept over the Germans, and
their own men, who were struggling
with the Germans, on to the objective
set for three days work.
L,
ing a day of brilliant sunshine, hid the
actual attack, which the British Off
GERS think was the most skillful the
British army has ever made. The Brit
ish were putting behind them not only
the ridge. but the old second line as
well as the first line trenches, which
they struggled SO hard to gain. and
were going against the new third line
which the Germans had been building
under unceasing British shellf1re.
Soldiers Laugh at Cars.
With the infantry went those new
motor cars. across trenches and she'll
holes So ludicrous are they in appear
ance that the British soldiers laughed
at them in the midst of the charge.
They cheered them as they played their
streams of machine-gun bullets. Like
some prehistoric monsters they must
have seemed to the Germans who had
to seek dugouts or flight or else they
surrendered.
SO far as reports indicate tonight the
British everywhere gained possession of
the new German trenches. except oppo-
site Ginchy. There the Germans clung
tenacity to remain on that bit of high
ground in that piece-by-piece defense of
his. There he still keeps up the strug-
gle, at last accounts.
IL
redoubt with a nest of machine guns
which the armored motor cars engaged,
machine gun to machine gun while the
British infantry passed around it as
around a rock in a flood.
Six Colonels Are Prisoners.
Among the prisoners are six colonels.
One of these had the honor of being cap
tured by the newest weapon, which has
added picturesqueness to present day
warfare This armored motor car, which
crosses trenches and holes, ran over the
coloners dugout. He surrendered to the
crew, which took him on board and after
the fight was over delivered him to a
guard of infantry.
In one case 100 Germans surrendered
in a body to one of the armored motors
Again an aeroplane reported than one of
the village of Flers, while wildly yelling
British infantry followed it.
Aeroplanes descend very low during
the battle and never were there more
fights or more vicious ones than those of
today, while the new armored cars were
participating In the infantry charges
Altogether the British brought down thir-
teen German planes.
Troops Dub Armored Cars "Willies."
LONDON, September 16.-The reference
in the> >of1cial communication issued by
the war Office yesterday afternoon to a
new type Of armored car is the first
oficial mention OF a development that
has been muct( WHISPERED about recent