Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1916-07-05
ALLIES RECORD
 FURTHER GAINS
 IN "BIG BUSH" French s t r al g Il | Q Il Line, Capture Two Towns and
 5000 Prisoners. GERMANS REEAkt..
 THIAUMONT WORKS $ Massed Attack After Terrific Bonn bardment Again Carries Position Essential to Success in the Battle
 for Yerdun.

w operating with the British in the Som me region, have strengthened their new line by the capture of Belloy-en- , Santerre and Esprees, and are advanc- ! ing on considerably wider front to- ward Peronne.
 At Esprees, where 5000 prisoners were taken, fighting is still going on furiously. On the British end of the line, slight progress has been made at some points.
 Unofficial reports say the entire British front of 90 mics is actively engaged, but it is toward the south that the heaviest fighting is under way. A high British army official says that artillery preparation will precede all further infantry attacks, as the resourcefullness and fighting qual ities of the Germans as well as the power of their defenses, are well rec ogniZed.
 Germans Regain Thiaumont.
 Although the Frencn are making a steady advance in the Somme sector, without apparently heavy casualties, and now face an easier task, accord ing to expert opinion to reach their objective the river itself. The Verdun army is engaged in particularly heavy fighting, the Germans having not per mitted the battle of the Somme to in- terfere with their operations for the capture of the great fortress. The Germans have taken the Thiaumont works for the fourth time, after a ter rifle bombardment, and by massed at tack. Around this work, which has been the center of desperate attacks and counter attacks, thousands of men have fallen, for this is a position which is essential to the Germans for carry ing their advance nearer Verdun itself, and to the French to keep their re- sistance intact.
 Russia and Italy are exerting all their strength against the central powers, and Bucharest reports patrol is said to have advanced into Hunga- rian territory.
 All along the Russian front engage ments of the severest character are in and the Russians, driving north from Kolomea, have advanced | more than 20 miles and are threaten ing to outflank General von Bothe- mer's army and the Austro- German | forces at Tarnopol.
 Should this Russian movement | prove successful, von Bothemer may , have to fall back on Lemburg.
 The Russians report the capture of many guns and more than 5000 pris- oners on the various sectors. Though ! the official communication with the re- spect to battles along the Austro- Ital- ian front give only megre idea of the situation as whole; that from the Italian war office indicates that the artillery and infantry fighting is con- tinuous and of a desperate nature. The Austrian office is silent regard ing the operations against the Ital- ians.
 Berlin COntradicts Claims of Allies.
 Berlin, July 3, via London, July A. On the basis of information received by the Associated Press here, the first results of the long-heralded entente allied offensive may be summarized az follows:
 No noteworthy successes have been scored on the British front. The on- ly considerable results have been at tained by the French, whose offen- sive, as usual, was marked by great bravery and dash. Retirement to the second German lines occurred where the French were the opponents.
 In coincidence with the Anglo French offensive, the Russians have developed activity along the whole northern front. Their activity against the German armies for the time be- ing appears merely demonstrative; but vigorous fighting is in progress against the front of General Woyrsch's southern army, where at least eight divisions are engaged. The battle here still is stationary with no decisive results in either direction.
 The Berlin papers publish long dis patches regarding the Anglo-French offensive from correspondents at field headquarters, but these contain no particlar information, being for the most part mere commentary on the official report. The correspondents i point out that the offensive, as in the autumn, again was launched from the junction point of the Anglo-French armies, which has moved southward ! since autumn and now is between Gemmecourt and the old Roman road from Amiens to St. Quentin. The cor respondent of the Post telegraphs:
 "The German line south of the Somme had retired somewhat after the front trenches were so damaged