Evening star., 1916-08-18

p1etely repulsed north OF Pozieres and
due west of Foureaux wood.
THE French again deferred their at
tacks to nocturnal hours. and with
sitions between Guillemont and Maure-
pas about midnight They were re-
pulsed with the most sanguinary losses.
On the salient portion of our line
ing has taken place. SO far without a
decision. The activity of the artillery
on both sides continues especially v1o-
lent"
Give Up Trench Digging.
WITH THE BRITISH ARMY IN
FRANCE. August IT. via London. Au-
gust IS. 3:45 a.m.-Torrential rain to-
day and yesterday made 1t an incon-
ceivably miserable night for the Ger
man gunners at their posts in shell
craters filled with water up to their
necks. The Germans seem to have def
nitely given up trying to dig any
trenches along the front where the
British hold the high ground and the
old second German lines. The British
gunfire fills in every trench that is
started and kills the djggers.
Machine gun and shell crater war
fare has replaced trench warfare as a
means of defense against the British
d
the Brandenburgers. but machine gun
ners. are now the crack corps of the
Germans. Specially picked men take
the oath never to surrender, and Eng
their guns by officers to prevent them
from succumbing to any temptation to
fee, This Is confirmed by witnesses
who have taken such men in the recent
fighting.
Days Without Food.
Machine guns are dragged out to the
shell craters under cover of darkness.
and during the day the gunners lie hug
ging the earth in most uncomfortable
positions. They are baked by the sun
by day and shiver in the wet at night.
If the least movement discloses their
location by day hurricane of mortar
and gun fire is turned on them. British
snipers are always lying in wait for the
first sign of anything to shoot at Some
of the Germans who have been captured
had been days without food. isolated
as they are by the continual sniping.
The British spent the day consolidat-
ing the gains made by their right flank
toward Guillemont yesterday in con-
French Operations.
PARIS, August 1s.-"The operations
on the SOmme w cQHeSOdy were merely
a detail Of the offensive and of only
local bearing" a high military officer
explained to the Associated Press.
"The precision with which the French
offensive has been carried out is shown
by the fact that every objective desig-
mated in advance has been reached. At
Maurepas a certain number of houses
were selected and every one of them
was captured and occupied; it never
was intended to attempt the occupation
of the entire village.
"One consequence of this precision in
the French operations is the reduction
of losses to a minimum. The operations
in Artois and in Champagne cost five
times more than all the ground gained
on the Somme. The purpose is to de-
stroy the German forces. and the
Franco British defensive also has ac-
western front the greatest possible por-
ton of the German forces.
1T is fallacious to fi@ur" c'r+ t~n
probable duration of hostilities on
French soil by computing .Ae ..r;. -
surface of ground gained per day.
Every time an action takes place, even
though the gain may be no more than a
hundred yards or SO, the opposition is
beaten. He loses heavily and the weak
ening moral effect cannot be measured
in yards. 1t is cumulative effect.
which sooner or later will wear the
enemy down so that he will be unable
to hold the French gains to a few hun
dred yards"