The Hawaiian gazette., 1916-04-07
Paris Reports Victory In Weird
Battle In Subterranean Gall
cries Driven BY the Germans
Against the French Lines
CROWN PRINCE SUCCEEDS q
. IN DRIVE UPON HAucoURT
Captures Long BattIed For VII
lage, But Loses Ground At
Avocourt: Desperate Fighting
For Salient At St. EIoi still On
oNDoN, Anril 7.--French and q,

= 0NDoN, April French and Ger.
man infantrymen battled for
- hours underground yesterday, and
the French won, clearing the Teutons
out of a front of more than five hundred
meters, and driving them back two hun
dred yards, southwest of Douaumont
Accounts of this, one Of the most sing.
ular Of all the battles that have been
fought in, defense OF Verlun, were made
public in the French official statement
issued at Paris last night.
German Plan Blocked 90,
The Germans have been mapping
southwest of the fortress of Douaumont
for some time. The French learned of
this and began counter sap. Yester-
day q mine was exploded, breaking
down the wall between the two tunnels,
and letting the soldiers at each other,
there in the dark Of the subterranean
passages. e
The Teutqns were taken by surprise
and after prolonged lighting were drivs
en- back, with The loss Of practically
everv man caught ~ the gallery.
Up on top Of the earth, while this
Sighting was going oliA. below ground
the leraeiD teere sfg dslt tteInptingi
TO drive the French ont on their posi-.
tions on the famous Cote de Poiyte
pepper Hill). For hours their heavy
guns poured a perfect hail Of high ex-
plosiye shells upon the French lines, in
an effort, to blast the path clear.
Fire Curtain Halts Them
Time after time the infantry began
a forward movement and time after
time the French artillery dropped cur
tain of fire between their trenches and
the German lines, curtain that the
Teutons could not penetrate. The night
came without single attack reaching
the French trenches.
At HaucOurt however, the Teutons
were more successful, according to the
Berlin dispatches, for they stormed and
won a section of that sector of the
Verdun defense line. They also took
the village of Haucourt, for which thev
have been fighting for days, as well
as point d'appuis to the eastward.
Berlin claims to have taken eleven Of
fcers and 53l unwOunded prisoners.
Teutons Lose Avocourt
The Paris report of the Verdun
fighting tells of bloody work in the
woods north of Avocourt. The strug-
gle lasted throughout the night of
Wednesday, and it was not until yes,
terday morning came that the Germans
finally retired. East of the Meuse the
Germans were also beaten back.
Paris admits the loss Of Haucourt, ;,
hut adds that the French guns com.
rand the village because of their po-
sitions. -
Battle At St. Eloi
Elsewhere along the French line
there were numberless smaller battles
At st. ElOi the Germans launched mass
es of men at the British positions, af-
ter q prolonged artillery b0mbardment.
The Teuton commanders had issued or
ders to regain, if possible, about six
hHndred yards Of a salient captured
by the British recently. 1t thrusts it.
self into the German positions in q
way that threatens other sections of
their line. AT last reports the desper-
ate fighting was going on and the re-
suit was uncertain, although the Ger
man losses are said to have been fright
full
The French war Office last night is
sued formal statement in reply to the
recent communique from Berlin in
which the Teuton general staff claimed
to have had marked success over the
French and Allied airmen during the
fighting of March. The French state
ment says that during that month the
French destroyed 35 aeroplanes. most
Of them in aerial battles, while the
French aviation corps reports the loss
of but thirteen machines.