Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-09-28
September IS Greatest For
British Arms Since Start
of Drive; Use Armored Cars

sally are speaking September 5 as the
best day for the British arms since the
offensive began on the Somme front.
With the exception of July 1. the attack
was the most extensive of any in the
ten weeks of the battle. For the first
time new armored motorcars of in
genious pattern, suitable for crossing
trenches and shell holes, competed
with the infantry as the British swept
down from the ridges to the lower
ground toward Bapaume. At this
writing the British are beyond the
village of Flers which they took early
in the morning and are established in
Martinpuich and Courcelette.
The slow plodding work of recent
weeks, which included the taking of
Ginchy and Guillemont, had for its
object control of all the high ground
from the region of Thiepval to the
junction with the French on the right.
The Germans fought hard for every
foot OF 1t. Delville, or Devils wood.
High wood and the rib of earth which
the windmill crowned beyond Po-
zleres have been stepped with blood
OF men fallen there in their long
stand under the heaviest orgy of she'll
fire in the history of war; as experts
agree, as German wrestled with
Briton, not for a piece of farmland
but for military and human mastery.
Took Germans by Surprise
The British push was largely down
hill. Evidently the Germans did not
expect tho attack, considering that
the offensive was over and that the
British would settle down for the
winter in their new and advantageous
positions. Never before probably,
have more guns been playing over the
same length of front than along the
six miles where the British made
their advance on July l and where
they have continued their offensive
/ nhla0nnofiN Nd sf
ence. The Germans kept on bringing
up guns. unit, now they have 1000 in
this short sector. The Associated
Press correspondent, moving over the
region of the devastated villages and
shell-torn earth, intersected by new
roads, saw on Thursday how enor-
mously the British had increased their
own artillery.
Sun-tanned and weather beaten
were the gunners, after their ten
weeks of work. There were lines and
clusters and parks of guns. Rows of
batteries were firing with something
of the regularity of mechanical work.
manship of the needles of loom
weaving CLOTH Alongside each other
were British and French batteries. The
gunners of neither ally could speak
the language of the other, yet both
were going on with their parts ac-
cording to charted Instructions.
Guns Never Stop
At midnight, the correspondent
again walked about among the guns,
which were going on with their night
shift of gunners, whose figures were
Illuminated by flashes. Except for the
guns, which know no rest, the army
seemed silent and asleep for the most
part. Everybody and everything was
In place and ready, including those
strange grotesque new armored cars
which were to have their baptism of
/ fire in the morning.
we keep on learning, we of the
new army" said one of the young Of
icers, "and with every show do a lit
| tie better. Battle is the great teacher"
And the guns never stopped their
ear.racking noise from daylight to
darkness and darkness to dawn. Now
and then the keys of that strident
piano were struck in chord. When
dawn came, all the keys began to bang
at once.
Wave Six Miles Long
But before the general attack be-
gan, there had been a hellish little
preliminary sideshow near Thiepval.
The Germans had there a warren of
deep dugouts and galleries which they
called their "wunder work" Before
daylight the British got in there, un
der cover of their gunfire, bombed
their way through galleries which be-
came catacombs, and made them
hours of ugly work.
Then also before sun-up, only an
hour before the time set for the Brit
ish attack the Germans, who had no
idea the British were coming on in
another big push, made a small attack
IN IN the neighborhood of Mouquet farm
They took section of trench and
were holding 1T 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 strug-
shhg with the Germans, on to the
objective set for three days work
chill Autumn morning mist. nre-
ceding day of brilliant sunshine. hid
the actual attack, which the British
onicers think was the most skilful the
British army has ever made. The
British 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
Wnlch the Germans had been building
under unceasing British shell fire.
With-the infantry went those new
lmotorcars, across trenches and she'll
holes. So ludicrous are thew in az
pearance that the British soldiers
laughed at them in the midst of tha
cnarge. They cheered them as thew
played their streams of machine enn
pullelS. Like some prehistoric mon
sters they must have seemed To The
Germans, who had to seek dupo,ts
or hight or else they surrendered
Have Machine Gun Nest
| So far as reports indicate TODAY The
Brlush everywhere gained possession
OF the new German trenches excent
opposite Ginchy. There the Germans
chung with desperate courage and dog
TO- pone tenacity to remain in that hi
OF high ground in that piece -bv-niane
defense of his. There he still kaens
up the struggle, at last accounts
Again In High wood he had kent q
redoubt with nest of machine guns
whlch the armored motorcars en-
gagged. machine gun to machine p,1n
while the British Infantry nassaS
IL as around rock in a flood.
Among the prisoners are six colo
nels. One of these had the bonor
of being captured by the newest VIZ
pom which has added picturesoueness
to present-day warfare. This armore5
motorcar, which crosses trenches ana
hoies, ran over the coloneI's dueo,t
He surrendered to the crew whicL
took him on board and after the fght
was oyer delivered him to a guard IF
infantry. euaiu oi
In one case 100 Germans surrer
dered in a body to one of the armorad
motors Again an aeroplane renorted
that one of the motors was movine
up street of the village of Eiars