The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1916-09-28
ALLIES Capture
!. COMPLIES BY STORM
French and British Drive Ger
mans From Base.
1900 PRISONERS ARE TAKEN
Fregicourt and Woods Beyond Seized
by Joffrs's Troops---1o0 Machine
Guns and Other War Material
Found in Stronghold.

London, Sept. 27.--CombIes was
4 captured by the allies in hand-to-
hand battle through the ruined streets
/ and maze of defenders. British and
i French forces share the honor of TAX
ling the German base which has been
their immediate objective for weeks.
i Continuing their successful often
sive, the French late in the day won
4 a wood north of Fregicourt and strong
4 ly defended positions between Corne
\ woods and west of Atbaast woods.
4 Paris officially announces the cap
i ture of LOO prisoners and more than,
100 machine guns. General Haig also
claims rich booty in Combles.
French Report Of Battle.
| / The French midnight communique
tsays:
\ The fighting continued successfully
curing the day north of the Somme,
the allied troops extending their gains
of yesterday and attaining the object
ives set for the day within few
hours.
| Beginning in the morning, the
French troops, continuing their offens-
live, captured all that part of Combles
situated east and south in the diree-
ten of the railway. French patrols
then secured contact with the ele-
'ments of the British right wing, which
were cleaning up the northern and
western sections of Combles In
short time the entire village was In
our hands.
The booty captured at Combles is
considerable, the Germans having
stored in various underground posi-
items an enormous quantity of ammu-
milton and material of all kinds. We
found about 100 wounded who had
been abandoned by the Germans. Com
bles is filed with German bodies. ~
| Advance in North.
I "In the afternoon our troops adj
vanced further, capturing a small wood
north of Fregincourt and half way to
Morval, and the greater part of the
strongly organized ground between
COrne woods, west of st. Vast woods
and east of the Bethune road,
| 1.-The number of unwounded prison.
ers taken by us since yesterday and
so far counted is more than 1900. Up
to now we have been able to count
only 100 machine guns"
] Attacking the German positions ST.
multaneOusly from the north and
south, the British and French We'd
with each other to be the first to ell
ter COmbles, the honor falling to Cen
eral Haig's men. However, the French
were able to occupy the southern out
skirts and COmbles cemetery, on the
eastern edge of the town.
To the east of COmbles the Ger
rIans were rolled back from fortified
villages, which they strOve stubborn
iy to hold. By the capture of Fregi-
court, a mile east of Combles, by the
French, the allies forged a steel ring
around the town and cut the only line
of communications that the Germans
still held. r.
i The Germans tried unsucceSsfully
to lessen the pressure on the SOmme
front by attacking south of Bethune.
These attacks were repuIsed.
Pushing forward in powerful night
attacks after strong bombardment
of the German positions, the French
occupied both Combles cemetery and
the outskirts of the town.
Combles / es about midway between
Bapau. - and Peronne, the. other two
=. detectives of the allies.
=, The British are only three miles
from Bapaume.
British Take Combles.
The. report from General Haig
says:
i Yesterdays operations were entire
4 Ily successful Fifteen hundred prison
Frs have already reached the collecting
stations and more are arriving. Much
material has also been taken.
Further progress was made last
hight and this morning, a strong re-
doubt between Les Boeufs and Guede-
court being taken with its garrison.
Our troops entered Combles from
the west and are now overcoming all
resistance there. The enemy's losses
: were enormous" - 80. -,
L.