New Britain herald., 1916-09-27
Fighting Before Combles Costs Less Lives Than Ex- pected-Picturesque Drive By Allied Soldiers.

British Front in France, Sept. 26, via London, Sept. 27, 4:05 a. m.-The capture of Combles was one of the most picturesque incidents in the whole course of the great Somme of fensive. It marked the opening of to- days forward surge of the British and French forces which reached it's eli max in the capture of Gueudecourt and Thiepval
 All night long bitter fighting had been in progress at various points on the front and with dawn the battle broadened to include the whole Brit 1sh left. Combles fell as the sun rose on a perfect summer day. Sitting iu the midst of heap of hills, the town was isolated yesterday by the seizing of the high ground on either side by the French and British. In the early hours of the morning the British took an orchard in the northern outskirts and then, after a heavy preliminary smelling, they charged the trenches on the edge of the village. The trenches were empty when they reached them. At the same time the French, dash ing forward on the other side of the village, pushed victoriously forward into, the heart of the village. Tn the , nations met and joyously shook hands.
 Combles had a labyrinth of dugouts and well fortified cellars but at the last practically no defense was made. Those Germans who had not managed to escape when the town was hope lessly surrounded were taken prison CTS. One lot of Germans who were en- deavoring to find a way out through the encircling allied infantry walked into the British skirmishing line. The cellars and dugouts of the village were full of wounded.
 Having cleared Combles of any stray Germans, the British and French moved on side by side to further at tacks.
 Germans Lack Spirit.
 One of the most striking features of the fighting last night and today was the surprisingly slight resistance offered at orval and Combles by the Germans, according to all reports made by the British officers. The Ger mans made the usual counter attack against the British new positions last night, but the reports of the allied officers to headquarters agree that. they lacked spirit. Some German trenches taken yesterday were lightly occupied or not at all. Tn other, in stances the allied commanders stated that considerable bodies of Germans threw down their rifles promptly as soon as the attackers approached their trenches, although it was known that they had orders to stand to the last. Patches of prisoners have been com ing in from all parts of the front throughout the day.
 Tn their attack yesterday the Brit ish found the strongest defense made. in front of Gueudecourt. There the Germans used their machine guns with the tenacity and unyieldlng cour- age which has hitherto characterized them. The British resumed the attack today and tonight all the village Is in their possession. Both today and yes terdav the Germans showed an tn- clination to withdraw their guns inn nediately if they were in any danger, evidently desiring to take no risk of losing any of their artillery. This sometimes leaves their troops in the front line unprotected by cannon fire and may account for the number Of surrenders.
 Tornado PreCedes Attack.
 Tn the meantime the British con- tinue to pound the whole line with
  of shells, leaving the Germans ill doubt as to what sector will be the next to be attacked by the infantry. The first warning that the Germans have that the British seek to gain Q certain frontage is a sudden increase of gun fire in that sector to a tornado under which it does not seem possible that a mouse could escape alive. Usually this tornado is breif com- pared to the old fashion of artillery preparation but it lasts long enough to enable the British infantry to rush from their lines to the German trenches while all the German ma chine guns and rifle fire are stilled
 About midday today the British left had its turn in the region of Thiep- val at the other extreme of the bat tie front from Combles. Here the fighting line joins the old German front trench line and the Germans, 1 in their dugouts and galleries, have fought with the skill and stubborn | ness which characterized them in this kind of warfare. ''They stick like glue to these dugOuts,' said one | British soldier "because they know | that once they are pushed back we do not give them time to dig any 1 more"
 A blackish heap of dirt on the crest of a ridge is all that remains of | Thiepval. On the top Of that heap | there still rise a few black sticks, | tree trunks slivered and hewn by | shell fire which have escaped being | downed by a direct hit. On July 1, l the first day of the great offensive,