The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-07-02
POINT OF ETIQUETTE
Gigantic Wedge Is Driven
 Into the German Lines
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 The important German position at
 Friscourt may be cut off.
 1 At this hour the British are making
 good progress behind the front lines in German-held territory. Serre and
 Montauban. which the British have
 captured, are important tactical points.
 Serre Is southwest of Hebutrene and
 Montauban is northeast of Bray. The British are fighting for the villages of
 Mametx and Contalmaison, portions of
 which they hold.
 The British are fighting gallantly and
 have taken many prisoners in the front | lines.
 E FRENCH. SUPPORT TOMMIES
 The French advancing on the British right are moving with great steadiness. ] After the assault they very quickly
 covered a distance of two kilometers
 beyond the German front line. Thus far
 the day has gone well for France and
 England. 1 The sector of the German front on
 which the British have assumed the of | | the British line. The southern end rests
 on the Somme, which is formidable
 river in military operations because 1t
 breaks into many channels flowing l through a broad marsh, especially at
 places where it has not been surveyed.
 It is a broad, rolling country over
 which the British are pushing, although
 different from the flat, marshy and
 bleak aspect of Flanders. Its rounded chalk hills are densely wooded. 1 At many points on this sector of the British front it is possible to see the 1 trenches of the Germans winding about the opposite slopes. military expert writing of the offensive says: | "It is safe to say the Germans never expected a great attack in this country. l We may hope, therefore, for a reduction of the German salient there and the securing of better strategic positions.
 For more important than that 1t is certain that this attack will be very obstructive to the morale of the Ger | man troops. The official messages say l their army has attacked. But what must l be borne in mind now is the much great | CT length of front the British hold. We 1 attacked on about one quarter Of the | length of our front"
 l The British offensive was preceded by | A bombardment of a week compared with l the bombardment of 31 days before the advance at Loos last September. The mo- ticeable shorter duration of the artillery preparation, however, was more than made up for by it's intensity. EFFECT WAS TERRIBLE tich was described from day to day, by cor respondent, all of whom agreed that nothing to equal it ever had occurred before on the British front. The curtain of fire was so effective that the Ger mans were unable to send food to the front line. Men in these trenches were starving for days.
 The nightly raids on German trenches accounted for many of the defenders of these positions and also enabled the
 British to observe the effect of the ar tillery fire during the preceding day, and thus returned much valuable information.
 The number of prisoners taken in these raids has not been disclosed. but the cor respondents have been permitted to say that men were captured from every bat talion in the German line opposing the
 British forces The information thus ob taiped shows that not single German regiment has been removed from this |
 front.
 The number of Germans opposite the British front and in reserve behind the lines was estimated a month ago at S00,OO0
 Under pail of shell smoke with the unbroken roar of artillery the struggle over the longest line of any offensive yet undertaken on the western front, which began at 7:3O o'clock this morning, is
 continuing at this hour.
 From hill the Associated Press cor
 respondent watched the beginning of the
 battle. For weeks he had witnessed preparation for the first considerable eff
 fort of the new British army. Notwith- standing the fact that troops were moved
 to the front in immense numbers for
 the attack there are still remaining bill
 lets in the rear which apparently are un-
 necessary in working out the present plans.
 WHOLE LINE INCLUDED With deliberate and methodical precis-
 ion the gathering of human and me-
 chanical material proceeded The whole line was included in the preliminary hombardment for the purpose of deceiving the Germans as to the point of attack.
 Overwhelming as was the power of the guns, the grim and significant spectacle was the sight of detachments of infantry, In 1lelQ equipment, moving IOrWdfu uItll finally the dugouts were hives of khaki about to swarm forth to battle. Each officer had maps and directions in details of the part his unit was to play in the whole complicated scheme of at tack. The men had sewn in their uni forms insignia designed to designate the different units amid the dust and smoke of action.
 As the battalions marched they sang the tunes they used to sing on the drill grounds at home after they responded to Kitchener's call. There were quiet and undemonstratve English, speaking with Yorkshire or Cornwall accent, or Cornwall accent, or maybe breaking out in gibes in the slang of the London cock ney There were brawney Scots, with kits and steel mushroom helmets, sug- gesting madieval men of arms. An Irish battalion was whistling the Marseillaise The men realized the fearful work ahead .3ut 1t Is in the contract,' said young Englishman ''It is what we expected. It is our turn to make good" As the days of the bombardment passed the air of expectancy was noticeable |,everyw ywhere through the army. Last night the word was passed that the infantry was to make the assault this morning. At dawn the correspondent ascended a
 hill in the region of Albert. The sun rose brilliantly. promising another fine day. This was even more welcome than
 yestercay to artillery observers. who must