New Britain herald., 1916-08-16
GERMANS ON SOMME
 FACE 5O0,OOO MEN
Terrific Slaughter Caused by
 Heavy Guns Of Both Sides

German Trenches, Opposite the British Position at GOmmecourt on the Somme Front, Monday, Aug. IA, via Berlin and SayVilIe, Wireless, Aug. 16, (frOm a Staff Correspondent of the Associated PreSS-Ealf a mill lion British have been engaged in the effort to break the German lines on the SOmme front. Often, as in the fighting between GOmmecOurt and Iebuterne, the British Outnum bered the Germans six to one. They have gained ground to a depth of three to five miles over a front of about eight cen miles, but nowhere have been able to break through.
 More than ever death has become a comm onplace in this most murder ous battle of all times. The Germans in the first line know that they prob ably will be killed if their positions are attacked. Trenches are virtually useless, for tho heavy British shells widen them into broad channels, af- fording no cover of any sort. The first line usually perishes.
 British No Better
 The advancing British foot troops are no better off, because the Ger mans reverse the process when part of their positions have been captured. After the British artillery had lev elled the German trenches, the lntan- try rushed in, often to be thrown out again as soon as the British artillery ceases fire, which it has to do owing to the proximity of the opposing lines. Thus the battle has been going on for weeks, the opposing forces now gain ing at a terrific cost and then losing at even greater cost a few yards of trenches. At present all the fighting by the British is carried on from their Pozieres salient, where their drumfire is unceasing day or night, German officers who were in the Champagne offensive said no such ar tiIlery fire ever had been developed previously.
 German Fire Terrific.
 The German fire, too, is terrific An idea of it's intensity may be gained from the fact that on certain British troops German guns threw 1,600 shells in one minute and forty-tive seconds, resulting III great slaughter.
 Often the British assault dies away before the German second line, from which machine guns pour out streams of bullets which Literally cut tho men into fragments At one point the Associated Press correspondent stood within 500 yards of the British trenches near Delville wood. Nearby the Germans had just buried 1,296 British, as lulls in the firing permit ted.
 Some 500 British infantry prison- CTS whom the correspondent saw be- tnnd the firing line plainly were still daHcd by the shock. They were D sorry spectacle, glad they had cS- capped from "hCll," as they termed it.
 The correspondent visited the en- tire front of the present offensive and everywhere found from talks with Germans that they were more deter mined than ever to stand their ground. The men are in capital shape physically, and of easy mind, al though they are looking upon death at each instant. An officer pointed out that nowadays each man is his own leader as it is often impossible under present battle conditions to transmit commands. While the gen. erals might still plan the actions, the officer said, it was plain that the in fantryman, acting upon his own in itiative in the presence of death must save the day.