Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1917-06-12

Million Pounds Of Explosives
Routed Germans In Belgium.
FILLED AIR WITH FLAMES
British Had Prepared For the Offensive
For Two Years-lmpossibI For Enc
my to Exist on the Front, and 40
Result the Map Was Changed Over
Nine Mile Front.

my to Exist on the Front, and a. q
Result the Map Was Changed Over
Nine Mile Front.
What was possibly the greatest Of
fensive since the war in Europe start
ed began the other morning at 8 o'clock
when orders by Field Marshal Sir
! Douglas Haig, commander Of the Brit
ish forces, gave the signal for the de-
tonation Of 100000 pounds OF explo-
sives underneath the German positions
on a nine mile front between Ypres
and Armentieres, Belgium.
A correspondent Of the London Daily
News said that the British rehearsed
the artillery preparation for the battle.
For seven days we had been she'll
ing the enemy's position pitilessly," he
wrote, 'never letting them rest and
occasionally subjecting one portion of
the line or another to hurricane bonn
bardment. Twice, indeed, we poured
| our fire on the whole front to be at
tackled by way Of rehearsal on the
same scale.
Under this treatment the whole
topography Of the front has been
changed. Woods have been swept
out Of existence, hill slopes have been
stripped and laid bare, and villages
like Wytschaete and Messines have
disappeared"
The correspondent tells the story Of
the desultory firing In the early morn
ing hours; then ''that began which blot
ted out all sound and knowledge Of
| everything else. How many mines
went up at once do not know exact
", but 1t was nearly a score. Many
of these mines were made more than
year ago and since then have lain
! under the Germans feet undiscovered.
In all I believe COO tons Of high explo-
sives were fired simultaneously.
Nine Streams Of Fire.
ri can only vouch for having seen
nine of the great leaping streams Of
orange fame which shot upward from
that part Of the front Immediately be-
fore me, each one Of the nine 4 huge
volcano in itself, with as many more
volcanoes going off at the same mo-
ment beyond them, hidden by their
flames and out Of sight, and each vast
sheet of flame as 1t leaped roaring up
ward throwing up dense masses Of dust
and smoke, which stood like great pill
lars towering Into the sEy. al illr1s u
mated by the fires below.
i '"It was terrifying as a spectacle.
and what was more terrifying was
that the earth shook like house Of
cards. ! stood on solid hill and It
quaked like jelly or like some small
house on the edge Of railway line
when a heavy train thunders by.
Then, even before the echoes Of that
awful explosion died and while the
pillars of smoke still lowered and
grew, all our batteries awoke at once.
Imagine the whole sky ringed with
lightning which flickers white and yell
low, orange, red and green. Imagine
thousand great firefies all the colors
Of the rainbow. Imagine the sky one
diamond with million facets being
shaken in giant hand. Imagine what
you will and still you will get no pic
ture Of it."
British Artillery Triumphs.
This fire reached its climax Just as
dawn was grazing the eastern skies
and while the full moon was still sus-
pended high in the heavens. The sue.
cesses, won along about a ten mile
front from Observatory ridge. south
east Of Ypres, to Ploegsteert wood, Just
north Of Armentieres, proved another
triumph for British artillery suprem-
acy.
As the fighting was wholly on Bel
gian soil. however, the Belgian artil-
lery, stationed some distance north Of
the actual line Of attack, lent aid with
q violent bombardment Of the German
positions within range Of its varied
calibered weapons.
Messines ridge is a low lying pro-
montory extending along the greater
part Of the fighting front. It Is an In
significant bit Of ground to look at
from below. At its greatest height It
rises barely seventy meters above sea
level The surrounding country Is SO
low and fiat, however, that Messines
had an observation value practically
ihcalculable.
It was a position which dominated
ne northern hale of the British line
in the west, and no operations of a
Il rye character could be planned with.
out its possession.
Shells Spurtsd Molten Metal.