New Britain herald., 1917-04-28
.HAIG ORDERS MEN TO DASH FORWARD
 NORTH TO SCARPE
Offensive Against Germans Re suIned by British With Suc-
 cess, London Reports

cess, London Reports
 GREAT TASK AHEAD IN
 NEW PHASE OF BATTLE Nature of Ground F,avors Defenders,
 Much Like in Somme Offensive Last
 TallHInitial Gain Satisfactory to
 English Fresh German Divisions
 Identified by Prisoners Captured
 Berlin Reports Renewal of Fighting.
 Another smashing drive by the British. on the French front was be- gun today. Gen. Haig reports an ad- vance on an extended front north of the scarpe.
 The attack has already secured good progress and is continuing. Heavy fighting has developed, the Germans throwing fresh divisions into the fray.
 The field of the new push lies within the ten mile front from the Scarpe to the coal city of Lens, which the British have had under their guns on three sides for nearly two weeks.
 General Haig already had pushed a deep wedge in the German lines three miles north of the Scarpe. Every yard he gains there is making the German front between that points and Lens more difficult to hold.
 While the British are thus apparent ly giving the Germans more than they can cope with in this sector of the, great battlefield, the French are keep ing up a heavy artillery fire south. from St. Quentin all around tho curve in the line into the Champagne.
 They seemingly have completed the count of the prisoners and booty taken in the recent fighting on these fronts. They captured 175 cannon of all cali- bers, 412 machine guns and 119 trench guns. The prisoners total 20,- 78O.
 There are many signs that the fight ing will shortly be resumed on q more terrihic scale than ever before and n0t least of these oInens are the frantic ap- peals and threats being made by the German leaders and press to avert the menace of a general strike throughout Germany. All the far-reaching power of the German censorship in unable to suppress the fact that the gravest dis content Is seething in the ranks or the German workers and that the govern ment Is haunted by the fear that May Dav may see an outbreak which will shake the whole imperial fabric.
 That the general strike planned by the socialist radicals is not confined to Germany but includes Austria-Hun- gary as we'll Is indicated by one of the rare despatches which have come through from Vienna
 The Arbeiter Zeitung, organ of the Austrian socialists, accepts 1t as grant e0 that a strike will occur throughout the Dual Monarchy on May l and urges the workers to limit the demon stration to that day and return to work on May 2.
 The situation in Germany appears to be that the empire is divided into three great factions, with the feeling growing rapidly in bitterness. First comes the old junker class, which still talks of a victorious war. ending in annexations and indemnities: sec- ond is the socialist majority, which is exerting all its influence to force the government into a declaration that it desires neither the money nor the land of Germany's foes; the third party is headed by the radical socialists and includes an unknown but apparently considerable body of the workers, sick of war, disheartened by the dim- finishing food rations and demanding . peace at any cost. The only point in common between the three parties seems to be to make Chancellor Won -Hollweg the target of all their shafts.
 ' The majority socialists appear to have the inner track at present. An incident of possible significance has occurred in connection with the visit of Talaat Bey, the Turkish vizier, to Berlin. After conferences with the chancellor and Foreign Secretary Zimmerman, the Turkish premier is quoted in a. Berlin despatch as saying chat Turkey was ready to make peace and desired no annexation.
 After days of disconcerting and dubious reports from Russia, more re-assuring information has been re- ceived in regard to the conditions there. A general scrapping of guns on the fighting lines has taken place and Minister of Justice Kerensky declares that the army is in better shape than ever before and resolute to continue the war.
 British Attack on Wide Front.
 London, April 28.-The British have Y --opened an attack along the severa miles of the front north of the Scarpe river. according to an official state. ment by the war department today.
 The British troops are making good progress in the face of considerable opposition the announcement says