Evening star., 1917-05-04
Hindenburg Line Cut in Places.
Haig Strives to Smash
Wotan Line.
PROGRESS REPORTED \
OVER A WIDE 'FRONT.'
Desperate Night Attacks Delivered
by Germans Fail, Except in !
Vicinity of Cherisy. J

Tie British have burst through tho
Oppy line and are fighting the bloodiest
and sternest battle of the present offens
sive in the great effort to smash the
famous Wotan line before its organization
is completed. The Hindenburg line. out>
flanked and pierced in several places. has
failed to stop the forward surge OF the
British armies and the Wotan positions
are the last great barrier barring the road
to Douai. Cambria and Germany's richest
prize N France. the great coal and iron
fields north of Lens.
The Wotan line runs from Drocourt to
Queant, a stretch of fifteen miles running
north and south about five miles west Of
Douai and Cambria. Around Queant. tho
southern extremity of the line. Gen. Haig
has formed a great human nippers and 10
striving with all the power at his com<
mand to close the jaws Of these nipperss
Realizing the menace of the situation the
Germans are fighting with a grim deter>
mination which reckons no cost in blood
too high If it halts their advancing foe.
The renewed fury into which the
great battle of Arras has famed has die
verted attention from the possibly more
significant events which are shaping
behind the battle front.
Progress North of st. Quentin. II
By the Associated Press.
LONDON. May 4.-The British lass
night made progress northwest Of St
Quentin and northeast of Hargicourts
capturing Malakon farm. the war once
announces. On the Arras front the
British have maintained their hold on
Fresnoy and all the positions captured
in that neighborhood in yesterdays
drive.
The British were compelled to fall
back from the advanced positions cap.
tured yesterday in the neighborhood OF
Cheytsy and astride the Arras- -Camhra1
road, the statement adds.
The Official statement issued from
generaI headquarters at I'LL pm. reada:
s1Hs Village Of Frssnoy and posis
tfons which we have captured north
and south Of It were subjected to 90
we're hostile counter attacks yesterday
evening All our positions in this neigh.
borhood were maintained and the enemy
repulsed.
Battle Near Bullecourt.
Severe fighting has taken place I'm
the neighborhood of Bullecourt. East
Of the village the enemy made heavy
counter attack at 9:45 o'clock last night
upon the sector of the Hindenburg line
captured by us yesterday morning. The
attempt failed completely and the
snemy's attacking troops lost heavily.
Fighting has also taken place dur.
ing the night in the neighborhood of
Cherisy and astride the Arras-Cambrai
road. In these areas our troops w2ro
compelled to fall back from the d.
vanced positions captured by them dur
ing the day.
I'VE made further progress during
the night northwest of st. Quentin and
northeast of Hargicourt. where we cap,
tured the Malakoff farm" 4
Germans Use Reserves.
The official report from British head
quarters in France describing yesters
days fighting reads:
"Fierce fighting occurred throughout
the day from west of Queant to north
of Fresnoy, four miles east of the vils
lage of vimy. The enemy again em>
ployed large reserves OF men and guns
and delivered repeated counter attacks
practically along the whole battle 'front.'
These hostile forces suffered heavily
from our concentrated artillery ana
machine gun fire. both while assem> /
bling prior to the attack and during
the actual assault.
In the face of obstinate resistance
our troops this morning penetrated .
sector Of the Hindenburg line west OF
Queant and have maintained them-
selves there all day against constane
and powerful attacks.
Positions Change Hands. u
Further progress also was made in
the neighborhood Of Cherisy. astrida
the Arras-Cambrai bank of the Scarpes
where the positions which changed
hands frequently and were defended
with great determination now are in
our possession.
"On the left of the battlefront We
captured the village of Fresnoy and the
enemys positions south and north o6
Fresnoy on a front of two miles We
also gained a footing in the enemya'
trench system north of Oppy.
Progress was made at other points
and the fighting continues.
In addition to the enemy's severe
losses in killed and wounded. we caps
tured several hundreds of German
prisoners.
Great activity continues in the air.
Four German airplanes were brought
down yesterday in the aerial fighting
and another hostile machine was shot
down in our lines. In addition, our
airplanes drove down five other enemy
machines out of control and destroyed :,
four German kite balloons. One Of our
machines is missing.
Much Night Fighting. =
Throughout the night the guns cons