New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-06-08

Three out of four of the casualties
were reported to be walking cases, who
would return to duty in few days.
To-day's victory was tribute TO the
British army commanded by General
Sir Herbert c. o. Plumer This army
has had the defence OF the famous
Ypres salient ever since the salient was
created. The army has sat IN the
shadow during the brilliant phases of
the Somme and Arras offensives, but at
last has come into its own.
The preparations for to-day's opera
tions had been made carefully and de-
liberately. Each detail was worked
out, to the last-minute detail OF the
itinerary of each Of the tanks, which
had a field day.
Din of Guns browns Thunder
The attack began at dawn. The day
before had been hot and sultry. Tow
ard evening there was a series OF
thunderstorms, which extended well
into the night, the lightning mingling
with the flashes of the guns, but the
thunder being virtually unnoticed amid
the din Of the cannon.
In the shadow of an old windmill
which has withstood the storms of a
century and been undaunted by near
ly three years Of war, the correspond
ent witnessed the last phases of the
seven-day preliminary bombardment
and the final outburst of the guns
which sent the British infantry con
Silently on their way TO new sue
cesses. The guns were flashing all
along the ten-mile front at midnight.
From the German line the same
lazy looping rocket signals were
ascending to illuminate the treacher-
Gus No-Man's Land This nightly
'strafng" had been going on so long
that the enemy considered il entirely
normal and took no alarm.
The nights are very short in these
Northern European ATTITUDES, and dawn
comes at a very early hour. 1t was
just after half-past two o'clock that
the British guns began to cease fire.
as if the nightly demonstration of
"hate" was ended. One by one the
guns became silent. There was the old
"grandmother" howitzer, of enormous
calibre, which kept breaking the peace
at fve-minute intervals, the shock of
each succeeding explosion and the
shrek of the heavy shells being en-
phasiZed by the silence which lay over
all the surrounding country. In this
silence could also be heard an ominous
sound which hitherto had been COM
pletely submerged in the roar of the
British guns. II was the spiteful swish
and spit of the German shrapnel break
ing above the British battery positions.
After the British guns had been still
twenty minutes or so, even this sound
ceased, the German gunners evidently
considering they had efFectually ST.
fenced all the opposing batteries. For
about ten minutes the silence became
intensely oppressive.
In the east streaks OF dawn were
showing pale through riffs in the
storm clouds which lurked along the
horizon in all directions.
High in the heavens the full moon
struggled for supremacy over the thin
veil of clouds which all but hid the
less brilliant stars. Somewhere in the
distance a cock crowed, a strange
sound 10 be heard in the very storm
centre Of the world. Then followed
the clang Of the triangle--an alarm
that enemy gas shells were about. The
old Grandmother Howitzer was again
maintaining at least a semblance of
"hate."
Day was scarcely breaking when
from the dimly visible ridge score of
fiery volcanoes seemed suddenly to
spring from the earth. The night had
been filed with strange noises and still
stranger sights. but these masses Of
flames. leapinc from the ground, had a
meaning all their own. They were the
spectacular outward and visible evil
dences Of more than a million pounds
Of high explosives which had been bur
led deep IN mines below the enemy's
positions for months.
All the World Lurid
All the world appeared lurid and hor-
rible under the sinister glow. The
earth shook. as if torn by great
seismic disturbance IL was not a
single shock. The force Of the eXplo-
sion actually set the earth rocking 10
and fro, and under the influence OF the
giaus guns, which Immediately began to
roar from far and near. the trembling
continued indefinitely. 1t was just ten
minutes past 3 o'clock as this final.
terrific bombardment began.
II had seemed that the Battle of the
Sommc attained the ultimate in the
close assembly If war weapons. but
this sudden outpourng on Messines
Ridge was beyond all calculation. The
lighter 6eid Guns far 10 fwa rd set I'M "a