The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-06-08
1 49, astonasions Wa easily lao
ANAy.
"a ptS1nier knew Dsfcre hand OF
- hour set for the attack ana he
|&4 r3oen 70 Be In" en- its open
Qen rnr nLlGnTEns OFF
4 THE NAwsTS RIDGE

Iy6AAon, June well. we finally
IIn&nv&d the nlixhters Oh the nawsty
Exf1eo.. No 3cvial praise from elated
eeaAfAiA, no sfereotyped tribute In the
WAr AfRce bulletin. could have described
n1oe@ peiNnantiy the victory EnEland's
aS4by won in Belgium today than did
Nh triumphantly smiling Tommy
~n1 thus relieved himself of his feel
lrxa with hearty sigh. The next MIN
uts they took him away on stretcher.
He hAd been In the thick OF the battle
anA IAN an arm on the field BE
tween the towns Of wytehsets ana
Neasfues. about halfway between
rnrAa and the Franco Belgian frontier
Hes ridge OF the shape Of question
mark Toe much of the old hackney
drawl cannot be put into the adjective
20 describe 1t trul. as the na~stiest
cface on the whole Belgian front. FOR
the Germans II has been 'hne business
ever since October. 1914 Ever since
then the big Krupps have spread
th~ nselyes boassfuIiy on this ridge and
eert out their arrogant challenge On
II were the finest observation posts
IMAGINABLE, esrecisiiy for the pressure
a. YpyAs- Sa.~tha- British set out 10
extricate this thorn from their side.
Iate this evening ofscial word was 70
the effect that they we're completely
successful They are stu progressing.
From the outset Of this new drive,
II Ahoula be understood that II is no
break through" push. II is "strstsht-
entnx out" action. though Il lis inoeed
the most gigantic of its Kind witnessed
anywhere in the war, Roughly, here
Is the idea;
Strengthens Out Line
The pivot of the British front Is
Yprea If the Germans should try once
more to break through TO the coast
Yhey must take Ypres first. This battle
Scared stronghold lies in fighting ire
bond that is all but favorable 10 the
british. The most dangerous thing
ahou, its position has been the Mes
4slnes-wytehasts ridge That ftose
taken, the fanking menace-and ore--
from the south would he removed To-
night things strongly Indicated tnat ~
was removed. To get grip on this
range, the British had To attack not
oniy between wytchaete and Messines,
! distance ct one and three-quarters
rr;.~s bu. all the way between Ypres
ana Arnentieres. a front of nearly ten
miles
Eo, two weeks the greatest volume
a. sheIIs ever used by the British on
any front Rad honeycorubed the Teu-
Ton positions on this front. They nad
hammered away and nagztd ana pick
"a night and day with particular seai
In the wytchaets sector. Every Gay
Amos. the German war once referred
10 th's Are lest the German public be
unprepared when the infantry bio"
came.
Early this morning" said Berlin to-
dav. the battle In Flanders fared Ny
fully with infantry attacks by the Brit
Tsh- AFTER extensive explosions and the
moss violent drumhre."
How extensive these explosions were
VA. told at British headquarters to-
day: Underneath the Teuton forward
positions the British had crsmnaed NOR"
than one million pounds of explosives
How violent the drumnre was also
could be imagined from the fact that
twenty per cen; more guns were con-
eentrat.d In this sector than were set
10 work in the Arras battle
Tn, French today checked a German
attack northwest Of st, Quentin. other
wise there were only minor actions on
the Franco German front