New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-08-27
British Launch New Sue
cessful Attack at
St. Quentin
Assault on Verdun
Shifted by Petain
Entente Forces Begin Many
Unexpected Actions
in West

Of St. Quentin and west of Cambria
suddenly emerged as the battle-ground
of a new offensive movement to-day
when British troops struck along
mile of front east OF Hargicourt and
stormed strongly fortified German po-
stons at the Cologne and Malakot
farms to depth of half mile. This
is the sector devastated during the
Hipdenburg retreat of last spring. and
IL has seen little active fighting since
the Germans finally settled into the
line which they decided to hold. Re-
Gently, however, there have been strong
gusts of artillery fire around st. Quen-
tin, principally from the French bat"
teries, which presaged approaching Al
lied pressure along the whole strip Of
country. The British took 1856 prison
ers.
At the same time General Petain
shifted the pressure Of his army az
Verdun from the west to the east bank
of the Meuse River to-day, and
launched blow which carried the
French troops to the southern outskirts
OF the village of Beaumont. On front
Of over three miles from Mormont
Farm to the Chaume Woods. the poilus
moved forward to depth of two-thirds
of a mile, and carried all their oblec-
tives, including the Bois de Fosses and
the Bois de Beaumont, wooded patches
which formed fine nests for the Ger
man machine gunnefs.
A violent enemy counter attack, de-
livered almost Immediately from the
Wavrille Wood, was caught in the
effective French barrage, and, accord
ing to Paris, netted nothing for tho
Crown Prince except heavy losses. Ber-
lin tonight declares that the French
troops. after gaining initial advantages,
were thrown back TO their old positions
By a counter thrust. During the night
a French attack north of Hill 344, be-
yond the Talou Ridge, is said to have
failed.
Germans Attack Near Ypres
There was also heavy fighting in the
Yprcs salient. Under cover of a strong
bombardment the Germans early this
morning attacked near the Ypres- -Menln
read. and by the use of fame throwers
drove the British out OF the high
ground in the northwest corner of In
verness Copse. Haig's men counter at
tackled at once, however, and won back
all their losses.
Apparently the predicted new phase
of the fighting along the West front
is being inaugurated with swift and
unexpected Entente assaults at large
number of different points in the line.
After the British established the full
weight OF their pressure in Flanders
the fighting fared out powerfully at
Lens, and later the new French drive
from Verdun was started. Now come
attacks in the St. Quentin-Cambrai
section. and there is every indication
that the fire of destruction which the
French are carrying out IN the Cham-
pagne region is 20 be followed by heavy
infantry engagements.
At the least the Allied High Com
mand hopes by these widely separated
strokes to put an added strain upon
the dwindling German reserves and to
gain additional territory at compara-
lively small cost. At most, the Entente
leaders hope by this feelngout process
on a great scale to find weak place
in the enemy line into which deep
Wedge can De uElFeN'
Battle at Hill 304
In the Verdun area, on the west bank
of the river, there are signs that the
Germans mean to reconquer mn 3Of
if they can. The hostile artillery IRE
there is intense, but nevertheless the
French managed 70 advance little last
night and now hold their line along the
pnth
south bank Of the FORCES Brook. Cor
respondents at this front quote Ger
man order signed by General Won Diet
rich and delivered to the garrison de-
Tending Dead Man Hill, TO the east OF
304. Il read:
"An attack may be expected momen-
tarily. The division must rely on its
own strength. | hope 1t VIII sufhce TO
defeat the enemy
Another sentence in the same order
which was found on a German pris-
oner referred 10 Hill 304 as "the key
10 the whole Western front" How
ever there is little indication at this
stage of the fighting that Petain means
10 push his front beyond the line from
which the Crown Prince began his
great offensive in 1916.
Earlv this morning the British at
tackled and occupied the trench north
west Of Gillemont Farm, near Epehy,
which the Germans had wrested from
them the day before. reestablishing
their former positions and foiling an
attempted counter attack. A German
thrust was also repulsed near Laventie
by Portugueses troops. who are holding
that part Of the British line around
La Bassee.