Bisbee daily review., 1917-11-08
MUD AND SHELLS FAIL TOSTOP THE
 BRITISH TROOPS
Hun Is Driven Out of Pass chendaele by Canadians. Stronghold Taken After the Most Sa"guinary Fighting By English.

CANADIAN HEADQUARTERS IN FRANCE, Nov. 7.-(By The Canadian Press, Limited lover Passchendaele ridge, into the mud of the far-reaching Roulers plain Canada has driven the Hun. Tkis afternoon the men of the dominion are we'll established on the crest wi.h Passchendaele village in their hands and with it a good sized semi-circle of captured ground. Our wounded are coming down the line ex- hausted and covered with mud but jub- liant. With them are coming German prisoners, dazed from the terrific artil lery tombardment, worn out from their experiences from the last few hours and Respondent at the loss of Passchen- daele but glad to be removed from a winter campaign in the mud behind Passchendaele. Eighteen officers and nearly three hundred other ranks have been taken prisoner by our men mak- ing a total since the beginning of the operations on October 25th, of more than thirty officers and nearly 900 non commissioned officers and men. All the prisoners agree that Passchen- daele ridge was to have been held, or, if lost, recaptured, at all cos. $. They all bear testimony to the deadly char acter of our artillery barrage, testi- mony which is borne out by great praise of our own infantry. Our ma chine gun fire also was very destruc- tive.
 Team Work Perfect.
 It was 6:02 o'clock in the morning when our barriage lifted and the in- fantry went forward. From then till 7:30 o'clock the Canadian battalions, advancing along the higher level un- der conditions better than any of those in the previous attacks but plunging none the less through territory which was nothing more than land plowed by our shells, moved steadily forward. Our advance was So rapid and so excel lently planned and our men followed the barrage so closely that the con crete dugouts were stoned in many in- stances before the enemy could come into action.
 Whole Company Lost.
 One prisoner reports his whole company casualties, those who en- deav0red to run back beiJ-e our ad- ~ancing troops being caugh' in our | lrraGe. while others were eithe- killed or taken prisoners Another prisoner declares that our barrage was so perfect, his regiment suffered heaviest losses" Ordered to coun- ter attack, his battalion in this regi- ment advanced in extended order un- til within striking distance but the losses were so enormous they were ordered to retire. On the retreat they were moved down by our machine guns.
 PasschendaeIe Ruined.
 Passchendaele was a mass of ruins from the destructive fire of "Our heav. ies" which for days before the attack had poured shells into the village. The mud-spattered Canadians driving their way through the wreckage. cleared men out of deep cellars, the convent. brewery. schools and churches with bombs and the bayonet. Prolonged and desperate hand to hand fighting might have been anticipated particu- | larly in the morning at the brewery ! with it's vaulted concrete cellars, and i at the windmill with its three foot thick concrete walls but the Hun made | only scattered resistance.