Evening star., 1917-09-07
BIG GUNS IN ACTION
I. ON WESTERN FRONT
Paris Reports Artillery Battles
in the Champagne and
at Verdun.
RAIDING FROM BOTH SIDES

| BY the Associated Press.
| PARIS September Violent artillery
fighting occurred last night on the Cham
| payne and Verdun fronts, says todays Of
I fetal announcement.
| The statement follows:
| "On the Aisne front We repulsed an
enemy surprise attack south of Allies.
| There was very violent artillery fighting
.during the night in the region of Souain
| and on both banks of the Meuse.
Three German airplanes were brought
| down on September 5 and 6, following
| aerial combats. Twelve other machines
were compelled to land in a damaged con-
dition. On Wednesday night our squad
| rons threw down LOO kilograms of pro-
! jectiles on the railway station at Thion-
| vile, and 400 on the station at Waippy."
Says British Attacks Failed.
| BERLIN. September 6, via London.
September Two attacks. launched
last night by the British on the Flan-
ders front between the Ypres-Poelka-
pelle road and Zonnebeke, broke down
with heavy losses. army headquarters
announced today. The statement
reads:
"
Crown Prince Rupprecht-In Flanders
tie activity of our own and the enemy
| artillery continued strong, especially
between tho Southoulst wood and the
YpreS- Confines canal.
Altar nightfall the British twice
attacked our lines with strong forces
| between the road leading from Ypres to
Poelkapelle and Zonnebeke. Both attacks
broke down with heavy losses
German Raids Repulsed.
LONDON. September i-"Hostile raids
were successfully repulsed in the vi
cinity of Armentieres and near Lens"
says today's official statement. North
of Frezenberg the enemy delivered two
strong counter attacks in the course
of the evening against positions We
gained in local attacks yesterday. and
compelled our detachments to with
draw to their own line.
During the night a party Of our
troops rushed a hostile post west of
Queant and captured Il machine gun.
THE hostile artillery was active in the
night in the neighborhoods of Lens
and the Ypres-Menin road
Caught Germans Mapping.
CANADIAN HEADQUARTERS IN
FRANCE. September (delayed).-An-
other of the small surprise attacks,
which almost nightly reduce the area
within Lens still remaining in the
enemys hands. took place at $50
o'clock this morning and resulted in
the capture of a row of houses occupied
by four companies of Germans. Men
from British Columbia did the work
and did it well, suffering few casualties
themselves, while infiicting a consider
able number on the enemy.
bit of unexpected luck aided them
The enemy had a relief last night, and
companies entirely unfamiliar with the
locality came into the line.
There was a heavy rainstorm. accom-
panied by thunder about o'clock. and
the newcomers. in fancied security.
went to sleep in their cellars. leaving
but few men on guard. Without any
preliminary bombarding the British Co
lumbians at $3.50 scrambled out of their
supple of bombs.
They had only to cross the street to
find cellar window of a house occu-
pied by the enemy and throw bombs
down among the occupants.
A few of them. chiefly men on guard
in the upper part. escaped by prompt
ly surrendering, but many must have
been asleep when the bombs burst
around them. The row of houses thus
bombed extends about 800 yards.
Report on Canadian Losses.
OTTAWA, September 7-Advices re-
ceived here confirm the previous report
of Gen. Sir Arthur Currie that success
full Canadian operations around Lens
were not accomplished without heavy
casualties, although the percentage
was not SO large as in other battles.
No estimate has been sent here, but
the Interpretation placed on Gen. Cur
rie's statement that the German cas-
ualties were equal to sixty-nine bat
talions and that the Canadians were
only a third of that. is roughly esti-
! mated at $1,000 Germans and approx
imately $4,000 Canadians.