Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1917-06-08
YpreS, Pounded to Ruins by
Two Years and Eight
Months Of Bombardment, Is
Avenged at One Stroke,
MESSlNES RIDGE IS
TAKEN BY HAIG'S MEN
Artillery Fire Greater Than
Every Before Witnessed on
Any Front; British Use
Every Modern Man-kiIIer,
tsr MORNING JOURNAL SPECIAL LEASED w,srl

tsY MORNING JOURNAL SPECIAL LEAssD w,sEl
From Staff Correspondent In
France of the Associated Press with
Ithe British Armies, June 7 (yia Lon
don, June 8, 2:1O u. m.)-The Brit
ish armies struck today on a new
front and won victory which sup
plements the successes at Arras dur
ing the last two months. The Ger
mans, though apparently aware that
the blow was coming and seemingly
prepared to meet it, were driven
from their nearly three-years' hold
on Messines ridge. opposite poor
old Ypres, the last remnant of an
important Belgian town, which with
the help of the French and British in
massed attacks the Germans could
ding against u. including the first
great surprise of poison gas as a
means of supposed civilized warfare.
Ypres Is Avenged.
Ypres, in d sense, was avenged to-
day, for Messines ridge has been the
vantage point from which the Ger
mans have poured torrents Of shells
into the stricken city. The British
also wiped off an old score against
the Germans. for they held the ridge
in october, 1914, and. with very thin
forces and virtually no artillery,
fought bloodly, but vainly, to hold it
when the Prussian troops massed
their modern and overpowering wea-
pons of war against it.
Today's attack lacked many of the
elements of surprise which accom-
panied the battle of Arras and the
successful storming of Vimy ridge.
Germans Warned of Attack.
There has been no doubt for three
weeks past as to the intentions of the
British. The Germans knew that a
big push was TO be made against
Messines and they had plenty of time
TO prepare for the defense of that
place. Prisoners taken today, how
ever, declared that the bombardment
of Vimy ridge was child's play COM
pared with the gunfire turned upon
Messines ridge.
This fire reached it's climax just as
dawn was graying the eastern skies
suspended high in the heavens. To-
days successes along about ten
mile front from Observatory ridge,
southeast of Ypres, to Ploegstert
wood, just north of Armentieres.
proved another triumph for British
artillery supremacy.
Belgians Lend Aid.
AS the fighting was wholly on Bel
gian soil, however. the Belgian artil-
lery, stationed some distance north
of the actual line of attack, lent aid
with violent bombardment of the
German positions within range of it's
varied calibered weapons.
Messines ridge is low lying pro-
montory extending along the greater
part of today's fighting front. At it's
greatest hight it rises barely seventy
meters above sea level. The sur
rounding country is SO low and flat,
however, that Messines had an OBJ
servation value virtually incalculable.
It was a position which dominated
the northern half of the British line
in the west and no operations of a
large character could be planned
without its possession.
or Supreme Importance.
Seventy meters is not great
height but when you have been sit
ting at twenty or thirty meters with
the enemy looking down at you and
pouring shot and shell necessarily
about you, possession of the higher
ground means a victory of supreme
Importance.
Today's attack was accompanied
by all the arts and deviltries of lat
ter-day war. The enemy guns and
gun crews had been bathed for days
in gas shells sent over by the long
range British guns. The night was
filled with incendiary flames. Shells
that spouted moulten lead. in streams
crashed in appalling numbers on the
heads of the defending soldiers. High
explosive and shrapnel fire was car
ried out with such rapidity that the
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