The sun., 1918-08-28
Dominion Troops Them.
selves Say 1t Surpassed
Taking of Vimy Ridge.
CORE OF WHOLE BATTLE
Made Possible Later Advances
by French .Armies-Austral-
ians Won Honor Too.
By PERRY ROBINSON.

London Times serrfce.
copy-rIt. If1s: oil riehn -ese-vos
WITH TIE BRITISH Amy IN FRANCE.
Aug. e7.-One of the strangest things
in the present fighting on the western
front is the way IL thrills ones men,
cries Of 1916. We have again come
into possession Of and are making
which used 20 be crowded with Ger
mans in this same month two years
ago. When We recovered them the
grass wss growing rank inside the
trodden down.
Ssdder Il is TO chronicle that We
buried some or our recent dead IN the
ole graveyard beside their comrades
who feu in the first Somme fighting
Much of the agricultural machinery
and similar things which we left be-
hind in our retreat from this area in
March of this year have become ours
aesin. The tanks recsptured one @.
their familiar 'tankodromes." What
memories are evoked by a sentence IN
the oficiAi report which says: Welsh
troops captured Marnetz Wood" Cap
turing Msmetz Wood will becone a
NAh!t o. the welshnen II this goes on.
American. Helped Once.
In the hrst scene o, our offensive,
August s. the actors chiefly were men
from overseas troops from the British
Isles had only small part in the at
tack north OF the sonzne 20 pro;ec; the
le:; OF the Au--Alisns south o: the
'iver II was e thAnkless and difficult
part. Later a few Americans were called
in. the only occasion on which they
have been used IN these operations. and
the Australians spread north Of the
river SO as TO be in touch with the forces
across the river.
Below here the main horors ot the
battle front in the first advance were
shared by the Australians and the Cans
d!sus 1t Wis chiefly the Canadians
battle. as their advance on the Luce VAS
the core o. the operation and OF their
progress depended 10th the advance Of
the Australian lef; and that OF the sue
cessive French armies on the right, each
Of which was thrown in only as the ao-
vance above prospe7ed The Canadians
are right in declaring that the fgh:iag
Of the arst two days was the b!Eges;
thing that Canada las done IN the war,
not excepting the capture OF Nimy
Ridge certainly nothing could have
been done better
Australians Ranked second.
Apart from the Canadians the chief
burden fell on the Australians, although
they had the incidental cooperation for
some time OF English units, both in the
region rot much below the Sonme ard
on their extreme right, in tNe latter
area especially there was Vry hard
hGhting In spite ot all this. however
the battle in its later phases was the
Australians battle
II IS absurd 10 praise the Guards
again. Aside from those dreadful DAYS
n 1914 and 1913. one remembers espe-
>1ally their achievement in September.
1915, when the troops or their night
being held up, they swept On n two
thrusts for gain Of 1900 yards. with
their right fank completely exposed
One remembers them in every great
osttle OF ISL making their punCtue
advances whenever al objective was set
for them. over the roraSses and streams
OF FLANDERS. One remembers how they
stemmed and broke The advancing Ger-
man tide in March last in the last stub
born fighting at Boiry. how in April
fuSther north one hT gade bore the
weight o' the oncoming masses until
the Australians could ccrre up and de-
train behind them. In these last few
days they have shown the same qusli-
ties; the Guard is the guard
Finally Of the remainder Of the stout
British troops the Londoners have been
named more than once. and OF the Royal
Frs.l!ers, one would like 10 mention
each battalion and each company Men
from all parts Of the empire and every
walk OF life. townsInen, countrymen,
men from the mills. farms factories.
ship cffices and from the rnoors. all are
fighting side by side, each proud Of his
comrade, all worthy OF the cause so Il
Is that our men have fought this month
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