New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-09-03
Canadians and English
Capture Dury in Battle
Raging All Day
Enemy Driven Out
OF Cagnicourt Wood
Mount Dury Is Stormed and
Bois de Bouche Occu-
pied by British


WITH THE BRITISH ARMY IN
FRANCE, Sept. 2 IL p. nn.) The Brit
ish have pierced the DrocourtQueant
line in fierce battle, which has been
raging since dawn and which will prob
ably prove to be one of the most i'm
portant of the war. Canadian and
English troops at last reports had at
one point driven in about five kilo-
metres, or a little more than three
miles, and were still going.
The fighting was as furious as any
since the war began, and increased in
intensity as the British battled their
way forward, meeting the ever-grow-
ing resistance Of the enemy, who had
put in every available man and was
rushing up reserves at the rear.
Thousands of prisoners have been
captured, the roads to the British rear
are literally jammed with them.
There has been fierce fighting in Dury,
which was taken by the British, and
Mount Dury, which the Germans held
in great strength, was stormed. The
British went on after killing enormous
numbers of the enemy. The Germans
died fighting here, as elsewhere. Cagni-
court wood and Cagnicourt have been
captured, and Bois de Bouche, to the
southeast, is reported also to have
been occupied.
There has been heavy fighting in
Buissy, northeast of Queant, where
large numbers of prisoners have been
captured, and similar progress has
been made against the northern end Of
the Queant-Drocourt line for some
distance.
All during the night there was heavy
fighting around the British positions,
which were almost jammed up against
the great German defence system.
Piles of dead Germans was one of the
results. During one enemy attack a
sergeant with machine gun killed six
Germans who tried to rush him.
Crash Barrage Opened
1t was soon after 5 o'clock in the
morning that the massed British
cannon broke loose with roar that
was heard for miles in a crash barrage
The whole sky seemed ablaze as thou
sands of British shells poured into the
German wire and lines.
When the barrage raised the Can
adams and English swarmed over the
top. Just behind them were numerous
tanks Of all sizes. They had been over
only minute when the enemy opened
with counter barrage, which is said
to have been by far the strongest he
has put down since the British often
sive began.
The instant the British appeared the
Germans in many cases jumped out of
the trenches and held their hands high
above their heads. In some cases, how
ever. the advancing British met a hail
of machine gun bullets, but, notwith
standing this, they pushed on. Quickly
the first line was overcome.
Germans Panic Stricken
From al! along the line came reports
that Germans in dugouts were abso-
lutely panic stricken and many Of them
were found covering in holes and
screaming with fright.
By 1880 o'clock the British had COM
pletely passed the German front and
support lines. 1t was then that the
motor machine guns dashed out onto
the good roads at the German rear.
Tanks also managed to get through, and
they are working far in advance of
the infantry.
Machine guns are reported by the
airplanes to have made their way along
the Canal Du Nord, on the roads be-
tween Douai and Marquion, while 9TH
ers are reported to be holding the
bridgeheads against large numbers Of
German reserves, who certainly are
) coming up in the rear
Along the Arras- Cambria road the
British have made good progress, and
Villers-l les Cagnicourt, which was pro-
tected by special belts of wire and a
powerful trench system, was the scene
of desperate fighting. Both Villers-
les -Cagnicourt and Cagnicourt are in
British hands, and the British have
carried the battle considerably to the
east of this.