The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-08-28
ALL HAIL The TANK
In Present Drive British Iron
Steeds Create Havoc.
Most Formidable Weapon of
Modern Warfare.
GERMANS ARE POWERLESS
Huns just Throw Up Their
Hands and Quit the War.
Tanks Have Greatly Reduced
Loss of Men to the Allies.

At the British Front, Aug. Is
Tanks, known as Jules Verne's Iron
Steeds'-a distinctly English inven-
tion-have again demonstrated in the
present British push that they are
one of the most formidable weapons
of modern warfare.
German officers captured admit
they were powerless to resist the tank
charges on the scale as staged by the
British in the first few days of this
latest offensive.
Hundreds of tanks were used with
deadly effectiveness along the 80 mile
battle front. -
They brought home the bacon"
to use the terms of one English tank
officer, who was with q detachment
of British infantry isolated in St.
Martin wood. south of the Somme-
These men had been compelled to
take shelter in shell holes. Every
time they showed their noses they
drew hail of machine gun bullets.
Finally, at an opportune moment.
along came a tank. The pilot noticed
the khaki uniforms in the shell hole
He hove his tank alongside the
shell hole. A subaltern hoped out.
dropped prone among his countrymen
and learned from them the location
of the enemy machine gunners.
Whereupon he lodged back into his
tank. The steel monster drove
oNAdASiib iiAbO LilS CnCI1y
German machine gun bullets beat with
vain fury against the tanks walls.
The monster moved on and squashed
tn German gun emplacements. The
German crews were either killed or
captured.
Out of the shell hole came running
the English soldiers who now became
guards for the very men who a few
minutes before had held them at their
mercy with deadly machine gun fusil-
ladies'.
The tanks are not particular They
made their promenades in moonlight
as well as in the full glare of the
August sun. Nothing pleased the
commanders so much as the success of
these wonder machines. They saved
the day at Gomfecourt (northwest of
Bapaume). arriving half an hour be-
fore the zero hour as the time for
the opening Of the attack is known in
military parlance.
Capture 700 Prisoners.
They threw a band of steel around
the village. splitting fire and death,
killing hordes of Germans holding the
place and capturing 700 prisoners,
whom the tank crews turned over to
the British infantry.
These prisoners. who belonged to a
Saxon division. admitted that surren-
der was their only choice in the face
of such metallic giants.
They sent a shudder thru our very
souls" was the way one German
frankly put it.
A tank subaltern, submitting his re.
ports of the number of rounds fired
by the turret guns. was sort of back
ward about admitting that 5000
rounds had been used on one expedi-
ton. Finally. encouraged by the com
manding officer. he remarked with
enthusiasm which brought forth g
wave of mirth:
"You see. sir, there were so many
German trenches we had to shoot
| literally. At one place twenty re-
| fused to surrender. So we plugged
'em all. Some prisoners told us that
surrender was the only thing left fol
| them to do"
The subaltern who freed his com
rades freed in the shell crater re-
ported to his commander with a stiff
| salute: p
Construction removed. sir"-mean-