Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-04-26
British Army, Now Supported by
French Troops, Still Holds
Back the Germans.
Draws BACK EAST OF YPRES
Huns Fight Furiously to Capture the
Messines Ridge and Bethune--Secre-
tary Baker Returns to Speed
Americas Men Across-Schwab
Heads ShipbuiIding.
BY EDWARD w. PIckARD.


At the end of another week of the
most sanguinary battle the world has
ever known, the British army was still
undestroyed, its lines still unbroken.
Overwhelmingly outnumbered in Flan-
ders, Haig's men were forced to give
up some important positions, and east
of Ypres they withdrew from the bulg-
enemy observed the movement, and
Strengthened and shortened their de-
fensive line so that 1t was much
stronger and more secure. Meanwhile
French re--enforcements arrived to as
sist the British, the commanders hav-
ing decided that the Flanders offensive
was not merely a diversion. To the
south, IN the Somme and the Aisne,
the French had been stoutly repulsing
every attack, and 1t was predicted
that the time was near when General
Foch, the allied commander in chief,
might be expected to start his counter
offensive. Though they were still
bringing fresh divisions into the bat
tie, 1t was figured the Germans must
be approaching the point of exhaus-
ton, when a return blow would he
most effective. Indeed, 1t did not
seem this blow could be much longer
delayed, for the British, though their
spirit and courage were undiminished.
were sustaining continuous attacks by
an enemy which was immensely superb
or il numbers and was under leaders
: whose disregard for life vas utterly
reckless.
AT the beginning of the week the.
Germans, finding they could not make
much progress toward Bethune, at
the south part of their salient, because
of the stubborn resistance of the Brit
fish at Givenchy, Festubert and LOGON,
turned to the north and undertook to
flank Ypres by driving the British
from the Bailleul-Neuye Eglise, Wul-
yerghem-Hollebeke line. For two
days the attacks of the Huns were
beaten back with fearful slaughter,
but then Field Marshal Haig was COM
PEELED to give ground and retired from
part of the famous Messines ridge, at
the same time drawing his lines nearer
to Ypres. There was still higher
ground at his rear, however, and his
generals and men displayed a cheerful
optimism that contrasted with the de-
preston caused in England and, to a
considerable extent, in America by
WHAT looked like serious reverses.
Not for a minute did the men who are
doing the fighting admit that they
were beaten or could be beaten by any
forces Hlndenburg could bring against
them, and though the Hun, when he
had taken Bailleul, was within "a
miles of Dunkirk, they still had no idea
of permitting him to force his way to
the coast.
In the effort to reach the La Bassee
canal and take Hazebrouek, the enemy,
after. intense artillery preparation, at
tackled along the front from Meteren
to Robecq, but was repulsed at almost
every point and sustained heavy
losses. The allied artillery al espe-
cialiy effective here and east of Be
thune and the Germans found 1t al
most impossible to bring up their
transport trains.
On Thursday the enemy resumed
his attacks in the Bethune region,
throwing a number of light bridges
across La Bassee canal near LOGON,
These were swept away by the British
artillery and m~achine-gun fire and
large numbers of Germans were killed.
Again and again the Germans re-
newed the attack, using more than
125,000 fresh troops on the 12-mile
front between st. Venant and Given
chy, but each time they were thrown
back with appalling losses. French
infantry and batteries co-operated
with Haig's forces.
Ia
Save for certain engineer units, the
American troops had not yet been en-