The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-03-30
Countryside Is Full of Bodies
Victims of Drive.
Great Piles of Dead Where
Waves Fell Before Guns.
NEXT BLOW Is At vERDUn?
Great Masses of German Troops
Concentrated There.
Never Such a Stock of Num-
tiOnS as Allies Have.
FARFUl LOSSES BEFORE ARRAS
Hun Attempts To Force British
Are Most Costly.
Artillery Has Been Doing Mar
velOus Work.
Great Masses of German Troops
Concentrated There.
Never Such Stock of NUM-
tiOns as Allies Have.
FARFUL LOSSES BEFORE ARRAS
Hun Attempts To Force British
Are Most Costly.
Artillery Has Been Doing Mar
velOuS Work.

London, March 30.-The Morning
Post correspondent in France draws
a gruesome picture of battlefield con-
d'tions.
Prisoners state that the country
side is full of bodies and that the air
is horrible with the odor of death.
he writes. Wells cannot be used
The ruined villages are impossible
biliets because they are strewn with
German dead. There are great piles
of bodies along the roads and be-
twee them. The enemy has only re-
Gently found time to bury any of his
dead.
THE spectacle of the battlefield
carpeted with the bodies of their
comrades has affected fresh troops.
who in this way discovered to their
surprise that the British are not too
weak to fight. Prisoners say the
British endurance and skill in fight
ing = delaying the progress of the
German army.
among the feats of this British
endurance may be mentioned that of
a detachment which marched eigh-
teen hours, fought thruout one night
and Lalf of the next day, repelled
TIN c. attacks, twice recaptured a GER
tain village. and dug trenches
Gather at ycrdun.
Amsterdam, March 30.--The cor
respondent of the Amsterdam Han
delsblad, visiting the Verdun front.
declares he saw great masses of Ger
man troops concentrated there.
He interviewed General Won Gallwitz
who said he never saw such enormous
stocks of munitions as the British
have.
tBy the Associated PresS.)
British Army Headquarters in
France, Friday. March 29.-The Ger
man attempt to force the British back
along the Scarpe and capture Arras
cost them enormous price in
casualties, although they used ten
divisions.
North of the river. the British held
to their positions and wavered but
slightly before the enemy onslaught
South of the river. however, the Brit
ish retired slightly between Fampoux
and Boisleux. There was hard fight
ing on both sides of the Scarpe. To
the north the most desperate conflict
was staged about Rcueux. which was
the scene of sanguinary struggles last
year.
The Germans succeeded in forcing
the British to withdraw from this
place. North of Bavrelle the enemy
tried to push the British back on
Bailleul, but were repulsed by wither-
ing machine gun fire. South of the
river the most bitter fighting was
about Telegraph hill, which changed
hands several times.
Great Artillery Work.
Below the Somme. British artillery
has been doing marvellous work in
getting the heavy guns back during
the withdrawal. One battery of
heavies was cut off and lost for three
days. Altho often surrounded the men
worked their way out to the British
! lines with all the guns. On high
ground near Albert there are five ma
chine gunners who are cut off 500
yards in front of their infantry but
! who still are going great execution
among the enemy. Tanks also have
been doing a small but important
! work The have been travelling in
| pairs stemming the advance and
| taking prisoners.
The Crucial Zone
That sector of the long battle front ly-
/ ing south Of the river Somme continued
today to be the crucial zone of the conflict
The Germans following up their small gains
! of yesterday in their northwestward drive
! toward Amiens, were pressing the attack
vigorously. They were meeting with the
most obstinate resistance the part Of the
British defenders, however. and latest re-
/ ports state that there had been little or
change in the situation since last night
despite the hard fighting; the extreme
north the enemy had desisted for the
ment from their assault against Arras but
! there are indications that they only
waiting for fresh troops before renewing