The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-08-26
Tanks and New Shells Make
Barriers Useless.
Germans Dislike Fighting Dur
ing Hours of Darkness.
HIDE IN OLD SHELL CRATERS
Fresh Troops Thrown In Out
of the Scanty Reserves.
German Forces Badly Disor-
ganized by Attacks.
BY LOWELL MELLETT.

BY LOWELL MELLETT.
With the British Armies in France.
Aug. 26.-The last weeks fighting APP
parently has revealed that the Ger
mans dislike night fighting. Other
wise, 1t is hard to account for the re-
markable rush of the Yorkshires, Lin
coInshires and other English troops
thru the Ancre rivers Friday night.
thence across Thiepual ridge. making
a gain of three thousand yards (nearly
two miles) over indescribably diff
cult ground in twenty-four hours.
1t can be recalled that German
military writer's were not partial to
night fighting, even in theory before
the war. Another thing, barbed wire
defenses have ceased to be the OBJ
stacies they once were. This may add
to the explanation of why the British
are now advancing kilometers with
practically the same effort they de-
voted to gaining yards.
New Shells Solve Wire.
Then there are the tanks, whose
part in the present battle is worth
special story, and the development of
instantaneous fuse shells responsible
wire layers. Unlike other shells
which bury themselves in the ground
and explode upward, these explode at
the slightest contact and scatter with
great force, literally ripping the en-
tanglements to pieces.
Concentrated Smelling for even a
brief period leaves the ground free for
an advance. There are no shell
craters and the wires are gone. OF
course. the old craters remain. these
furnishing wonderful defensive posi-
lions. as at Boiselles, where the boche
morning and poured out a murderous
machine gun fire until they were
smothered. Out of scanty reserves.
badly needed as they are, Hindenburg
and Ludendorff are throwing in Prus-
slams, Saxons, Bavarians and German
marines, in an effort to check the
British. These are being checked in
as regiments. not as DIVISIONS. Some
elements of the same divisions have
been found as far apart as Biefvillers
and Mamatz (nine miles).
Tanks Harass Retreating Troops.
Notwithstanding attempts to repair
holes in the line as fast as they de-
holding desperately only to certain
points in the line in order to prevent
a complete breakdown OF their de-
tense. with the resultant change in
| the present disorderly retreat. AS it
is the Discrimination Is so great in
places, that British tanks have been
| able to harass retreating units with
machine guns. leaving wreckage and
confusion in their wake.
l. A tour of prisoners cages yesterday
developed some interesting conditions.
I learned that the 10th and 43rd
| division have been added to the forces
in the northern part of the battle
field, the Saxons being brought from
Belgium. They are a clearly lot. many
OF them converting their helmets into
wash basins.
A Prussian officer IN another cage
| drew attention on his arrival by first
asking that his orderly be confined in
| the cage and then asking for steak
and onions.
The prisoners include large num-
| bers of the Third marines, caught east
of Miraumont, where they were rein
| forcing the Bavarians, when Mirau-
mont was pinched off at poon Satur-
| day.
One of the happiest of the prisoners
judging from the expression on his
| face, was a German messenger dog
who was confined in one of the cages
altho he apparently only reflected the
| feelings of the young Germans abou
him, and responded to advances nc
more willingly than did the men.
Scatter Alsatians.
Alsatian prisoners said the German.
are scattering them in groups of ter
turnout the army. They said punish
ment for desertion was visited on theil
| families. In some cases. their sister.
| had been sent to work in the from
| lines, they said. This is responsible
for the stories that the Germans are
1 using women to fight in the battle
| lines.
Among the suIking Prussian officer
was one who was still irritated be
cause a tank to which he sought t.
surrender lacked room to take hin
aboard and he had to walk back to tn,
concentration camp