The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1918-05-22
SUDDEN RUSHES
OF AUSTRALIANS
FORCE FOE BACK
Gallant Dash Wins Ridge at
MOrlancOurt With 400
Prisoners.
FACED CALLING GUN FIRE
Treacher0us Boche Shoots Cor
poral After Surrender; 800
Captives in SO Hours.
FACED CALLING GUN FIRE
~ PERRY ROBINSON.

speeia, Gable Desps,cA to Tnr sus from sAe
London Tmes.
Copyright. 1915: oil riohn veserced =
BRITISH ARMY HEADouARrERs IN
FRANCE. May 20 (delayed).-In the last
thirty-six hours we have taken more
than 500 prisoners. which for a quiet
day Is not bad. Al all events we should
consider It rather serious II Il happened
tous.
OF the number more than 800 we're
taken by the French In the neisfborhood
OF Locre. In the KENNEL area, and more
than 400 by the Australians at Morlan.
court. where by a series OF sudden
rushes they have been showing the Ger
mans back between the Ancre and the
Somme.
In their previous thrust the Aus
tralians had advanced to a point almost
directly overlooking Morlancourt. which,
however. still was screened partly by a
spur that runs from the main high
ground Just east OF the village. in a
northerly direction. 1t is this spur. with
the village of Vile lying below It to the
north. which they took yesterday In an
attack which began at /: o'clock In the
morning.
Now. from the crest Of their positions
the Australians looked down upon Nor
Iancourt due east along the valley Of
the Ancre. Apart from the prisoners il
is a very useful bit Of ground they have
taken.
Faced Heavy Machine Gsa Fire.
The attack was made on a front OF
$500 yards after a shsrt bombardment.
the men advancing behind q barrage.
The troops forming the right wing. who
attacked In force. had to advance over
high ground to the summit of the ridge.
Those on the left had the swampy Ancre
valley to cross. the terrain being cut up
by dikes and drainage bitches into pas
! tures and cultivated plots. where they
| were exposed to heavy machine gun nre.
| The operation, however. was extremely
successful.
The Germans seem to have anticipated
something Of the sort. and REINFORCE
ments were sent to their forward posi-
| tons the night before. This fact did
! little more than serve to increase the
number OF prisoners, many Of those
taken having been in the front line lest
than an hour when they were captured
! 1t was a gallant operation. because the
, enemy had all the advantage Of position
He was strongly intrenched along the
winding sunkcn road running north and
south across the line OF attack. and his
position had to be cleared by bombing.
Shot by Treacherous Prisoner.
| 1t is. one fears, Characteristic OF the
: spirit Of the two armies that while one
German after he had surrendered shot
an Australian corporal the rest OF the
German prisoners were treated with the
! greatest kindness. They were extremely
hungry from lack OF rations and thu
| Australians Immediately fed them.
One German gunner who wore th'
iron cross arrived At the cages with a
notice pinned on him by his captors say
ing he had fought bravely and that nc
one must attempt to get possession ol
his iron cross, as incorrglbe souvenir
hunters sometimes will DO
OF the French attack in the north
have few details. 1t seems that thu
Germans had shelled the French from
here heavily, and ii looked as II they
might he meditatng an attack. II so II
Is not the first time In this region tina
the French have disconnected the enemy
plans by attacking first. Here the at
tack was delivered on a front OF 500
yards in order to gain definite short OBJ
jectives on the slopes by the hospice eas
of Locre. The action was entirely sue
cessful.
Allies' Airmen show Superiority y
Throughout the recent fne days an,
brilliant nights the aircraft have beeI
extremely active. While no amount o
superiority can prevent a certain mum
ber of German machines from cross!n;
our lines, especially for raiding purpose
at night, our aviators unquestionably ar
better men. Besides great numbers o
enemy machines shot down in fghtinl
We do an enormous amount Of damag
day and night by bombing and otherwis
harassing the Germans behind the lines
In the eyes OF the people at home prob
ably an incidental brilliant exploit lik
the boRbing of Zeebrugge and Cologn
will stand out consp!cuously. but thes
things. although impressive. are snal
in value compared with the work con
tinually being done In the area immedi
ately behind the battle line. Not seldom
our men fail to get enough Hsht.Dg. Re
; Gently one Of our pilots new over a, Ger
man aerodrome and swooping down fire
his machine gun into the hangers. A
; no response came he dropped packag
cont aiming a note which read:
III you won't come up here and hgh
here Is one pair OF boots for your pilot
; to wear when they hght on tho ground.
4 As a postscript he dropped bombs o
the aerodrome and came away.
This has been the NTH day OF exFem
! summer heat. interrupted by occasions
local thunderstorms on parts Of the bal
Y 'front.'