Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-08-31
BRITISH SOLDIERSSMASH
THEIR WAY FORWARD
Last German Driven Across the Somme in Battle Result
ing in Terrible Losses to Prussian Forces-Barrage
Firing Proves Of Great Value to Infantry

the battle are laundering away as hard
as their gunners can force them.
Arras- Cambria road and along the
River Scarpe the British are pushing
coward aris gaining nm. more ground.
generally closer 70 the Drocoi.rt- Queant
defense of the enemy.
Counterattacks have been launched
but none of them seems to have gained
anything for the enemy. majority
of them have been completely broken
guns and rifles before the enemy reach
ed the British positions.
In the north there apparently is live
ish are reported to have made consid-
cradle advances. y report has just
been received that Bailleul, southwest
Of ipres. is being shellcd by the enemy.
Germans have withdrawn altogether
from that important town. and that
the British either are entering Bailleul
or Will do SO later.
1t is time something was said of the
wonderful work in the Scarpe- Somme
battle of the British artillery. which
mans themselves testify to the terri
BILE efficiency Of the massed British
cannon, which. in many cases, stood
virtually wheel to wheel while they
hurled death and destruction into the
enemy. knocking the will 10 fight out
of him and blasting path for the
infantry
TERRIFIC BARRAGES
FALL UPON ENEMY
The prisoners all mention the ter
rifle barragcs they have withstood and
comment bitterly upon the thinness of
their own counter barrages, because
the German heavieS arc always being
dragged rcarward TO save them from
capture. The German artillery. ap-
parently, had little faith in the ability
OF the infantry TO hold off the Brit
iSh attacks today.
For days past the British barrages
nave fallen all along the front. ever
down on masses of the enemy lying in
whatever shelter they could find. such
as shell craters. old and new. and old
cross this ground. made barren even of
grass by years Of war. Rarely have
the Germans had the projections of
n aug ,,ts Even when they have going
into them often meant capture. for the
british infantry and tanks at nearly
ali times have been upon them so close
~ after the barrascs lifted that they
have not had much time to offer fight
even IL they really desired to.
CASUALTIES INFLICTED
ARE GREATER THAN EVER
The casualties inflicted by the British
| smells have been larger, perhaps. than
ever before because the gunners. adj
Ianclng closely behind the infantry,
nave mad many opportunities on this
terrain, which alternately is slightly
roliinE ana flat. to lay on their weap-
ons with opcn sights and pour A rapid
hre or steel into the buchcs. The ar
tiNery has materially helped TO increase
me number OF prisoners by throwing
completely out OF gear all the enemy
iatloninS arrangements The cmpticr
a German stomach the more docile is
us owner. still more has the nrtil-
iery helped to catch prisoners by drop
ping barra gcs behind large groups, cut
ing OF their retreat. And all this
fire has lad its effect in even more
ways.
Prisoners. who had recently been I'm
Jerome. SAID they saw great many
men there whose nerves had bcrp COW
ptctely shattered. Pcronnc at the
time was being bombed from the air
almost continuously. One airplane af-
ler another was flying over In rapid
succession. literally raining bombs on
the Germans and inflictinE heavy cas-
ualtles, besides causing much material
carnage. "