Part 14

In the party which went over this ground and into the firing trenches within calling distance of the German lines with The Associated Press correspondent were Owen Johnson, Arnold Bennett, Walter Hale and George H. Mair, the last representing the British Foreign Office. As they approached the lines one shell from a four-inch gun burst within twenty-five yards of them, while others exploded only thirty or forty yards away. This incident seemed greatly to amuse the soldiers in the trenches, who laughed heartily at the embarrassment of the civilians.

The visitors were invited by the soldiers into their shelters, which are dry caves with narrow entrances and with clay floors covered with matting or sacking and faintly illuminated by the light which filters in from the entrance or by bits of candle on the inside. Men who had been on duty throughout the night were sleeping in these caves.

The men on the firing line express the utmost confidence that what was done yesterday and this morning they can keep on doing until the war has been won. They never hear the vague, unverified reports circulated in Paris, sometimes of tremendous and impossible victories, sometimes sinister hints of disaster. They know what they have done since March 9, when they were ordered to act on this part of the Aisne. They talk as a matter of course of another winter campaign, because, they say, it will take another year to break the German power.

ARRAS' GRASS-GROWN STREETS

_An Associated Press dispatch of July 9 from Arras via Paris reads:_

Shells have been dropping into Arras at intervals today, as they have been for 250 days. Each twenty-four hours a few more buildings crumple or burn, although the Fire Department still is efficient in extinguishing flames.

One thousand civilians out of a former population of 35,000 are still here. There were 4,000 in December when The Associated Press correspondent first visited the town. A few scores of the inhabitants have been killed or wounded, while the others have been persuaded by the military authorities to go away. None of those remaining thinks of sleeping anywhere except in a cellar. The rest of their time they spend out of doors, when no shells are falling.

The streets, which formerly were filled with traffic, are now grass-grown. Two postmen deliver the mail, which comes regularly once a day by military post. Several shops located underground are open for business. Displayed on cellar doors are baskets of fresh vegetables, which can be bought at about the same prices as in Paris. Inside the principal grocery are many standard brands of American, French, and British canned goods.

About half the outer walls of the beautiful City Hall are still standing, but there remains only one jagged corner of the imposing belfry which once adorned the great square of Arras. A citizen occupying a cellar on the other side of the square counted the shells which struck the belfry, and says it took 360 to shatter the beautiful bit of architecture.

ARRAS CATHEDRAL

_An Associated Press dispatch from Paris dated July 13 reports:_

Since June 27 the Germans have systematically bombarded various parts of Arras with projectiles of all calibres, says an official communication given out today by the French War Department.

On June 27 the bombardment was extremely violent and was executed by six-inch, eight-inch and seventeen-inch guns, between the hours of 8 A.M. and 2 P.M., and between 6 P.M. and 7:30 P.M. The fire was directed particularly at the citadel and neighboring streets.

On July 3, toward 6:30 o'clock in the evening, a further bombardment took place in which incendiary shells were used, and they started a most violent fire.

On July 5 at 4:30 P.M., the statement continues, the enemy recommenced its bombardment of the city, concentrating its fire upon the environs of the cathedral, more especially upon St. Vaast, the ancient Bishop's palace, which had been transformed into a museum. Incendiary shells set the building on fire, and the use of fuse shells from three-inch and four-inch guns prevented our organizing to combat the fire, which soon assumed great proportions and completely destroyed the palace. During the night there was an intermittent bombardment.

On July 6, about 7 A.M., shells fell on the Cathedral, the roof of which took fire, and, despite the efforts of our troops, was entirely consumed, as were the Cathedral organs.

The departmental archives, which had been deposited in the Palace of St. Vaast, had been placed in the cellar of the palace before the bombardment and were saved. The sacred ornaments and part of the furnishings in the Cathedral were removed.

IN THE FECHT VALLEY

_The French official "Eyewitness" reported on July 15 the French victory in the battle of Metzeral in upper Alsace, as follows:_

The operations by which our troops captured the towns of Metzeral and Sondernach, which are situated in the Fecht Valley, have been remarkable because of the means employed and the results obtained, and as the Alpine troops have been forced to surmount all possible difficulties.

_Metzeral, the eyewitness explains, is situated in a valley surrounded by high hills, the sides of which dropped precipitously down to the Fecht region. On these hills was stationed artillery, to the rear of which, within easy access, large reinforcements could be massed and brought to the front when needed. He continued:_

From prisoners we learned that the Germans considered their position impregnable. It was surrounded by several lines of trenches and barbed wire entanglements. We made long preparations for the attack, concentrating troops and bringing supplies up the Vosges through winding, narrow, and hastily constructed roads, twenty miles in length. New trenches were dug, mines laid, and various other details attended to.

On June 15, after prolonged and heavy artillery fire on both sides of the valley, the attack was begun against Hill 830, on which we captured trenches situated on the slopes, taking two companies prisoners. A portion of the trenches on Braunkopf also fell into our hands.

At Eichwald we gained less, as here the German fortifications were strongest. At Anlass, also, although many grenades were thrown, the fortifications were of such a character as to make it impossible to break through.

On the day following the attack was resumed, with the purpose of gaining us all the positions on Braunkopf and Hill 830. We began at this point to encircle Eichwald, as the road to Metzeral now lay open. The Germans remained at Anlass, where our attack always stopped, and with their fire across the valley on Braunkopf made it impossible for us to proceed.

All our efforts were now concentrated on Anlass. We attacked on June 18 and 19, and on the 20th the German positions fell into our hands. Our troops continued on down the valley, capturing 6 officers, 11 non-commissioned officers, and 140 men.

An attack directed at the same time against Winterhagel, situated to the south of Anlass, was marked by a sad incident. A small group of chasseurs who succeeded in breaking through the barbed-wire entanglements found themselves under a crossfire of quick-firers. The men tried to construct a shelter with the tools they carried. The Germans cried "Surrender!" Not one man answered. The quick-firers accomplished their work, and the men were found lying with faces to the ground, as if they had dropped when drawn up in line for parade.

Our attacks were now centred on Metzeral. The factory at Steinbruck was taken on the night of June 17, and a battalion entered Altenkof the day following. On June 21 our men came down from Braunkopf, surrounded the village on the north, and took the railway station. The Germans in Metzeral, threatened with capture, placed quick-firers in several houses to protect their retreat and prepared to set the place on fire. Our artillery quickly demolished the houses in which German artillery had been placed, and our troops entered the flaming streets from the north and west. The village was burned.

On the two following nights, while our troops harassed the retreating enemy, Winterhagel and Sondernach fell into our hands and our line was established along the length of the valley of the Fecht as far as Sondernach.

The action resulted in the capture of 20 officers, 53 non-commissioned officers, and 638 men.

The Crown Prince in the Argonne

_An Associated Press dispatch from Paris stated on June 30 that the German attempt to divert the attention of the French from the latter's offensive in the region north of Arras has been productive of gains in the Argonne, where a three-days' bombardment of the French trenches was followed by the capture of French positions near Bagatelle. Elsewhere, particularly on the Yser, to the north of Arras, north of Verdun and near Metzeral in Alsace, there have been artillery exchanges without notable results._

_The dispatch recorded the following French official communication, issued June 30:_

In the Argonne, after a bombardment lasting three days, the Germans attacked our positions on the road between Binarville and Le Four de Paris, but were twice repulsed. They succeeded only in their third attack in gaining a foothold in some parts of our lines near Bagatelle, and they were everywhere else thrown back after a violent engagement.

There has been a bombardment on the front north of Verdun, in the Bois d'Ailly, as well as in the region of Metzeral.

_On July 4 Berlin's official report said:_

In the Argonne the Germans continue their offensive. Our booty has increased considerably, and amounted on July 1 and 2 to 2,556 prisoners--among them 37 officers--25 machine guns, 72 mine throwers, and one revolver gun.

_It was reported from London on July 14 that the attack of the German Crown Prince's army in the Argonne, having for its objective the investment of the French forts of the Verdun area, had resulted in an advance of two-thirds of a mile and the capture of 2,581 prisoners and several pieces of artillery, according to German official reports. A communique issued in Paris, while admitting the German success, asserts that nowhere did the assailants gain more than a quarter of a mile and announces that the Crown Prince's offensive had been definitely checked._

_Following is the text of the German official statement of July 14:_

In the Argonne a German attack resulted in complete success northeast of Vienne-le-Château. Our troops took by storm the enemy positions in the hills extending over a width of three kilometers (about a mile and three-quarters) and a depth of one kilometer. Hill No. 285, La Fille Morte, is in our possession. Two thousand five hundred and eighty-one uninjured prisoners, including fifty-one officers, fell into our hands. In addition, 300 wounded were taken under our care. Two field cannon, two revolver cannon, six machine guns, and a large quantity of tools were captured. Our troops advanced as far as the positions of the French artillery and rendered eight cannon useless. These are now standing between the French and German lines.

_The official statement issued at Berlin on July 15 says:_

The French made repeated attempts yesterday, which lasted into the night, to recapture the positions we took from them in the Forest of Argonne. Notwithstanding the employment of large quantities of ammunition and of strong forces recently brought up, all their attacks broke down. In many places there was bitter fighting with hand grenades and encounters at close quarters.

The enemy paid for his unsuccessful efforts with extraordinarily heavy losses. The number of French prisoners has been increased to 68 officers and 3,688 men.

The success of our troops was all the more remarkable as, according to corresponding statements made by prisoners, the French had prepared for a great attack against our positions on the Argonne front on July 14, their national festival day.

_The text of the German official statement published July 16 is as follows:_

French attacks delivered yesterday and the day before to the west of the Argonne Forest failed in the face of the North German Landwehr, who inflicted large and sanguinary losses on the enemy in bitter hand-to-hand fighting. We captured 462 prisoners.

Since June 20 our troops have fought continually in the Argonne and to the west of that forest, with the exception of short interruptions. In addition to the gain in territory and booty in materials a total of 116 officers and 7,009 French prisoners has been reached up to the present.

On our front which joins the Argonne to the east, lively artillery battles are in progress. Attacks made by the enemy in this region were repulsed without difficulty.

_In a dispatch from Berlin, dated July 16, by Wireless to Sayville, N.Y., it is reported that in the news items given out by the Overseas News Agency was the following:_

German military tacticians point out that the German victory in the Forest of Argonne, in France, is of special importance, as it shows that the connections toward Western France are gradually being cut.

The large amount of war materials captured by the Germans in the last battle illustrates the importance attributed to the positions by the French commanders. The French, however, were unable to resist the terrific offensive of the Crown Prince's army.

Gallipoli's Shambles

Allied Operations Around the Turks' Fortress of Achi Baba

The subjoined narratives, official and semi-official, show clearly the formidable nature of the Allies' land undertaking in the attempt to force the passage of the Dardanelles. It will be noted that Compton Mackenzie, the novelist, has temporarily replaced E. Ashmead-Bartlett as the British press "eyewitness" on the peninsula, and that General Sir Ian Hamilton's reports have for the first time begun to appear. A notable sketch of his career appears in the Atlantic Monthly for July by the pen of Alfred G. Gardiner. A poet and a man of romantic ancestry and taste, experienced in commands in India, in Egypt, and in South Africa, General Hamilton was called by the late Lord Roberts the ablest commander in the field. For his qualities of daring and inspiration, as well as for his coolness in directing the complex movements of the battlefield, he was chosen for this most dangerous and bloody of enterprises against the German-officered Turks.[4]

Mr. Mackenzie estimates the losses of the Turks up to June 30 at not less than 70,000. Prime Minister Asquith in the House of Commons, on July 1, announced that the British naval and military losses up to May 31 aggregated 38,635 officers and men. Yet the great fortress of Achi Baba, by that time one of the most powerful in the world, was untaken up to July 20, and the French and British Allies held but a small corner of the area to be conquered.

[Footnote 4: His first report, covering the actions from March 13, when he left London, to May 20, is here omitted because other official reports covering the same period were printed in the June and July numbers of CURRENT HISTORY.]

BATTLE OF THE LONGEST DAY

By Compton Mackenzie

Authorized Press Representative at the Dardanelles.

Dardanelles, via Alexandria, June 30, 1915.

The battle of the Fourth of June ended with substantial progress on our centre, although on our left and on our right, notwithstanding the most violent charges and counter-charges, we were unable to consolidate some of our initial gains. The reason of this may be found in the natural strongholds of the Turkish flanks, natural strongholds that are helped by the most elaborate fortifications.

The British and French line from the Aegean to the Dardanelles is confronted by rising ground that culminates in the centre with the flat summit of Achi Baba, 800 ft. high. On either side the ground falls away to the sea in ravines and dry watercourses (_deres_), which the Turks have had time to make impregnable to any except those superb troops that are now fighting to pass over them.

There is no room upon the Gallipoli Peninsula to find weak points, and we are now in the position of having to storm an immensely strong fortress, the advanced works of which, by an amazing feat of arms, we already hold, and the glacis of which has to be crossed before we move forward to the assault upon the bastion of Achi Baba and beyond to the final assault upon the very walls of that fortress, the Kilid Bahr Plateau.

Farther up the coast the Australians and New Zealanders have made a lodgment upon one of the strongest advanced works of the Kilid Bahr Plateau. As seen from the northwest here they threaten the communications of the "fortress" and are drawing against them a large part of the garrison. This is composed of the flower of the Turkish Army, and, notwithstanding casualties that must already amount to 70,000, the troops are fighting with gallantry--with desperation, indeed, because they realize that when the bastion of Achi Baba falls the occupation of the Kilid Bahr Plateau becomes a mere question of time, and that when Kilid Bahr falls the doom of Constantinople is at hand. In view of the difficulties--were it not for the landing one would be tempted to say the impossibilities--which confront our men, the gain of a score of yards in the Gallipoli Peninsula may fairly represent for the purposes of comparison a gain of 500 yards in the Western theatre of war. Therefore, to find its importance the gain of 500 yards on June 4 must be measured with affairs like Neuve Chapelle; and the few quiet days that succeeded may be accepted as repose.

After a violent effort on the night of June 11 to 12 there was a brilliant little action by the Border Regiment and the South Wales Borderers which resulted in the gain of two trenches. On the 16th the enemy, led by a Turkish and a German officer, made an assault on the trenches of the 88th Brigade, but were driven off with loss. However, that night the trenches gained by the two regiments on the 11th were heavily bombed, so heavily that our men were forced to retire about 30 yards and dig themselves in. At dawn we were able to enfilade with machine-guns the vacated trenches.

Then the Dublin Fusiliers charged with the bayonet, and once more gave us possession of our gains at heavy cost to the Turks, whose dead filled one trench.

On the evening of the 18th the enemy bombarded very heavily another portion of our trenches on this side of the line. They were evidently attempting in miniature our own methods of Neuve Chapelle and June 4, as immediately after the bombardment they were seen to be massing for an attack. However, the imitation ended rather abruptly at this point, and the affair petered out.

On the evening of the 19th the Turks by a fierce attack, managed to get into an awkward salient which had remained in our hands after June 4. For some time there was great difficulty in recovering this, but the 5th Royal Scots and a company of the Worcesters, led by Lieut.-Colonel Wilson of the former regiment, made a glorious attack, and drove out the Turks.

Of the Royal Scots, one can add nothing but that they are Edinburgh Territorials brought in by the fortune of war to make the twelfth regiment of the immortal 29th Division whose deeds since April 25 might have stirred the ghost of Homer to sing their valour.

Mention has been made already of the difficulties that oppose our advance upon the two flanks. On June 21 it was determined to straighten the line upon the extreme right, and at 1.30 A.M. the preliminary bombardment began. The dawn had been clear, but soon a curtain of silver, through which gleamed the ghost of the rising sun, hung over the Kereves Dere. This was the smoke of bursting shells. Slowly as the sun climbed up the curtain became more substantial. Then it seemed to droop and sweep along the hollows like a vanishing mist of dawn, and during a respite the thin blue smoke of the bivouac fires came tranquilly up into the still air. The respite was very brief, and the bombardment began again with greater fierceness than before. The 75's drummed unceasingly. The reverberation of the 125's and of the howitzers shook the observation post. Over the Kereves Dere, and beyond, upon the sloping shoulders of Achi Baba, the curtain became a pall. The sun climbed higher and higher. All that first mirage of beauty had disappeared, and there was nothing but the monstrous shapes of bursting shells, giants of smoke that appeared one after another along the Turkish lines. All through the morning the cannonade went on.

By noon the Second Division of the French had on the left stormed and captured all the Turkish trenches of the first two lines. Even the Haricot Redoubt, with its damnable entanglements and its maze of communicating trenches, was in French hands. On the right, however, the First Division, after reaching their objective, had been counter-attacked so effectively that they had fallen back. Again they advanced; again they took the trenches; again they were driven out. It began to look as if the victory upon the left would be fruitless, that the position would become an untenable salient and the Haricot Redoubt revert to the enemy.

At this moment a message was sent to say that the trenches must be recaptured, and, when recaptured, held. There were still five hours of daylight for this battle of the longest day. British guns and howitzers were asked for and were lent at once. The bombardment was resumed throughout that afternoon, and at half-past five it seemed as if every gun on earth were pouring shells on the Turkish lines.

At six o'clock the third assault was delivered. In one trench there was a temporary shortage of ammunition, but the enemy fought even with stones and sticks and fists. A battalion came hurrying up from the Turkish right to reinforce it, was caught on open ground by the drumming 75's, and it melted away. Six hundred yards of Turkish trenches were taken, and still the bombardment was continued in order to ward off the counter-attack that was anticipated.

The smoke of the shells, which at dawn had been ethereal, almost translucent, was now, in the sunset, turbid and sinister, yet the sunset was very splendid, flaming in crimson streamers over Imbros, tinting the east with rosy reflections and turning the peaks of Asia to sapphires. It had a peculiar significance on this longest day of the year, crowning as it did those precious five hours of daylight that, for the French, had been fraught with such achievement. Slowly the colour faded out, and now, minute by minute, the flashes of the guns became more distinct; the smoke was merged in the gathering dusk, and away over the more distant Turkish lines the bursts of shrapnel came out like stars against the brief twilight. One knew the anxiety there would be in the darkness that now was falling upon this 21st of June, but in the morning we heard gladly that the enemy's counter-attacks had failed, and that our Allies were indeed firmly established.

The Turkish casualties were at least 7,000. One trench, 200 yards long and 10 feet deep, was brimming over with the dead. They were valiant those dead men. French officers who have fought in the West say that, as a fighting unit, one Turk is worth two Germans; in fact, with his back to the wall, the Turk is magnificent. The French casualties were marvellously few considering what a day it had been, what an enemy was being attacked, and how much had been gained.

The right of the line now commands Kereves Dere, and the profile of Achi Baba seems to write itself less solidly against the sky.

ATTACK BY LAND AND SEA