ENEMY SURPRISED
ANZAC ENTERPRISE 200 PRISONERS TAKEN
From Philip Gibbs. War Correspondents’ Headquarters, France, Monday The lull continues, and yesterday was the quietest day on the front perhaps that we have had since March 21.
I described yesterday how our intense harassing fire in Flanders and elsewhere has caused much damage to the enemy, and has undoubtedly interfered a good deal with his organisation behind the lines; making it difficult for him to relieve and reorganise his divisions, to bring up his ammunition, and to gather all the supplies he needs for the next phase of his offensive. This destructive fire of ours is causing the same effect down across the Somme, where the Australians, especially, have during recent days made life very wretched for the German troops.
The Australian achievement at about two o’clock this morning was a very daring and successful enterprise, which must be extraordinarily annoying to the German command in that district. Annoying is too mild a word to use for the German troops themselves, because for an hour or more it must have been a time of terror for them, and many poor wretches were killed before the light of day. The Australians went over in no great numbers for such a wide front of attack, which was about 2,500 yards, and without a preliminary bombardment, though as soon as they were away, their guns were active, neutralising the enemy’s batteries and keeping his roads and tracks under fire to prevent supports getting up.
The German garrison of this front belonged to the 199th Division and the 145th Division, and they were scattered about, not in any definite trench system, but in rifle-pits and slit-trenches just big enough to give cover to small groups and outposts and machine-gun crews. The Australians went over and routed out the German pits and holes with bayonet and bombs. The Germans fought for their lives in some of these places, but at least 150 were killed, according to the estimate of the Australian officers, and the prisoners now number 200 of the 114th and 357th Infantry Reserve Regiments. They include two officers, whom I saw this morning, and who looked very haggard and worn young men, with gaunt cheeks under their big shrapnel helmets, which reached down to their shoulders. Among the trophies brought back by the Australians, whose own losses were extraordinarily light, were several machine-guns and a big trench mortar.
It was more than a raid, for the Australian line is now advanced this side of Morlancourt to a depth of 850 yards on that wide front of 2,500 yards. It is an enterprise which will remind the enemy that the initiative and the offensive spirit are not entirely on his side. It is, however, only a minor action compared with the battles of last month, and those which will come this month, when the enemy is again ready to try another big smash.