owever, a greater number of
German prisoners was taken by the French in an advance along a
two-and-a-half-mile front south of the Somme, and on the 9th the French
strengthened their positions near Sailly, clearing out German trenches
and taking more prisoners.

On November 13 the British took a five-mile front in the German line
near the River Ancre, capturing two towns and 3,000 prisoners, the
Germans being taken by surprise in the early morning mist. Continuing
their advantage the following day, the British took Beaucourt-sur-Anere
with more than 5,000 prisoners. On the 15th German troops took the
offensive on both sides of the Somme and succeeded in forcing their way
back into some of the trenches and advance positions held by the French,
but the British continued their advance north of the Ancre. Next day the
French recovered the lost ground and their airmen engaged in fifty-four
air battles with German machines along the Somme front. On the 18th
British and French airplanes again bombarded Ostend, dropping 180 bombs,
and once more raided Zeebrugge. In an ensuing battle six German planes
were brought down.

Infantry fighting in the Dixmude sector between Belgian and German
troops occurred on four consecutive days, from November 17 to 20, with
hand-grenade battles but no definite result. There was a general lull in
operations after this, caused by heavy weather and fogs.

FRENCH ARE FINAL VICTORS AT VERDUN.

In a dramatic blow at Verdun, after a period of comparative quiet at
that point, the French on October 24 took the village and fort of
Douaumont, also Thiaumont, the Haudromont quarries, La Caillette Wood,
Damloup battery and trenches along a four-mile front to a depth of two
miles. The ground retaken was the same that the Germans under the Crown
Prince took by two months' hard fighting. This was the quickest and most
effective blow struck in the Verdun campaign and reflected the highest
credit on the French general commanding, General Petain, and his devoted
troops, who thus turned the tide of victory at Verdun in favor of
the French and stamped with failure the efforts of the Crown Prince,
continued for nine months, to wrest Verdun from French control and open
a road to Paris. It was a campaign in which failure meant defeat for the
Germans, and its cost in men, money and munitions was enormous.

Four thousand German prisoners were taken on the 24th and the next day
the French began encircling Fort Vaux, th