and the Bouvet were all sunk in portions
of the straits which had been swept clear of anchored mines, and the
drifting mines which proved so deadly were undoubtedly set afloat by the
Turks, probably under the direction of German officers, on the swift
current of the Dardanelles at points near the allied ships after the
action began. On March 24 the allied fleets renewed with vigor their
attack upon the forts at the Narrows of the Dardanelles. A large body of
troops was also landed upon the peninsula of Gallipoli, commanding the
approach to Constantinople, and the Russian Black Sea fleet co-operated
by a bombardment of the Turkish naval base, which left the Turkish fleet
without supplies and practically paralyzed its movements.

BATTLE OF NEUVE CHAPELLE

The presence of part of Earl Kitchener's new British volunteer army at
the western front in Belgium and France was signalized between March
and March 16, when the British gained a series of successes that drew
marked attention to their operations. To the south of Ypres in Flanders
the British army, which a German attack had compelled to fall back
beyond St. Eloi, recaptured that village and almost all of the
neighboring German trenches, in spite of several counterattacks.

On March 11 Field Marshal Sir John French described the fighting which
led to the capture of Neuve Chapelle in Northern France as follows:

"Since my last communique the situation on our front, between
Armentieres and La Bassee, has been materially altered by a successful
initiative on the part of the troops engaged. Shortly after 8 A.M. on
March 10 these troops assaulted and carried German trenches in the
neighborhood of Neuve Chapelle.

"Before noon we captured the whole village of Neuve Chapelle. Our
infantry at once proceeded to confirm and extend the local advantage
gained. By dusk the whole labyrinth of trenches on a front about 4,
yards was in our hands. We had established ourselves about 1,200 yards
beyond the enemy's advanced trenches.

"During the 11th the enemy made repeated efforts to recover the ground
lost. All his counter-attacks were repulsed with heavy loss.

"We continue to make steady progress and hard fighting continues. The
local initiative displayed by our troops daily is admirable. It says
much for the spirit which animates the army. The success achieved on the
10th and 11th is a striking example." "THE END OF THE WORLD"

An officer who was wounded in the fighting thus vi