March 22, 1917 
LAN© & WATER 
rnientien£s 
2^ 7^Ues~'3d 
Approxanat^ Lunitaf 
Allied Ozualry posts 
on IrfdndaArev&nmg 
"T^CILTI I I I ♦ I II 
Conimitrucatcons 
RHHM5 
Itwas ;i retirement, parallel with the ridge and on to the 
ridj^e e\erywhere. In the second place, it offered in- 
creasing resistance as it j^roceeded. The ridge was nsed 
regularly as a screen for whatever was going on behind it, 
hilt from Monchy righl away to the heights in front of 
Bapaume itself, the Une was maintained intact until far 
into this i,nonth. We know that there was a strong 
defensive line prepared covering the whole of the heights. 
In the third place, and this is the most important point 
I think, we have again the testimony of the (ierman 
Press and of the orders it liad received. This testimony 
is subject to a certain suspicion as I shall point out in a 
moment, and I must leave it to my readers to decide 
whether that suspicion is justified or no. 
'J'he fierman Press recei\ed orders, once the retirement 
had begun, io describe it as a proceedinf^ which u'ould 
covef soiiic/hiiiii like ten days, and one that would hi tcr- 
vdnatcd tihout the first of March. That date pretty 
nearly corresponds to the moment when the British, 
following up the German retirement, found themselves 
everywhere against the main defensive positions ot the 
ridgi'. That is, the line in front of Money, Les Essarts, 
B\icquoy, Achiet and Bapaume itself. 
The terms used in the (ierman Press were not am- 
biguous. They were designed to drive into the mind of 
the (ierman public at home the fact that a local retire- 
ment had been conducted with skill, had been successful, 
and was now for the moment at least at an end. 'Jlie 
Cologuc Gazette, for instance, said in so many words, 
that the great and unexampled feat had been successfully 
accomplished by March 1st. and simiUr expressions are 
to be found up ;\nd down the principal (ierman pa]>cr3. 
Now I have said that this piece of cvic'ence was subject 
to a certain suspicion. Everyone has noticed that the 
Germans a little later began giving way on their left 
towards Bapaume. When they were driven out of Irles 
they were compelled to retreat prematurely and suffer 
a loss of prisoners and machine guns, but the advancing 
troops found everything prepared for a retirement ; and 
it has been argvied that this retirement on the left, 
leaving Monchy untouched, was undertaken in order 
to deceive, the British command, because if the retire- 
ment had been by the right it wbukl have been clear that 
the whole salient between Bapaume and Arras was 
going to be exacuated. Reasoning from this some 
observers have concludi'd that there was no real intention 
of holding the Bapaume Ridge at all. - 
I am still inclined to believe that there was such an 
intention, and that it was only given up by a modifica- 
tion of plan forced upon the enemy, and my reasons for 
thinking so are as follows : 
Eirst, though it is true that Irles was about to be 
evacuated, it is not equally certain that the height 
ahove Irles, Hill I2q,. was not to be held. Still less that 
