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Show Italian Government Expected to I Declare War Before May 1 2 f i I GERMANS AND ALLIES FIGHT ON TEN-MILE FRONT IN FLANDERS French, British and Belgian Troops Are Locked With Enemy in Series of Fierce Engagements Kaiser's Men Launch Sudden Advance Northeast of Ypres, Stupifying and Killing Men in First Trenches With Deadly Gases Belgians and French Forced Back Over Five-mile Front. GREAT ARMY BACKING NEW RUSH TO CALAIS Hard Fighting Expected North of Ypres French Continue Pressure at St. Mihiel Berlin Reports Series of Successes Suc-cesses and Capture of 2,500 Prisoners and 35 Cannon Can-non With Large Amounts of Rifles and Ammunition Am-munition Paris Says Germans Are Halted i and Lost Ground Is Recaptured, FINNISH STEAMER IS SUNK IN BALTIC SEA BY GERMAN SUBMARINE Stockholm. April 24, via London, 12:22 p. m. The Finnish steamer Frack has been torpedoed and sunk in the Baltic by a German submarine. It is believed that the members mem-bers of her crew were saved. The Frack carried a cargo of p irn ore and was on her way to Abo, Finland. I (London, April 24, 2:37 p. m, The freighter Ruth was sunk by a German submarine on Wednesday when about 1 00 miles east of May Island in the North Sea. The crew was rescued res-cued and was landed at Leith, Scotland. The Ruth left Leith with a cargo of coal for Gothenburg. Captain Andersen, her skipper who is a Swede, reports that the first torpedo discharged dis-charged by the submarine missed its mark. The second torpedo tor-pedo struck the Ruth amidships, wrecking the vessel. The j sixteen members of the crew were all Swedes. They drifted i about in small boats for twelve hours before being picked up. Washington, April 24 The German embassy announced today it had information "from a reliable source" that a British Brit-ish battleship was severely damaged in the last Zeppelin attack at-tack over the Tyne. Paris, April 24, 2:20 p. m. Christakis Zographos, foreign for-eign minister of Greece, is quoted today by The Information as declaring that Greece was ready to unite with the allies in the operations at the Dardanelles, if invited to do so. The Information says that M. Zographos made this statement state-ment to Hubert Jacques, a correspondent of this newspaper. Up to the present time, he said, Greece had not been asked to co-operate with the allies. Paris. April 24, via London, 3 57 p. m, The French war department today gave out the following official .statement. "Supplementary reports furnish luller particulars of the way the Germans Ger-mans succeeded In forcing our lines hack during Thursday evening to the north of Ypres, between the Yser ca-riai ca-riai and the Boel Capelle road. Thick yellow smoke emitted from the German Ger-man trenches and. driven by northerly norther-ly winds, produced an effect ot complete com-plete asphyxiation among our troops which was felt even in our second line positions V 'Counter attacks made yestwday already h;u c enabled us to retain pail of the ground l06t. Our situation situa-tion has been completely consolidated consolidat-ed and our action is being carried out under good conditions with the support sup-port ot the British and Belgian troops. The enemy made an attack at Lea Kparges and another at Lwueshead In the torest of Apreinont, both of which were repulsed. "A German attack to tne south of the forest of Parroy and further attacks at-tacks on Reich Ackerkopf were stopped stop-ped by our fire. The enemy suffered suf-fered heavy losses. " London. April 24. 12 45 p. m. The war office today gave out the following follow-ing official note: "The fight for the ground into which the Germans ponetrated be tween Steenstraate and Langemark ttlll continues. The loss of this part of the line laid bare the left of the Canadian division which was forced to fall back in order to keep in touch with the right of the neighboring troops "In the rear of the latter were located lo-cated four 4 7 inch guns which thus passed into the hands of the enemy. But some hours later the Canadians made a most brilliant and successful advance, recapturing these guns and taking a considerable number of Ger 1 man prisoners. Including a colonel. A "The Canadian had many Casualties hut their gallants and determination i undoubtedly sav ed the Situation, Their conduct has been magnificent through out" Berlin War Statesment. Berlin. April 24, by wireless to Say-ville. Say-ville. N. Y. The German general headquarters today gave out the fol low-ing official statement: "Attempts made by the enemy to reconquer lost terrain to the north and northeast of Ypres. Belgium, failed fail-ed The French and British at tacks broke down under the German fire. The number of prisoners French English and Belgian rose to 2,470. The pieces of cannon captured up to the present total 35. In addition addi-tion a large number of machine guns and rifles and much ammunition and other war material were taken by the (lermans. est of the Ypres canal the Germans stormed the town of Llzerne. In the Champagne region. the Germans blasted an enemy trench i Near Beusejoffrme the French shelled ! their own trenches with artillery. 'Between tho Meuse and the Moselle Mo-selle French attacks failed The enemy en-emy who had entered the German trenches were ejected. "In the forest of Ije Pretre the Germans Ger-mans made progress. "In the Yosges there were no war operations of importance. In the eastern war arena, there is no change In the situation. " Italy May Declare War. Rome. April 2, 8.45 p, m , via Paris April 24. 6:20 a. m. Uncertainty exists ex-ists as to what action will he taken regarding the reopening of the chamber cham-ber of deputies which has been set for May 12 The Idea Xa-zionale interviewed in-terviewed several politicians on the subject Some professed the belief that the chamber would be prorogated bj no decision whatever as to Italy's attitude. Others believe that before May 12 some grave measure would be adopted such as the declaration of a state of war. People Should Be Quiet. Rome, April 22, 8:20 p in., via Paris April 24, 7:4.'. n. in. "Keep your nerves In order," is the advice given to the people of iraly h the Giornale d'ltalla In an editorial, "for what is most needed is national discipline " The paoer say? that while the izo ' eminent knows all the elements which have entered into a difficult international interna-tional situation and lias received from parliament full power to act, the country coun-try muBt b allowed to work in peae until the time comes when it is considered con-sidered possible to reveal what has been done without injury to the su perior interest of the nation Germans Told to Leave Italy. Chia6SO, via Paris, pril 24. 7:25 a. m. The exodus of German families from Italy continues and they are crossing the frontier in constantly Increasing In-creasing numbers Most of them are settling temporarily in Swiss towns with the expectation of returning to their homes in Italy when the war Is over or if Italy decides not to Intervene Inter-vene Nearly all of them say they left because thoy were urged to do so by their respective consuls. Review of War Situation. London. April 24, 12:30 p m Over an arc-like front in Belgian Flanders which is roughlv ten miles long from the region of Bixschoote In the north to St. Eloi in the south. French. British Brit-ish and Belgian troops are locked with the Germans today In a series of engagements which recall the fighting of last October. Driven from Mill No. 60 to the south of Ypres and failing to retake It by a counter attack, the Germans launched a sudden advance northeast of the town, after stupifying and kill Ing men In the first trenches with deadly gases according to British official of-ficial reports, they drove a wedge of infantry forward, forcing the French and Belgians back toward and at some points apparently across. the Yser (Ypres) canal, a maneuver which at the same time compelled the British line north of Ypres to fall back to conform with the French Germans Make Big Advance. Although the advance of the Germans Ger-mans was considerable, extending, according ac-cording to Berlin dispatches, over a front of five miles, French Belgian and British forces the French occupying occu-pying the center, the Belgians the left and the British the right of the line immediately initiated a counter attack, at-tack, the result of which was to compel com-pel the Germans to give up some of the ground they had taken and force them in a northeasterly direction toward to-ward Langemarek from which place the attack started. Some of the London newspapers today characterize this German rush Bfl another attempt to break through to Calais, and some estimates say they have five hundred thousand men available for this effort. By this time the British are presumably pre-sumably well strengthened and have consolidated their position on Mill Xo. t'O The hardest fighting, consequently, consequent-ly, is expected north of Ypres. Just as the Germans have been battering bat-tering the Ypres salient held by the allies, so the French continue their pressure at St Mihiel with some success The campaign in the east continued at a standstill and there has been no authentic news of the moves of the allied troops in European Turkey. |