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Show iTROOPS FIGHTING !N RAINAND MUD Storm Ahead in Belgium, Sinking in to Knees in Sticky Ooze. SCENES AT ROULERS Germans Remove Spanish and j American Rations for Civil- i ians on Leaving City. i WITH THE ALLIED ARMIES IN BELGIUM. Tuesday, Oct 15. (By the Associated Press.) 9 p. m. Menin has fallen. Allied troops are a mile east of Roulcrs and advanced patrols are, according to latest reports, within with-in a mile of Courtrai. The Lys river haa been crossed between Comines, which has been captured, and Warne-ton. Warne-ton. Reports indicate that another crossing of the Lys has been effected at Wervicq. South of the zone where the mud-spattered mud-spattered allied troops are fighting j their way forward through the rain 'and the mist and over sticky ground, the enemy has begun a withdrawal. His troops are being moved backward from Pont-a-Vennin and Beclau and from the Rollcghem fronts. Here it is that patrols have reached the outskirts of Neurichen. .Germans Fighting Rear Guard Actions. Everywhere the Germans are fighting fight-ing rear guard actions with large numbers num-bers of men involved. The battlo is being fought in a continuous rain, which makes the fighting increasingly difficult. Troops storming ahead lose their footing in the ooze, some sinking in as far as their knees. The wounded returning from the front are plastered! with mud. . Cuerne has been stormed and taken! and the Belgians have captured Bev-j cm station. They are east and north of the Bevern canal and are before Iseghcm. Today's gains have further turned the German lines both north and south j of the area under attack and the enemy retirement reported from tho southward is the result. Further withdrawals with-drawals on a broad scale may be cw-pected cw-pected unless the weather continues so bad as to prevent further advance. The enemy is showing signs of great nervousness and more fires and explosions explo-sions arc reported. Elsewhere along the front other British forces are gaining but their progress has been merely to straighten straight-en the lines and to carry out consolidating consoli-dating operations. Enemy defenses of great strength were encountered during the day by the British. There were wire entanglements entangle-ments of great depth and innumerable pill boxes which had been reduced. There was an impressive scene at Roulers when the place was taken. Aj French major gathered the rescued j civilians and German, prisoners around a battered piano in the square and as the shells screahied overhead, he played play-ed the "Marseillaise." "Did you ever hear that before?" he asked the people of the city. The civilians cheered themselves hoarse. Roulers was in good condition after the German retirement. East of the city, the Ingelmunster road has been crossed. It appears that the enemy withdrawal southward of the area under attack will involve the whole) Lille salient. Definite information has! been received that the Germans re- moved Spanish and American rations worth 45,000 francs before abandoning Roulers. The civilians there ceased rejoicing re-joicing over their liberation long enough to show the French troops where there were some enemy mines which wore designed to destroy a large part of the town. They also revealed the hiding places of some Germans. Tonight's reports indicate that the French have managed to get through the German lines It is said they have reached Lichteivelde, and now are probably beyond thai place. |