ioned officer prisoner and fifty-seven of other ranks.

A British officer engaged in the raid thus describes the struggle
after the German line was penetrated:

"As we entered the trenches many Germans broke from the dugouts. All
who did were subsequently well cared for. Each of our men was given
definite instructions for his precise task and a map of the enemy's
trenches, which proved absolutely correct.

"Each man knew every detail of the proposed operation. They were
delighted at this and entered the fight with great cheers. When they
came out two hours later they were singing and as happy as schoolboys
on a holiday.

"The neatness and dispatch with which the raid was carried out were
unique. The artillery cooperation of the British guns was perfection.
Beautifully placed curtains of fire prepared our advance, and creeping
forward protected us as they proceeded to demolish absolutely the
enemy trenches and dugouts. The program had given the men an hour and
a half for their work, but the clean-up was accomplished in an hour
and ten minutes, when the raiders signaled that they were ready to
return to their own trenches."

The Germans did not attempt a counterattack until the following night,
when they mistakenly bombarded and raided their own first lines,
believing that the Canadians were still there. As it happened, the
Canadian troops who had carried out the successful raid were some
miles away. They were not a part of the fighting line, but on rest,
and had gone forward for this particular military operation planned
some weeks before.

During the night of December 19, 1916, British troops made a
successful raid on German lines in the neighborhood of Gommecourt,
where after doing considerable damage to the defensive works they
retired without any casualties. Early in the morning of the following
day the British made another successful raid on German trenches north
of Arras, where they captured a number of prisoners.

On the same date, December 19, 1916, a British contingent encountered
a hostile patrol north of Neuve Chapelle. After a brief, sharp fight
the leader of the patrol was killed and his men surrendered.

German official reports of this date stated that, west of
Villers-Carbonnel, Grenadiers of the Guard and East Prussian
Musketeers forced their way into a strong British position that had
been destroyed by effective fire, and after blowing up dugouts retired
to their own lines, bringing away with t