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1^' X OPENING OF THE LONG-EXPECTED GERMAN OFFENSIVE ON WEST FRONT Field Marshall Half's Report States That Enemy'H Lossfes Were Very Heavyâ€" British Tositlons Penetrated but Enemy Failed to Attain Objective. A despatch from London !iay»: On the British front in Northern France th^ Germans on Thursday began what may be the greatest battle of the war. The attack was mad* on a scale hitherto unknown during this war of mujor offensives. Field Marshal Huijr's report from British headquarters in France de- RCrilies the German offensive as com- prising; an intense l)oml)arilmcnt by the artillery and a powerful infantry attack on a front of over 50 miles. Some of the British positions were penetrated, but thu (lerman losses are declared lo have been exceptionally heavy. On no part of the long front of the Bttj»i-k did the Germans attain their objective. A de.spatch from British Army ITeadquarterB in France says: The Germans on Thii;sdi»y launched a heavy attack against tiie British lines over a wide front i»' and near the Camilla I sector,' and the assault bear.s all the oar-marks of being the be- ginnine of the enemy's much-heralded grand offensive. Hard fightinjr is proceeding from a point north of Lagnicourt southward to Gauche Wood, just below Gouzeau- court. The attack was preceded by a heavy bombardment from guns of all calibres, and the duel between the op- posing heavy batteries has been rock- ing the countryside for hours. The Germans have employed fcas shells freely, and a corstant stream of \Jligh velocity shells has been breaking ?J^ frightful concussion far back of _, ^rilish lines. /Aiar'* '""""y ^^ staking everything on pn -IS play, and if the great attack falls to break clear through, it is be- lieved that the fiermans will be fin- ished, for they have nothing further to offer, except a gradually weaken- ing defence. A despatch from British .^rmy Headquarters in Prance, say.^: The Germans on Friday continued their as- sault against the positions in the Cam- brai sector, notably in the region of Croisclles and Ilargicourt. At least forty divisi^is have been identified on I the battle front. No such concentra- I tion of artillery has been seen since the war began. j On the southern battlefield a bitter I struggle waged on I'^iduy. The cn- i emy had 1,000 guns in one small sec- I tor â€"one for every 12 yards. Severn fighting was proceeding Friday morn- ing in St. Leger, south-west e)f ("roi- selles. The hardest fighting on Thursday in the northern liattle was between the Canal <lu Nord and Croiselles. Doignies was retaken on Thursday evening in a brilliant counter-attack. A bright sun at midday to-day rendered ob- servation possible. (Jreat numbers of Austrian cannon [are declared to have been transferred I to the western front to reinforce the I German lytillery. Bulgarians, too, have been brought into the field by the German command, it is declared, the .understanding being that they are til be used as a strategic reserve. Altogether the indications are that the Central Powers have massed all possible forces at their disposal on the we.vtern front for their present drive. The prospects seem, however, that they will need every man of them if they keep up their attack long with anything like its initial force, as all the reports indicate that the German losses have been terrific, under the withering fire of the British artillery and machine guns. The German artil- lery, too, has suffered heavily through counter battery work by the British, who found the massed guns fine tar- gets for effective destructive work. A despatch from London says: British aircraft during the lighting along the front in Franco Thursday aided materially the infantry forces below, killing or wounding many Ger- mans with their machine guns while flying at low altitudes, according to a British official statement issued on Thursday night dealing with aviation. In addition, Briti:?!! aircraft bombed important military positions behind the line and aviatois accounted for nu- merous CIcrman airmen in battles in the air. NAVAL BAHLE OFF^ DUNKIRK Results in Sinliin^ of Four Ger- man Haiders â€" No Allied Vessels Sunk. A (icspatch fioni London says: Two German dcstroyov.s and two torpedo boat.s were sunk in a naval engage- ment off Dunkirk on Thur.sday morn- ing. The British official report reads: "Vice-Admir;il Houer reports that an action occuired off Dunkirk be- tween 4 and 5 o'llock on Thursday morning. Two British and three French destroyer) were engaged with a force of Geinian destroyers which had previously liombarded Dunkirk for 10 minutes. Two enemy destroy- ers and two enemy toi-pedo boats are believed to have been sunk. Surviv- ors liave been picked up from two en- emy torpedo boats. "No allied vessels were sunk. On'" Britisli destroyer was damaged, but ^'Kfli'hefl hjfrbor. The British casual- ties were slignt. -There were no French casualties." ' i BED Gl .ARDS CArTUHE SIBERIAN TOWN A despatch fr<,m Moscow says: â€" Red (iuards and revolutionary troops have recaptured Wagoviesh'tchensk, after a battle wilii the Cossacks. They have r 'Stored the Soviet authority as well as order in town. Recent despatclics said that the Siberian Bolshcviki .ha<l murdered a number of Japanese at Blago\ ie.shtch- ensk, which lies oOO miles north of Harbin. The Bolshoviki leaders, in- cluding the president of the local Soviet, later were arrested anrl im- prisoned by t iiKsacks and volunteer militia. The Ke.l Guanls jfn.l sailors in the city wen- disarmed. Tlie world needs men who can change cents int.. d<dlais and dollarn into sense. GERMAN AHACKS ARE CHECKED French Drive Back Three Enemy Assaults in the Champagne Sector. .â- >' . A despatch from Paris says;â€" Viol- ent artillery engagements are report- ed in the official statement issued by tho War Office on Friday. The statement reads: "Great activity by the artillery early Friday became most violent this afternoon at divers points north of Chomin-des-Dames, in the region of Courcy and Pompelle and in the Champagne south of Moronvilliers. Three attacks made by the enemy north of Souaine and east of the Tetons were without result. "Two (lermiin airships were de- Btroyed and four badly damaged in a series of combats with our air sijuadron. Three enemy machines were shot down by our special urtil- lory." FARM WORK BEGINS IN SASKATCHEWAN \ despatch from Regina says: ^ Spring work ha.s begun on the farms I ill Southern Saskatchewan, the i.-arliesl I start in several years. Farmers of : the Forgef and Carlyle districts are plowing, while harrowing has stnrt- j ed near Fillmore. Hon. Gworge ' Brown, who has been organizing local farm labor committees in the South country, brought the news to the city I on Friday morning. The .soil is in are luddiiig hack to avoid unnecessary good shape lor seeding, but farmers I chances. The earliest start of seed- ' ing in this province was .\pri! .'), ac- < cordi'iig to official records. i When making mustard miK with a • little milk and a pinch of salt. It , keeps the mustard soft and makes it go t'nrllier . Markets of the World Tiirdiil". Mar. 2(1 Viitiltot)a wheat-- No. 1 N..rtti.MM. I2.23J; No. 2. do.. |2 ?fl»: No. 3. di>.. »217t: No. 4 wheat, $2,111; In Mt.irc K..1 1 William. IikIikIIi.k Uc tax. Mimll.ilia t.iit»-- .No. 2 C.W . SBlc: No. S f:.W., 92»c: HXtru No. 1 feci. »Uc; No. 1 fRcil. Cfljc: III Hd.rp FV.rt William. AiniTlcaii ciirnâ€" Thi' War Hoiirrl In the I'liltiil Studs prohltill IniP'TtiitlnnB. Onhirlo ciilH --No. 2 white. Hi to OKo; Nri 3 whit.-. 93 to !i4c. lo lorillMB to fri'lKhtK oiitHlde. fnlnrio wheatâ€" No. 2 Winter, per car Int. J'; 22; li:i«.l(i In store Montrfal. rvac -No. 2. ».•? ."iO to $3.60, accortllnn to frilehts niilKlile. Harloy iMaltliiK. $1 7» to $1.80. ac- cordlim to frnlKlits out»l<]» Bockwheal- $1 S3 to Jl.Sf). acoordtnc to rr.lKhf'< OMtshle. Hvc -.No. 2, !2.li0. accorJInc to freight oiusldp.' Miinlt<il>ii floiii â€" ^V^r ouallty, ^110, new ImKH, Toronto. Diilurlo Hour- War nuallty, $10.70. new liacH. Toronto und Montreal fr<l«ht."<. prompt shipment. Mlllfeed- Cur lots - Di'llvtTi'il Mont- rciil frifftitH, JijiK-4 liiolu(l«-d â€" Itran. per t"0 $;i5; Mhnrts. per Ion $<0. Itn.vâ€" No. 1. por ton. $17 to $18; nilM.il, $14 to $10, track Toronto. .«^tr;iwâ€" Car lots, tier Ion. $il.r.O to $0. Ir.i<:k Toronto. Cotintry Prodnc* â€" T7lt<>1esal6 T'IkKs â€" Ciirr'-nt r'.•*â- ':*ipl^;. cf.s'es return- iit.Ie. 39 to 41^. Hutter â€" C'lciimery, Bolhls. 4SJ to 49c: ' i-e.-imiry. print.i, 49 to 00c; dairy. 34 I" :)Kc. I.lve poultry â€" IJuyltJir prico. delivered. Toronto: â€" ('hfnkenH. 27c; Alllk fed 1 titcK^ns. 30(t; hen.s. 3} Ihs.. un. 22c; liens. li to L lli.s.. 2f. to 2Sc; .hens, over a UtK., 3<)i-; rooHtirH, 20c: duikllnKS, 2r>c: turkeyH. 30O, Dressed poultry â€" Thlrkens. 30c; milk f.Hl (•hir-kens. 32c; hens. 3» lt).>!.. un. 25c; hens, 3J lo B lbs.. ZUr.; hens, over 5 lbs.. ;)"(â- ; rooater.s. 20 to 26c; diukllnBs. 27c; turkeys, 3Br. Chee.sf â€" New. latKe. '^3 to 23ic: twins, 2.'lj to 23iic; KprloK made. larKo. 25 to 2t;c; twlpH. 2i;j to 2Clc. Heiiiis â€" rHnadlun. prime. buKhel. $7.riO to $S; foroiRn. huiid-plcked. bushel IC.75 to $7. (.'ninb honeyâ€" Choice. 16 oz.. $3..'>0 per dozen; 12 oz.. $3 per dozen; .seconds and diiik romb. $2,1)0 to $2.75. , Provision* â€" VThclasalo Hitrrelled ineut.s â€" I'ickleii pork, $49; An-sH pork. $47. ^ lireeii meats â€" Oul of pickle. Ic lesa tijan smoked. ' Smoked moats â€" KoUb. 80 to 81c; ham», medium, f,4 to Sjc: heavy, 28 to 2:io: cooked hain.s. 46 to 47o; Itiacks. plain, 42 to 43r; bucks, boneless." 45 to 47f^ lireakfa.st baeon, 31' lo 42c; cotluRi: rolls. 34 to 85c. i l;rv Halted meats â€" LonKr clears. In tons. 28o; In ca-tes. 2Slc; clear bellies. 21Sc; I'at backs, 25c. l.ardâ€" Pure, "tierces. 30 to 31c; ' tub.s. SOI to 31 ic; palls. 30 J to 314c: fihortonlnir. tieicert. 26 to '!61c; tubs, 2'ii to 2fiSc; pall.x. 264 to 27c. Montreal Marktts Mnntreal, Mar. 26 â€" Oats â€" Canadian Western. .No. 3. $1 07J; extra No. 1 feed. $1,074: No. 2 local *lilte. $1.07; .No. ,3. do.. $1,044, .\o. 4. do. $l,ii3. Flour -New Klaiidard SprliiK wheat Krade. $11.10 to $11.30. H(dled oatsâ€" Hhk of 90 lbs.. $5.60. .Mlllfeed â€" Bran. $35: ahorts, $40; nilrtdliiiKK, $48 to $50; nioulllle, $60 lo $62, Ilay->No. 2, i)nr tun. car lots, $17, Winnipeg Oraln WinnliieR, Mar. 26 -Oatsâ€" No. 2 "c.W., 9680; No. 3 <:.\\'., 628c; extra No. I feed 91Jc; No. 1 feed, 'JUir; No. 2 feed, hojlc. Barleyâ€" No. 3, $1.S24: .No. 4. $1,774. Flax â€" .No. 1 .N'.W.C. $3.96; No. 2 C.W.. $3.91; No. 8 C.W., $3.74. TTnlted Statci Uarketn ^ Miinicapoll.<!. Mar. 26 â€" Corn â€" ^No. 3 yellow. $1.75 to $1..<;0. (;ats â€" No. 3 white. S9j to SUJc. Fluur unchanKcd. HrRii--$32.7l«. Duluth, Mar. 26 â€" I.lnseodâ€" $4,24 to $4.33; arrive. $4.24; May. $4.2S: .Tulv, $4,26 asked; October, $3.74 asked. Zilve Stock Uarkata Toronto, Mar. 26- i;.\ira clioi<e heavy steers, $12.50 to $i;i; do., choice, {12 to $12,25; butchers' cattle, choice. $11,60 to $11.85; do.. Kood. $11 to $11.50; do., medium, $10.60 to $10.10; do,, common. $9.2.1 to $9.50; butchers' bull.s-, choice. $10,25 to $11; do., KOod bulls, $'.1.26 to If9.50; do.j. modium bulls, $7.S5 to $S.60: do., routjh bulls. $6. 50 to $7; butchers' cows, choice. $10,2,1 to 811; do.. Rood. $9.25 to $9.50: do., toeclium. $S to $8.50; Mtocker-.x. $7.75 to $9; feeders, $9.26 to $10 25; cunners and cutters, $6 lo $6.75; mllUer!^, Kood to choice. $90 to $125; do.. I'om. and med.. $*5 to $S0; .sprinKers, $90 to $125; iiKht ewes, $13.50 to $15; sheep, heavy. $6,25 to $7.50: yeariincs, $11.70 to $12.75; lambs. $1S to $20.50, ealvcH. Rood ti. choice. $16 to $17.25; hORM. fed and watered, $20 50; <lo., weiBhfd oft' cars, $20.75; Oo., f.o.l... $19.50. Monti oul. Mau. 26 -.Steers. accorditiR to iiaallty, $9 to $12; butchers' bulls. $s to $10.50; but''heiM' cowh, $7.50 to ilO.,"!!!; canners' cuttle. $5.50 ii. $6.00; iiliecp. $11 to $13; lanib.s. $14 to $16 50: milk fed calves. $8 to $13.50, select hoKH, on' curs, $20 to $21.26. SUBMARINE LOSS 11,827,572 TONS This Has Been Replaced by New Ships of 6,()()6,273 Tonnage. A despatch f i om Washington says: â€" Secret figures of the British Ad- miralty on submarine losses and world shipbuilding were madA -public here on Thursday by the^ritish Embassy. They show that from both enemy action and marine risk on .January 1, 1918, allied and neutral shopping had lost AJnce the war began 11,827,57^ gross tons, while shipyards outside of 'the Central Powers 'wore turning out C,G06,276 tons. Th'ise figures, long â- withheld, are now made public, an Admiralty me- morandum says, because they will not stimulate the enemy and because they will impress upon the people the necessity of united action in making good losses by submarines. With them goes an appeal to British builders to speed up their efforts by bringing more men and women to work on the task, and warning that the recent fall- ing off ill British production must not continue. « I^H G BKITISH GIULS STUDY U.\DIO. Later May Become Operators oit CoaBtwisc Ships. Fnglish girls are taking up wireless telegraphy, says a London correspond- ent. The Marconi Company has start- ed a special school for training wo- men in WMreless telegraphy at its North Wales station, .^t present the company is taking only women of ex- perience in Morse ttdegraphy, but thi» is only a temporary resiriction. The course deals with slip reading, IHinching, record reading aiul the gen- eral duties of a wireless station. The girls will be drafted to land stations when eflicient and will yo i>n night duty in rotation. It is not propo.scd to extend the use of women to ships for the iiresent, but if this is to bo altereit it probably will apply only to coastwise shipping. DAYLIGHT SAVING BILL HAS NO DEFINITE TIME. / A despatch from Ottawa says: No definite time is fixed for the coming into effect of the Daylight Savings Bill. The .\ct, which has been print- ed for distribution, states that its pro- visions will be in force in each year during such time as may be proscrib- ed by tho Governor-in-Councjl. The expectation is that the time fixed will be the same as in the United States. The bill gives the Railway Board pow- er to advance by one hour tho stand- ard time used by the railways of Can- ada for such period as may be pre- scribed by the board. TO STIMUUTE FOOD PRODUCnON Dominion Treasury to Grant Aid to Various Provinces. A despatch from Ottawa says: More than §250,000 will be furnished from the Dominion Treasury to aid the provincial Governments to carry on their part of the campaign for greater production of foodstuffs in Canada, Sir Robert Borden announced in the course of his opening address in the Commons. The appropriation, which has been promised by the Do- minion Government, â- will be distribut- ed as follows: - Ontario $60,000 Quebec 60,000 Nova Scotia 30,000 New Brunswick 25,000 Prince Edward Island .... 5,000 British Columbia 15,000 Saskatchewan 35,000 Alberta 25,000 Manitoba 25,000 « THREE PALESTINE TOWNS CAPTURED BY GEN. ALLENBY'. A despatch from London says: The British have made another advance in Palestine, capturing three towns, it is announced ofHcially. A counter-attack by the Turks was repulsed. The statement follows: "We occupied Beit Rima and Ke- frtut, both east-south-east of Deir Ballett, unopposed. We drove off - a counter-attack at Deir Ballett and se- cured Elowsallabeh and the high ground to the westward. Airmen dropped 470 bombs on establishments in the vicinity of Elkutraiii station. Direct hits werfc observed on the ob- jectives." CANADA TO ASSIST IN SHIPBUILDING Orders Placed for 43 Steel and 46 Wooden Vessels at Cost of S64,.5OO,00O. A despatch from Ottawa says: De- tails of the Canadian Government's plan for assisting in meeting the need of the allies for merchant ships were given by Sir Robert Borden in the course of his speech at the opening of Parliament. Already much has been done in the Dominion by the Imperial Government through the Imperial Munitions Board for 43 steel ships, with an aggregate tonnage of 211,300 tons, and 40 wooden vessels, with a total tonnage of 128,400 tons. The total value of these vessels is $64,- 500,000; 12 shipyards are now work- ing on orders from the Imperial Muni- tions Board and their capacity is be- ing brought up to approximately 250,- 000 tons a year. Berths vacated by the completion of ships ordered by the Munitions Board will be utilize<l at once by the Domin- ion Government. Four cargo steam- ers with a total tonnage of 23,500 tons are to be completed and placed in [ commission this year. Next year, however, 50 steel ships are to be con- structed. For the present year, the Government has authorized by order- in-Council an expenditure of $25,000,- 000 on shipbuilding. ITALY ENROLLS ALL CITIZENS Both Se.ves Between 15 and 60 i Must Serve the State. I A despatch from Rome says: From : March 20 to 31 tho Italian Govern- ( ment called upon civilians of both ! sexes, between the ages of 15 and 60 ^ years, to enroll for voluntary service, ' giving part or all of their time, with- I out pay, to aid the following indus- I tries; Agriculture, metallurgical, tex- ' tile, chemical, building and road mak- i ing, also the minor crafts, such as saddlery and military clothing. I If voluntarj"Tecruiting fails to give enough workers the ,Goveniment re- i serves the right to enforce enrolnaent. j Italy is the third belligerent to adopt this service. Germany, at the begin- 1 ning of 1916, adopted it. and England ] the following year. France now ' awaits the Chamber's sanction to en- I force a similar scheme. The move- ment here was directed by the Central Committee, under Ciuffelli, Minister of Industries. Heaping the measure helps a heap in the marketing. - Scone of llriliah .Verial .Activities in Germany's Industrial Centres. 'Map dhows most of tho more important German towns well within German borders bojnbod some as many as six times by Alli_ed aviator.^. Rerlin is about b'lO miles from the Western Front, and within range of the .Allied airplanes. . IKGE THE FARMERS TO GROW FL.AX CROPS. A despatch from Toronto says: The defection of Russia deprives the allies of and gives to the Germans the larg- est fla.x-producing area in the world. In consequence there will be a tre- mendous demand by the allies for flax^ which is used extensively in the manu- facture of airplanes and other in- struments of war. and the Provincial and Federal Departments of Agricul- ture are now discussing plans to en- courage the production of fla.\ in this province. The Canadian Flax-Grow- ers' Association recently called the attention of the authorities to the need for flax production. They claim that flax does not exhaust the " soil to so great an extent as barley or wheat, that profits are assured irrespecUve of weather conditions, that when flax has been pulled the land is in excellent condition for the cultivation of fall wheat, and that flax production on old sod land "kills the (lestructive wire worm. â€" c « RUSSIA SPENT ON WAR '' OVER $25,000,000,000 .•V despatch from Petrograd says: â€" Russia's total war expenditures are now 50,599,275.000 roubles. Russian troops in the Pokov sector have retired ten versts, a German ultimatum ha\ ing been presented to them as a result of an attack on. tier- man troops. In conset^ueiice of the di^organixa- tion of transport, an aerial postal ser- vice between Petrograd. Moscow and the Crimea, axuI between Petrograd and Sweden is planned for the near future. It is reported that the Ukrainian Government is negotiating a loan from Gernian l>aiiks. TFlxo J3o±xxg;j J"^" nn .Am» 'â- ^â- ift*SPs»=- •â- â€¢ IS THIS THE SPORTIMG EDITOR.? 1 SAN SOO bIG RUM ,you\t tiOT ^^^ GOLF SCORE 97 \hi NUUR PiR-n 019 5Ht£T AND IT 6tt0Ul.D BE 79 - DO NOlJ -^ â€" ^^ GET ME 79 ! "^8S*^2S^ l^H.^Atm^*^