Throughout the period dealt with in this dispatch the role of the other armies holding our defensive line from the northern limits of the battle front to beyond Ypres was necessarily a secondary one, but their task was neither light nor unimportant. While required to give precedence in all respects to the needs of the Somme battle, they were responsible for the security of the line held by them and for keeping the enemy on their front constantly on the alert. Their role was a very trying one, entailing heavy work on the troops and constant vigilance on the part of commanders and staffs. It was carried out to my entire satisfaction, and in an unfailing spirit of unselfish and broad-minded devotion to the general good, which is deserving of the highest commendation. [Sidenote: Great number of raids.] Some idea of the thoroughness with which their duties were performed can be gathered from the fact that in the period of four and a half months from July 1, 1916, some 360 raids were carried out, in the course of which the enemy suffered many casualties and some hundreds of prisoners were taken by us. The largest of these operations was undertaken on July 19, 1916, in the neighborhood of Armentieres. Our troops penetrated deeply into the enemy's defenses, doing much damage to his works and inflicting severe losses upon him. [Sidenote: Main objects of offensive achieved.] The three main objects with which we had commenced our offensive in July had already been achieved at the date when this account closes, in spite of the fact that the heavy Autumn rains had prevented full advantage from being taken of the favorable situation created by our advance, at a time when we had good grounds for hoping to achieve yet more important successes. Verdun had been relieved, the main German forces had been held on the western front, and the enemy's strength had been very considerably worn down. [Sidenote: Ample compensation for sacrifices.] Any one of these three results is in itself sufficient to justify the Somme battle. The attainment of all three of them affords ample compensation for the splendid efforts of our troops and for the sacrifices made by ourselves and our allies. They have brought us a long step forward toward the final victory of the allied cause. [Sidenote: German failure at Verdun.] The desperate struggle for the possession of Verdun had invested that place with a moral and political importance out of all proportion to its military value. Its fall would undoubtedly have been proclaimed as a great victory for our enemies, and would have shaken the faith of many in our ultimate success. The failure of the enemy to capture it, despite great efforts and very heavy losses, was a severe blow to his prestige, especially in view of the confidence he had openly expressed as to the results of the struggle. [Sidenote: Eastward movement of German troops checked.]