the artillerymen managed to remove locks and sights from 8 guns and drown them in a swamp. Two machine guns were also lost. The commander of the 65th brigade, Major General E. von Estorff, sent the remaining battalions of his brigade to Macharce. At the Gaienek Village, the Russian regiments, which continued to advance forward, dispersed one battalion and captured 2 more guns, but were stopped. The approaching regiments of the 29th Infantry Division were thrown into the battle from the Russian side, and the regiments of the 59th Infantry Brigade from the German side. Since at that time the 31st division of the Germans was successfully advancing through Sapotskin to Lipsk and Golynka, only the 42nd division was supposed to hold the passage to Grodno. After suffering heavy losses, Estorff withdrew the remnants of the brigade. It seemed that the breakthrough of Russian divisions on Grodno could no longer be stopped. But the German units showed a higher coherence of actions. Having learned about the battle from Macharce, the commander of the XXXIX reserve corps Otto von Lauenstein, without hesitation, sent the 78th reserve division there, which managed to approach the Frącki. The stubborn battle continued until the morning of February 17, when units of the 2nd Infantry Division made their way to Studzianki from the south and finally closed the encirclement around the Russian 27th, 28th, 29th, 53rd and parts of the 56th Infantry Divisions. At the same time, the German 9th Landwehr Brigade broke into Augustow, capturing 5,000 prisoners, 12 guns and 2 machine guns and a banner. Macharce was also repulsed, all the lost guns and machine guns were returned, and the prisoners taken by the Russians were released. The banner of the 138th Infantry Regiment buried in the snow was also found. In just two days, the Germans lost 11 officers and 381 soldiers killed at Macharce, 15 officers and 665 soldiers wounded, and 2 officers and 1,020 soldiers missing. The Supreme Commander of All German Forces in the East considered the task of the operation solved. On February 18, the Germans who surrounded the XX Corps began to eliminate it, the defense of the outer front of the encirclement was assigned to the R. Kosh group, reinforced by the Königsberg Landwehr, the 1st Cavalry Division and the 5th Guards Brigade. K. Litzman's group and the 4th Cavalry Division were transferred to the 10th Army