Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1900-11-09
WAR CORRESPONDENTS
Julian Ralph Admits That Their Lot Is Not
Without Its Drawbacks.

VerIeu from lHe opinion InaJ JHe Ire
of a war correspondent is not a dan
gerous one.
Just b=1ore l went to the war in
South Al lea l was asked by the edi-
tor of a I.cr don magazine TO write
about war correspondents and their
work. What l wrote was in criticism
of those CT my occasional comrades
who appear to fancy it clever thing
to put themselves in danger of death
on The battlefield and who afterward
write about one another's sensational
perfor nances, as If these reflected
glory upon then and their profession.
have not charre my mind about the
behavior of those who try to share the
experience of the private soldier, thus
bringing themselves to his rank, and
needlessly jeopardizing their useful
ness to the public in fiat violation of
the trust reposed in them by their en-
| ployers. l have since been the COM
panion of a man who honestly be-
lieved it his duty to enter a battle ell
bow to elbow with the private soldiers,
in order, as he said. that he might
know the temper Of the "Tommies"
and the conditions under which they
were fighting. My opinion remains
the same, not because this brave gen.
tleman was disabled in the very first
battle, and had to leave the war, but
because he is a man apart from those
criticise--a born soldier first of all,
and modest, sober, earnest workman
who never took or asked for credit be-
yond that which his public reports
gained for him.
But l believe that in the London
magazine l said it was not recessary
for war correspondent to incur dan
ger or the battlefield l have changed
Mat CDinioD. 1t makes me laugh at
myself when l put side by side tle
view that l held and the experience l
have since gained.
To return to the artist who wanted
HOUllnS DuI d CudllCS " uO HIS ut'ly
He succeeded at Belmont, but at the
battle of Graspan, after establishing
himself in a NICE safe, and command
ing position, he found himself, in hall
an hour, amid such hail of bullets
that it seemed as if all Boerdom had
singled him out for a mark for it's con.
centrated desire for slaughter. He lay
still with becoming dignity, and found
himself alive at the end of the fight
alive, and resolved with all thu
strength Of his will, never again
, while he lived, to mix his body up will
flying bullets. At Modder River, il
some manner which I have forgotten
he was suddenly pursued by shells anc
flying shrapnel, and made his way ou
Of that danger, only to find himself
under such Mauser fire that the bull
lets come in ropes. 1t was fun to heal
him talk about the duty of correspond
ents after this second experience. Tt
begin with, his was round, chubby
face, lit by steady, gray eyes, and he
had a way of merely mentioning his
own experiences, incidentally with &
gravity too droll to be either described
in words or listened to without merri.
ment He canvassed the corps Of
correspondents at short intervals, ant
reported to each one that all the res
were resolved with him never to gel
under fire again.
And then came the fight at Mayors.
fontein.
There was the advance in black anC
rainy night, then the grayish threat Of
dawn. then the hellish fuslade from
the Boer trenches at the Highlanders
only few rifle-lengths away. After
that the panic, the confusion confound
ed, the awful dropping of scores upor
scores of dead men, the reeling over oi
so many wounded, the stampede to the
rear the shouting Of the officers trying
to restore order. And finally, there
was the artist, tousled, mud-stained
breathless, but still with the same
round, cherubic face, and the same
grave, well-considered speech. He
was coming out of the jaws of death
He had been in the thick of the hel
which, for minute or two dauntei
the tigers of the British army.