The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1906-05-25

along the line. Fleischmann had fallen
back slipping on a loose stone. NOW ne
fairly leaped ahead of us, his great SABRE
sweeping down row of bayonets as
scythe in ripe wheat. The French stoo l,
in a pit dug around the brow OF the mn
be thousands of them. Our revolvers were
emptied Immediately, and it was then
primitive tight-hand to hand, face TO lace,
shoulder to shoulder. struck out to rlgnt
ton AS in a dream l heard the deadly
clash of metal, the putting and grunting
of straining men, the blasphemy; the
shrek of the wounded.
Farther around the hill top our men
were falling back; and farther yet they
were clear inside the line, driving the
French before them. A few of our men
gathered about us, and. almost surrounded
own, lighting with the absolute, despera..
ton that comes into a mans heart put
once in lifetime. We were fairly walled
in with the dead; yet as fast as they went
down others came forward. Iher ,s Sc seeT tSa
squirting of red blood, the glare of angry
eyes looking into our own with murderous
hate. Lowenberg was on my, right; at ms
right Fleisehmann yielding MS c sapTe ahd
again, "Steady. Wen have, them on the
run" But in my heart l knew that 1t
could not be so; that we must go down IN
blood and dust, victims of misguided
principle. ...
Then an. ugly, squat F'renchman, who who
had been felled some time before by one
of Lowenberg's lightning strokes, wriggled
desperate thrust sent his bayonet into
LoWenberg's vitals. All, God, how it sick
ened me. My beloved friend sank with a
gasp. A mist obscured my sight; FOR
cvIrnr L.
vered. Before / could recover. the butt Of
a musket appeared in the air Immediately
before me and descended upon my head.
My ears rang like a foundry. The whole
Fourth of July pinwheel, witt, multi multi
tudes of sparks flying. l tottered back
ward and fell heavily upon the pile OF
dead in the trench AS | went down l
WITH With feet ct well spread, like some great
war-god, a sabre in each hand, heWng,
smashing, cutting, his lips compressed, his
jaws set with determination. He had
thrown away his coat long before; ms n nat
blood trickle down over his bronzed
cheeks. Into my heart came great love
for this mighty fighter. Then my. light
vent out land the he sorrd s nose Oh
1t was Fleischmann's voice in my ears
that Weakened me. l lay upon the grass
in a small, open shed. He was bathing
my head with cool water. Quickly recol-
lection came back to me, and stung into
activity by my supposed danger l rose to
my feet. But the danger was past. Save
for the dead and wounded there was not
a Frenchman in sight. Fleischmann was
as calm as before the fight began. He
told me that just as he was about to give
up, his comrades came to the rescue. We
were in full possession, but at what
fearful cost! Out, of ten thousand men
I found Lowenberg lying on heap or
straw, his light pickering, his mind wan
dering. At intervals he gave orders, CRED
out to his wife or sang snate dnn OF Ger
who was a physician, sat near. He shook
his head in answer to my inquiry. There
was no hope
Presently my friend turned his head and
looked at me with eyes suddenly grown
clear. Adams" he said, family, tell
the boys it was a good fight, They We're
true Prussians. And tell-tell his Majes-
ty-" He half rose ana ra ase ms arm I'm
Fatherland,"' he cried in ringing tones,
and fell back dead.
We turned the French guns in the direc-
ton of the river and prepared to hold our
little fort for the expected assault. For
several hours there had been little or
no firing to the east, where the main
armies were engaged. 1t was late after
noon now. The. sky was becoming over
cast, and the wind was rising.
All the guns in the world seemed to be
going off at once From our elevated po-
sition we could see far out on the plain:
| picked up glass from dead officer and
put it to my eyes. There lay the pano..
rama of war. Like moving patches of
dead grass appeared the opposing forces.
The brown khaki of the Germans and the
soft gray sea-island-cloth of the French
gave distinction enough. There was no
smoke, for this is the day of smokeless
powder. The center Of fighting appeared
to be we'll down the bend of the Marine,
and as I watched 1 could see that the
water was full Of black specks. The
French were being forced into the river.
A large body of the gray was hurrying up
the river bank, making for the Monte
Pelier crossing. And We With but nail a
thousand men to defend 1t!
The wind increased in force. The skies
grew dark. And now, coming from, the
south, appeared shoal of small airships.
of new, dirigible type, with fans and
rudders They circled above us, hardly a
toward the battlefield, heading into the
gale in regular formation. And, as !
watched a strange thing happened. The
ships were poised directly over the vic
torious Germans Suddenly a series OF
peculiar popping reports came to my ears
running away. from the French. The
ground Beneath them, behind them, in
front Of them, sparkled, like the phos-
phorescent ocean, | saw the whole army
moving north, a struggling, disorganized
horde. They left behind them a brown
moment ]. saw that the track was h,1-
MANTLE bodies of men prone upon the
earth called Fleischmann. "Look,"'
cried. 1.-THE army is retreating. See the
sparks around them. What does II
mean?'