The Washington herald., 1911-08-26
ARMIES ENGAGE
IN HARD FIGHT"
. At CAMP 0RDWAY
Blues Are "Annihilated" in
Fierce Onslaught.
WINNER NOT SELECTED
Umpires of War Game Are Mum on
Battle Result.
Practical Maneuvers Are Carried
Out with Remarkable Precision
by District Soldfers-Engage-
ment to Be Repeated To-day,
First Detachment Starts Home.
By RUSSELL NJ. McLENNAN,
First Lieutenant, n. G. D. @.

| First Lieutenant n. q. ID. Z.
| Special to The Washington Herald.
Frederick, Md, Aug. 25.-Firing
round after round of shrapnel into a
battalion of the Blue army, the guns OF
the First Field Artillery, N. G. D. c.,
to-day completely wiped out" one little
wing of the Blues and solved the
problem of the attack as laid down
in the situation published yesterday.
RESULT IN DOUBT.
While the artillery was firing upon
the battalion. the First Separate Battal-
ion, making a rapid fianking move Mt
northward in the direction of Yellow
Springs, found another battalion OF the
Blues and engaged them. The artillery
officers. seeing this skirmish through
their field glasses. turned their guns
upon what they believed to be the enc
my and opened fire again. Just what
the result was. no one but the umpires
know and they never tell
Who won the battle? No one knows
but the umpires. All they will do is to
point out the defects and perfections of
the attack and defense. At the same
time. the war game worked out with
more or less smoothness. so that to-
morrow practically the same maneuver
will be repeated with the Second In
fantry in the attack, and the First In
fantry on the defense.
The Second Infantry. with hats wrapped
with blue cloth, marched out from camp
this morning at 7:30 o'clock. Every
man had twenty-five blank cartridges.
Col. Harvey and his staff had picked
out a strong position near Yellow
Springs, about three miles to the north
of Camp Ordway. On their right lay a
ridge which they believed would pro-
tect them from a flank attack by the
Blues.
Get Blank Cartridges.
The First Infantry and First Separate
Battalion lined up in their company
streets an hour later, and after each clip
Of cartridges was inspected to see that
no ball ammunition had been packed
in by mistake. their columns marched
Off to the northward. The battery
swung off fai to the westward where the
valley is dimpled with little knobs of
just the sort that an artilleryman wants
for his own ground.
The Red army spread out over their en-
tire front by means of scouts and patrols
and felt its way carefully. Meantime, the
First Separate Battalion, under Maj. Ar
thur Brooks, was going rapidly in the
direction of the ridge which the Blues
had selected to protect their flank.
From a farmhouse about a mile and a
half northwest Of Camp Ordway, Capt.
J. Harry Shannon espied a battalion of
Blues lying out In field and opened fire.
He sent enough shrapnel their way to
decimate an entire brigade. Meantime,
the First Separate, going rapidly up the
valley, had opened fire on the enemy's
flank and had engaged in a serious con-
flict.
For some reason or other Col Ourand
had failed to keep the First Separate Bat
talon in communication with his own
headquarters, and consequently no re-
ports Of what the f1anking column was
doing reached Gen Harries by wireless
The firing in the direction of the first con- |
tact was very rapid and very heavy.
Wireless Reports Sent.
The reports of the movements Of the |
Blue army were transmitted to the brig |
adler generals tent by wireless. A pole |
was erected about a mile north Of camp, |
while field buzzers connected each bat |
.alion commander with Col. Ourand. Ow-
ng to the fact that First Separate Bat
alion was moving rapidly, no buzzer
station was attached to 1t, and for some
'eason no signal communication was es-
with them at all.
Because of the smoothness with which
he men worked in to-days problems,
Gen. Harries has decided to work out
mother problem Of the same sort to-
The Blue army. under Col.
Harvey, will be the attacking force,
however, instead Of the defending force.
There will be no artillery and no mount
ID Signal Corps men in to-morrow's war.
Is the battery left for Washington by
Dad directly after smashing the enemys
exposed battalion.
The mounted detachment of the Signal
corps company have also taken to the
Dad and will endeavor to make the trip
n two days. Gen. Harries has been so
veil pleased with the work of the Signal
,orps company that he has decided to
end It into the field with regular army
ignaI outfit whenever the chance oc-
urs.
The band concert given by the COM
lined bands of the First and Second In
antry on Thursday evening was SO great
success that at the request Of the
mayor Of Frederick. Gen. Harries has d.