The Holbrook news., 1912-01-26

1 the men were unmindful of it and it's effects.
 The enemy were forming in dark lines at the edge of the wood beyond effective rifle range. A mass of them appeared for a moment on the road where it issued on to the plain Where are the guns?" the men asked one another in impotent anger. Even as they spoke another series of crashes was added to the din, and white puffs began to burst over and on the road and along the dark lines Then the enemy advanced in rushes.
 A humming as of innumerable in- sects passed over the heads of the regiment A man raised himself to get better view of the enemy. Lie downi" shouted the officers, them selves lying prone. He fell huddled, Every man in the line was aching to fire, but the officers restrained them almost with entreaties. It was intoler- able, to lie there and not reply to this hail of death. At last the order ran along the line, Fifteen hundred yardsl" The rifles seemed to go of of themselves with a simultaneous re- port Once started there was no stop ping the men. They fired until their magazines were empty. Each shot was a relief to their overstressed nerves.
 Gradually the fire slackened and grew steadier Private 99203 stopped for a minute or two to let his rife cool. His head buzzed and was very hot He felt atrociously hungry and thirsty, his lips were cracked and his mouth was dry with shouting, although he did not know that he had uttered a sound. Gazing through the smoke mist at the enemy he was amazed at the small effect of the fire of the de- fense. Bodies dotted the plain, but great numbers of the dark figures were still running forward Some had even reached the stream 800 yards away and were firing from the shelter of it's banks. Shells were bursting among them, and above the rife fire of his regiment Maxim was rattling viciously. Still the enemy advanced
 He looked at his comrade on the right. The man no longer fired; his head had fallen on to the stock of his rife. Private 992O3 felt suddenly lonely. It seemed to him that he was utterly alone, severed from all com panionship. encompassed by threaten ing death.
 ''Fix bayonetsl" He scarcely heard the order, but obeyed it automatically Tn, fire of the regiment ceased for second and then the bullets leaped out again from a glittering line of steel. The enemy were getting very close. The shrapnel hail had ceased. he knew not when.
 He took careful aim at one of the running figures and saw 1t fall. A savage exultation filled him. He fired again and again into the oncoming crowd of rushing men. The foremost were already hallway up the slope He heard a volley above his head. The were firing from the top of +he ridge Somehow through the din he caught the encouraging voices of he officers. He forget himself, forgot his own danger. forgot everything but he necessity of firing steadily into the swiftly-advancing figures.
 The CrOWQ QW 6CCIACO t0 melt. Each group was swept away ,y the tempest of lead. Isolated fig res turned and ran down the slope Others followed. Some few struggled m to be shot down. The remainder .aced back to the shelter of the stream banks. where meeting their comrades they heaped themselves confusedly. It was the- .egiment's chance Desperately, as ast as they could aim and pull trig- Ter. the men poured bullets into the mass. It broke and ran in dire con- usion back across the plain, chased ,y the bursting smoke-puffs, and drop ,ing dark figures at every moment
 The guns still thundered on the re- ring enemy.
 F. RRITTEN AUSTIN.