The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-09-11
SHOT SOLDIER
 TO END AGONY
Officer Granted Dying Mans Request For "Quick
 End"

f,ondon( by maiD. sept- 1o:-dhis is 4he way a, wounded French soldier tells his story. He writes in letter to friend her as follows:
 ..I am in the field hospital now with
 a nice little hole in my left shoulder. My shoulder feels much as if some playful joker had touched 1t with lighted cigar.
 I Describing the fight in which he was wounded, the F.renchman~ says:
 ~sfnce some time the rattling of vol leyss is audible. Then at a distance. heavy detonation of gun in heard Arriving at the crest we drop our selves. and there, right in front of us, ion the opposite hills, and making TOT ithe plain between, are the enemy. en- saxed in a fight with 8 division or the allied troops
 t.T ran distinctly see the German ar Af1lerynaen moving about the guns on the hflItops and slopes see mighty flash from one of the guns; the heavy report is re-echoed by the surrounding itills It is strange. but in the race or death and destruction eaten myseiI trying to make out where the shell has fallen. as if I am an interested specta- tor at a rifle competition am not the only one see many curious faces around me bearing expressions full of Interest, just as if the owners of the
 
 lat a highly entertaining theatrical per foruance without having anything to do with the play itself
 FUN WHILE BULLETS FIiY.
 ssThe human mind Is a. curious and complicated thing. Now that we were Ishoottne at the enemy and often after ward In the midst of a fierce battle I Sneard some remark made or some fun my expression used which proved that the speakers thoughts were far from Ireadiztng the terrible facts around him Tt has nothing to do with heaxtEeSS- mess or anything like that. I don't axnow what 1t is Perhaps I shall have an opportunity to phtlosophize on 1t later
 .svod1ey after vuI1ey was sent in the ieheals end bullets passed over our heads. The Germans may be, and arc, tour supeaors in szecudng parade steps but they are internally bad shots
 ' = A1 rain Of hostile bullets passed orer our heads Insttnctixe1y WE atopped. although when one hears the bullet it has passed already. It Is queer sem Eaf50n which comes over us the first &inne we are met with hail of bull Bets. We suddenly feel as if attacked By fever. but this feeling soon leaves bus.
 ''The earth was shaken by the inces- sant cannonading. and the air was torn by continuous rattling rife fire A co1nrade on my right stumbled, drop ped forward without utterdng a sound, Killed by shot in the breast A man an front of me threw his arms up. fell, struggled to his feet and fell again. A shell exploded near, us, followed by terrible exy- Five of us were lying dead in a little square. One man had both legs blown away and was still RHve, conscious and impIor1ng us to Izin him An officer ran past, stopped, and after short look at the man, @hot him-through the heart. Ca vaux Anieuv he said, 'pauvre diable.' h SHELL HIT RED CROSS
 'sThe officer opened his mouth to ut eer a command and at the same mo Bnent got a bullet in the mouth. He furned around twice and fell heavily Dn the dfke close by. I ~Ak a good distance behind us Red Gross soldiers and Red Cross friars carryang the Red Cross flag, were stoop4ng over the wounded and re- nov1ng them to ambulance vans A shell exploded 6ver their heads, and only a couple Of the Red Cross men
 More hostile troops have been ad- vancfng. They have suffered heavy Bosses, but our side the number of casualties Is very large and our posi- fion seems to become critical We are getreating- Our men display a re- markabIe se1f-contro1. Notwtthstand- hng the appalling scenes around me p. too. feel perfectly calm now Ter rible though 1t may seem, confess fhat without a moments trouble aim at my living targets. shoot and watch the effect of my bullet.
 -The retreat is carried out splendid Hy. have just reached the crest of R hill when feel slight shock in khe left shoulder, nothing else. do not heed it, but soneInents after ward I feel burning pain and I per eeive that am wounded and that fhe weight of my arm seems to in- crease. Some time afte1-ward I find myself neatly installed in held hos oita1.