Grand Forks daily herald. (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1914-1916, 1914-10-26
bloody mud. and coughed and SILVER.
ed. God!"

o!ooay u and coushed and shiver.
The Major soorned Death.
But some n had to watch the
Germans. They might try to sneak
out of their trenches. They might try
to wallow through the Shiny clay in a
splatter.ng charge. They might get
re4nforcemen.s 1t was the officers
duty to look out. Every few minutes
n OF them would the Teu-
tons position.
III it was me. I'd poked just one
eye out Of the mud" said Private
Cox. And then I'd had another Of
fcer down at the n Of the trench
take a look. And then another in
the middle could have peeped at 'em.
But, of course, officers amt like pri-
Yates. They couldn't do 1t that way
The ma. or went first. From time to
mortar bed to his full height. Then
he would carefully examine the Ger
man trenches through his glasses.
He would not grovel through the mas
ty mud to another position for his
next look u He would not try to
conceal himself. BY and by the Ger
mans began to hail the regular reap.
pearance Of his tall form by concen-
trated bursts of rifle fire. .
So said Cox quite simply. "of
course they got i'm e. .
Four other officers of that company
repeated the majors tactics. They
must have known-every brave man
of them-that when they rose in the
trench they faced an almost certain
death. But each in his turn viewed
and called his comments to his
juniors. 1t is a tradition in the British
army that the enemy is always t o be
held in contempt. .
The four officers fell. each in his
turn. face down in that bloody
smother Of muddy water. Then the
non-coms tool up the watch. They
had no particular pride Of place or
race to maintain, so that they con-
cealed themselves carefully when eacn
took his turn to peep over the em-
bankment. Not one Of them had been
hurt when the welcome relief finally
arrived. Il
Then I come back full Of rheu-
tnatism," said Private Cox. II 'ope ]
" see a bloody battle again."
Stupid, the French Say.
h particular moral Of this story is
that the English officers seem not eve
themselves unnecessarily. The French
leaders are enthusiastic in their praise
Ut British courage. But they say
quite frankly that the British officers
are very-very-stupid.
1T is not good tactics" said one Of
the French generals not many days
ago, ito offer the enemy a chance to
kill of the officers. The British need
more officers very badly-and the Of
f1cers are throwing themselves away"
According to fairly reliable figures
two u Of five British officers had
been either killed, wounded, captured,
or We're reported missing IN the hrst
three weeks Of the Wal. Since then
other heavy losses have been report
ed. Today the British companies are
In many cases led by non-coms. Of
England drilling fresh recruits are be-
ing hurried to the front-where in
turn they will make targets Of. them
selves In the same old way.
It is in England that the increasing
lack Of officers is most keenly felt.
There are 600, 900 new recruits scat
tered through the training camps. For
the most part they are being battered
into form by non-commiseioned ON.
mere kids-they are seventeen and
nineteen years old respectively-who
have been given commissions because
officers must be found. They had
drilled boy scouts!
ExColor Sergeant Lane, seventy
eight years old. a pensioner for thirty
two years, has been called back to the
army to help with the work. The re-
cruities' camps are filed with white
haired, erect men fifty years and more
Of age. They have been warrant Of
f1cers once, and they are being called
back. Any man who has ever held
any sore Of a commission in the Brit
ish army. whose papers were not
blackened when he went out, n who
is fairly sound, Is sure of some sort
of a commission today.
But under the best conditions II
takes six months to make greenhorns
into an army good enough to guard
bridges. Some officers say that an all
green army cannot be made efficient
in less than eighteen months. The
great problem before the war office
today is how today's recruits can be
made over into tomorrow's soldiers.
Fighting isn't a matter Of inspiration
nowadays. 1t is a matter of calcula-
ton.
mike, I wish I knew where ! was
goin' to die. I'd give $1,000 to know
the place where I'm goin' to die"
well. Pat. what good would it do
if yez knew"
sT oto" eoid PAT