The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1914-12-01
A DAY WITH TROOPS
ON AUSTRIAN LINE
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ON AUSTRIAN LINE
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all with rifles and good meat is not
any too common, but the laws against
poaching are imbued in the peasantry
of Europe and these deer on the bat
tlefield are probably the safest Of all
living things. Battles have waged on
this ground for weeks and thousands
Of men and horses have been killed;
the hungry Russians have once held
this ground, but here are the three
baby deer safe and sound.
11:OO a. m.-We come to wide,
shallow cheek. In tents on hillock
beside the road is the corps COM
mander and his stan. A net work OF
field telephone wires, the nerves OF
the army, stretch out from the hillock
and run OF among the tree tops in
the distant hills.
Two temporary bridges cross the
stream. This is an infinitely busy
spot. Over these two bridges pass
all the men, food and ammunition that
little creek Is the river of death for
thousands" A regiment Of fresh sol
diers, spick and span. is just march
ing across. At the same time, across
the other bridge, wounded and sick
men are being brought from the battle
field. The contrast defles description.
Days ago in some city these fresh men
were marching through the streets,
singing In their war enthusiasm Their
journey to this bridge on the edge OF
the battlefield has been long and slow.
But it's almost ended. A short march
will bring them where death Is flying
all about. They don't sing now. Their
faces are grave. A group Of other
soldiers are cheering nearby. Their
captain has just made a little speech.
telling them they are to go into battle
soon and that he expects them to DO
their best. On hillside mile away
are thousands OF men in gray. They
form grey carpet over the great
slope. can see q white horse among
them as look through my glasses.
The carpet moves and forms itself
into patterns Of straight lines on q
green background. These thousands
Of men are to be taken to the front
after dark tonight. They are waiting
and to keep them from growing ner-
vous their officers put them through
drills now and then. It is 1880 now,
but in this northern land at this time
of the year it will be pitch dark at
4:45 this afternoon, so they have not
many hours to swarm idly on the safe
hillside.
11:45 a. m.-We desert the wagon
to go to the rest of the war. on foot
see my first shrapnel burst. It
makes tiny, lazily, floating cloud Of
white smoke over the hills. Through
my glasses I see an Austrian aero
plane near the white cloud. Another
cloud and another and another break
into view. The Russians are trying
for the aeroplane. The aviator knows
It, too. There's no use OF his trying
to climb above the danger, for the
shrapnel has an upward range OF over
two miles, so the machine turns tail
and starts back toward the Austrian
lines. Puff-puff- More white
clouds break out around it. These
are deadly cubic miles Of air up there
and II the aviator happens into one
Of them there will be : burst of splin-
tered wood and tattered canvas and
his work will be done. But it's all
in the days work for the man in the
sky. He has been sent up to draw a
Russian fire SO that the whereabouts
of certain Russian battery may be
disclosed. He has succeeded, too, for
soon you hear Austrian shrapnel
shreiking throug air towards spots
in the heavens where the white smoke
floats. The AA:strians are feeling over
the forests. hills and valleys for the
Russian batteries. They want the Rus
SLAMS to shoot and the aeroplane has
turned the trick. Amid all these ex-
citing scenes we see hungry soldiers
with their backs bent earthward, dig
ging with sticks in field for pota-
toes. Their stomachs are crying loud
er than shrapnel.
12:10-We pass piles of munitions
beside the road. There are white pine
boxes about the size of a travelling
mans grip Each OF them contain
shell about four inches in diameter,
weighing about 35 pounds and costing
$3.50. Every shot of this vast tattoo
we are hearing means one Of these
shells gone to pot. Then there are
other boxes painted black. the same
size They contain four two-inch
shells. costing about $40 each. We're
not hearing these this morning, for
the Russian and Austrian artillery
lines are about i've miles apart and
the smaller shells do little damage at
that distance.
1920 p. m.-AGans, who has spent
nearly all his life in Austria, though
he was born in Boston, and who has
been in the Austrian army, explains
a.~x 4 49, -