Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-10-23

man lines.
Il stopped for a few minutes to
watch them. After each was fired it
shrilled in my ears until the sound died
away to whisper. A moment after
ward could see the smoke rising
where it had struck, and then the
sound of bursting reached me. 1t
looked like pretty accurate gun fire,
as the attempt was undoubtedly to
drive a German battery out Of slen-
der neck of woods about five miles
away, while the fields on both sides
showed how perfectly the gunners
were getting their mark.
"On the Aisne itself it was quite
peaceful. Shells were passing over 1t,
but none falling on the peasants who
were working in the fields. and there
were few soldiers about. Some stop
ped and spoke to me, but l knew
was safe from them. The average Tom
my never questioned me. IN fact, /
walked along the side of hayrick on
which soldiers were bringing feed for
ward and by keeping close to it cover
ed most Of the distance up the narrow
valley to the advanced position held by
the British.
1.-The nearer l got to the actual
battle line the less difficulty l seemed
to encounter, and finally l turned off
the narrow lane was following and
cut across an open field to what look
ed in the distance like rabbit warren
the dugout shelters with which the
, British soldiers have protected them
selves.
Near German Lines.
There is something almost quaint
about the spectacle. l approached 1t
late in the afternoon, and it was quite
still Even the cannonading had
ceased. l walked across the field with
out even drawing rifle shot If had
known was within 200 yards Of the
German outposts l would not have
ventured there, OF course, but the Ger
mans evidently did not shoot at me
because l was in civilian clothing.
Just below me was a little hamlet
beside the watercourse, and there even
children were playing in the street. On
that account i did not suppose l was
anywhere near the line. l noticed there
was hardly a roof intact in the village,
and that two buildings, one a stable,
had been blown to pieces.
But l had seen so many towns in
that condition that it did not mean
anything in particular to me. When l
had crossed the field soldiers lying
there in little dugouts in uneven rows
greeted me without any show OF inter-
est until spoke to them. Then some
seemed mildly surprised that l spoke
English 1t was not until afterward
that l knew these men had been so
worn out by being constantly under
fire that their nerves no longer re-
sponded.
ITO one side in a rather more expos
ed position than others, it seemed to
me, there was a slightly more COM
modious shelter with branches on the
ground. On them was lying lieuten-
ant smoking a cigarette and reading
an illustrated London Weekly. He in
vited me in and asked what l was do
ing there.
Il regret to say l had to tell him a
lie because l knew how stringent the
rules were against correspondents.
fancy he knew l was lying, but he let
it go at that. In few minutes shrap-
mel shell whistled over our heads and
sounded so close that unconsciously Il
ducked my head, but the lieutenant
did not, and the few men l could see
from where l was sitting did not
either.
Some of them who were asleep did
not even stir. 1t burst just past the
village but was too high. The leuten-
ant explained why the men seemed so
Indifferent. They could tell by the
sound that it was going overhead and
their nerves had become so used to the
sound that they no longer reacted as
mine did l happened to see the night
attack because talked to the lieuten-
ant until dark and then it was too late
TO travel.
II was too likely to be shot by a
British sentry, and he agreed l would
better spend the night in his dugout
and did not seem to think much about
it.
Shortly after when the men had
been we'll fed with bully beef, jam and
coffee, they relieved the men in the
trenches. This they did by advancing
under the shelter of small grove, out
of which their trench ran about eighty
yards in an uneven line. 1t was wide
commodious trench, and the men push
ed along to the end without being ex-
posed.
Il told the lieutenant | would feel
safer in the wood. Finally he let me
go into the trench itself To be more
correct, did not object. l was among
number of new men who were the
last to enter the trench, and the lieu
tenant kept near them, talking reas-
suringly.
When the fight actually commenced
| ne exposed nalI MS DOuy NUMBER Ol
times, for the moral effect, think. Il
have been told that the casualties
among the British officers is out of all
proportion to the other losses. They
must be if many show the reckless
courage of this one.
1T was a little after when the en-
gagement took place. BY this time
had become quite accustomed to see
ing in the dark and could make out
the wood held by the Germans. That
also explained why it was impossible
to gather in the wounded after night
the distance is so short it did not grow
dark enough.
"All at once three shells one after
another fell rather near, and after an
| interval of a few minutes three more.
These were little coalboXes' making
holes in the ground about four feet in
diameter and three feet deep. The
second three seemed very near. and