Evening journal., 1914-09-14
bullets FEEL like
HAIL BEFORE HECE
Thrilling Story of Charge
on Bel ian Forts During
Thunderstorm
FIRED ON BY
THEIR OWN COMRADES

NEW YORK. Sept 14.-A vivid de-
scription Of the lighting before Liege,
attributed to a German officer who
was seriously wounded in the battle,
is published by the Weser Zeitung, OF
Bremen, copies Of which reached here
on Saturday. Under the caption From
the Border to Liege." the officer de-
scribes his experiences and feelings
in a letter which reads, in part, as
follows:
"Our trip to the Belgian border was
triumphal procession. Il was pour
ing rain as we marched through the
Ardennes The towns seemed de-
serted. We had no rest and during
the night were fired upon.
AT A. NJ, August 6. we marched
through the, Ourthe Valley. meeting
obstacles everywhere. II was an aw-
ful march; the roads were blocked
by felled trees end bowlders; of
bridges there we're only remnants. In
the afternoon we took up quarters in
a village south of Liege.
Seven o'clock. An alarm is sound
ed. The captain shouts, storm Lieger
IL is impossible. We cannot 60 far
ther; the forts are 80 kilometres
away, but we press on. Thirty min
utes pass and we are fired upon from
the heights. Now shots are fred di-
reetly at US from nearer points. We
draw our revolvers and rush forward.
'The fields are alive with troopers
OF all arms. Il is raining In torrents;
] "a - Ia hN
night is pitch dark. We press on. We
see soldiers fall. Now they fall in
masses and do not rise The sky
clears; the moon shines. We hear
cannonading
Suddenly we hear that our bag
gage has been attacked. One COM
pany turns back. The village has
been burned down: all the people
shot. Such are the atrocities of the
! franctireurs Meanwhile We keep on
close to Liege and turn off behind the
wood -Four regiments lay down their
| knapsacks and iron rations' are
taken out The last exhortation is
given. We form in ranks for the
charge.
shells whiz past, but without aim.
We gallop by our artillery, stuck
helplessly in the mud up to the stom-
ach. A wild hail OF bullets bursts on
us from a point directly opposite.
Our own men are firing upon US, but
Just in time we are recognized. Now
we are directly in front of the firing
line of the forts. There is wild clam
oring. The parole 'Woerth' is given.
Friend and enemy look alike.
Il am lying before a barricade OF
trees and barbed wires, with my com
rade, Lieutenant c., on my left and
the captain on my right. Shells ex-
plude all around; everywhere is the
Internal noise of musketry fire. The
air is hot. A few yards ahead we may
get better cover. / nudge Lieutenant
G. and ask: Shall we go forward =?
No answer-he is dead. The captain
Jumps to his feet and falls back; he
is shot in the breast. I raise my arm
The company responds to my word OF
command.
"I rush forward. A terrible blow
throws me back three feet have re-
ceived a she'll in the left thigh. The
pain is terrible. Before me an officer
calls out his name. holds out his hand
to me and then falls back dead In
front of me there is a flag and l try
to crawl up to it. The bearer is dead
A second shot strikes me in the left
arm; a third in the right arm;
bite the earth with pain. A few steps
in front are the Belgian rifle pits. Our
men advance. lie in one place nearly
twelve hours, yet despite the hail OF
bullets nothing happens to me. A doc
tor comes with bandages. AT noon
am carried away. Shiverins with
fever, meet our regiment. It's losses
are terrible-three captains, six lieu
tenants dead, nearly all from my
battalion.
"I am taken to a field hospital Dur
ing the first few days l suffer terri
bly,, but now am much better. There
are others who have TO suffer greater
pain than I; that makes one keep
quiet l have lost everything. The
clothes 1 wore we're so soaked with
blood that they we're burned. A Rus
sian brought me some underwear and
sympathetic little woman is wash
ing and mending a uniform for me-"