The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1914-09-26
English and Irish Roar Out ct pper-
ary;;" Crack Jokes As Bullets
Sweep Ranks
AIRMEN WITH TORCHES 4
GIVE GUNNERS THE RANGE
Squad of British Wiped Out By the
Explosion of a Single
Shell.

New York, Sept. 25.-A tale of
warfare from the British camp in
France, vivid with the description of
the way The English forces faced
death on the battlefield, of the jokes
they cracked and the prayer they
said with the bullets sweeping their
ranks, was brought to New YORK
today BY the Rev. James Molloy, a
native Of Trenton, n. j., who served
as chaplain for several weeks with
one of the British regiments in
Franco and returned home today on
the Mauritania.
"In a modern battle there Is an
overpowering sense of unreality," he
said. 1.-THE business of men killinq
each other seems mechanical because
of the preponde-ance of the machine
element in the affair; the human
element simply blecds and dies, but
the machines continue in their per-
lection OF slau ghter.
"The conduct of the English and
irish soldiers in the trenches was
surpris ne. There those men stood
behind shoulder high mounds Of dirt
facing level sprays of death in front,
yet cracking jokes and singing
snatches of music hall ballads be-
tween yolleys. Stupendous bravery,
| call it, or stupendous absence of
nerves.
Men sing as Shells Burst Nearby
1--WE heard men under the crash
ing fire Of the terrible German guns
and with comrades dropping all
about them unite in roaring, It's a
long road to Tipperary,' as If they
were in barracks. Sometimes I'd
hear big Irishman all out to u
: neighbor in the trenches, Well, /
winged that Dutchman, all right,
The, business of killing with them
seemed personal and to partake
somewhat of sporting event But
how the Germans did pound that
B-itish lire at Mons, They came
on, and on, and on, never stopping,
never faltering. 1t was like the
waves OF a blue-gray sea rolling up
through the fog. One wave would
break and die away, but another
would be right behind it, pushing on
inexorably. The German command
ers threw their men into the face OF
British Are with absolute reckless
ness, counting on the sheer weight OF
numbers 20 overwhelm us.
ITO see those German lines move
forward was like watching regi-
nents Of toy soldiers pushing across
table. You'd see a long row OF
pa,e blue blocks, topped with spiked
helmets, break from cover and come
rushing at YOU Then a British gun
at your elbow would speak, a shell
would burst right in the midst oil
that blue block, a g eat hurting III
Of smoke and soil and--the blocks
would be gone. Nothing left but {
few little men madly running bach
through the haze of powder smoke.
Fir1eN With Torches Give Range
"But the German shells kept com
ing and coming. ] have seen on
shell enter a little Lii and there eX
plode, carrying away the whole tol
Of the HILL | have seen squad 0
british wiped out by the explosion
Of single shell
perhaps the night fighting is tn
NEST wierd and terrible to see. Il
this the forces of the allies had tn
superiority through their preponder
ant supply Of ae~oplanes. The allie
forces on the retreat from Mons t
senlis had 35 aeroplanes, whic
were busy day and night, but partic
ularly at night.
"You would hear a whirring of in
visible propellers overhead and b
st-ain.ng your ears could trace tn
direction of the night-hyer over tn
German positions. Gunners stan
ready behind their pieces, keyed Il
to wire pitch of efficiency.
Suddenly a spark appears in tn
heavens; it falls. The airman h'
discovered the position of Germa
battery and his falling torch maxi
the range and position. Instant
the British guns roar and shove
of shells scars up to follow the Iii
of that falling star"