The sun., 1914-09-27
Troops Ready for Front
Enhven Old Cambridge
British Soldiers Waiting Orders to Start for Battlefield In
Northeast France Fill Streets of
University Town.


legs. caused by shells bursting ov.t
them as they lay in the trenches
Their cheerfulness Is amazing and a.
they laugh and Joke among themseiyes
!. il hard to believe that they have 60
lately been through hell" as the,
graphically describe II. il is o merc,
that they can 80 soon forget, or else
they would never bc 80 eager and ahs
To return to tho front in fortnight,
time as many Of them will do
Thcir contempt for death is nors
amazing still. 7 heard soldier from
one OF the Highland rcglmonts ep-
campcl here call down frsm the Trinity
Bridge to u wounded man To ask after
a mutual friend. And did you see Mac
Errgor out .here?' he asked. "Ch. W.
left him underground" and with
laugh there's lots OF room underground
out there" And 40 on. II mad. me
shudder. hut N1ese "Tommles" took g.
phiiosophicslly "a part of the days
work
Tr,is Of Battle at Mops.
noard one man describe the gres'
fight ar Mons. They would como ur
and We would shoot them down: and
another lot would come up. and ".
would slr>6t them down, and still an
other lot and another, just like IN.
waves of the sea. A. last ] got so diz1y
watching them | csuld see nothing bu;
sort of IA haze rising and falling Ana
they tell one that the fighting aurins
the great night attack. with the German
searchlghts playing in their faces snU
the shells bursting over them was worse
than any he'll they had ever imagincd
That was only Ave days ago. and TO-DAY
thy are laughing in the sunshine o.
Cambridge.
Truly the river hears strange talee
these days. Where ~ the light hearted
undergraduate, telling tales of love ana
sport to the girl beside him? The river
knows only such tales of peace; thcsr
old trees look down amazed on wounded
soldiers. Tents and nurses take the
place of tennis courts and white han-
nelled youths. And May week was onl,
yesterday. Il seems.
But az for tese youths. many of them
are still here in Cambridge. thei'
fannels and blazers have given way
to uniforms and their faces are more
sober. their air martial Some of them
are in smart new khaki. These have
just obtained their commissions and are
waiting 10 be sent for to join theii
regiment. Others. in the gray uniform
OF the Cambridge University officer
training corps, are still waiting for theii
commissions and are drilling while thel
walt. All university men must apply
for their commissions through Cam
bridge. and so one gets a fieeting glance
Of them az they come and go: NAM
familiar faces. rowing men, football men
CrirEpTprz all Gnl1inrs Nd f,,lt At,
enthusiasm and eageqness. But IL ts
sad 70 say good-by to them. for on
never knows whether they will return
again. The waiting ones drill all daN
and every day. As they pass over a
bridge in their gray uniforms, the
wounded soldiers from Mons shout on,
merrily. There go the Germans" for r.
seems that the uniform of tho Kaiser
soldiers is also gray.
| heard a rather badly wounded so
dier tell the other day how after the
battle, rs dusk fell. he saw the German
Red Cross wagon come out to pick up
the wounded and return. Then the
English ambulance came out and SLOWLY
collected our wounded. As they started
TO return the German searchlght was
iocuSsed on II for n moment and then
a shell and when the smoke rolled
away nothing remained. The soldier
who told me this added, THE Red Gross
is a target for them"
Even as write these 10000 who were
waiting here are off. Orders came las
night and early this morning they be
gan to move. They are passing my
corner To entrain and many of them
carry babies in their arms, while theii
wives cling to them. bravely keeping
Stop with the quick march of the
soldiers.