Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1914-11-24
Back from the European War.

Back from the European War.
HARRY FLEMING GETS EXPERIENCE
WOUND, AND DISCHARGE.
Back with his family In South Pari
after few weeks In service In the Euro
pean war, Harry G. Fleming 10 now I'm
ally discharged from the British arm!
for disability, and will remain here, hsv
ing fulfilled his duty as soldier Of BIZ
country.
There was something doing during
the few weeks referred tn, and 1t was BY
no means q period Of "watchful wait
ing" In the time between the Goth Of
September and the 18th of November HI
went from South Paris to the front In
Belgium. where he participated In hand
to-hand fighting and bayonet charges
was wounded, spent time In the hospital
and on furlough, was discharged and
made the journey home.
"Yes, / was wounded" said Mr..
Fleming to the Democrat, as he walked
across the room with pronounced
limp, shut it wasn't for this that l was
discharged. 1t was because OF dysen.
terry, which made me unfit for service
though perhaps they wouldn't have dis
covered 1t IL / hadn't been in the hospi-
tai wounded" he added. 1.-THE wound
was nothing serious. was hit In the
right leg with two bullets from shrap-
uel shell. That won't last but few
days"
Mr.. Fleming, who has been in South
Paris for the past ak years and a half,
is British subject, and has seen ten
years Of service in the British army, al
ways 10 the infantry. his first enlistment
being in the Irish Guards. he has been
in India, Africa, and elsewhere, and did
some fighting in the Boer war during
the last three months of the Struggle.
At the breaking out of the present
war he was enrolled on the British re-
serves, and when the proclamation call
ed them our, be felt it incumbent upon
him to report for duty. OF course be
could not be summoned from the Unit
cd States, and could spend bis days
here in peace, but even IT he had de-
sired to do that II ne had ever after
gone again on British soil, he would
have been liable to arrest on the charge
of desertion.
As mentioned above, Mr.. Fleming left
South Paris on the Goth of September,
going to Montreal, and thence to Quebec,
from which latter city he sailed on the
steamer Ruthenis. He had expected
that with others he would be taken to
England, and that as speedily az might
be, perhaps within a week or two, per-
haps longer, they would be sent to join
their respective regiments of reservists,
wherever they might be. But there was
evidently need Of veterans at the front
They were not taken to England at
all, but were landed directly at Dun.
kirk, France, on the 14th OF October.
Instead of being distributed to their re-
spective units, the reservists from all d.
rections were made up into battalions,
and together with British marines and
French marines, were rushed from Dun
kirk, by train and on foot distance OF
about forty five miles to Dixmude, Bel
GUM, where some OF the fiercest light
ing of the line has been done.
They arrived at Dixmude on the 18th,
and during that day and the 10th and
18th were fighting the Germans In and
about the city. One days fighting was
done on the streets of the city. Mr..
Fleming's story confirms the reports OF
the see-saw character OF much OF the
fighting in that section. "Perhaps we
would be in trench one day." he says,
land the next day the Germans would
be in it, and the day after We would
be back again"
Although the larger part OF the hight
ing is being done by the artillery, the
fighting of the infantry is done at close
range. In two days and half that Mr..
Fleming was on the firing line, he was
twice in hand-to- hand fighting and bayo-
net charges.
"You must have had some men kill
ed" suggested the Democrat.
"Yes, we lost heavily" was the reply,
"but so did the Germans. We estimat-
ed that they lost four thousand in that
DAVIS fighting in the city, while we got
off much better, for We we're In the
houses and they were in the streets"
Don't let any body tell you that the
Germans are not good soldiers" he add
ed. 1.-THE English infantry are not much
afraid Of the German infantry, because
the Germans are generally rotten marks
men, but they're brave soldiers, aud we'll
trained.
1--WE were fighting lots Of boys of six
teen and seventeen-not sign OF hair
on their faces. That shows that the
Germans haven't as many men as they
want of the right age, or they wouldn't
have those BOYS on the firing line"
After two days and q half at the
front, Mr.. Fleming was wounded BY
shrapnel, while on a bayonet charge, on
the 18th OF October. aud was sent back
to Dunkirk, where he arrived on the
18th. he was in the hospital in England
from the 22d to the 9th, and then went
on turlough to visit his brother in Scot
land from the 2Sth Of October till the
5th Of November On the I'd OF Novem-
Der be received his discharge for dis
ability. He sailed for Glasgow on the
steamer Pannonia, a Cunarder chartered
by the White Star line, to New York,
and finished up his adventures by being
on the Fall River line steamer Plymouth,
when she ran aground and had to put
back into New York. he arrived home
on Wednesday.
From bis observation In Eugland Mr..
Fleming says he has learned that that
country is "bound to smash Germany"
and the people feel that Germany on Its
side is "bound to smash England" The
sentiment seems to be that the conflict
is really between those two countries.