The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-17
NOTHING THAT CAN BE POSSIBLY USED IS WASTED BY TEUTONS Division Headquarters in Lines of Communication
 Wonderful Sight
PROVISIONS FOR
 FEEDING THE ARMY
Huge Slaughter Houses, Bakeries and Drug Stores Are Maintained-Bat- tlefields Swept Clean of All Rub
 bish and All Is Used Again

Northern France. June 5.-(Correspon- dence of the Associated Press)-In a one-time prosperous and busy city that now contains almost as many German soldiers as it does French inhabitants Is one of the "Hauptpunkte or chief points in the remarkable lines of com munication which stretch from Germany to the front trenches.
 Even a casual inspection of this link in the wonderful chain of communications reveals one of the reasons why Germany is able to contest stubbornly every ef- fort of its opponents to recapture the territory that has been taken, and why it's soldiers are possessed of necessities, and even luxures. that were unheard of in earlier wars.
 Various such "Hauptpunkte" exist all along the long battle line and from each there stretch out fan-shape lines to within short distance of the trenches. Along these ribs of the fan there are transported daily the enormous quantities of food, ammunition and clothing that are needed.
 The "Hauptpunkt' may be called for want of better name a division head quarters in the lines of communca tion This headquarters has, roughly, two functions, the preparing and forwarding of food and ammunition, and the repair ing of material that has broken down under the strain of battle.
 In the city recently visited by an As sociated Press correspondent, the German authorities ha Iigit clo oh, ter house of a one-time French butcher, and in it are methodically preparing the enormous quantities of meat needed for the army a few miles away. |.
 The cattle are, for the most part driven from Germany. For miles as one ap- breaches the city one can see the herds grazing on the rich fields. By the time they have reached the division headquar- ters they are fat and sleek
 Pickle Meat in Bath Tubs
 The slaughter house, of course, has been found entirely too small for the amount of work that has to be done there. es- pecially in that department where meat is salted pickled. In default of re- ceptacles therefore the army has requisi- toned bathtubs and similar inappropriate but useful vessels, and in them lie thou sands of pounds of meat. A thousand pounds of wurst a day Is prepared for the front as well as many hundreds of pounds of beef, mutton and pork
 Within 100 yards of the slaughter house is the bakery, formerly manufacturing establishment whose brick ovens have been found to lend themselves very well to the baking of 160O0 loaves of bread a day. Each loaf. composed of one third of white flour and two-thirds rye flour. weighs 1900 grams.
 Where the necessary railroad tracks did not exist they have been built so that there Is easy and efficient railway con- nection with these two plants that SUD- ply the two main food necessities of the army-meat and bread.
 Perhaps less important and vital but more interesting are the establishments where damaged artillery and guns are repaired and put into shape for use at the front again. In these plants also 1t has been found feasible to employ French civilians at many kinds of work, so that they may earn their livelihood, be inde- pendent and not be drag upon the Ger man authorities who are supporting many of the city's inhabitants.
 From all along the front there come to a former machine shop the guns of all bores that have been put out of com mission in the fighting. They come in with damages that in many cases are quite as freakish as the injuries sus- tained by the soldiers, and are repaired with quite as much ingenuity as are seemingly impossible disablements of the human body.
 Nor are the worst damages always the result of the fire from the other side of the line. Thus there are guns that have been literally torn apart from the explosions of shells prematurely The damages range from shattered and twisted wheels and riddled steel shields to wornout bores and broken muzzles.
 In a carpenter shop French workmen aided and superintended by Germans, re- make the wheels. Tn another part ma chine guns are made whole. often times by using the undamaged parts of two three or more weapons. In still another building new muzzles are moulded and put onto damaged trucks.
 Here also are prepared the great hoops of wire that can be stretched in. front oi a trench in an emergency at a moment. notice and can be made fast by stake. of steel that are screwed into the ground Thus attackers whose artillery has de molished the usual entanglements oj barbed wire can still be checked for 4 time at least
 Coal Wagons Supply Ammunition Quantities of English cable wagons hay, been captured at one time or another These wagons are nothing more thar square wooden boxes mounted on q wheeler. from which telephone wire car be laid out. They have. however, beer found to make excellent machine gun am. ~z,.u and A<