Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-04-20
Lieut.. Protheroe in Thick
est of Fight at Attack on
Neuve Chapelle.
IN CHARGE OF BRITISH
ARMOREO AUTO CAR
Shells Burst All Around Him. He
Writes to His Brother at
Arlington, Va.

His personal experiences in one of the
greatest battles of the European war,
at Neuve Chapelle, while in charge or
the heavy armored lorries with three
FOUNDER guns, with shells bursting all
around him, is told in a letter by Lieut.
Arthur Protheroe to his brother, j..
Protheroe Of Arlington. Va. Lieut..
Protheroe Is attached to tho armored
automobile section OF the Royal Naval
Division and had previously taken part
In Winston ChurchilPs Antwerp expe-
dition last fall He writes as follows:
LAS you know, I got this job at q mo-
ment's notice and had to rush Off to
place near Sevenoaks to join the Duke
of westminster's squadron. When got
there on Friday night found they had
already left for Dover en- route for
France, and as there were no more
trains that night I had to travel the
next morning. got to Dover at Pm
and found some of the cars and men
already on board two steamers ready
70 start / was put in charge of the
heavy armored lorries with three
FOUNDER guns and their guns crews on
a little tramp steamer called the Mer-
sew She had seen better days and had
had so many bumps that the sign read
The M-se-." Her captain was named
Jones. and a very Welsh one. too; his
accent did my heart good, though that
was more than his ship did for my
stomach.
AFTER a lot Of humping and Welsh
swear words and a collision with one
of the turbine crosS-channel steamers
we at last got away from the quay IN
awful weather, the wind blowing
hurricane We passed number of de-
stroyers in the harbor and mystery
ship which I had heard about in the
hotel from some naval officers She was
large trawler with her mast shot
away: she was seen in the North sea by
a destroyer and was told to heaVe TO,
but refused to do so. So they hred
shot and knocked one of her masts
away. and then boarded her They
found on board not a single piece of
paper, writing. or anything to show her
nationality; the crew were tried IN
every known language, but could not
or would not reply, so they locked the
whole lot I'D on shore and put guard
on the boat
Boat Rolls and Pitches.
when we cleared the harbor the
skipper showed me the various buoys
and also the submarine traps-wonder-
fully clever things which one should
not talk about. The good ship Mersey
started on her journey amidst the loud
cheers of the chauffeur. petty officers"
sailors and the swears of the Welsh
skipper. We left Dover at $50 o'clock
in the afternoon and reached Dunkirk
at o'clock the next morning. We roll
ed and pitched and were tossed about
like cork the whole night I spent
the night on the captains bridge. and
was not seasick, though 1 can't say l
felt well. The boys were all very i'll.
and there was more groaning on board
<I hou hnC
pitfalls in week. Sunday morning.
Monday and Tuesday I rushed about
like mailman finding place for the
men to sleep. garage for the cars, ra-
tions. etc, and Wednesday got wire
from the duke, who had gone UP to the
front, Bring up the three armored
three-pounder lorries to M
Il started off at $50 in the afternoon,
and after an awful journey over the
most terrible roads got to NJ at 10
that night. These armored lorries
weigh eight and one-half tons. SO that
when they get off the road they sink
in at once and have to be dug and pull
ed out-a long business.
During the journey this happened
three times, for after the first few
miles the road is now only wide enough
for one car: all the rest Of the road has
been gradually broken away and is feet
deep in slush and mud. We could only
drive them at about five miles hour
and then could not keep on the road
However. things were not going toe
badly, and / was beginning to congrat
ulate myself that there was only an
other four kilometers to go when
saw a string of about twenty or thirty
lights coming down the road to NEE
me And not an inch to spare ethel
side. Luckily / pulled up opposite &
deserted cottage, and up came thu
transport officer in the leading car
'D--n you. sir. wha, the h arr
YOU doing on this road? Don't 70,
know this is the road for outgoing
transport. and all the incoming has =
come by the other road? You must ge
off the road and let me pass at once.
II gently told him that the lorrfe
weighed s1s tons, and that II they onc'
rot Of the road. there they would re-
mairl for the rest of the war. We both