The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson, S.C.) 1914-1917, 1915-01-12


trenches and relieving them with
fresh troops Is dramatically discus
sed BY correspondent Of the Berlin
er Tageblatt, who prefaced the story
with experiences OF himself and COL
leagues In getting into and out of the
firing line.
I'VE could only reach the village
Eessen," he writes. "Here We had
to leave the automobile in the mud be-
hind church whose walls showed the
marks Of desperate struggle. Every
where on the ground, bandagesf arms
and parts OF uniforms-everythin
covevered with yellow mud. Beside
the church were fresh graves.
From Eessen to DiXmude the road
for three kilometers runs parallel to
the French trenches. Every auto and
every wagon seen on the road Is taxi
en- under fire from the trenches which
are only about 400 yards away.
so we left the automobile in COW
er and continued our Journey ON foot,
Keeping about 60 feet apart in order
to be. ao inconBpicuouB to tho enemy
as possible. But they had already
seen us. A rolling fusiiade began to
sweep the Tond. We Jumped from
tree to tree. and made part OF tho
distance by running in stopped POSI-
tton behind hedge.
The mud was several feet deep In
places. and our way lay past. trench
cs and dead horses. Many of the ami
mails were chestnuts. deeply imbeddad
In the mud, and their wide-open eyes
stared into the leaden sky In most un-
canny fashion.
"Or sudden the man ahead Of me
shouted and jumped behind the vail
OF building that had beef, laid low.
He believed he had been hit, but as
luck would have It the bullet Just miss
cd him and had buried itself with %
thud In a nearby tree.
"His experience induced us to pro-
gress n little more rapidly and with
greater caution-from cover to cover.
"After;a while we came to an ex-
posed railroad crossing some 900 feet
from the trenches Of the enemy. First
one man bolted across the open
place. then the other. until we were
RiI over. The bullets from the French
helped every ono to lose no time.
"But now we had the prot fction of
the railroad embankment, and ayailins
ourselves Of this we soon reached the
ruins OF Dixmude. Several streets
and especially the market place lie
within tho fire zone Of the enemy.
I'm this uhcanny town dwells un-
spealfable fear. Dixmude has been shot
up as no other place in the hsatre OF
war. 3 liz the sheri.furrowed streets
the mud Is several feet deep; and there
appears to be not single house
which has not been hit by she'll. But
OF this am not sure. Dodging' from
one street corner to another. to avoid
the bullets which soem to. have q sort
Of fountain head at the end of each
street. you nave mn time tc make
many. or close, observations. AT any
rate the ruins from, little hills one
has difficulty getting over. :.
I'VE fipally came to the market
place, which ts constantly swept by q
hail Of bullets. In a rush we gain the
shelter OF the weile ne the city h:.!
on the other side. To one side OF this
are the ruins OF ST. Nicholas, recog-
nizable as q church today only by two
walls and q pillar which rear into the
sky like naked giants.
"The town is empty and deserted.
Bnt you become aware of G noiseless.
'uncanny sort. OF life In the houses. L
comes from tho cellars where our sol:
diers are In quarters.
I'VE finally met the commandant OF
the. place. He had been decorated
with the iron cross, first class, and
showed that he was glad to see new
facesii IN this place OF desoIatior,.
AS he explained the situation to us.
bullets hit the walls to the left and
right Of uB. We counted As In one
minute on the wall OF q building close
by. Zealously, BY day and night, thiu
waste OF ammunition goes on,
"The only living creatures our men
found I'm 4Dixmude were dog and
three cats. Three times7-four times
Dixmude hos been the center OF bat
tie. But now the large heap OF ruins
10 In our possPBston. and with 1t we
have gained "a point directly ON the
User canal, which passes close to the
last houses OF the town on tho wtst.
Z HBut we intended to get into the
trcnches--th1 firing line.
The road to this lay through a
trench approach whose wild and
bloody history is not likely to find an
equal even In this war. on we go
through ssheli-wrocked houses. tnn-
nels. cellars stables, upstairs through
rows of rooms. then down again
across a narrow street exposed to the
IRE Of the enemy; through ,houses and
rooms and across yards: aud finally
into aliopg subterranean passage from
whose ceiling tho, water ran In
streams. 8,
In the distance we, finally saw q
ligltstyery much as, one doeB In COM
ing to the end Of railroad tunnel
I'VE were In the trench closest to
the an antv $! y II 4 \ = ssSs
eva ara cautioned mot To sneak: But