South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-07-02
INITIAL BAY0NET
CHARGE Of TOMMY
WAS A THRILLER
Young EngliShman Can't Get
Courage to Kill Until Man
Falls at His Side-"SeeS
Red" Then.

PARIS, July 2-Lying in hospi-
tai here young British soldier who
had been London broker few
months ago today told the story Of his
first bayonct charge il Will be his
last too. for ne Will never be well
enough again TO bc back tO the front.
I'VE had gone into the trenches
round YFres only few days before
he said. "aud my first experience OF
the realities Of war was 10 lie pa
tiently suffering an awful inactivity
while the artillery on both sides
belchcd destruction on the men facing
each other in the trenches.
LAS dawn broke ! felt an uncOn-
trollable desire TO climb out of the
trench into the open. but / knew it
was counting death, as / saw the next
moment The man nearest me raised
his head above tho parapct. and in an
instant was bagged by a sniper. He
rolled over with a stided murmur
and lay quite still with his face
buried in the soft red earth. / turn
ed him over and spoke 60 him, but he
was dead, with a hole in his fore
head.
The day passed fairly quietly until
dusk, when we received the order
that in an hours time we were 10
storm one Of the encmy's advanced
lifetime. The noise of the lombard
ment swellcd louder and louder. but 1
hardly noticed it. The men around
me showed their emotions in their
faces. Some We're excited. and show
ed an almost exaggerated enthusiasm
for the work in hand. The majority
were strangely silent L can honestly
say / felt no actual fear, but i could
not help remembering that i'm short
time our numbers would probably be
reduced by half, and l was prepared
for the worst
Order Is Given.
"Tn five inmates the order would be
given, and the thought of what was
coming made by blood boil I, too,
became impatient to get out into that
stretch OF open ground which scpa-
rated ms from our goal IL was dark
now, and the enemy's searchlight
began to sweep our positions. Two
more minutes and we should leap
from our trenches.
THE bOmbardment reached its
height, and with a wild, vicious, final
roar which seemed to open the heav-
ems il ceased. The moment had ar
rived. The order was given and,
sCrambling over the parapet. we
emerged into the shell-swept zone
The enemy's machine guns began to
spit fire among our ranks, but no one
wavered. If we had felt any fear it
had now left us. Men fell on all
ha 'ds but with a yell we rushed for
wa with barred steel towards the
raised ground.
our artillery had done its work
well, for we found the wire defenses
almost completely blown away We
reached the encmy's front trenches,
and ! raised my bayonet as big
Bavarian made to fire at me
Then something within me made
me hesitate. and a comrade laid the
man out just in time. Tn the thick
of the fight it had just dawned on me
that i was about TO take a human life
for the first time and / had felt a
momcntary repuguance.
''SceS Red"
THE next instant however. one OF
our men next TO me fell i'm heap,
and bullet whizzed past my face
Then / knew what IL was to see red
With yell I hayoueted the German
who had shot the man and had soon
accounted for three more. The place
was like "a shambles. The German
front line trenches were filed with
heap of torn and bloody corpses. and
we were now attacking the rear
trenches.
Then suddenly 7 felt pain in my
shoulder, but ] rushed on I tried to
raise my rifle bat found I could not.
and the next moment I was hit stimuli
taneOusly IN the arm and the Jaw.
The pain was terrible bat as / Law on
the ground I tried TO shout for iOv T
was infected with the fever If our
success. for I knew that the position
was won. Then 1 lost consciousness.
and I woke UP i'm the field hospital"