El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1915-04-10
WITH THE AUTO
IN WAR ZONE
Story of an Automobile on
the Firing Line With
the Belgian Army.

] nLlle mention Is made OF the small REM
I nant OF the Belgian army which fought
/ so CALAMITY in the early stages Of the
/ war. But a letter just received by
the WHY'S Overland company. Toledo,
/ Ohio. from the chief mechanic in charge
OF the big squad Of 800 Overlands pur-
7 chased by Belgium shortly after the
/ outbreak of hostilities. proves that the
small army is still a factor in the
northern fighting.
An interesting description is given
! Of one Of many trips from Calais to
! the fighting front the cars are called
upon to make. The letter gives an
inkling of the terrific conditions under
which the Overlands are forced to- work
continuously.
I was ordered to drive the director
Of the cannon factory and an officer
I from Calais to the front" runs the let
ter IN addition to the passengers,
the car. which has a transport body
like that Of other OverIands in use here,
was loaded with artillery parts for re-
pairing guns, together with a quantity
of petrol and oil necessary TO last us
the entire drive. The weather was cold
and fOggy with strong wind blowing
off the sea.
Often Forced TO Stop.
Before leaving Calais We were
stopped by the first Of the many SEN
tries encountered everywhere. They
spring up suddenly. apparently out OF
the ground. like jacks in the box. We
were stopped three times before ar
irving at Dunkirk and each time we
were forced to show our papers and
passes Every precaution is taken
against spies, but they manage to get
within the lines in spite of the risks
they run
In the towns we were only allowed to
maintain speed little faster than a
walk, but on the open road there is no
limit The Overland often reached a
speed OF so miles an hour with its full
load
After we left Dunlirk the hard driv-
ing Started Upon leaving the town we
turned sharp TO the right and followed
the canal for long distance, passing
a number Of cars smashed and deserted
at the roadside. We saw an Overland
IDENTIFY been deliberately driven into
the canal to prevent capture at some
time
Roads BADLY Cut.
when we left the canal banks the
roads became exceedingly rough and
were fearfully cut Up by the passing
Of heavy transports. the troops and ar
ullery- While sounding a turn at fair
speed 1 had to jam on the brakes 10
keep frOuf running INFO some nasty
looking barb wire entangIements
which stretched across the road about
two feet high. Upon alighting I found
that there was Just enough room left
for our car TO crawl through diagon-
ally across the road.
We had just got up speed again
when we were forced to stop and
squeeze past some earthworks built
on either side Of the road, allowing
just room enough to set the car
through with a great deal Of manipu-
lation and close work Immediately
after that we encountered a series OF
entrenches dug almost clear across the
road A fall into these big bitches
would probably put the car out Of COM I
mission z nj GnTfnrTEfr- rrTra the
senSers-
In SIeet and Snow.
Sleet and snow, which came at this |
point. would have made driving very
difficult and dangerous. had il not been
for our excellent adjustable windshield. I
When we arrived at Houtham. once a /
prosperous Belgian city, we found it I
occupied entirely by the military. prac-
ucally all OF the inhabitants having /
left The streets were alive with SOL 1
diers, horses and guns. going TO and /
from the fighting front, or changing 1
positions. In the distance we could /
hear the continuous booming OF the /
Belgian $50 milimeter guns. In the /
city we lunched on sandwiches and /
humps Of chocolate and were on our |
way again in less than a quarter Of an.
.-The ONLY road from here to the
front was Of the toughest sort hur- 4
riediy constructed for army use In i
some instances the ruts were fully a 1
foot deep. The Overland sped over \
fields. bumped over railroad crossings,
rloundered in mud up TO the aXles and l
drove half the time with the front 4
wheels caught in the great ruts made
by the heavy guns
On the Battlefield.
Eve finally reached our destination,
where noise Of the guns was deafen-
ing This, with the clack Of the mi
-railleuse. the shrieking Of shells and
The continuous gallopiuE Of batteries.
made bedlam of what used TO be a
)eaceable farming country. I unloaded
he car as soon as possible and started l
he return journey in the dark And
Irving at night in Belgium is far diff
lerent from the night driving you z
know Your work requires full speed
md yet YOU are allowed only half Of
-our lights and even they must be
limmed.
IF you could but know the rough
reatment these Overlands have been
iaviug over here. you would realize !
ar more than any OF the strains Of or
inary usage. II is regular practice |
ere TO drive in a manner which would I
Tot be couuteuanced in the United !
tates. We get 10 our destination as d
uickly as possible. without any /
bought Of the car. If the car is disa-
led We leave il and take another. We I
ave neither the time nor facilities for /
making repairs.
THE fact that have driven the same
overland under these extreme cOndi-
eptember. seems to me the best possi-
le evidence OF the wonderful stamina I
the car"