The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-10-24

action for two months.
 Devastation Everywhere AS one travels inland from Dunkirk
 towards the southeast through Bergues he can readily appreciate why France, Hol- 1 land and England are full of regugees
 wearing their hearts out with thoughts
 of their demolished homes for there are
 to be seen little villages with not a build ing inhabitated, hardly one unmarked by shell fire. Handsome sixteenth cen-
 tury facades, modest brick structures, artistic little churches have all gone
 into wars melting pot. The streets are as devastated as the sections of San Francisco or Baltimore after their con | f1agrations.
 The French are holding the dunes along 1 the coast, then come the Belgians, then
 more French, then the English. then still
 more French, then the English again, and finally the long line of French reach- ing to Switzerland. 1t is not often pointed out that the French are sand
 wiched in between their allies in this ia shion.
 l Stopping before a 1o5-mm. gun. cleverly concealed in a grove, a gun which had
 been silent but a few moments and was
 doing it's bit'' in an artillery action 1 spreading over 100 miles, correspondent
 asked the lieutenant in charge when he l intended to fire again.
 When they telephone us." was the re- ply. We have fired only twice this
 morning. When the line of action Is as | long as the route from New York to Philadelphia. each gun has an easy time of it, and there is plenty of opportunity l for conversation. Indeed, when the cor ! respondent Approached the group they were laughing at a story of the lieuten- ant. He was telling them of devoted orderly. The lieutenant had been sent | to the hospital as result of poison f-Ak after three days" said the lieutenant,
 but my orderly would not let me-" Have any shells burst around here yet?"
 Not very near. This big gun is pretty well concealed and If the enemy's avia- l tors see 1t we can easily move it.' You can't see any Germans from here, can you?''
 Never Saw German in Action 'I have been at the front Il months" said, the lieutenant. T have seen many dead Germans and many German pris- oners, but I have never seen a German in action, except the man In the Taube." A half dozen privates gathered round and the conversation became general. be- ing interrupted occasionally by visits to the observatories in the tree. where the correspondent was shown the German lines and could see the shrapnel bursting over both sides. It all seemed too re- mote The correspondent observed, Tt does not seem very close to us.' Perhaps not, just this minute, but in the road there not over 50 feet away they blew up one of our caissons few days ago and you can go out and pick up some souvenirs if you wish to- These observatories would be fascinat- ing additions to Adirondack camps, be- ing successive flights of stairs with strong landings. winding round the highest trees, painted the color of trees and covered overhead with foliage. There Is no mili- tary secret about this for it is we'll known that both sides have the same kind of lookouts.
 You men all seem very happy" said the correspondent We certainly are; we know what we are fighting for; we are well treated and we know that we shall win. It is men that will win this war pour la Patrie." When French soldier says, pour la Patrie.' he says it wit ha thoughtful earnestness that gives one a firm faith in democracy. The firing was evidently within short | the correspondent got up to leave. Sorry we could not entertain you with our 105-mm,' said the lieutenant, but we never know when we shall get the tele- phone call"
 I In an artillery action of such magnitude gunners wait for orders like policemen l or firemen, by telephone and like po- lIcemen and f1remen, they are very glad l to see callers in the intervals of their activity.