The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-03

Hartmanns- WeilerSopff, Alsace, Fri day, April so.--via Paris, May 2 D m )-Shells. great and small fell on this spur in the vosges mountains at the rate of from se..to s4 g minute for hours last Monday. after French noun taineers had carried the crest by as- sault. Twice before had the Alpine troops won the summit and had been forced from it by obstinate German at tacks. This time they clung to the era ters made by mines and shells and to the seant shelter of abandoned trenches and dug outs.
 When the shell fire suddenly stopped and the Germans swept upward again
 the Alpines. supported and reinforced,
 threw back attack after attack.
 The Germans persisted with the ut
 most courage and the ightinE after the
 first rushes was with the bayoHet- Dead
 and wounded fell so thickly yhat the
 bodies touched each other. Presently the
 assaults died down and the Germans
 sank into their trenches on the Slopes.
 They have remained there since, while
 day and night the French are enlarging and deepening their trenches and dig
 glng and roofing in shell-proof shelters,
 This is the culmination of three
 months of violent efforts by one side to hold and by the other to take an emi
 hence dominating the plain of Alsaee. l Go..os,or<Io,,. lN,tb Eraneh | correspondent of the Associated
 Press s-as with the French troops for an hour and half today on the top or
 Hartmans- Weller, now reoccnpied | by French soldiers. It is a harsh scene Splintered and Jagged stems of what were thick pine woods stand up among ! the boulders. The forest has been cut down by machine gun and shell fire
 The whole place is scared by the dead l ly business of the last three weeks. Sharp shooters on both sides snipe away at any show of hostile helmet, peak of cap. Observers watch through crevices between stones or bags of
 sand concealed by pine branches. A
 periscope thrust above the trenches IS shattered three or four seconds after It's
 
 Iappearance
 The foremost points of the French
 position now are well roofed in with pine logs. Machine guns have been l closely placed to sweep the approaches
 with cross fire.
 l The German trenches in which no doubt the same deadly alcrtness pre- vails, are at one place within 20 or 30 | feet and at no place are they farther away than 50 yards,
 Position Explained The, colonel in command took the cor respondent to one of the forward obser- vatories and in whispers explained the position. The men standing by their pieces, were taking morning bread and coffee The instant readiness suggested l A well ordered American fire engine house. where the men at the sound of gong each jumps to his place. | Looking far beyond the Germa n trenches to the plain below sprinkled with villages and farmhouses, one can see cherry. orchard now in full bloom. This is the country where krschwa sser (cherry water) Is made. The landscape seems to be whitened by the tens of thou 1 sands of cherry trees in bloom. Mur- derous mountain knots and the beautiful country spread out in the country below are in poignant contrast.
 l Through glasses one could see women washing clothes in a creek, children play ling and farmers working with oxen in I the field. All the ordinary business Of country life was going on as If this part of. the 4co-mile battle line was not at their front doors.
 Men In Trenches Quiet | The men, in the trenches were quiet weather r-seasoned men. They talked sim ply, even with dignity. of their work lone of the men cut open loaf from a batch of German army brown bread left behind and compared 1t with the white French bread of his ration. Beef pre-. -ssrved and cooked. in gelatin castings, is