Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1915-01-29

Origin Of the Trench, !. Wort, !! Of the
Modern Battlefield. -.

"V0CStSt 0osA4CSg0s0s
bitches DUG BY PEASANTS.
IN the Middle Asss Civilians Wsrs
Forced 20 Do The Labor 70 Which SOL
disrs Would Not Stoop-9appsrs ano
Miners and Their Successors.
In stories and reports OF modern
battles the work Of the sappers IL Of.
ten mentioned ITO sap" or "sapping''
was IN early way OF approaching .
strongly fortified position by means Of
a ditch. 1t was also a very early form
OF trench work. The fortified pos,.
tons against which saps were employ
ed were the stone walls Of castles or OF
cities.
When the making, Of cannon had not
progressed 30 far that solid shot could
breach stone walls. but when cannon
were powerful enough to keep armed
men at bay or to destroy them, It be-
came necessary to make an approach
to the walled position In q way which
was difficult to attack successfully and
for which ct that dme no way OF
checkmating had been thought Of BY
the defenders. A narrow ditch was
dug in the direction OF tho wall to DO
assailed. This ditch. which was wide
enough for one man to dig In. was
called 4 sap, tho digger q sapper. and
tho end OF the ditch: toward the enemy.
was the saphead. Al the leading sap
per dug forward he protected himself
and the saphead In various ways, usu-
ally by pushing a screen ahead of him.
This screen was OF various forms, q
bag of sand or q sheet of metal In
clined to defect arrows or gun shots
When the saphead had reached the
desired point the ditch would be wid-
ened, the excavated earth forming a
parapet on each side, and the guns
would be brought 20 close to the wall
that they could not be reached BY guns
mounted ON tho wall, for in the times
In which these conditions prevailed
walls were high and cannon crude and
they could not be sufficiently depressed
to reach an enemy at the foot Of tho
vail.
=. sappins~ was' usually done BY peas
ants Impressed Or hired for that serv.
ice. because soldiers In the armies OF
tho middle ages were more skillfut
With weapons than with tools and the
work Of digging trenches was beneath
their dignity. while 1t also savored Of
a disinclination to close with the enc
my. even though that enemy was be-
hind stone walls With eannon-cannon
at which men armed With modern
weapons would emile. but which In
their day were weapons OF great effect.
Vauban. the great military engineer,
refined sapping and brought! 1t into a
system BY which any fortified place
could be approached, reached, mined
and preached.
These saps after awhile were dug In
a humber Of ways. Many forms Ut the
approach trench were devised. en-
covered trenches We're cut forward. Dc.
flected ut right angles and then cut
forward to be again detected further
along, each Of these reflections from
the straight course Of the trench form
ing a transverse for the protection OF
the trench. Some trenches were roof
ed in with timber and earth as they
We're cut forward, thus forming
bombproof covered way. Some saps
were cut or dug in the fashion of a
tunnel. the surface OF the earth not
being disturbed at all. Double saps or
numerous parallel saps were dug close
up to the position to be attacked.
Mining of castle and city walls or
city gates is as old as the use of gun
powder in war. and ''undermining" of
walls was practiced in war before the
use Of gunpowder. When sapping had
become systematized and generally en-
ployed In offensive operations against
fortified positions the military work OF
sapptng and mining was combined and
instead Of being done BY peasants or
''civilian'' labor was committed to spe-
ciai troops These troops became
adept in this important work, and be-
cause Of the extra labor involved and
the hazard Of this duty these, called
sappers and miners, were given high
er pay than other troops.
As the years and the centuries went
by other duties we're put upon these
troops-erection of field Notifications.
erection of many forms of obstacles to
impede an aggressive enemy and bold
him under fire at known range. de- |
)truction of bridges. construction of
bridges. demolition of buildings and
many other things. Gradually the sap !
pers and miners duties became greatly !
enlarged and refined, and in many !
armies they came to be called engi- !
neers.
In all armies every soldier today does
work that formerly fell to the laboring
and hard working sappers. Every SOL
der TODAY knows how tn handle q MIX /