The Sentinel=record., 1915-01-23
ENGLISH ATTITUDE
ASTOUNDS FRENCH
TOMMY ATKINS ACCEPTS WAR
AS HE WOULD A GAME OF
SPORTS ON THE FIELD.
French Soldiers Cannot Understand
the Don't Care" Attitude of the
British Soldier.

Armenuers, France, Jan 22.-One |
Of the American ambulance workers
who had been with the British in the
7eighborlood OF this town for a |
month, says the attitude OF the Brit /
Ish soldier is utterly incomprelens-
ible to the Frenchman who Is fighting
beside him
ITO the French" he says, che
British seem to take the war as a
sport, and talk OF their losses Ike a
score at cricket or football"
81 near you lost two guns the
other day ] heard one young Eng
lish captain say to another" he con.
t.aued. Eyes. rotten luck was the
reply, bat Cecil lost ten, you know
81 have even met officers who seem
to take pride in their lack OF knowl-
edge Of military matters / inquired
of one such how many guns there are
in battery. I really couldn't say,
you know, he answered 4 am OF the
I.ancers
He says the many cases of bad feet
have been due not so much TO cold
| as to standing about in water. which
causes the foot to swell
! 81 first visited the trenches he
continues, beyond Layentie. Is kilo
meters south Of Armentieres Laven-
tie Is now a mass OF ruins. having
been shelled by the Germans in the
first week OF December The popu-
lace left in a mad rush, leaving bed
clothes hanging ont the windows and
half-eaten meals on the tables For
nearly a mile from the trenches there
was hardly a sign of life. A few cows
were wandering about. anxious to be
MIXED The fields contained many
dead animals of all kinds. dogs. sheep,
horses and even cats Nearly every
farmhouse was a wreck and the roads
and the farm lands were marked by
enormous shell holes.
81 remember seeing one grave Of
soldier VINO was killed on December
3 The name could not be deciphered
but I made out Of a little tag that he
belonged TO the East Lancashres
The crosses became more and more
frequent, then We came to abandon
ed trenches full Of caps, canteens
and the coats Of men who had been
hastily buried.
Finally we came to the mud-plas.
tered fellows in the trenches and for
several weeks | have lived with them
There is an average Of one man to-
each ten feet Of trench and the near
est achievements are at La Gorgue
and Estaire The first day I walked
about four miles along the trenches
and began to realize the significance
Of a remark | had previously heard,
that a man could hardly walk all the
way from the English channel coast
Of France to Switzerland without
Showing his head above the ground
Anybody who is hit in the trenches
nowadays is usually hit in the head
by bullet coming through a loophole
and that means his death. During
December in this part Of the line
there have been very few wounded,
Most of the hospital cases are the
dreaded bad feet When mans kit
is taken away. as it is When he is
brought to the hospital it is pathet-
lie to see what little souvenirs they
save out OF them. In some instances
&c will be a photograph, or some ola
letter, one fellow who had a shoulder
wound clutched a half loaf OF bread
for which he had paid a franc and he
would not give it up.
"A major of the medical CORPS told
me it was scandalous low many cas- S
there are of men Who had sho. thtm-
selves through the hand g. order to
get out Of the trenches ] per oually
saw some Of these cases at Bethune
among the Indian troops / was told.
though ! do not know that it is true
that several men guilty Of this had
been taken out and shot in front OIL
their fellows. On the main road from
Estaire to Ia Bassee we met a soldier
whose hand was sWathed In blood
stained bandages. He said his rifle
had gone Off accidentally and the bul-
let had pierced his hand, bat he was
under arrest and escorted by com.
panion with fixed bayonet
II was in the trenches when news
was received OF the sinking Of the
German ships off the Falk,aads. A
megaplone was made of wrapping
paper and the report shouted TO the
enemy whose trenches were not over
| thirty yards away, | am afraid it was
not believed. even if the English was
understood for the night before the
Germans had announced ia similar
fashion a great victory for their fleet
In the North Sea There is a frazier
nal spirit here that seems strange. !
more as if one were in a shooting
box or as one officer explained it
behind the target at rifle practice
GUTIERREZ a REBEL