Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1915-10-01
PICTURE OF A Charge
Awful Silence PreCedeS Fierce At
tack.
HOW The BRITISH SOLDIERS fight,

HOW The BRITISH SOLDIERS fight.
Graphic Story Of Fatal Incidents on
the Battlefield Whom, Amid Shot
and Shell, Men Lock in Deadly EN-
brace on Modern Battlefield.
! When quiet, tense quiet, settles down
along the SCARED line Of the trenches,
and the breeze -uff1es tho dandeloins
that have grown up between the ghast-
ly heaps that fringe the wire entangle-
ments, then the man who has had ex-
perience with trench warfare knows
that something is under way, says the
New York Evening Post. 1t may be
only the charge Of company, hoping
to improve the section Of a traverse to
which they cling with bitter determi-
nation; it may be a battalion's at
tempt to strengthen out a partially
won zone; it may be the lurid charge OF
brigade or division intended to oc-
cupy so much as a square mile OF
enemy ground. The tense quiet always
precedes it.
An uncannily vivid picture OF this
aspect Of the fighting on the western
front in Europe is conveyed in the
story Of one advance by Action
Front" in the Westminster Gazette
All the night before there had been
steady movement Of troops from the
rear into the support and advance
trenches, until every brown burrow
was packed to capacity with waiting
humanity Further back, where the
guns were emplaced under a skilful
cover, the motor lorries were deposit
ing the last loads Of the huge supply
Of ammunition which would be requir-
ed for the impending curtain Of fire.
"An aeroplane droned high over
head, and an Archibald (anti-air-
craft gum or two began to pattern
the sky about it with a. trail Of fleecy
white smoke-puffs. The plane sailed
on and out Of sight, the smoke-puffs
and the wheezy barks Of Archibald
receding after It, Another period OF
silence followed. It was broken by
faint report like the sound Of far
off door being slammed almost at the
same instant there came to the ear the
faint, thin whistle of an approaching
shell. The whistle rose to q rush and a
roar that cut off abruptly in the thun-
derous bang. The shell pitched harm
lessly on the open ground between the
forward and support trenches.
Again came that faint SIAM this
time repeated by four, and the 'bou-
quet' Of four shells crumped down al
most on top Of the support line. The
four crashes might have been signal
to the British guns. About a dozen re-
ports thudded out quickly and separ-
ately, and then in one terrific blast Of
sound the whole line broke out in
heavy fire. The infantry in the
trenches could distinguish the quick
following bangs Of the guns directly
in line behind them, could separate
the vicious swish and rush Of the
shells passing Immediately over their
heads. Apart from these the reports
blended in one long throbbing pulse of
noise, an indescribable medley Of
moaning. shrieks and whistling in the
air rent by the passing shells.
The Trenches Astir.
Along the line Of front marked for
the main assault the guns suddenly
lifted their fire and commenced to
pour it down further back, although
number Of the lighter guns contin-
ued to sweep the front parapet with
gusts of shrapnel. And then suddenly
it could be seen that the front British
trenches were alive and astir The
| infantry, who had been crouched and
prone in the shelter Of their trenches,
rose suddenly and began to Chamber
over the parapets into the open and
make their way out through the maze
Of their own entanglements. Instant
ly the parapet opposite began to
crackle with rifle fire and to beat out
a steady tattoo from the hammering
machine guns. The bullets Kissed
and spat across the open and hailed
upon the opposite parapet. Scores
hundreds Of men fell before they could
clear the entanglements to form up
in the open, dropped as they climbed
the tarapet,. or even as they stood up
! and raised a head above it. But the
mass poured out, shook itself roughly
into line, and began to run across the
open. They ran for the most part
with shoulders hunched and heads
| stopped, as men would run through q
heavy rainstorm to a near shelter.
And as they ran they stumbled and
fell and picked themselves up and ran
again-or crumpled up and lay still or
squirming feebly.
"As the line swept on doggedly it
thinned and shredded into broken
groups. The men dropped under the
rifle bullets singly or in twos and
threes; the bursting shells tore great
gaps in the line, snatching a dozen
men at a mouthful; here and there
where it ran into the effective sweep
Of Maxim the line simply withered
and dropped and stayed still in a
string Of huddled heaps among and on
which the bullets continued to drum
and thud. The open ground was dotted
thick with men, men lying prone and
still, men crawling on hands and
knees, men dragging themselves slow
ly and painfully with trailing, useless
legs, men limping. hobbling, stagger-
| ing in a desperate endeavor to get
back to their parapet and escape the
bullets and shrapnel that still storm
ed down upon them.
"The British gunners dropped their
ranges again. and a deluge of shells
and shrapnel burst crushing and
whistling upon the enemys front
parapet The rifle fire slackened and
almost died and the last survivors of
the charge had such chance as was left
by the enemy's shells to reach the