Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1915-01-22
THE SPIRIT OF PEACE
Soldiers Wanted to Play Football on
Christmas.

The following lS sent ITOH tii''
trenches in northern France by a cor
respondent who volunteered for SER
vice with the British army at the be-
ginning Of the war:
Although there was no formal
truce declared during the holiday sea :
son, the fighters here had several days
quiet, by tacit consent.
Germans and Englishmen met on
the plain field between the lines,
shook hands, swapped tobacco. told
stories, and were even planning an
international football game when the
weather turned bad. All day long
there was much searching for souve-
Mrs to send home and hundreds OF
fragments Of shell or broken equip
ment were picked up in sections Of
the field where ordinarily 1t would
mean sure death for a soldier to show
himself.
All rifle firing stopped at twilight
on Christmas eve. During the evening
both sides placed candles and little
bonfires as Christmas lights along the
top Of the trenches. When it was
seen that neither side intended to take
advantage of the temporary peace, the
soldiers began to climb out Of their
trenches and took up positions In the
bright moonlight on the fiat ground
in front. Back and forth across that
two hundred yard field they greeted
each other with wishes Of Merry
Christmas There was much cheer
ing, speech making, singing carols,
and a little dancing. The Englishmen
got out their hymn books, with which
most Of the soldiers are provided, and
sang Lead Kindly Light, Abide With
Me, and While Shepherds Watched
Their F1ocks by Night. The hymns
were interpersed with such favorites
as Mandelay and Tipperary.
Gradually few Of the groups from
the two sides drifted closer together
Everybody was unarmed. One Of the
foremost German groups waved bot
tie Of wine toward the nearest English
group and invited them to join the
party. After a moment or two the
Englishmen started over, carrying
Christmas cake and a box Of choco-
lates. The men shook hands all
around, and Immediately cheers and
clapping came from both sides Of the
field, where English and Germans alike
had been anXiously watching the
meeting. The group had smoke and
drink together, and very soon large
parties Of the late enemies were seen
chatting together. All the time in the
distance could be heard the sound Of
artillery fighting.
THE Englishmen swapped pipe to-
bacco for German cigars, and British
candies for German chocolate. Later
in the evening the Germans sent over
to the British trenches a small Christ
mas tree, with various cheerful mes
sages and little gifts tied on Its
branches.
"On Christmas day the British SOL
diers brought a football out in front
Of the trenches and invited the Ger
mans to send team over for game
during the afternoon. They promised
to do this, but the weather-or their
officers-prevented 1t.
Soldiers unslung their cameras and
took snapshots of little groups Of men
from both sides hob -nobbing together
During the morning. some Of the gayer
spirits organized what they call a
fantastic parade led by a German
youth who had somehow obtained pos
session Of high hat and dress suit
Among the paraders were two soldiers
mounted on old bicycles without
tires.
THE happy scene was rudely inter-
rupted about one o'clock in the after
noon by the arrival Of a big shell, in
the rear, which sent everybody scurry-
ing back to the trenches for time.
Later in the afternoon British sol.
diers helped the enemy bury ten Ger
man soldiers whose bodies were found
in a ditch in front Of the German
trench. They had been killed few
days before in an attempt on the Eng
lish outpost"