South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-03-04
GENDARME KEEPS
TRACK Of SHELLS
FALLING IN NANCY
Entities His Record DIARY of
COMMANDMENT and Tells
How Men Shaking Hands Had
Fingers Blown Off.

CENTRAL FRANCE. March fl
have just returned to the center after
visit TO the extreroe right Of the op-
erations in France. and nothing can
give one n better impression OF the
Vastness OF the line Of warfare. From
Belfort to Epinal it is nearly 20 miles;
from Epinal to Nancy, 40 miles; from
Nancy TO Nerdun, "A miles; from
Rheims 10 scissors. "A miles. 1t is
only by numerous detOurs, OF course,
that one can now follow this line, but
after travelling for days and realizing
that one has only TO approach within
ID or 20 miles OF any point TO hear the
guns and perhaps the sound OF a viO-
lent local engagement, one becomes
more and more impressed with the
immensely Of the operations.
AS / passed through Nancy the ar
rival OF the Prince of Wales was mo-
mentarily expected. and the announce
ment OF his coming filed the people
with joy. There was q pleasure in
every face, for as far as the records
OF the town went, no Prince of Wales
had ever visited, as an ally, Nancy in
arms. Picture postcards of the prince
were visible everywhere and offered
for sale IN the shops.
The violence and obstinacy of the
struggle in this part OF the field is
shown by the record of a gendarme
in a tiny village through which one
passes, and which has been system
atically shelled by the Germans for
the last two months and more. The
gendarme very simply entities his
record a diary of the bombardme
The Daily Record.
"Oct 30" he writes, three shells
and no damage. Sunday. Nov. 1,
eight shells, one house badly dam
aged, four killed in one place and
seven in another; a French battery
took UP a position and replied. Nov.
3, 10 shells, one person wounded. Nov.
II, 90 shells, three rails smashed on
the railway and Immediately repaired
and one killed. Nov. 20. six shells.
four killed.
Thence daily to the end of the
month three or four shells a day,
some of which struck the village
church. De-. 3, 81 shells. one of
which killed a man who had just come
to get news about his family from the
gendarne.
Dec. 4. fv@ shells, one of which
killed two men and another cut off
two fingers from one as he was shak-
ing hands with a cOmrade. Dec. 10.
our infantry advances on the Prussian
lines. and the enemy makes a des-
perate resistance. Dec. II, 20 shells.
Dec. Is, q shells. The first killed
three men who were in NJ. MS barn,
and the second completely destroyed
the stables of NJ. Y without killing
any of the animals. The third killed
a sergeant.
Fork Is Broken.
Another destroyed the upper floor
~ the house of NJ. Z. and his sister,
Wno was just laying the table, was
not injured, but a fork which she was
holding in her hand was broken in
twain. At NJ. G.'s house two men
were killed. Several shells fell into
the river and threw up a big spray of
water. Dec. Il, eight shells about
9 a m, and six others about p. IN.
ne traversed a wall nearly a yard
3 thick. killed a man at a table A GER
man aeroplane fed over the station at
$3.50 and dropped a bomb. killing one
man and woundi1g smother. Dec. Is.
Il shells. one man killed and nine
mules injured"
For six weeks the fighting near this
little village, where the gendarme so
placidly wrote down his notes after
counting each shell. went on uninter-
ruptedly and suddenly became very in
tense He notes, in fact. on Dec. II,
81 shells on the three following
DAYS no shells reached the place. The
French guns set up in various points
had, by that time, begun to lombard
the German positions and SilenCed
some Of the German guns. He writes
on Dec. 20:
"The Germans are getting thick:
our batteries OF rs, 90. 12O and 155
clatimeter guns are making a devil
OF "A racket. 1t Is like the continuous
roll OF thunder"
The gendarme IS delighted at last
to note that the Germans are getting
it." One Of their positions at a GER
tain village has been taken. Dec p.
the Germans retake the position. Dec.
% the French again drive them out.
Their IS nm. guns are spreading
havoc among the enemy.
Bring Down AcrOplanC.
Dec. "a writes the gendarme. the
cannonade Is furious. The ground is
shaking everywhere. Our battery near
the church has fired on a German
aeroplane without hitting ii. IL is
o'clock. The aeroplane continues its
flight beyond the village of ID. There
il is bOmbarded by a battery of our
20 guns. and hit by the third shell.
The aeroplane drops like a stricken
bird. all in flames and the two Ger
man officers in il are hunt to death.
The machine is completely destroyed
Dec. %. the French fired on a Ger
man aeroplane. and they fired on two
Of the French. both without any re-
suit. No more German shells have
reached the village. The French had