Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1915-07-28
HIS FIRST CHARGE
Britisher'S Experience of the
Realities of War.
Hesitated in Thick Of Battle az First
Opportunity to Take Human Life
saw Red" When His Com
Fade Was Shot Down.

Paris.-Lying in a hospital here a
young British soldier who had been a
London broker a few months ago, told
the story of his first bayonet charge.
il will be his last. too. for he will
never be well enough again to be sent
back to the front.
I'VE had gone into the trenches
round Ypres only few days before"
he said, "and my first experience of
the realities of war was to lie patiently
suffering an awful inactivity while the
artillery on both sides belched de-
struction on the men facing each
other in the trenches.
las dawn broke felt an uncon.
trollable desire to climb out OF the
trench into the open. but | knew it
was counting death as l saw the next
moment. The man nearest me raised
his head above the parapet and in an
instant was bagged by a sniper. He
rolled over with a stified murmur, and
lay quite still with his face buried in
the soft red earth. | turned him over
and spoke to him. but he was dead.
with a hole In his forehead.
The day passed fairly quiet until
dusk. when we received the order that
In an hours time we were to storm
one of the enemy's advanced positions
The next hour seemed a lifetime The
noise OF the bombardment swelled
louder and louder. but l hardly no
ticed IT, The men around me showed
their emotions in their faces. Some
were excited and showed an almost
exaggerated enthusiasm FOR the work
in hand The majority were strangely
silent / can honestly say / felt no
actual fear. but | could not help re-
membering that in a short time our
numbers would probably be reduced
by half and was prepared for the
worst
in five minutes the order would be
given and the thought Of what was
! coming made my blood boil. |, too,
became impatient to get out into that
stretch Of open ground which separated
US from our goal. 1t was dark now.
and the enemy's searchiight began to
sweep our positions Two more min
utes and we should leap from our
| trenches.
The bombardment reached its
/ height. and with q wild, vicious anal
roar which seemed to open the
heavens it ceased. The moment had
arrived. The order was given, and
scrambling over the parapet. we
/ emerged into the shell-swept zone. The
enemy's guns began to spit fire among
our ranks. but no one wavered. II we
had felt any fear it had now left US
Men fell on all hands, but with a yell
we rushed forward with barred steel
towards the raised ground.
Our artillery had done its work
we'll. for we found the wire defenses
almost completely blown away. We
reached the enemy's front trenches
and / raised my bayonet as big Ba
varian made to fire at me.
Then something within me made
me hesitate, and a comrade laid tht
man out just in time. In the thick o.
the fight IL had just dawned on ms
that / was about to take a human lif,
for the FIRST time. and l had felt Z
momentary repugnance.
The next instant, However. one o
our men next to me fell in a heap anC
bullet whizzed past my face. Thel
I knew what it was to see red witt
yen I bayoneted the German VIII,
had shot the man. and had soon &C
counted for three more. The place wa
like a shambles The German from
line trenches were filled with a heal
OF torn and bloody corpses and W.
were now attacking the rear trenches
Then suddenly felt a pain in IN,
/ shoulder. but | rushed on. tried {,
raise my rife. but found could not
and the next moment was hit stimuli
taneously in the arm and the jaw. TIL,
pain was terrible. but as | lay on III,
ground | tried TO shout for joy wa
infected with the fever of our success
for | knew that the position was won
Then lost consciousness and 1 wok,
up in the field hos pital."