The patriot. [volume] (Indiana, Pa.) 1914-1955, 1915-11-13
BOSTON DARKY IN
FLANDERS FIGHT
when DAT Jack johnson Hit
Me In de Back, Oh, LaWdy!"
"SKEERED FOR De FUTURE. I"

I
gence"-Had Rabbit Foot ard A.
! tributes His Being In Paris Hospital
| Instead OF Graveyard to Luck.
| Tie Foreign legions American con-
! tngent was nearly wiped out in the
| great Champagne advance. One of the
few who came out whole waS John
Frederick Brown. ordinarily known as
! "Nigger John" of Boston. writes Viii
liaRn Philip Simms, Il Paris correspond
ent
Where are you wounded, John?' I
asked.
al amt wounded" grinned John.
| rs jes' par'lized. We were goin' UP
slope with all kinds of things comm
down at US, an great big German
Jack Johnson hit me right in the mid
die of the back, an, Lawdy me, mistah,
sho thought ma days was ovah"
! The Jack Johnson. the nurse explain
ed, only bruised Johns back and prob
| ably deadened his legs, maybe tempo
! rarily.
Mo- Curiosity Dan Intelligence.
John used TO work in an automobile
house around Boston. and it seemed
such long way from there to Cham
pagne battlefield that | asked him why
he joined the Foreign legion.
| "Lawdy, man," said John through
his perpetual smile. Il guess allus did
have mo- curiosity dan intelligence"
"Still you saw the big bautle; that's
something"
lyon bet it was something" said
John.
when l left Paris we went to the
| Vosges first. Then they sent us to
| Champagne for the big mill We star.
| ed in the fight from a place jes' north
Of Swipes (Suippes).
Staht In Close Fo'mation.
"That Sat'day mawnin' we stahted
off in close formation. like the Ger
mans, an we was all mighty worried.
| because if any one of them shells had
| hit us-would "a wipe out the whole
company.
well, we stah'ted up a hill dat
aways. Then / says out loud, hopin'
the officer would hear me. why doan
dat man spread us out tirrailleur?'-
| dat's what the French call a Skirmish
| line you know-but the officer didn't
pay no 'tention to me. Then all the
fellahs stahted sayin' the same thing,
but the officer didn't change his mind
till he got good and ready.
"But after awhile he did order us to
spread out, an we sho did obey. For
comm down dat hill was a whole
arsenal full of machine gun bullets an
rife bullets an cannon balls an chunks
of dirt and everything.
Heads Jes' NatchulIy Sasged.
"The officer told us to intrench an
need to-our heads jes' natchully sag
ged all by their own selves.
Ever once in awhile we'd git up an
run forward. When we got to the top
Of the hill the Germans got skeered an
bent backward. We kept after 'em till
finally we got caught tn a pocket |
where we had machine guns in front
of us an on both sides an shells bust |
in in the middle.
Oats where | got mine. They told |
us to lay down fiat an keep under /
them mitrailleuse bullets-that's what
the French call a machine gun-but
jes' wanter say you simply cain't duck |
dem bullets. They seem to kinder hop, |
skip an jump along the ground.
when dat Jack Johnson hit me in
the back, oh, Lawdy.' | said to NAH
self, i guess l earnin' dat cent a day |
all right now. but the futuah looks
mighty da'k. :"
How many days were you in the
fight p asked
"Jes' a little potion of one day was
enough to hold me-" said John
What other Americans were in the |
battle with your
"To tell you the homes truth. mis-
tah." said John, Il didn't have time TO |
look around and see. ] was fairly busy
keepin' track of one frien' of mine
from Boston"
Dat Am Some Food.
Just then the nurse came in with |
lunch
Dat am some food" cried John,
wreathed in smiles "Jes' smell dat
bacon. If Gen1 Joffry'll listen tub me
he can end dis wah in half a day Jes'
set million plates of this heah bacon
along the top of de French trenches.
an de Germans II jes' nacherly crawl
Ovah an beg to surrender"
OF the Americans in the Foreign le-
yion John finally remembered that he
had heard William Dugan of Albany,
n. Y. and Christopher Charles OF
Brooklyn were missing, as were several
others. and that Jack Casey. former
cartoOnist of San Francisco. had been
wounded in the foot
"In the legion" he said, they have
all sorts Of cha ms to bring good luck,
but reckon the left hind foot OF a
graveyard rabbit we Americans use Is
about the beS' of all"
What makes you think so?' asked.
"Ah'm heah. amt Ah?' said John.
The Outlet.