Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1915-12-28
Reporting
A Battle
An Experience of a News
paper Correspondent
BY WILLARD MALTBIE

'KitSOn," said the editor in chler TO
me when the pan European war broke
out, you must go to Europe at once to
report the big fight that's on. Take
the first steamer that sails, and don't
fail, for it may be the last The ships
by which you must cross the ocean
fly either the British or the German
flag, and the cruisers of each will be
trying to capture the others vessels"
(Which army shall accompany"
ANY army. Go where there is the
severest fighting"
My chiefs SurmiSe that the ship on
which 1 sailed might be the last prov
ed correct. At any rate, it was the
last for awhile. l reached England
when the Germans were attacking
Liege and asked for permission to go
over with the British troops that were
being sent across the channel. l was
refused. No newspaper correspond
ents were to be allowed with the army.
l lost some time trying to convince the
war Office that the world was hungry
for news of the fighting, but made no
impression. l crossed the channel as
soon as l could find boat to take me
and reached France at time when
the Germans were sweeping south
ward toward Paris.
How 1 got to the scene of the fight
ing 1 wouldn't like to say. l went by
motorcar till the Germans took it
away from me. then bought a horse
cheap. The owner expected hourly
some cavalryman would take it with
out paying for it, and when the animal
was taken from me on the same terms
| walked
The great scene of my life was one
morning when | reached an elevated
point where I could look down on the
battle raging between two lines, each
so long that, though 1 was raised sew
eral hundred feet above them, | could
not see either end of either army.
Near by the thunder of heavy ord
nance, the b-r-r-r-r-r of machine guns.
the rattle Of rifle firing, sounded like
a storm. while on either side the
sounds grew fainter and fainter in the
distance, like rolling thunder dying
away. Directly beneath me was a bat
terry of large cannon screened from the
enemy by a thicket. On knoll slight
ly in advance of it stood an officer with
a telephone receiver to his ear and
a transmitter at his lips, giving the
gunner the range. They were firing
beyond the point they intended to
hit. and he was doubtless giving them
orders to reduce the distance, for l
noticed that with every shot their
shells exploded nearer to the French
lines till at last they burst in a field
where infantry were standing under
arms and the shrapnel scattered among
them caused frightful gaps in their
ranks.
Above aeroplanes were moving hith-
er and thither, some darling away to
the east, some to the west and some
coming from both east and west.
Doubtless those moving on long dis
tances were carrying news of the bat
tie on the wings to the commander in
chief in the center.
At that time the Germans were en-
tering French territory and soon began
their rapid movement toward Paris.
Before nightfall the roar of battle
had been moved so far southwark that
it now sounded like the mutterings of
a storm that had passed. My work
consisted of seeing the fighting, report
ing it and sending my cOmmunica-
tons to my paper. So | remained be-
hind to attend to the last two parts of
my duties. About sunset, seeing be-
meath and in advance of me a hamlet,
or, rather, the ruins of a hamlet, one
house of which seemed to have been
but little damaged, 1 descended from
my perch, intending to use the remain
ing house for shelter and a place to
write my dispatch.
| found the house in better shape
than one would have supposed. True,
several shells had made openings in
the walls, but had not exploded within.
Some of the furniture had been knocked
into kindling wood, but there were a
bed and bedding which had not been
even disarranged. 1t occurred to me
that after had finished my scribbling,
in case no opportunity occurred to
reach a point where could send it, l
would use that bed for the night.
l found eatables, lights, almost any
article L needed. So, having helped
myself to the contents of the cup
bOard-cold meat and bread and but
teri lighted a kerosene lamp and
wrote out a description of the fight /
had seen.
When l had finished my work /
went outside to reconnoiter, undecided
whether it would be better to attempt
to send off the report at once or wait
till morning. l stood alone. surround
ed by ruins. All was still except for
an occasional distant boom and the
creak Of ambulances, farther on, tax
ing up the wounded. A young moon
cast a dim light over all l walked
down the street that separated the
ruins and saw not living thing. But
here and there / passed a corpse of a
soldier. Two, the one wearing the
French uniform and the other the
German, lay near together, the Ger
man having fallen upon the French
man so that they seemed to be Sleep
ing In an embrace. A German boy
he looked no more than seventeen
was sitting with his back against a
stone wall, where he had bled to death
from wound in his chest. He had
doubtless been thinking of home.
Rather than remain among these
grewsome scenes l preferred to take
my dispatch to a station where
would be permitted to send it, but 1
knew not which way to go. and if I
moved ABOUT in the dark l was liable
TO be shot. So | returned to the house
where l had prepared it with the de-
termination Of sleeping on the bed !
had seen till morning Throwing my
self on il dressed and without turninor