The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1915-03-19
LIFE EXCITING In THE TRENCH
ES WITH THE CANNON
The Earth Shakes o. the Men Are
Crowded I'm Shallow Caves.


Munich.-Life i'm the artillery en-
placement IL exciting. Men 20 sta
toned are subjected TO gun nre Wnlch
never before has reached such an
average OF accuracy, and At times
must protect themselves against the
attacks OF the enemy's aviators.
After dwelling on the comforts or
the bombproof cave in which the men
OF the battery dwell-in which they
even have tables, chairs, lockers and
a stove-the writer continues as fol-
lows, the shifting lenses being MS:
"A tremendous black column or
earth rises from the ground as the
shells strike near us. The CLOCK 10
our cave strikes as II scared out of
its wits, and then stops. Everything
trembles and shakes. The dry earth
i'm the sides of the bombproof peels
off and falls.
I'VE sit quietly-waiting for the
shell that will bury us. One after an
other falls close by, but the one we
wait for does not come. The enemy's
battery has fired five shots and now
stops
IAN hour later the bombardment
started again. We sat there like
paralyzed. On the table cigar
burned a hole in q glove Nobody
had sense or ambition enough TO pre-
vent ~.
when the bombardment was over
everybody felt Peculiar sort Of "a
tigue. All conversation ceased. one
OF the men left his seat and YEARLY
threw himself upon the straw bed.
Before he went to sleep he turned
over and whispered:
Call mel"
The worst of it was that we were
not permitted to return the fire. no
doubt the division staff had its good
reasons for that. We would have
been of the best spirits in that case.
But to sit there, like dumb brutes,
and wait for orders under such IRE
was a bad experience.
THE day passed in this manner.
The enemy's fire ceased at seven
o'clock in the evening, and, after q
meal Of bacon, bread and coffee MADE
OF cereals we felt better. partridge
Die, which my mother had sent me,
helped to cheer Us UP.
Next morning at five the ORDER
ready for fire. come by telephone.
Man the guns distance 2,lOO yards
shell, fire. said the voice at the other
end of the wire Though it was still
dark, we heard from the distance the
thrashing Of infantry fire.
Our shells shrek and whistle
across tn plain. Shot well placed
battery salvos-every ten seconds
distance now 1900 yards telephone
the observation officer.
1.-THE fun commences. 1t is hard
work. Precipitation rolls off us like
iuct common an
TO fall.
But the enemy's motor battery al
50 starts again. The first shell hits
near our position. The second ohe
hits the bomb proof; we had been 10
Gated. 4 veritable sea of explosions
surrounds us-lightning detonatlons,
crashes, shrieks, smoke and powder
stencil give our environment the ap-
pearance of the crater of a volcano.
we are covered with mud which the
enemys shells throw up and which
descends on US like hail.
!" =, 175,' 7 shouted at the gunner,
but he did not move.
Fischer was my next shout. At
that moment the body of the gunner
slipped between the seat and the
sighting mechanism. / noticed that
"a fragment of shell had entered his
forehead. we placed the body 70
one side, and another gunner took
the seat. we continued our fire
calmly, steadily-in our minds saw
the destruction wrought BY our shells
in the lines OF the enemys infantry.
,'So it continued for some time;
then came from the observation sta
ton the command:-'Cease fire for a
while
-In the afternoon another shell hit
our position, and another man had 70
be laid aside. He was lovable old
fellow. Later We buried the two.
Rain fell throughout the night and
next day. By noon our bombproot
was filled with water. We waded
around in that up to our waists. Later
i'm the day the bombproof caved in,
and we saved nothing but the tele-
phone instrument, our carbines ana
coats. we then spent some time ID
the cellar Of nearby farmhouse, and
tomorrow we 90 back for a rest Our
place will be taken by reserve regl-
ment with wonderfully clean uni
forms and brand new brown boots
Our uniforms have all the colors OF
the rainbow on a mud yellow back
ground"