The bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-03-03

the circumstances. Finally the range
was shortened end tho shells began
dropping In the hrst trench. where !
was. saw dozen men mangled by
one about nifty feet from me and |
was stunned myself. Right then the
Germans stopped their artillery fire
and charged.
"Our regiment was commended at.
terward for the fight we put up In the
next twenty-four hours. We drove
back the Germans in hand to hand
fighting three times, and when the
dawn OF the third day came looked
about me and 1t seemed that everyone
| knew lay dead or wounded. OF a
battalion of 1900 men just 100 re-
manned. had not been wounded, al
though l had bayonet thrusts in my
clothes and neat round hole through
my ping pong hat which Is a mighty
fiat built creation.
II afterward learned great many
OF our :nen were killed by our own
artillery. our observers having made a
mistake in distance. with the result
that scores of our own lyddite shells
were thrown into the trenches from
the rear. II the men had known that
there would have been all kinds Of con
fusion. but as It was we were In q
frenzy of excitement and viciousness
and where shells came from or where
they went was the least Of our trou'
bles. We were busy killing Germans
individually.
Piled High With Dead.
We'll. we were told to retire. but
the trenches we're piled so high with
the dead and badly wounded that "e
could not make our way through the
intersectional trenches l footed my
way among the bodies of some Of the
finest boys | will ever know. and saw
others gasping their last breath There
was nothing to do tor them
Even after the engagement two or
three lyddite shells from our own ar.
tillery dropped into the outer end OF
the trench. and Captain Joe Davis. who
later died next to me in action. saw
them. He jumped up and tried to get
into communication with the artillery.
but finding the wires ineffective dashed
back, deliberately exposing himself to
the Germans, and told the artillery
chief that his range was short.
THAT is the kind Of men we had In
the Rifles. When there was something
to be done | never saw a man shirk
for an instant.
We'll we we're ordered. what was
left of US, back to Richebourg, and that
was another trick CT fate which held
us from death. Two days later we re-
turned to the Identical spot to find that
two companies Of men who had been
there had been annihilated. with the
exception OF one man, Rodney McDer
mott The Prussian guard had swept
over in the night. and there were no
re-enforcements to back the boys up
l knew how they must have waited for
them, for We we're always hearing Of
relief and 1t always seemed hours
before it came.
I'VE would be crouching in trench.
knowing from the observers reports
that we were outnumbered twenty to
one and we would be told that the re-
lief was coming up within an hour
Two hours would pass and we all the
time waiting for the creeping figures
OF the men of the re.enforcements to
come into the dim light Of the night
And then when they did come sneak.
ing along in single file through the in
tersectional trenches 1t would be
mighty good to hear the first one say.
Northumberland Fusileers; have you
been waiting long? Just silhouettes,
but the most welcome shadows In the
world.
Sent on Scouting Trip.
Il had an interesting experience ut
Neuve Chapelle on October 29. You
have no idea how little man In the
ranks knows about what Is going on
around him or whether his army Is do.
ing we'll or ILL., was sent with three
other men into Neuve Chapelle to see
II the Germans held 1t or what the
situation was. The town was aflre.
We passed through the stretch where
the big Jack Johnsons' were sending
shells at mistaken range and hurried
along down into the outskirts OF the