The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1916-12-07
| am not permitted to tell much be-

cause OF the censor. They are pretty
strict with mails to neutral countries.
Last November | was one Of forty
selected from the 10th draft Of $50 to
reinforce the Goth (Vancouver) battal-
ion c.. E. F., then in France.
We went right into the firing line;
wintered in KENNEL trenches. Had a
home, but didn't know it. April LIST We
were relieved by Imperial troops and
went back to Balleul, France, for a
rest. .
April End we were ordered up to ST.
Eloi to relieve Imperials.
On April 9Th two battalions of our
brigade, of which the Goth was one,
were subjected ID a bombardment by
1900 guns on a ten-mile front. OF
course, other brigaaes held part of
that ten-mile front.
Our position was in the extreme
point of the st. Eloi salient, so that
we were open to fire from three sides,
and Fritz seldom overlooks opportuni-
ties like that.
For sixteen hours we were under a
perfect hail Of shells of all sizes and
callibres, trench mortars and grenades
of ali kinds, while the air over head
was a perfect mass of bursting sharp
mel.
The parapet literally melted away,
The trench was a perfect shambles.
How anyone survived | do not know,
but we repealed the enemy when they
attacked. Our casualties were awful.
The trenches were lined with the
dead. l know one place in my own
part of the trench the dead were three
deep, and We were perforce walking
over them. At a time like that n
doesn't seem to think of the horror Of
such things. Only one thing seems to
count. That is: hold the enemy back.
But there is a reaction later when one
has time to think.
June 9Th our brigade was ordered to
the relief of the Bird Canadians in the
Ypres salient. Here it vas ST. Eloi
over again, except this time the other
half of the brigade suffered the heav-
lest casualties. We were there until
June 18th, when we were relieved by
Irish troops.
The 29th has twice been mentioned
in dispatches by Sir Douglas Haig.
Our brigade was thanked by the off,
Ger commanding the 3rd Canadian d.
vision for the help we rendered when
help was desperately needed.
Some time ago l was offered a Non
CONS stripe, but l refused. They sug-
gested it again later and l took up
first aid work, hoping to escape. 1t
was no use. July End l was ordered to
take off the red cross and put on the
stripe of a Lance Corporal. Naturally,
there was nothing to do but obey. l
protested to my captain, but he said,
1--WE don't want to lose our Non
CONS"
On July 18th we were ordered into
HODGE, and between St. Eloi and
Ypres. We we're AZ hours in the sup
port trenches, about $50 yards behind
the front line, and then were put in
the front line.
The front lines here are only about
40 yards apart. These are called the
international trenches" because of
their having changed hands so many
times.
The night of the 14th I had charge
of a listening post only 20 yards from
Fritz's parapet. Had Fritz suspected
our presence he would have made
mince meat Of US with bombs.
About s p. m. of the 18th inst.
was struck by a rife grenade and
wounded in the shoulder and neck. II
felt as though some one had hit me a
wallop on the neck and shoulder with
a great club and then as though some