The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1916-11-21
HOW "CANNUCKS"
storm TRENCHES
ALONG S0MME
All Men at the Front Eager to
Clash With Teutonic Ad.
versaries
FAIR SCRAP AND THE
BEST MAN. WON
Prussians Often Blow Themselves
Up in Order to Destroy Their
,, Captors -
ysy WILLIAM PHILIP s,MMs

BY WILLIAM PHILIP SlMMS. x
Copyright, 1916, by the United Press)
With the Canadian forces on the
Somme, Nov. 2o.-This is the story Of
the storming of Regina trench, as told
by sergeant in a Canadian infantry
regiment who was one of the stor-
mers. With a slight scalp wound from
a sniper's bullet, which had torn a
huge hole in the steel hlmet which he
was still wearing and another wound
in his shoulder from shrapnel bull
let, he was "evacuating' himself to a
dressing station, when l encountered
him. 1t was on the morning after the
Canadians had ousted the Germans
form their stretch of trench.
Light Of Wounds.
Mud from the toes of his hip boots
to his very eyes and with a streak Of
blood on one side of his face. the SER
geant nevertheless made light of his
wounds. He smiled as he responded
to questions.
"'Twas a good fair scrap and the
best man won,'' he explained, speaking
with q typical lrish-American accent
int erlarded with American slang. We
got the tip at 10 o'clock Friday night
that something would be done about
midnight. Everybody was tickled he
cause we'd been hankering to get at
that Regina trench for the past two
weeks.
Our artillery hit it up better and
better and we could see by the bril-
liant moonlight that it was doing big
damage to Fritz in the trenches a few
hundred yards in front Of us. At mid
night, our artillery formed a barrage
so yards in front Of us-and our first
wave went over the parapet of our
trenches like machine.
Hold Them Back.
"Not son bobbed. My hardest job
was keeping my men from advancing
too fast and getting under our own
shell fire. Also it was pretty hard to
the waves of men straight on account
of the craters and shell holes OF var
ious depths OF mud.
"But when we got within 80 yards
of Regina trench we formed a pretty
straight line. About this time the Ger
mans started their barrage fire too, but
they did little damage, the fire mostly
going over our heads. AS soon as our
barrage lifted off Regina yards and
settled go yards back, we stormed
through.
Like Rabbits. :.
1.-The Boches scrapped pretty we'll.
It seemed strange that anybody could
have been left alive after all the shell
ing they'd. had, but they ran out OF
dug outs like rabbits and we had to
use our bayonets.
"We cleaned out our trenches in a
very few seconds, taking prisoners.
Three in one section were inclined to
be troublesome. We told 'em they'd
better attend to their knitting and be
quiet or else we'd be obliged to finish
'em. Two behaved But one kept
jumping about, feeling in the shadows
thrown by the full moon, evidently
looking for something. We repeated
our order to stop. He didn't obey
Well, only two Of the three prisoners
taken in that corner of the trench re-
mained, for we remembered fort
night ago. a German officer, who after
surrendering, suddenly threw a hand
grenade at one of our officers, blowing
the face off and inflicting wounds from
which he died. The Prussians fire.
ouently blew themselves up with their
captors. Other prisoners were both
guards and SaxOns.
Respect Red Cross.
"There were several counter at
tacks after we'd gotten in the trench
mostly down the trench, which was
perpendicular, but we bombed them