Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1917-12-05
HOSPITALS MOVED
OESCAPEfLYERS
Attacks by Germans Cause Clos
ing Of Many Institutions
in France.
Z KILLED IN HARVARD UNIT
Kenneth CASTOR Tells Of Terror and
Ruin Brought on by the Raiders
Exciting Experiences Among
Red Cross Workers.

New York.-During the recent fight
Ing on the western front the Red Cross
has been experiencing considerable
difficulty in carrying on its work I'M
mediately behind the lines because Oh
the attacks by German airmen on the
hospitals, according to a letter from
Kenneth Castor. son Of Mrs. l.. T.
CASTOR of Somerville, N j., who is
member of the Harvard unit. In the
immediate neighborhoOd where they
are working, he said, il was necessary
to close five hospitals within a week
and they were finally driven to estab-
fish themselves in the woods. A letter
from Mr.. CASTOR TO his mother fol-
lows:
AS you see, we have SiOved. We
had to. The night after | last wrote
you our hospital was raided tiercely.
For three hours ayiators were over Us
all the time, shooting or dropping
bombs. Two surgeons were killed ana
five more were wounded, two of the
big tents riddled some small tents
blown up, big holes put in the roads
altogether II was complete job.
ut ended all usefulness of the vii
lage, for next day orders came to
eyacuate the entire village. hospitals,
depots, barracks, and all, We and the
hrancarderS had to stay on two nights
more while the hospital was taken
down and carted away. We didn't
relish these nights much
"The first night after supper every
body traied out into the fields carry
ing their blankets. Some slept under
haystacks, some in trenches. a few
went to fort nearby and slept in the
ammunition room 80 feet underground.
BY the time the big harvest moon rose
there wasn't sign of life.
Campaign Against Hospitals.
"The second night four of us stayed
In the tent. | let my bed down on the
ground and we built a barricade Of
timbers to keep off small eclats, then
went to bed early and got tn sleep be-
fore the visitors arrived That night
they made special visits to the two
hospitals TO which we evacuated our
badly wounded of several nights before,
and as a result one of them had to be
closed. They seem to be carrying on
special campaign against hospitals,
five in this Immediate neighborhood
have been closed within a week.
"We drove in convoy to our new
quarters. As convoy we are quite /
imposing, first the stan car. then 20 /
an enormous truck with |
a kitchen trailer, a cannon, a camlo-
nette, and the French staff car. We
drove about 20 miles, almost parallel
TO the front so that we are still about
Is kilometers from the lines, but we
are in a big forest very we'll concealed,
There ls no Shellbre at that distance
in this sector. and he ayiators have
liNAi' AiihltA' W SUI IHll
This aerial raiding business as
sumes big proportions We passed
through town on our way here where
1870 bombs had been cropped in one
night.
III they hit on soft ground they are
comparatively harmless for they pene,
trate ten feet or more and blow out 0
hole like a Well straight up into tn,
air.
But the eclats of the bombs ar
small, rarely more than an inch o.
two long, while big she'll will burS
into jagged pieces two and three fee
long that Will cut clean through
house. The dope Is to pick out a Spo
In soft ground and get Nat on the sur
face, then only direct hit can &c
you, and there isn't a chance in mil
lion of that.
Was Funny Sight.
last night the mechanic, Ed An
thony, aud | We're building an abri,
in the woods, for they are always mic,
to have around, when suddenly tire,
bombs went off just below us on tn,
road. AT the first one I'd dropped hi
pick and tore through the woods likt
startled deer, hurdling trees and div
ing through bushes like wild man
There was no place to run to SO
crawled under ledge and waited
"A minute later three more went of
and then heard a wild rush, and Il,
came tearing back through the woods
all out Of breath, but sprIntng hi
hardest He was SO funny that fol
got all about the bonLs---he wear
mutton chop whiskerS loose kne
pants with bare legs, and he had hi
lin hat crammed way down over hi
ears, and the expression on his fac
was that of Il man who has given u
all hope, but Intends to fight dcspel
ately to the end.
81 laughed until ! was weak Whe
he saw me he stopped, struggled 70
breath, swallowed lump in his throa
and said huskily, 4 think they're dt
parts, don't your Az matter Of fac
they were neither bombs nor depnrts
but some defective hand grenades tina
we're unsafe for shipment and wer
purposely exploded by the muniton
workers.
Glad the Italians are proving som,
thing at last These drives will Civ
the German people food for though
during the winter--about all the foo
they'll get"