The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1917-11-07
d1lQ Twelve are missing.

anu Twelve are missing.
This was the result of three hours
under the grilling of a barrage fire
and half an hour Of desperate hand
to-hand fighting.
A platoon of twenty-five Americans
covering the alex of trench. shut of
from reinforcements by "box" bar
rage with tee full strength cf the
German heavy batteries, was suddenly
attacked in the darkness by raidin2
force of 210 Germans. This figure was
obtained from a German lost in the
darkness during the retreat, and cap.
tured.
The Americans fought until hey
were overpowered Their comrades,
wounded and alone, could not go to
their rescue. The barrage continues
two hours after the raid One wound
ed man fired a rocket signal to start
a counter barrage by the American
batteries to catch the raiders before
they could reach their own trenches,
The raid was made by Bavarian
troops. The Americans were from on2
of the first regiments to take a place
In the front line. There were ind ca
tions from time to time since August
l that a raid on this particular point
had been planned, but it had been de.
ferred. The Americans took their
places in the trench at ten o'clock Fri
day night. The German batterie.
the barrage at 2.50 o'clock Saturday
morning. The raiders swept into the
trenches half an hour later
Under the hail of German shells,
the soggy trenches began to melt like
butter. The commanding officer of the
platoon, stumbling and climbing
through the crumbling trenches orde~.
ed the men into the safety of the
dugouts. A few men stayed on out,
post duty at one angle of the trench
A slender, black haired Kansas
youth ignored the order to go. A
lieutenant found him franticalIy dig.
ging in the sofe earti here a giant
s'se sasa n e e 5;s asas' a.:
f1cer pulled him his feet The boys
face was cut ;..td bleeding from stones
which his steel helmet had failed t.
stop. His hands and arms were caked
with mud. One eye was nearly clos
ed.
Get back to the dugouts." com
manded the officer amid the din.
"My pal is buried here. The fir
shell caved the trench in on him."
shouted the man, wrenching himsef
away
"You can't get him out; get unde~
cover yourself" ordered the officer
again pulling the man to his feet.
81 won't leave him. Anyhow, I W
keep trying" insisted the soldier.
The lieutenant tcove the others /
shelter. In few minutes he w
back with the Kansas boy. Togethe
hey continued the hopeless tash
zones and fragments of shells ba
tered on their steel helmets. The
conclusions hurled them on thei
knees. Five times the lieutenant was
thrown down, until he lay uncon7e 7eious.
He was found by rescue party as
daylight was breaking. The young
Kansan, wounded in the leg, fell be-
side him.
The boy propped up on hospita!
cot. blushed red when a bustling b.
speckled nurse praised his devotion in
risking death to rescue possibly
dead comrade.
"I could not leave my pal" he said
In another ward l found the man
sor whom the Kansas soldier had de-
fed death His voice was weak. His
head. arms and one leg was bandag
ed. He came from city in southern
illinois. The events of the night o.
ire and steel were almost blank to
nim.
my pal stuck with me-" he whisper
ed feebly THAT is the kind of
5unkie to have" Such was the spiriF
shown by the young American so'-
diers.
The official statement says the
French were satisfied with the way
the Americans held out, though vastly
outnum5ered.
The Germans suffered losses. This
is shown by helmets, rifles and am
nunition belts left behind. There
we're trails of blood leading toward
he enemy lines.