The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1917-06-09
FRENCH TRENCH RAIDS.
A DANGEROUS FORM OF SPORT
DEVELOPED BIZ TRENCH
WARFARE.
French Infantrymen Relieve the Te.
dunn Of Trench Fighting by Or
ganizing Frequent Raids on the
Gcrmans-IIave Become Expert and
Often Escape Without Loss.

oAtCi ESCAPE WltnOuC LOSS.
French Front, June 3.-(Corre-
spondence Of The Associated Press)-l
If the morale" Of troops may be
based on the initiative they display in
face of the enemy, then that of the
French soldiers at all points of the
front must be regarded as excellent.
Three years of the severest kind of
warfare has not jaded them. In fact
the spirit Of attack has, if ANYTHING.
increased among them. The recruits
of the younger classes learn quickly
to profit from the experience of their
comrades who have become veterans
and pastmasters in the art of fur
nishing surprises to the enemy, and
after their Incorporation into the
fighting units in the trenches, where
they rapidly acquire the routine of
continual watchfulness, they lose no
time in demonstrating their desire to
carry out some act of individual dar-
ing.
Living among them, as the writer
has done throughout the great opera
tions Of the Somme, in the Argonne.
on the Aisne. in Champagne, in Alsace
and around verdun. one acquires an
unbounded admiration for the un-
ceasing activity and virility Of the
French soldiers OF all branches of the
service. Even during the intervals be-
tween great attacks and battles, when
1t would be expected they would be
only too eager to seek repose and re-
Taxation from the hardships and perils
of trench life, there are always to be
found daring men among them who
voluntarily go out towards the German
lines In search of adventure always
with the hope of bringing back some
prisoners Or disturbing the enemy's
plans.
One outlet for their overflowing az
tivity is the organization of trench
raids in which only a. few men COM
pose the attacking force. In these
minor affairs. whose effect on the gen.
eral situation at the front is more i'm
portant than at first would appear,
since they harry the enemy and keep
him constantly guessing and worrying
as to what may follow. the French SOL
diers have become expert, and they
rarely return to their trenches with
out some prisoners and some valuable
| information as to conditions in the
| opposing lines.
The commander of the armv ia NOT
consulted as to the carrying out of
these raids. Each colonel Of a regi-
ment has the final word as to wheth-
er his men shall take the risk, and
the colonels take good care not to dis.
courage their men from displaying
their individuality.
The problem of overcoming the net
work Of barbed wire protecting the
presented difficulties at the beginning
OF the campaign. but artillery has now
acquired the mastery of that obstacle
and as consequence the enemy no
longer finds himself in security be-
hind 1t. All the French colonel wants
to know. when a raid is about to be
10 hn
Is intended to start. A few minutes
suffices to make penetration by reso-
Lutte infantrymen possible. Sudden
outbreaks Of artillery fire are so fire.
quent that the enemy often pays no
more attention to them than to re-
turn some shells, while the troops
manning his front trenches seek
shelter in their dugouts until the
shower of steel has stopped.
The enemy's uncertainty as to what
is to happen frequently leads to his
undoing, for before he has made IN
his mind that the French guns have
decided to cease firing and that it is
safe to come out from the shelters
again he finds French soldiers lean.
ing into the trenches and throwing
grenades into the mouths of the dug
outs while calling on their OCCUPANTS
to surrender. Refusal or hesitation
means further volley Of grenados
and almost certain severe injury or
death to those inside Thefore thew
Shout "kamarade;" throwing down
their arms and come out to be chased
before their chapters back through
the broken network Of barbed wire
to the French lines.
In one division the regiments made
a speciality OF surprise trench raids