The Washington times., 1917-03-30
NIGHTMARES NEST
Mid WASTE OF WAR
Correspondent Describes "Field
of a Thousand Shudders"
From Which Germans Fled.
By WILLIAM PHILIP sIMMs.

AFIELD, March 9.-(By maiD with
Tomlinson, OF the London News and
Leader; Bean, OF the combined Aus
tralian papers, and "Anzac," stan
colonel. have just explored the new
Sahara, that hideous country aband-
oned by the Germans, lest their troop
ers go mad.
The British gave it the name of
Sahara. Crown Prince Rupprecht's
men called 1t by another-the grave
yard. But L should give it another
still-the field of a thousand shud-
ders-the place where Nightmares are
made.
Take your map of France and find
Bapaume. To the west and south of
that place lies the new Sahara. II
your map is a large one you will find
II covered with the names of hanlIeIs,
villages, and towns, but today all
these are gohe. No trace of them is
left, and as one stands in the middle
OF this blighted country, no sprig of
grass, no sign of a tree, no weed,
flower or shrub greets the visich as
far as eyes can see. There is only
greenish black soil, freshly churned
up and becratered by shells, ranging
IN depth from i've to sixty or more
feet.
QuaEmires and Bayonets.
OF course, one cannot ride through
this country. Nor for that matter can
one walk. One can only slip and slide
and stagger along. ever in danger of
falling into funnel shaped quagmires
from which escape is impossible with
out aid. know OF two correspondents
who came near losing their lives in
Just such places, more perilous far
than the dreaded quicksands. Horses
and mules, on account of their weight
and the difficulty of helping them
once in the tolls of the ooze, usually
are drawn down to their death.
Look out for the bayonetw is a
2 common cry of warning as you
stumble through the mud, for hun
dreds and thousands of rifles are
buried in the ground and frequently
only the thrusting blades of their
bayonets are sticking out
The great waste of war is everywhere
evident Wrought and twisted rifle bar
lels. splintered stocks, cartridge clips
fun OF cartridges in uncountable num-
Der. unexploded shells Of all calibers,
Land grenades Of every size and shape,
trench mortar bombs, aerial torpedoes,
brass shell cases, abandoned stores of
live shells, knapsacks. cartridge belts,
articles of clothing, steel helmets,
fatigue caps and what not, litter the
surface OF the new Sahara, and one
can only imagine the amazing quantity
Of stuff which must lie beneath it.
You might think the view from here
depressing. and It Is, for 1t was while
fighting along here that the Germans
gave the country the name Of "the
graveyard"
HeIPs own Acres.
But the field Of a thousand shudders
lies further on. Up toward the bloody
butt Of Warlencourt, Logny-ThIIley and
thereabouts, one reaches hell's own
acres. The water covering the slime in
the crater beds has become gruesomely
red. exactly like blood. for some uncanny
reason, and to the noisome smell OF
miles of muck is added an unmistakable
stencil Intuition would tell you the
cause Of II even were not the bodies
lying about plainly TO be seen. They
lie singly. in all kinds of attitudes. or
In groups. or piles. They are on mounds
or at the bottom Of shell holes. in frsg-
ments Or so entire as TO resemble merely
very tired and muddy soldier gone to
Here ran the German lines during
December and January following the
battle OF the Somme. There were no
communicating trenches leading
back. The British smashed them ~
they dug-and to get into or out of
the foremostt positions the soldiers
had to traverse the open ground at
night. Food and ammunition had to
be brought rp in the same way, and,
as shells never ceased falling in this
area and every now and then the
darkness was swept by machine
guns. those holding the line often
went hungry and spent weary days
and nights waiting for relief parties
which never came
Lays Where He Falls.
When a German fell in the open.
he lay where he fell When he fell
in the trenches. he was uried in the
side OF the trench-providing the
walls were firm enough: il not. his
body was thrown outside. The bodies
of soldiers who fell in this sector
during November are only now being
buried by the English-the Germans
were unable to get at them.
In the pitch black darkness, many
a German soldier fell into the awful
fupneI shaped death traps in the
mud TO be left to suffocate in the
terrible mixture probably already
holding bodies OF previous victims.
BY day, while shells fell on and
about them, killing the living and
disinterring the already buried, dead
faces stared at the Kaiser's men
from every side, at night crisped
hands, sticking out of the mud. trip
ped and threw those who had 10
venture into the open.
Iron nerved troops felt creepy. They
were afraid to be left alone in the
dark. Showers OF flares were sent
into the air to shed light about the
trench, but these only served to
throw a horrible glare over the un-
buried dead. Faces twitched. nerves
failed, and prisoners say some sol
diers went mad.
WardOm's Ultimate Horror.
This new Sahara is the wonder of
artillery. One wonders, while stand.
in= by a clean. warm-muzzled gun as
II blszes away, what is happening at
i