Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-12-01
LOVER THERE !"
CONTINUED from Page ~

We made a fresh start after our
blunder, moving In single file and
keeping in touch each with the man
ahead Of him. We stumbled along In
the darkness through this awful laby-
rinth until we ran into some of our
own scouts. at 2 a. nj. and found that
we were halfway across No Mans
Land, several hundred yards beyond
our front line and likely to be utterly
wiped out in twenty seconds should
the Germans sight US. Fine guides we
had on this Cooks tour" At last we
reached our proper position, and If
teen minutes after we got there a
whiz-bang, low explosive murderer,
buried me completely. They had to
dig me out. A few minutes later a
high explosive shell fell in trench
section where three of our men were
stationed. All we could find after it
exploded were one arm and one leg,
which we buried. The trenches were
without trench mats, and the mud was
from six inches to three feet deep all
through them. There were no dug
outs, only merely miserable funk
holes" dug where 1t was possible to
dig them without uncovering dead
men. We remained In this position
four days, from the 18th to the 21st
Of October, 1915.
There were reasons, Of course, for
the difference between conditions in
Belgium and on the Somme. On the
Somme we were constantly preparing
for new advance, and we were only
temporarily established on ground
which we had but recently taken after
long drumming with big guns. The
trenches were merely shell holes con-
nected by bitches. Our old and ubiqui-
tous and variously useful friend, the
sandbag, was not present in any capac-
ity, and therefore we had no parapets
or dugouts. The communication
trenches were all blown in, and every
thing had to come to US overland, with
the result that we never were quite
sure when we would get ammunition,
rations or relief forces. The most
awful thing was that the soil all about
US was filed with freshly buried men.
II we undertook to cut trench or
enlarge funk hole our spades struck
into human flesh and the explosion Of
big she'll along our line sent decom-
posed and dismembered and sickening
mementos of an earlier fight shower
ing among US. We lived in the muck
and stencil Of GLORIOUS" war, those of
US who lived.
Tho German Duoout-and What They
Found.
Here and there along this line were
the abandoned dugouts Of the Ger
mans, and we made what use Of them
we could, but that was little. had
orders one day to locate dugout and
prepare it for use as battalion head
quarters. When I led a squad In to
clean 1t up the odor was so overpow-
ering that we had to put on our gas
masks. On entering we first saw two
dead nurses with our CHASTITY fash
lights, one standing with her arm
around a post, just as she had stood
when gas or conclusion killed her.
Seated at table In the middle Of the
place was the body Of an old general
Of the German medical corps, his head
fallen between his hands. The task
of cleaning up was too dreadful for
US. We Just tossed In four or five
fumite bombs and beat 1t out Of there.
A few hours later we went into the
scared and empty cavern, made the
roof safe with new timbers and mott
fed battalion headquarters that the
place could be occupied.
During this time witnessed scene
which, with some others, I shall never
forget. An old chaplain Of the Cana
dian forces came to our trench section
seeking the grave Of his son, which
had been marked for him on rude
map by an officer who had seen the
young mans burial. We managed to
find the spot, and at the old chaplain's
request we exhumed the body. Some
of US suggested to him that he give US
the Identification marks and retire out
of range of the shells which were
bursting all around us. We argued
that it was unwise for him to remain
In danger, but what we really intended
was that he should be saved the horror
Of seeing the pitiful thing which our
spades were about to uncover.
II shall remain" was all he said.
HE was my boy"
It proved that we had found the
right body. One Of our men tried to
clear the features with his handker-
chief, but ended by spreading the
handkerchief over the face. The old
chaplain stood beside the body and