Arizona republican., 1917-01-29
"1 HAVE NOT THE SOUL OF AN ASSASSIN

The diary of young French officer Lieutenant R. Nr appears in the Atlantic Monthly. It des- cribes his baptism of fire and the horrors which later became a commonplace with a certain vouthful nalVete the more striking by of it's contrast With the subject matter of his story. the words or the edltor. he Is "a highly educated man who euses to be brutalzed by the recurrent horrors of War" His account of his relations with his men is Of piece with what the mas taught us to look for in the French character
 We marched two hours along the sIinner,, road he says in the early part his narrative before coming to La Cheppe. where we were to await the return of the brigade that was in tb. trenches. We took possession of our ouarters Nv section was comfortably billeted in a large barn well supplied with straw, and l chose make my abode among my polus. I should like to be in closer contact with them; l am determined to make friends with them. When the regiment left the ualnhg camp was able to procure few little extras that they wanted, and this evening tbev came and invited dinner. The artful member of the third squad had succeeded in getting into the good graces Of an old peasant woman who gave nm two chickens The men insisted my doing the honors' and accepted with great pleasure We ehatted together familarly. and I told them how glad was to be at the front. and enlarged especial ly on the great things I expected of them With you, mon aspirant, will go anywhere said a corporal; and they all applauded. Of course I was immensely pleased"
 The impression made on refined sensbilities by the first experience of No Mans Land between the trenches is rather subtly conveyed There were dead mems bodies' there the lieutenant remarks One fancies nice discrimination between that and
 
 bombardment he notices that two larks kept fit- ting about joyously. and mingled their song of life with the chant of the engines of death" and anxious 10 be an example to his men, he was true to the theory of William James, by pretending not to be afraid, very discovered that was not afraid"
 The lieutenant much affected by his first dead man. soldier who had perlsked in the mud Later there the matter of occupying A communication trench which some time before had been enfladed Its description would have delighted the soul of a Russian reveer in the cult of the macabre: The explosion of a shell knocked down some of the earth of the wall opposite and in the breach appeared the green and earthly head of q man. From that moment this head was my visa wis, and once the first shudder of disgust had passed, thought about it." He was in cemetery in eruptioni The head of q man who was delivering him message was blown off Tt is hard" he remarkes sometimes not to have the right to have feelings"
 Yet, when the lieuteaant's command has been relieved and they are in rest dugout a sort of unspoied boyshness is still discernible-perhaps what the editors have observed q got five letters which I read with delight" ne writes q also got some eggs which my little godmother managed to feast, sweet a caress of the one who sent them We ate and went to sleep again. We can't be entirely brutish, since letters bring such joy We have killed men. under penalty of being killed ourselves, and also because it our duty but these combats took place in a sort of frenzy of action, of enthusiasm, and of suffering. I have killed two Germans and proud of it, and yet I have not the soul of assassin