Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1917-12-04
Henri st. Yves, Famous Splinter,
Now Carries Messages for
French Army.
HAS MANY NARROW ESCAPES
Spotted by Germans While Carrying
ORDERS He Remains in Water.
Filled Sheil.Hoie for Five
hcurs-Wants to Fly.

IdItS.-Iituil Sulut Ives, Tue Tut
mer marathon runner and now dis
patch bearer In the French army, has
returned to Paris for special "a
hour furlough, granted him because Of
Il particularly perilons mission which
he carried out in the course of his du-
ties In the trenches in front of Saint
Quentin.
While trying to carry orders from
the advanced French trench line TO
French machine gun crew which
mad established itself In a shell hole
In the middle of mo Mans Land'
halfway between the opposing lines,
Saint Yves was spotted" by two Ger
man rnachine-gun crews. also holding
shell holes.
They opened q cross-fire on the for
ner lOng-dlstance runner and he
dropped into the nearest shell hole,
which was almost full Of rain water.
Saint Yves remained in the water,
with Just his head above the surface
10 enable him to breathe. for five
hours. or until after darkness Then
he crept out and made his way to
the French machine-gun position, de-
livered the orders to the lieutenant
In charge and made his way to the
trenches again.
Sent to the Hospital.
Saint Yves had to 20 to hospital for
ten days, however, us the she'll hole
water In which he had been Immersed
SO long was 'gassy" having asimilat-
ed the poisonous properties Of the gas
shells from both sides which had been
rained down Ia "No Mans Land" Sew
eraI hours after Saint Yves emerged
from the shell hole the poisonous wa.
ter got 10 its effect.
Saint Yves was wounded In the leg
last May, but has entirely recovered
from that and asserts he will be able
10 run as well as ever II the war ever
ends aud he gets back into civilian
life.
The marathon runner has applied
for Il transfer to the aviation, and his
superior officers have ndorsed his re.
quest. He expects to be called to an
aviation school to begin his training at
any time. Saint Yves Will try to be
brevetted as fighting pilot for flying
10 single-seated machines. .e 4arA
II hear that poor Old Tom L0nybOat
has been killed with the Canadians up
near Lens" said Saint Yves. "Well,
Tom was wonderful runner but no
man ever lived that can run as fast
as the Boche bullets.
sour sector at the front--Opposlte
Saint Quentin, where the Germans re-
treated to the Hlndenburg line--ls sup
posed to be quiet all the time. but we
had little fight up there few weeks
ago that was pretty lively. was as
signed as dlspatchbearer. carrying
messages from the colonel up to
the line, because the German bonn
hardment had plowed up all the
ground behind our first and second
line of trenches and torn up the tele.
graph and telephone wires, and their
artillery had also wrecked a lot OF
our wireless.
Had Narrow Escapes.
~ had several close shaves in cross
Ing out In the open, with the Germal
snipers potting at me from 1000 me
tiers away. A couple Of big shell.
dropped pretty near me, too. but ther
YOU get used TO shells, whereas ma
chine guns and rifles always ammo.
you.
Pretty soon | hope to be In tn,
aviation service and after | get bre
yetted as pilot and have some ex
perienee OF flying ut the front. In
going 10 apply to be sent to Amerlc,
rs an instructor for United States
army aviutors.'
The wife and family of Saint I'VE,
are now ut Dieppe. Contrary to gen
eral belief. Saint Yves was never ,