South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1917-10-31

and was uckled 10 death TO do IL.
Unload Gun Quietly.
we unloaded our gun and Gals
son on the quiet for fear that some
one might get wise and try TO beat
us 20 it. We looked around for
horses, but no horses had come up
yet So / said: Well boys there's
just one day to do il and that's 10
pull the old thing up ourselves. It's
several miles, are you game
They said, sure we are game.
Most of ny men come from the
middlewest like me. This kidding
about the middle-west being paci-
fist has got their goats.
Lets 60 they said. We went"
The lieutenant tilted back his
brown steel helmet and listened a
while at the telephone in the dug
out. His voice sang out the range,
the gunners echoed the figures.
Ready TO fire" he shouted down
into the gun-pit and then Fire
The Gun Speaks.
The gun was right at our feet,
but so cleverly hidden We couldn't
see it, a flame leaped out seem
ingly from the ground. A little
smoke sifted through a leafy screen.
There was a terrific conclusion and
then the rushing roar of the shell.
Where was -" asked the lieuten-
ant. "Oh yes. well, you have seen
the mess back there, all mud and
puddles, shell holes, barbed wire
and streams. The old gun skiddej
and dumped and twice she got bog
ged, but We got her up here and
got her into place.
BY that time it was midnight.
too dark TO fire, so we slumped
down and here in our slickers, ate
little hard tack and prayed for
early light and that no other Yam
KEGS had beaten US to it. We stay
ed awake all night.
AT six o'clock we made our OBJ
servatiOns and got the range on an
old ruined farm house out in No
Mans land. When we got all ready
il was 6:27 o'clock. We could not
think of any historic words to pull
so I just said that you have heard
me saying here ready to fire then
fire The sergeant pulled the Ian
yard. Good lord what a yank he
y '.
and the shell went 'wesoosh' and
it hit pretty close to that old farm
house If I do say it.
I'VE all wanted some of that
shell case, but OF course it ought
to go TO Pres't Wilson. They used
10 kid him about being a pacifist
too.
we have got orders to fire at
German barbed wire at salient
Yes SIR said the man at the
telephone, interrupting the nara
tive Very good" said the lieuten-
ant. When you shift your gauge
watch your bubble"
Spoil German Party.
Well" he went on with his sto-
r., that was the first shot, but the
second was much better The Of
) fetal report said the first shot was
fired at a German working party.
That sounds better. Really it was
t the second shot that spoiled that
3 party.
? From an observation post we
/ could see seven Germans out in
front of their trenches. They seem
ed TO be mending their wire. SO
we said lets let them know we are
here.
And we did We gave them
shrapnel. The first shell was a
high explosive with a long time
, fuse. 1t exploded about 80 yards
from them. You should have seen
| them duck, just like rabbits.
O." A sergeant grinned. Gee II was
{ great. They dived into that trench
r in one second flat and they haven't
= come out since
That's about ALL continued the
, lieutenant. After we fired the
whole PA shells at them we ate some
, more hard tack.
"Oh 1 forgot, we fred the third
shell far over into German terri
tory. OF course we don't know
what damage it did, if any, back Of
) the lines"
How did it feel 10 pull the Ian
yard. sergeant" inquired the CORES
= pendent.
1T felt fine" answered the serg-
D cant
I Has Souvenir for South Bend
Il wish folks back in South Bend
q could nave seen me tnen- be
fore 1 pulled. I tied an extra knot in
that lanyard so she sure wouldn't
break. L got a piece OF il to send
back 70 South Bend
- The correspondent contemplated
e the brilliant orange hair Of the
T sergeant and his freckles.
i Are you Irish sergeant" he ask
n ed.
Not now sir but the old folks
9 we're"
Who il the Sergeant?
II is a shame but South BEND
Will probably have TO wait until the
q end OF the war for the sergeant.
= name. Then We saw the gun by
Z growing through a little burrov
down into the gun pit where squat
= ted on the ground about the oreecf
watching the oil bubble rise and
fall in the gauge. were the CUR
crew. very muddy and quite damp
but merry as could be.
- The gun itself is one OF thes'
v French weapons whose simplicity Il
q. so 6eceftful II Is painted in al