Connecticut western news., 1917-08-09

f the Spirit and Atmosphere of the hes in France.
 tie was told me by one of our men, who said he was there when it began. He said one of the Australians had carelessly remarked that the British generals had decided it was time to get through with the sideshow in Bel gium, and this was the reason why they had sent regular troops like the Australians in to relieve the Canadians.
 Then some sensitive Canadian wish ed the Australians luck and hoped they'd finish it up as we'll as they had the affair in the Dardanelles. After that our two days rest was made up principally of beating it out of esta- minas when strategic requirements suggested new base or beating it into eStaminas when it looked as if we could act as efficient re-enforcements. That fight never stopped for forty-eight hours. and the only places it didn't include were the church and the hos pitals. I'll bet to this day that the Belgians who run the estaminas i'll Poperinghe will duck behind the bars if you just mention Canada and Aus tralia in the same breath.
 But I'm bound to say that 1t was good, clean fighting. Nobody fired shot, nobody pulled a bayonet, and no- body got the wrong idea about any thing. The Australian heavyweight champion who landed on me went right out in the street and saluted one of our 1eutenants. We had just one satisfying reflection after the fight was over-the Australian battalion that re- lieved us fell heir to the counterattack which the Germans sent across to even up on our bombing raid.
 Down to the Somme.
 We began our march to the Somme by a hike to St. Omer, the first Brit ish headquarters in Europe. Then we stopped for a week about twenty miles from Calais, where we underwent course of intensified training for open fighting. The infantry tactics, in which we were drilled, were very sini- lar to those of the United States army, those which, in fact, were originated, by the United States troops i'll the days of Indian fighting. We covered most of the ground around Calais on our stomachs in open order. While 1t may seem impertinent for me, mere non com, to express an opinion about the larger affairs of the campaign, think I may be excused for saying that the war didn't at all take the course which was expected and hoped for after tEe fight on the Somme. Undoubtedly the allies expected to break through the German line That Is well known now. While we were being trained near Ca lais for open warfare a very large force of cavalry was being assembled and prepared for the same purpose. It was never used.
 That was last August, and the allies haven't broken through yet. Even tually I believe they will break through, but in my opinion men who are drawn for service in the first half million of our new American army will be veterans in Europe before the big break comes which will wreck the Prussian hope of success in this war. And if we of the U. S. A. don't throw in the weight to beat the Prus- sians now they will not be beaten, and in that case the day will not be very far distant when we will have to beat them to save our homes and our na- tiOn. War is a dreadful and inglorious and i'll smelling and cruel thing. But if we hold back now we will be in the logical position of man hesitating to go to grips with a drunken, savage, shrieking, spewing maniac who has all but whipped his proper keepers and is going after the onlooker. However, I wish we had had two months more of weather on the Somme. There might have been a different story to tell.
 Simplified Medicine.
 We got drafts of recruits before we went to the Somme, and some of our wounded men were sent back to Eng land, where we had left our safety first battalion" That was really the Fifty-frst battalion of the Fourth di- vision of the Canadian forces, com posed of the physically rejected, men recovering from wounds and men in- jured in training. The Tommies, how ever, called it the safety first or Ma jor Gilday's Light infantry" Major Gilday was our battalion surgeon. He was immensely popular, and he achiev-