New-York tribune., 1917-07-29
The Long Arm of Coincidence in War.
By 4. !. Dawson
Author of "Somme Battle Stories"

counts, which had been his spes'ai charge
disclosed quite long series of systematic
frauds, the upshot Of which left the sergeant
major picked pretty bare by the time he had
honorably settled up with all creditors. Wher
the war came it found him employed in the
counting house of another firm with which he
had previously had dealings as a fellow
wholesaler. With a wife, an invalid sister
and three children dependent upon him, he
had not been able to satisfy himself in the
quite carly days of the war that he had the
right to enlist though he was an old voun-
teer and ex-Territoral. However. the early
spring Of 1915 saw him an enlisted man. He
was platoon sergeant within a couple OF
months, and company sergeant major three
months before his unit reached France.
There was not a better managed company
among all those that left Salisbury Plain
and the sergeant major had good deal to
do with the admirably efficient running of
it. He was liked and respected by every one
who knew him; but---"Can you see the
sergeant major holding his end up in a
scrGp?" asked the junior sub of the COM
pany, in tent on the hill outside Boulogne,
during their first night in France. And his
brother officers nodded thoughtfully. You'll
find he'll do his job" opined the o. c. COM
pany oracularly. And again the others
nodded.
Waiting to Get Into Action
During those early months in France he
cften used G. rife in the trenches, was occa-
sionally out on patrol, and more than once
fired drum or two from a machine gun.
The o. c. found him very helpful in the dis
cussion and arrangement Of minor strafes,
and the severest critic would never have
found hint Of inclination to shirk in the
sergeant major. As the 0. c. said he was
always "on deck," and never forgot any
thing. But at the end of four months he
never had laid hands upon Boche, or even
seen one, save as one does catch feeting
gimpses of men in trenches a couple of hun
dred yards away.
And then there came the first daylight raid in
that bit of line. 1t was Boche raid and il
came at the end of an hours very hot bom-
bardment on an extremely narrow section of
our front. 1t really did not touch the Sec
tion of the sergeant majors own company
but it happened that he was on the extreme
left flank of his company's line when hand
full of BocheS rushed machine gun emp!ace-
ment of the next company. The air was full
Of tear-shell gas and smoke, and the confu-
sion was tremendous.
Some men of the next company were out
on the parapet, and something made the SER
geant major climb out, TOO. 1t was then that
he had his first close look at Boches Two of
them had col!ared the next comparys Lewis
gun from that emplacement big, beefy look
ing Bavarians they were, one in a helmet aad
the other wearing cap. The sergeant major
had ceased to think some time before this.
during the heat of the bombardment Now,
as though he were listening 10 some. other
fellow a good long way off, he heard himself
yell with quite singular fsrocity, and felt
himself leapiug forward at those two Boches,
his bayonet held low
Meeting an Old Acquaintance
The one with the cap let all 90 and bolted
into the grcenish smoke, but the fellow in
;he helmet swung around at bay with a re-
volver which he fired just as the sergeant
major swooped down upon him, yelling like
a South Sea Island warrior. The Boche
grunted as the steel found his vitals, and his
body pitched forward, almost dragging his
rife from the sergeant majors hands. As
1t pitched forward, the helmet rolled clear
OF the mans head, and showed the sergeant
major queer, irregular shaped mark a
port wine STAIN" the sergeant major called
il. behind and below the Germans ear. He
was still alive when the s. NJ bent over him
to look into his face, and the eyes of the two
met in queer, fickering glance, all curiosity
on the side Of the Englishman and yindic-
tive hate on the side of the German, who,
by the way. was an unter-onizier. With that
look of haNed in his eyes he died. having
clearly recognized the man who killed him
This first Boche seen in the war By the
sergeant major 'sas his abscondng partner,
who had robbed him and ruined his business
in London, and this little coincidence mate
rally helped the S. NJ. in the solution of the
problem he used to set himself as TO how
he would behave when he came to be really
"up against It,"