Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1917-12-30

the scene that night with the star
shining overhead, and only a nervous
hush OF expectation to pressage the
fury that was to come. / firmly be-
lieve that l came nearer getting ie-
ligion in those last few minutes than
ever before or since. 1t is during such
moments that soldier is made. 1t
is at this time the iron gets into your
system. 1t is this experience that
makes II worth every mans while TO
go TO France just for his own sake.
You live longer then than during all
the rest of your life.
At S:49 | looked at my watch,
threw away my cigaret and stood
up. My men needed no other sign
that the time was at hand. They
all rose shifted their packs into
place, gripped their rifles. At OK
actly $3.50 the captain of ensi-
neers, who had dug the mine,
pushed an electric button and We
wers off.
We felt the earth shake and in
moment heard the explD iiJ1.
There was a dull red glow and
then black earth hurtling sky
ward. There was practically no
noise. only a distant rumble Then
our guns began an intense bar
rage They opened together with
a crack. left the ground and was
going fast when / hit 1t again.
l was glad l had started in the
right direction. didn't care right
where l was headed for. but knew
l wasn't going to stand still with
those noises around.
| was too new to the game TO real
iZe that these shells were my best
friends and were going yards abov o
me over to the German lines, to pre-
vent their artillery, machine guns and
riflemen firing on me when | came
out of the trenches at the place where
the mine had started its destruction.
Soldier Forgcts Own Danger.
After about ten feet of travel, | ex-
perienced the great miracle. forgot
all about myself in the immensity OF
what was going on. My mind seemed
the only thing present, and l felt that
was watching a moving picture. 1t
is an odd sensation. and everyone
gets 1t. That is the reason a ma,l
seems so surprised when he Is hit and
realizes he is still present after all.
This detached feeling is what saves
men--that, and the thrill which runs
thru them.
In the excitement forgot / had a
much lighter load than my men, and.
since I didn't think Of looking
around, left my party and disap-
peared In the. distance AS said.
l was going strong.
At this time ] saw "Minnenwer-
fer" coming over. They can't be mis-
taken at night, for they leave a trail
CT sparks after them like a comets
tall 1t passed overhead, and, as
found out later. landed square on my
party's dump. There was quite a
display for a few moments as II get
off hundreds of flares OF all colors
at the dump. They all went off to-
gether and went sailing thru the air
IN all directions.
Sailing with the flares went scores
of Mills bombs. After the five-sec-
ond fuse had burned, these bombs be-
gan going off all over the landscape,
but they we're nothing to what began
to come down few moments later.
A second Minnie" landed on huge
dump Of our sixty-pound trench NOR
tar bombs-"plum puddings"- and
this dump went off like mine and
scattered these huge missiles all over
the countryside BY that time, the
Hun artillery had Joined the circus
so the whole thing was beginning ID
get interesting.
At last / got to the place I was
headed for and found to my Joy that
the old trench running out there had
net been destroyed because pre-
vious mine crater had protected II
by absorbing the shock.
| AT that time I was alone and well