McNairy County independent. (Selmer, McNairy County, Tenn.) 1902-1969, 1917-11-02
AMERICAN TROOPS
OCCUPY TRENCHES
ACTUAL FRENCH TRAINING IS
BY FRENCH VETERANS.
BY FRENCH VETERANS.
FIRST GUN OF WAR IS FIRED
Honor Goes to Redheaded Trooper Fer
Firing First Shot At Germans.
French Soldiers Delighted
With New Allies.

american troops have gone into &C.
ton, with American shells from Amer
ican guns screaming over their heads.
One of them has been over the top
and has come back, after close-quar-
ters fight In No Mans Land with the
boches. The first shell was hit, the
first raid success. Happy omen
What the Germans think of it we
do not know. The only thing they
have done so far is to fire a few inef.
fectual rounds from machine guns.
What Gen. Pershing's men think of
1t is briefly told-they are tickled. The
lucky ESQ they call themselves) con-
tingents selected for the honor of be-
ing the first under the Stars and
Stripes In the front line trenches
marched through a drenching rain at
dead of night, singing. They sang un.
til they were silenced by cautions to
be silent. They are well, they are do
ing well, they are as happy as they
never hoped to be.
The first man over the top was a
lieutenant. His adventure, as the in
cident that really opened the war in
Europe's battlefields for our army, is
destined to become historic.
American Uses Automatic.
The American contingent entered a
section OF the French line by night, to
relieve the Poilus. In order to keep
the Germans from creeping across
while the change was being made
French patrol of 80 men was sent out
into No Mans Land, to grope its way
toward the German front line and see
that all was we'll.
The young lieutenant begged so
hard to be permitted to go along that
he could not be refused. So they starr,
ed, painfully crawling through the
French wire entangelements into the
Chell-pitted ground beyond. On hands
and knees they made their way for
ward, with all the stealth the Indians
taught our army In the days before
Custer.
They were almost to the German
barbed wire when streak of flame
leaped out of the darkness. They had
been discovered by German patrol
starting out on a mission identical to
their own. The might was stabbed
with light and sound Both boches and
French popped valiantly with their
rifles. The excitement was too much
for the young lieutenant; he was no
neutral observer, anyhow.
So he drew his automatic and blazed
away-twice. Rushing forward with
the rest Of the patrol, he discovered
one German dead and two lying
wounded. Perhaps he accounted for
one of the three; it never will worry
him IL he did. The patrol scuttleG
back to safety-total casualties, one
Frenchman slightly wounded in the
leg.
Perhaps 1t wasn't quite fair to say
the first American over the top was
excited, for 1t develops that amid all
the popping he caught the two shells
from his automatic as they we're ejec:
ed. He's going to keep them always,
he says--though he may give one
away to "a certain person"
Red Head Fires First Shot.
There was not so much thrill and
there was no ceremony at all about
the firing of the first big American
shell by an American gun crew--but
thrill enough for those who reflected
upon what it meant in the world
drama.
An American observer spotted the
Germans working in salient of tho
trenches. He gave the range. The.
gunners slipped the shell in the breech
all with proper neatness and dis
patch, just as in drill. 1t was sighted,
as II in practice. II there were any
excited Yankees, no tremble of finger
betrayed 1t,
Ready" said the commander.
Then at downward sweep of his
arm, a red-headed Irish hearty In
khaki pulled a lanyard and t'ncle
Sans substitute for his erstwhile
notes was screaming on its way. From
the trenches in front came back the
faint sound of cheer. War works
miracles. The infantry with dirt be-
hind their ears" we're actually whoop
ing 1t UP from their peace time bar-
rack foes, the artillery.
There was puff of white smoke
over the German lines and the observ
er, when 1t cleared away, reported
that the German working party had
disappeared with it.