Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1917-11-22
ASSOCIATED PRESS
! CORRESPONDENT
!. VISITS AMERICAN
7: v -. AN = As1'AsA - = - ~ "a
FRONT TRENCHES
United States Soldiers Devote
Entire Energy to Changing
Germans Into Casualties.

WIN the American Army IN
France, Nov. 20.-(By the Associ-
ated Press )-rhe American artillery
and infantry at the front are dry
once more, the rain having. ceased
for several days.
The correspondents visiting the
immediate front thru the courtesy
of the French staff found that the
Americans had taken advantage of
the rainless weather and were devot-
ing all their energies to changing,
as they put it, Germans into casual
ties" They are on their toes every
minute and are not letting a single
opportunity slip to drop a shell or
to send machine gun and rifle bull
let's where the enemy is seen, or
where he is even suspected of being
There is no doubt that the men like
the life they are living. They are
as cool and methodical as If they
had been doing nothing else than
fighting thruout their lives.
The fine group in the first line
trenches had just sat down to their
salmon sandwiches and coffee when
they jumped up and cut loose with
their automatic rifles at Germans
who were discovered hanging out
clothes on wire in battered vii
lage. They saw the enemy dive for
cover like rabbits, and then they
went on with their meal as If moth
ing had happened.
From the first line trenches,
which are on hill, the German first
line can be seen clearly between
500 and 1000 yards away. There
was something in the German first
line which will never go back to
Germany. It~is- a. woolly dog which!
deserted the enemy, crossed No
Mans land and bounded into an
American trench one dark night re-
Gently. It licked the hand of an
American "doughboy'' and was
promptly fed with piece of white
bread and handful of Columbia
River salmon. He was thereupon
adopted and now roams all around
the trenches and even walks upon
the parapet and thru the barbed
wire entanglements as If there were
no war.
"This pup" said one of the soldi-
ers, "is naturalized American and
there is no hyphen about him. He
has entirely forgotten all his boche
connections.
II hope he gets chance to bite
the kaiser
Shrapnel for Greeting.
AS the correspondents approached
the trench lines over the shell-pitted
ground, the enemy started breaking
shrapnel over the first line. This
firing lasted but brief time, stop
ping as suddenly as it began. I'm
mediately afterward came detona-
tions from the rear and the whiz
of shells overhead as the American
batteries got into action. Then
smoke putfs suddenly began appear
ing over the German trenches. The
infantrymen looked cautiously over
No Mans Land while the firing was
going on, but as soon as it was over
they appeared to forget all about it.
Ro<a C,,oot Worry
In a nearby dugout the men off
duty had not even heard the racket.
Their principal worry seemed to be
rats.
One occupant of the dugout ex-
planned that there was sleeping room
in it for 38 men and that IL cats
were kept in it. Cats were every
where, some sleeping on folded
blankets and some prowling in dark
corners or stalking their prey.
The men all appeared to be in the
best Of health, altho during the re-
cent wet and cold weather several
men in this unit had contracted
trench feet" and colds.
Gums Start at Sundown.
While the sun was going down be-
J hind the hills and the darkness was
coming on swiftly scarcely shot
was fred. Just as the sun passed
below the horizon, however. the
German batteries opened up on one
| Of the American battery positions
with-a hot IRE. the high explosives
bursting with the regularity of the
clock tick bout one every second
The bombardment lasted couple OF
MINUTES and then ended abruptly.
IImmediatsly3 the American batteries
lretaliated, flashes Of 0range-c colored
fame stabbing the might. The DE-
ltonati tionss some heavy and some
Hight ontinusd forS some time with '''laEl,