davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03
WELCOME,
CANADIANS

We were a new battalion. We had
been less than seventy-two hours OF
the continent of Europe, and the Ger
NAM We're not supposed to know any
thing that was going on behind our
lines!
We learned afterward that concealed
telephones In the houses of the Bel
gian burgomasters of the villages of
Di~nkiebusch and ~Renninghelst, near
u position, gave communication with
the German headquarters opposite us
n of the duties of a detail of our
men soon after that was to stand these
two burgomasters up against a wall
and shoot them.
In concluding this first article I want
to say frankly that any man who
claims he Is not afraid when for the
first time he goes into that hell of fire
on the western front is a liar, and I'll
tell him so to his face. Later we be-
came i~mpervious, but that first day
I prayed. and / would have bent down
and prayed only my knees shook so.
The five remaining articles In this
remarkable series Will appear one each
week. They are as follows:
No. 1.-The Bomb Raid.
The great preparations and rehearsing
for this attack. Volunteers for the job
taken behind the line where the German
trenches are exactly reproduced. The
days Of preparation. Heretofore unwrit-
ten detail of modern trench raids. This
article concludes with the men going out
10 their Job.
No. Slower the Top and Give EN-
He'll"
The English Tommy's battle cry as he
breaks from his trench. The bomb raid
and what happened OF sixty that start
ed forty-six failed to return because the
Germans had prepared and mined the
trench. Graphic description of Sergeant
McClintock's terrible experience.
No. A.-Shifted to the Somme.
Sergeant McClintock takes part In the
greatest of all battles and tells OF the
he'll of It. The front In Belgium was
really a rest sector In comparison with
II" he says. The extensive preparations
OF the allies for open warfare afterward
abandoned because of the failure of ex-
pected developments.
No., 5.-W founded In Action.
This article describes the terrible fight.
the dead and dying, the loss of a pal n
the nnal falling of McClintock In No.
Mans Land. Simply told, 1t is one of tina
most remarkable descriptions of 9 battle
by a participant ever put together.
No. e-Decorated For Bravery; Home
aud up0ls aam-~
This concluding article of the sariesN re
lates m detail how England cares for e.
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03

II DON'T lay claim to being much Of
a writer, and up till now | have
never felt the call to write any
thing about my experiences with the
Canadian troops In Belgium and
France, because ] have realized that
a great many other men saw quite as
much as / did and could beat me tell
ing about 1t. OF course l believed that
my experience was worth relating, and
Il thought that the matter published In
the newspapers by professional writ
ers sort of missed the essentials and
lacked the spirit Of the "ditcles" IN q
good many ways In spite of Its excel
lent literary style, but l didn't see any
reason why It was up to me to make
an effort as a war historian until now.
Now there Is a reason, as / look at 1t.
/ believe / can show the two or three
millions OF my fellow countrymen who
viii be tout there before this war is
over what they are going to be up
against and what they ought to pre-
pare for personally and individually.
That is as far as / am going to go in
the way Of excuse explanation or COM
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03
Mol. In Training
By Sergeant Alexander McCIint0ck,
D. C.. M, 87th Overseas Bait,
Canadian Gren. Guards.
Copyright, 1917, by the Bell Syn
dictate, Inc.
FOREWORD.

Here is q literary product Uhtch Is al
once an admirable example of the force
of simple realism In the description OF
things Uhich r difficult Of ordinary
comprehension, and q handbook and
guide for every prospecttUe soldier OF
our Grmtes.
Sergeant McCNntocE has not sorftfen
stories about the aogr. He has a~crttten
the tcar itself, reducing 1t, might
almost sap, to cords Of n syllable,
get bringing to the readers 0teao, clear
~ and ptridty, the Odrtous aspects OF
the great struggle, Mdden to all except
the man rh0 Is Gct0Gtly a part of 1t,
HIS contribution to the history Of the
@ q must be ctassed as one tchbch
shines arIth a aeto light.
II Is Fascinating IN It's simplicity, get
thrilling IN its convincing detail. III
leads one, Nth ~eperorowisg and com
pelItng interest, from a casual oottpes
sdttop IN q hotel In NeU YORK. through
scenes OF strife and blood and thrilling
conflict to the moment tchet the king
oad queen OF England came to tho b
eide OF q Kentucky youth In a London
ho8Dtt0l to thank him In the name OF
their nation for hts setrtoes IN the
c1Hsc tchfch pe haze roto come to REQ
o0ndse Gs that OF Voorld humanity.
Serge1Ht McCtintocE Yecetped the Dis
~rtin0ubshed Conduct medal before tedu'
..lng Ea2E1nd tor home on Leave. He Is
returning to accept a commission IN the
CuBndt1n overseas forces. The story Is
told IN WcCHntocE's oson anodorned
tcdY.
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03

Feb. Ia, 1917.
Sergeant Alexander McClintock served in the Eighty-seventh
Battalion Canadian Grensdier guards from September, 1915, until
November, 1919, the las. four months Of that time at the front
in France, whore he gained the Distinguished Conduct medal by
his devotion 20 duty and bravery under fire.
A his former commanding officer I can testify 80 to his good
qualities and I consider he would make q valuable officer.
(signed) T.. . AEIeAEA,
Brigsdier General, Commanding Canadian Training DiyiGon,
Hramshott.
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03
In the Front Trenches.

We got into %Poperinghe at 7 q. M,
and the scouts had led Us into the
front trenches at 2 the next morning
Our position was to the left of St Eloi
and was known as ''the island" be-
cause 1t had no support on either flank.
On the left were the User canal and
the bluff which forms Its bank. On
the right were 800 yards of battered
down trenches. which had been rebuilt
twice and blown la again each time
by the German guns. For some rea-
son, which | never quite understood.
the Germans were able to drop what
seemed q tolerably large proportion OF
the output OF the Krupp works ON this
particular spot whenever they wanted
TO. Our high command had concluded
that 1t was untenable, and 10 We, on
one side of 1t, and the British, On the
other, had to just keep It secuted and
protect u separate tanks. Another
name they had for that position was
the bird caga" That was because
the first fellows who moved into II
made themselves nice and comfy and
put up wire nettfngs TO prevent any
n from tossing bombs In IN them.
Thus, when the Germans stirred up
the spot with an accurate shower OF
"whiz bangs" and coal boxes" the
same being thirteen Founders and six
inch shells. that wire netting presented
a spectacle Of utter ~inadequacy which
hasn't been equBled In this war.
They called the position which We
vera assigned 20 defend ~the grave
yard Of Canada That was because
Of the fearful Iossss Of the Canadians
here In tia second battle Of Ypres,
from April p to June ]. 1915, whom
shs frat gss attack In the wSsARs kks-
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03

ed that he thought 1t was about time
for coffee. He didn't get any. A Ger
man sharpshooter. firing the first time
that day, got him under the rim OF bis
helmet, and his career with the Cana
dian forces was over right there. And
then, as the dawn broke. we made out
a big painted sign raised above the
German front trench. 1t read:
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03

~ men-and drop into exhausted sleep.
only to turn out at 8 a. m. to give a
sudden and exact imitation of what
we would do to the Germans If they
sneaked up on us before breakfast In
six inches of mud. Toward the last,
when we thought we had been driven
to the limit, they told US that we were
to have a period Of real, intensive train
ing to harden us for actual fighting.
They sent us four imperial drill SER
geants from the British grenadier
guards, the senior foot regiment Of the
British army and the one with which
we were affiliated.
1t would be quite %unavailing for me
to attempt to describe these drill ser
geants. The British drill sergeant is
an institution which can be understood
only through personal and close con-
tact and Is about as cordial as loose
electricity. If he thinks a major gen.
eral is wrong he'll tell him SO on the
spot In the most emphatic way, but
without ever violating a single sacred
tradition of the service. The sergeants
VINO TOOK us In charge 10 put on the
real polish to u training had all seen
from twenty to twenty-five years of
service. They had all been through
the battles of Mons and the Marne,
and they had all been wounded. They
were perfect examples of a type. One
of them ordered all Of our commission
ed officers, from the colonel down, TO
turn out for rifle drill day and put
them through the manual Of arms
while the soldiers Of the battalion stood
around looking IN.
Gentlemen" said he very politely
In the midst of the drill, when l see
you handle your rifles / feel like fall
ing on my knees and thanking God
that we've got a navy"
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03
"0vER THERE"
The Thrill and He'll of the Trenches De-
scribed by an American Boy

We have secured a series of six articles by
SERGEANT Alexander McClintock of Lexington.
KY. and the Canadian army. He has a gripping
tale that every American will read, for he tells
the facts, unadorned. Wounded, a Distinguished
Conduct medal man, he was invalided home. but
is going "Over There" again to fight for Uncle
Sam and his allies.
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03
A Call For Volunteers.

On June 2, after the third battle of
Ypres, while Mcfarland and l were
sitting YEARLY on our hunks during
a strange hour in the afternoon when
nobody had thought of anything for
us to do, a soldier came i'll with Il
message from headquarters which put
q sudden stop to the discussion we
were having about the possibility of
getting leave TO go UP to London. The
message was that the First, Second
and Third divisions Of the Canadians
had lost 40 per cent Of their men in the
third fight at Ypres and that 800 volln
teers were wanted from each Of our
battalions to fiji mp the gaps.
"Forty per cent" said Mcfarland,
getting UP quickly. my God, think OF
Ill Well, I'm of to tell 'ein I'll 60"
told him l was with him, and we
started for headquarters, expecting to
be received With applause and pointed
out as heroic examples. We couldn't
ever get up to give In our names. The
whole battalion had gone up ahead of
Us. They heard about 1t first. That
vas the spirit of the Canadians. 1t
was about this time that a story went
round concerning an English colonel
who had been called upon to furnish
volunteers from his outfit to replace
60 III He-haGhed4 MS Fegimelt, up
against a barrack wall and said:
NOW, all who don't want to volun-
teer step three PAGES to the rear"
In our battalion sergeants and even
officers offered to go as prtvates. Nc
Farland and ] were not accepted; n
volunteers went at once, and we were
REINFORCED up to strength by drafts
from the Fifth Canadian division.
which was then forming In England.
In July, when we were being kept
on the rifle ranges most Of the time,
all leave was stopped, and we were
to go overseas. In the latter part of
the month we started We sailed from
Southampton to Havre on a big trans
port, escorted all the way by destroy
ers. AS We landed we got our first
sight OF the harvest OF war. A big hos
pital on the quay was filed with
wounded men. We had t~wenty-four
hours In what they called a rest
camp" We slept on cobblestones in
shacks which were so utterly comfort
less that 1t would be an insult to a
Kentucky thoroughbred to call them
stables. Then we were on the way 10
the Belgian town Of Poperinghe, which
is $50 miles from Havre and was at
that time the rail head Of the Ypres
salient. We made the trip In box cars
which were marked In French, Eight
horses or forty men, and we had to
draw straws to decide who should lie
down.
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03

ment, call 1t what you will The rest
Of my story La q simple relation OF
facts and occurrences In the order In
(which they came to my notice aud hap
tpened to me, 1t may start of a little
slowly and jerkily, Just as we did, not
knowing what was coming to US. I'd
like to add that It got quite hot enough
% suit me later several times. There
FxsEs. Al my effort 10 going to be to
carry you right along with me In thia
Rscouns OF my experiences, don't BE-
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03
6-Decorated For Bravery; Horne
aud upola- Sam

This concluding article OF the sariesN re.
lates IN detail how England cares for -
wounded. How the king and queen came
to the bed of an American boy and dec
GRATED him In a London hospital for gal
lantry. Interesting. intimate and anus
ing Incidents told by and OF the wounde
Tommies. Trying to fight for Uncle Sam.
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03

impatient If nothing very important
seems to come off at first. l felt a lit
tie ennui myself at the getaway. But
that was certainly n thing that didn't
annoy me later.
In the latter part Of october. 1915. I
decided that the United States ought
to be fighting along with England and
France on account Of the way Belgium
had been treated, IL for no other reason.
AS there seemed to be a considerable
division of opinion IN this point among
the people at home, ! came to the con-
clusion that any man who was free,
white and twenty-one and felt IS I did
ought to go I'VE and get into It single
handed on the side where bis convic-
tons led him, If there wasn't some par
ticular reason why he couldn't. There
fore I said goodby to my parents and
friends In Lexington ana started for
New York with the idea Of sailing for
France and Joining the Foreign legion
OF the French army.
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03

Sergeant McClintock takes part In the
greatest Of all battles and tells OF the
hell Of It, The front in Belgium was
really a rest sector In comparison with
It" he says. The extensive preparations
OF the allies for open warfare afterward
abandoned because OF the failure of ex-
pected Developments.
Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-03
No. 5.-wounded In Action.

This article describes the terrible fight.
the dead n dying, the loss of a pal and
the final falling of McClintock In No
Mans Land. Simply told, 1t is one Of thu
most remarkable descriptions OF q battle
by a participant ever put together.
The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1917-09-06
UNITED STATES ARMY OF SIS
TIERS OF CHEER

TIERS OF CHEER
U. S. A. Sisters Of Cheer,
Brookings County Branch
The Register,
Bookings, S. D.
The undersigned wishes to become
a member Of the U. S. Sisters Of
Cheer society. the object of which is
for each member to strive through the
sending Of papers, magazines, sweets
and other small luxuries, or by letter
writing to cheer one of the local SOL
diers in the United States service.
1>oiHS
AuuiCSS
The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1917-09-06
CIVILIZATION"

Nothing thus far filmed so wildly
affords the spectator an insight into
modern warfare. with its attendant
horrors, as does "Civilization." soon
to be here, for in the pictures many
great battle scenes nothing but the
most modern and up-to-date anna
ment is employed. Even the aero
planes see in the picture are not
those used customarily for exhibition
purposes, but all are air machines
built strictly for military use. Sever
al types of planes are used in "Ciyi-
lization," and they include the swift
scouting machine, constructed for OBJ
|servatiOn work; the heavier and more
cumbersome aeroplanes, designed by
a raider, and from which death deal
ing explosives are dropped. and also
the armored air fighter, whose duty it
is to drive the enemy's air ships from
the skies. Students Of aeronautics
will, therefore, find much to interest
them in closely watching the flights
in "Civilization.' In previous military
pictures, where aeroplanes were used,
directors secured the services of the
usual exhibition machines and were
content. Not so with Mr.. Ince, for he
was not satisfied until the L. S. army
authorities had given him permission
to use each of its various types of air
the planes seer are all guided by U. S.
military aerialists.
Pleasant Hour, Saturday, Septem-
Der Sth. Matinee $50; evening, 1880.
Admission, Csc and soc.
The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1917-09-06
GIVE YOUR CAR WATER CURE

"The best preparations to use in
keeping the finish of an automobile
looking like new are clean water and
plenty of care
1T should be remembered that soy
eral different kinds of finish are used
in different parts of high grade cars,
and that each kind of finish should
have its own brand of treatment in
the curse of a washing"
"The first thing to do in washing a
car is to give it a thorough flushing
with a lo~w-pressure stream from a
hose. The purpose of this is to gent
ly flow off the accumulated dust and
dirt in such a way that the hard par
ticles will not scratch. In some cases
the mud will stick hard enough to re-
sist the stream from the hose, and
when this occurs the particles should
be quickly sopped off with a wet
sponge.
"The second step is to go over all
parts Of the car with a clean sponge
and cold water, to remove any grease
or dirst remaining. Soap may be
used if necessary, preferably a pure
CASTLE soap.
Then another thorough flushing
should be administered, taking care
that soap used In the second step of
the bath is not permitted to dry. for
1t will leave streaks and spots that
are difficult to remove.
after all vestige of dirt has been
removed, the polishing begins. Two
The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1917-09-06


This department is edited by Mrs. Ria L.
hiegler and anyone having social news OF
interest viii confer a favor on the Register
by 'phoning Mrs. Ziegler. 3l6.
Surprise-Some old friends and
neighbors Of Mrs. Biggar planned and
carried out most successfully a sur
prise party on Friday, Aug. cath, to
help celebrate Mrs. Biggar's birthday.
Fancy work with visiting, and dainty
refreshments furnished very agree
able pastimes.. "A purse filled with
silver to buy a remembrance of the
occasion was left with the happy
hostess.
Afternoon-Mrs. Hazel Wilson was
the gracious hostess to several Of her
friends on Tuesday afternoon of last
week. Social chat over dainty needle
work whiled the early hours away,
and later ice cream and cake were
served.
Gatala Camp Fire-At 900 a. m. on
Tuesday of last week the members of
the Gatala Camp Fire laden with bun
dies went to the college creek, and
cooked and ate a most delicious
breakfast. After tramping around
this happy but tired company arrived
home for their dinner.
Dinner-On Tuesday of last week
the clerks Of THE Bee Hive Store
We're royalty entertained at a $50
dinner by Mr.. and Mrs. f. S. Hanson
The table was centered by a beauti
full bouquet. and the delicious men,
was served in three courses. The
evening was spent in music and visit
ing.
r. c. cIub-On Monday Afternoon
Mrs. Mast entertained the T. c. clul
very pleasantly. Fancy work and SO
cial chat with a dainty lunch wer'
much enjoyed.
Compiimentary-Mrs. Arthur Drey
was honored at a very pleasant littl
affair on Friday afternoon given b.
Mrs. Armstrong and Miss Inez. Wi;
} iting and the serving of a fine three
course dinner were the pastimes.
Afternoon-One of the pleasantes
. social affairs of the week was the a.
5 t%ernoon party given by Mrs. Raak an
/ Mrs. Pratt on Saturday. The earl
hours were spent in visiting and fame
work. and later the favored guest
We're invited to find places which wer
designated by fag-cards. Twelve co,
ers were laid, and the centers of tn
tables ERE graced by beautifully Al
ranged bouquets of sweet peas OF
The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1917-09-06
G AND PERSONAL

Mrs. w. A. Collins and daughter,
who have been visiting relatives in
Iowa. returned home Tuesday evening.
Miss Matilda Lambe leaves this
week for Kennebec, Lyman county,
where she Is engaged as principal OF
a school for the coming year.
Mr.. and Mrs. A. r. Grove are spend
Ing this week at the Minnesota State
fair. where Mr.. Grove Is attending
a reunion of his old regiment.
Mrs. Inez Madden is In the city Wis
iting her mother, Mrs. M. B. Aldrich,
while her husband is attending the of.
ficers' training camp at FIT. Smelling
Mrs. Thos. Alton went to Minneapo
lis last week to undergo an operation
the last accounts received from hel
are that she Is getting along nicely
T. H. Wright arrived In the city
this week to take the place in the
staff Of the state college, made vacant
by the removal of V. r. Jones to Yer
mont.
Mrs. Oscar Wulber left this week
to join her husband. The lieutenant
Is an officer in one Of the new regu
lar army regiments being recruited a,
Fort Smelling.
The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1917-09-06

zines. Here is what he has to say now
about the end Of the war, we quote
an article on the matter taken from
the Argus-Leader.
1t is the opinion of Frank H. Sim
onds, of the New York Tribune, who
has been from the start a very close
observer of the development of the
war, that Germany can escape defeat
in 1918 only if there is no campaign
in 1918" and be points out that every
German influence in this country, as
elsewhere, Is now being exerted to eff
feet a compromise before the spring
of next year. Mr.. Simonds points out
baneful power of Germany undestroy-
ed and that after a breathing spell,
the world would again have to face a
German militarism, chagrined at once
being foiled but ready for a second
attempt at world domination.
Mr.. Simonds estimates that Ger
many has lost in killed, wounded and
prisoners a total Of $500, 900 men. He
puts the total permanent loss at g,
SOC, 900. This means, in his opinion,
that Germany can not bring up
enough reserves, even with Russia out
of it, to equal the allied forces IN the
western front and he believes that
before next July, the Germans will
have to choose between a wide retreat
in the west and a great disaster
Continuing, Mr.. Simonds says:
"On the material side it is exceed
ingly unlikely that Germany can be
starved out, but another year will
bring greater hardships, greater sui
fering, and a failure Of crops would
mean ruin. Germany has suffered for
two years more than Britain or
France is suffering, or will suffer for
a year, and the moral effect is in
creasing all the time.
Looking to the commercial side,
lhe TACT Is tHlS. Every mOnth the
war goes on Germany loses more of
her commercial establishment.
eve have all of us come, |insensi-
bly,, to play the German game a little
and to believe far too much in the in
fallibility Of German generals and the
inyincibility of German armies. Yet
from the Marine to the present hour
every German offensive in the west
has failed, and the steady detericra-
ton Of German armies has been re-
vealed by the marked increase in
prisoners, guns, ground gained by sue
cessive attacks"