The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1917-07-23

Having escaped the first terrors OF
weapons which German science had
evolved through toiling years OF mil
itary preparation, the American dfvls-
ions will nevertheless plunge eventual
ly into a seething cauldron which has
grown from the unavoidable policy OF
fighting the devil with fire."
They will have quickly to learn not
only to take the awful German fright
fulness with calm endurance, but to
return 1t with an increasing measure.
In doing this many nerve-testing and
soul.searching experiences undoubted-
ly lie before them, but there are al
ready thousands Of young Americans
In the Canadian and British ranks who
have proved themselves additionally
worthy in the scorching flames OF
rodern war.
PROFIT By EXPERIENCES
The American forces are fortunate
indeed to be able to base their educa-
cion upon the bitter lessons learned
by the French and British soldiers in
all the eventful days that have follow
ed that first rush of battle in 1914.
Marvellously complete books of In
struction have ben builded upon those
experiences and out of these the Am
erican soldiers will CLEAN the last-word
knowledge that will fit them for the
foremost trenches.
First of ALL when they take their
place will come the baptism of fire
from the noisy black high-explosive
German shells that scream in from
aiar and burst with terrific reports
sometimes in most unexpected places.
The Germans are great believers both
In noise and high-explosive. They
even mix their adored HE" with
their shrapnel shells which break
high in the air and send their bullets
showering dawn with the whine OF
an angry winter wind.
The Americans soon will learn to
distinguish the individual songs OF
, the various shells for there is not
the slightest doubt that the moment
he discovers they are in the line"
the German will turn every available
calibre of weapon against them in a
flourish of Introductory hate"
They will come over in order
these shrieking, grumbling missiles
ranging in size and noise all the way
from the nasty little pip-squeaks or
whiz.bangs, up through the four-point-
twos. the ive-point-nines and then on
10 what the British Tommies laconi-
cally call 1.-The big stuff'-the eight
and eleven-inch howitzer shells and
the project:les from heavy calibred
long range naval guns, known with
out affection as "Whistling Percys."
"RiS Esrthaa" Replaced
There will be little opportunity to
lp "a far
cid t2-centimeter howitzers are sell
dom used nowadays. 1t is believed
that tho Germans planned to bonn
bard Arras with them, using prussic
sc.d shells. but the Britishs advance
On Easter Monday last put stop to
that particularly refarious scheme
against sadly battered little Artois
cath aGral city
American army bounteous baptism
OF bombs and hand grenades and the
still more dismaying introduction to
the CHASTITY rattle OF the machine-gun
and Its sinister swish of spraying
bullets-sounds well calculated to
stab with moment Of fear the heart
OF the bravest man.
But above all the American soldiers
must equip themselves to endure the
letha gas that will be sent over
against them in poisonous, vaporish
clouds, or showered upon them in a
deluge OF heavily charged cylinders
and shells. They must prepare to
deal also with the treacherous lachry-
matory gas which while not danger
Gus to life irritates the tearducts until
enc cries with blinded, smarting eyes
for hours. The surprise Of both these
gases is their altogether pleasant
smell, the lethal variety suggesting
the clean odor of sanitary hospital
ward, whole the so-called tear gas
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