Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-07-29
Many Weeks Before Fiery Trial.


the Sammy and pronounced him all to
the good.
Many Weeks Before Fiery Trial.
When I left French headquarters to
come to the American army it was
with a feeling it would be difficult to
send news dispatches from what is now
only training camp. The time of fiery
trial and sacrifice for the American
army is still in the future. 1t will be
many weeks before the recording of our
casualty lists, not just list of killed.
wounded, prisoners and missing. 1t
will be long before the cables carry the
news that the Germans attacked our
lines with gas and liquid flames, gained
a footing in certain salients by pulver-
fzing our barbed wire barricades and
trenches with military barrage. after
which the infantry charged with hand
grenades and bayonets. That will all
come-just as bad and worse.
The Germans hate us more than they
fear their future. They will give us
no quarter. Many of our boys. drilling
this morning In the fields surrounding
bivouac in No Mans Land, where even
the buzzard dare not interfere with the
tortures of shrapnel and gelinite. This
1s q CHASTITY picture. We will cable it.
1t Is already written that we shall
cable 1t before we can record the glory
OF our triumphs. But that is the end
for which the American army has its
DciHS- Inc DeRlnnlnR, lne cause Tor
which 1t was created. in the parlance
OF journalism already carries a date
line that is old.
j Hard Job Back Home.
We are now in the middle of the
story-trafning camps. And training
camps ca ;;, 1t seemed to me. were apt to
patch by saying that the biggest. hard
est ana greatest work ever attempted
by people has been well begun. This
work to which refer is the American
army in France. This summing up in
the only message that can be sent to
the folks at home from this training
camp at this stage Of our war against
Germany; The American army must
become the biggest force the world
has ever produced to crush a foe. To
make It such will be harder job back
has ever tackled in its existence. It's
accomplishment will be so, great a
thing that this planet hardly seems big
enough in which to give its record
And today the work has only just be-
gun: The censor forbids details. This
sudden reference to my old aequaint-
ance from every battle front does not
critical Far from that. Since Joining
this camp. two days ago, became more
proud that I was an American than
ever In my life. and criticism this
scribes and the censors can never see
quite alike on all questions of details
would like to take one phase Of this
summing up that have given-the
army has on hand-and simply burn it
into the understanding of every man
ana woman back home who has a sin
gle ounce. of force that might be used
IN bringing this war to victory and an
end. We are a proud and a great
people. Our eagle has scared high and
FAR. We have the right to be proud be-
cause we are great. But now we must
become greater. We must equip our
selves now-today, not tomorrow-to
perform. our greatest act, the establish
ment and maintenance of an American
army on the European battle front.
Must FIJI In the Gaps.
Our army in France IL small-an the
world knows that. including Germany.
1t il about as big as fife and drum
corps in a monster parade before a
presidential election And II we had a
million men in France today 1t would
not mean we could put a million men
specific on percentages or numbers, but
may say this:
The first question after our men
take their section Of line is that known
here as 'refits.' We must have enough
men behind-not reserves, but Just in
training in France, as all our army is
today-to fll every gap In every COM
pany. battalion and regiment. Every
division must be kept to its strength.
A regiment of 1000 men may have
10000 names on its roster before the
war is over. That means ten complete
refits-that 1t has been wiped out and
made over ten timesalways keeping
the same number and name and thus
adding to its regimental history. Long
before the time comes when for every
man in line ten men have gone before
at one battle or another. that regi-
that Coldstream Guards have done since
Waterloo. like the French Chasseurs
and even the Guards of Prussia-it will
go out and fight for the honor and
first consideration for the final enc
after the first line of khaki are big
and strong enough to be given a sector
OF the actual front.
Supplies Necessary for Success.
Then there are all the services of tn,
literally q hundred different kinds Of
army material and supplies that ART
absolutely necessary for success. W,
must have motor lorries, not by dozens
scription. material to construct new
trenches and emplacements for bis
guns, materials to make bombproo
shelters, clothing, boots and arms, gum
themselves, thousands of them, too. o.
all sizes, SO that when we let loose tn,
hell Of our artillery upon the German,
we can cable that we, instead OF any
body else. had the greatest concentra
ton Of cannon fire that has ever beef
known. II any other army concen
trates guns so that II stretched in lin,
they would be only q few yards apart
a. already has been the case-our guns
In q similar line. must stand wheel t,
wheel For that II the only way we ar
going to beat the Germans.
When our work here is finished
must be recorded that the activitie