Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-08-02
HARRISBURG BOY
| IS IN THICK OF
REAL FIGHTING
B. Franklin Etter Tells of
Hauling the Wounded
f Under Fire


At night the road is pitch dark and
just filled with all kinds of traffic
companies going to the front, motor
trucks with ammunition and provi-
From the thick of the fighting
romes letter from B. Franklin Etter,
Son of George p. Etter. of this city.
He is in the ambulance section and
bis story of wild night rides with
groaning and suffering wounded over
terrain pitted with craters, by the
light of bursting shells, is intensely
thrilling.
fCopy of Letter from B. Franklin
Etter. No. 4)
July 2, 1917.
Dear Family
Well, I'm right in it now! If any
body wants to know what a real bat
tie is like. tell them to ask me- What
I've gone through in the past week
would be enough to make any Amer
lean wish that there had never been
any war. OF course, l can't tell you
where / am. but it is enough to say
that I'm right in the thick of big
battle. Active service! It's been so
active that I've been working Ave
days straight, day and night, with
nnly about ten hours sleep alto
gether.
You remember in my last letter
told you that we were going into
active service and were quartered
right behind the lines in range of the
German guns. Last Wednesday,. the
twenty seventh of June. I took my
ear out for my first bit of active serv-
Ice. l was to go to- a post, a field
hospital between the first and second
line trenches, to get some wounded.
The post is only about 500 yards from
the German trenches. 1 got up all
right and was waiting there to get
my car filled. 1t was at night and
of course we ran without lights. The
road from the last town. will call
II x-runs straight to the trenches
around the foot of a hill, and the
last mile and a half is in plain view
of the German trenches, only a quar-
ter of mile away. Going up, sew
eral star shells went up and made the
road bright as daylight and of course
The Germans saw me all the time as
] was waiting for the wounded. The
Germans began an attack and shells
began TO fall all around the post,
which is an old monastery, ruined by
shellfire. We all had to beat it into
an abri, or underground chamber, and
stayed there for a while. The shells
fell all around us and exploded with
terrific noise, throwing dirt and rocks
for yards. Standing in the mouth of
the abri you could hear the shells
whistle and explode by the dozens.
lt gives you a creepy feeling, 1 tell
you. They start out with a low
whistle and the tone goes up as they
rome nearer or pass overhead, and
then they explode with terrific bang
-c-r-rump! The funny part about
1t was that 1 wasn't the least scared;
In fact. 1 rather enjoyed it.
But when my car was filled, 1 had
TO take the wounded down to X
through it all. Believe me, it made
my hair stand straight up! Shellholes
hll over the road and the most awful
racket you've ever heard. A continu-
BUS roar.
Shells Land Near
But the sight was beautiful All
the surrounding hills were lit up
with flashes of light, either from eX-
ploding shells or gun flashes. Then
there were dozens of star shells. sig
nal rockets, etc. The aeroplanes all
the times were flying overhead, di-
Cecting the shellfire. They flew very
low and also sent out signals. The
mir was filled with bright flashes of
bursting shrapnel sent by the Boches
Rt the aeroplanes. All along the
road, from batteries concealed in the
fields, came flashes and roars not
them passed right over my head.
OF course, the Germans replied and
sent shells into the French batteries
md, believe me, they came close
Several times shells have hit within
twenty feet of me, throwing rocks
and dirt and eclat (pieces of shells)
into my car. 1 have some pieces as
Bouvenirs.
The worst of it is that you have
TO drive slow so as not to hurt the
wounded, who groan and yell and
pound on the car when you go too
fast or hit a bump. I'm getting so
used to the sight of blood and shell
explosions that 1 don't mind it any
more. In fact. I saw three men and
two horses killed on the road about
thirty yards ahead of me and l didn't
mind it at all. One man was blown
all to pieces. If you think l am eX-
nggerating or kidding you, you are
sadly mistaken.
This war is the most awful thing
] have ever seen. After an attack
you see dead men laid out in rows,
waiting to be buried. The bottom of
my car was dripping with blood and
eome of the wounds are CHASTITY.
OF course, everybody is tired of the