Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1917-08-28

lSlO, We went III OppOslt6 tuo Ia
nous Regina trench. The battle-ground
was Just miles and miles Of debris and
shell holes. Before we went to our
position the officers and non-coms
were taken In by scouts to get the lay
of the land. These trips were called
Cooks tours" On one Of them I
went through the town Of Poizers
twice and didn't know it. 1t had a
population of 10000 before the war.
On the spot where 1t had stood not
even a whole brick was left, 1t seemed.
Its demolition was complete. That
was an example of the condition Of the
whole country over which our forces
had blasted their way for ten miles
since the previous July. There were
not even landmarks left.
The "Cook's Tour"
On the night when we went in to in
spect the positions we were to hold, our
scouts, leading us through the fiat des-
ert of destruction, got completely turn
ed round and took us back through q
trench composed of shell holes con-
nected up until we ran into a battal-
lon Of another brigade. The place was
dreadful beyond words. The stencil
Of the dead was sickening. In many
places arms and legs Of dead men
stuck out Of the trench walls.
We made q fresh start after our blum
der, moving in single file and keeping
in touch each with the man ahead OF
him. We stumbled along In the dark
ness through this awful labyrinth until
we ran into some Of our own scouts
at 2 a. m. and found that We were
halfway across No Mans land, sew
eral hundred yards beyond our front
line and likely to be utterly wiped out
In twenty seconds should the Germans
sight us. Fine guides we had on this
Cooks tour" At last we reached
our proper position, and fifteen min
utes after we got there whiz-bang, a
low explosive murderer, buried me
completely. They had to dig me out.
A few minutes later high explosive
shell fell In q trench section where
three Of our men were stationed. All
we could find after it exploded were
one arm and one leg, which we buried.
The trenches were without trench
mats, and the mud was from six inches
to three feet deep all through them.
There were no dugouts, only merely
miserable funk holes" dug where 1t
was possible to dig them without un-
covering dead men. We remained In
this position four days, from the l7th
10 the 21st Of October, 1916.
There were reasons, Of course, for
the difference between conditions In
Belgium and on the Somme. On the
Somme we were constantly preparing
for a new advance, and we were only
temporarily established on ground
which we had but recently taken after
long drumming with big guns. The
trenches were merely shell holes con-
nected by bitches. Our old and ubiqui-
tous and variously useful friend, the
sandbag, was not present In any ca.
pacity, and therefore We had no para
pets or dugouts. The communication
trenches were all blown In, and every.
thing had to come to us overland, with
the result that We never were quite
sure when We would get ammunition,
rations or relief forces. The most aw-
full thing was that the soil all about US
was filed with freshly buried men. II
We undertook to cut trench or en-
large a funk hole our spades struck
into human flesh and the explosion OF
q big shell along our line sent decom-
posed and dismembered and sickening
Of an earlier fight shower.
Ing among us. We lived In the muck
and stencil Of glorious" war, those OF
Us who lived.
The German Dugout-and What
They Found.
Here and there along this line were
the abandoned dugouts Of the Ger.
mans, and we made what use OF them
we could, but that was little. / had
orders one day to locate a dugout and
prepare It for use as battalion head
quarters. When l led squad In to
clean 1t up the odor was so overpower-
Ing that we had to put on our gas
masks. On entering we first saw two
dead nurses with our CHASTITY fash
lights, one standing with her arm
around a post, just as she had stood
when gas or concussion killed her.
Seated at q table in the middle Of the
place was the body Of an old general
Of the German medical corps, his head
fallen between his hands. The task
Of cleaning up was too dreadful for
US. We just tossed In four or i've
fumite bombs and beat 1t out OF there.
A few hours later we went into the
scared and empty cavern, made the
roof safe with new timbers and nod'
fed battalion headquarters that the
place could be occupied.
During this time witnessed a scene
which, with some others. l shall never
forget. An old chaplain Of the Cana.
dian forces came to our trench section
seeking the grave Of his son, which
had been marked for him on a rude
map by an officer who had seen the
young mans burial We managed to
flnd the spot, and at the old chaplain's
request we exhumed the body. Some
Of us suggested to him that he give us
the Identification marks and retire out
Of range Of the shells which were
bursting all around US. We argued
that 1t was unwise for him to remain
In danger, but what we really intended
was that he should be saved the horror
Of seeing the pitiful thing which our
spades were about to uncover.
II shall remain" was all he said.
"He was my boy"
It proved that we had found the
right body. One Of our men tried to
clear the features with his handker.
chief, but ended by spreading the
over the face. The old
chaplain stood beside the body and
removed his trench helmet, barring his
gray head to a drizzle Of rain that was
falling. Then while we stood by 81
lently his voice rose amid the noise OF
bursting shells, repeating the burial
service Of the Church Of England /