Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1917-10-22
'CAmOUtF|'Ll|ACl'EI|'
WAR DISCOVERY
THAT WILL LIVE
Famous Stunt Of Wooden
Horse Of Troy was Given
Encore in France.
Uncle Sam is Enlisting New
Regiment Of Stage
Artisans.
tBy ThomsAs Garrett.)

"Camouflage," explains Thomas
Garrett, editor Of The American Art
Student and known as a painter in
oils, applied purely to the art Of
painting might be termed the art Of
painting out objects of military value
for the purposesl Of concealment from
Inc enemy I do not suppose at the
present minute that there are a hand
ful OF people. in this country that do
not know something of the discovery,
SO widely has 1t been talked of. but
OF It's military value and of the sci
ence 1t can be called, very little is
known. However the press has taken
ialr to con a part Of u own par
tcu.la American vocabulary, it prob
ably will shortly be understood from
coast to coast.
"Camoufiage, considered as the art
OF that name, is a discovery with the
present war, but it really has been in
existence at least since the Greeks
took Troy. It will be remembered in
the story Of the fall of Troy the
Greeks employed a wooden horse Of
gigantic dimensions filed with their
the city. The American Indian em-
ployed it when he hid himself behind
q bush and shot from cover. That
Is really all it is, but Of much greater
development just as modern artillery
is a development over that of previous
wars. The phrase itself had its origin
In the French music halls and literal
ly means 'fakir.' /.
There are a number of stories of
how it came to be used in its present
proportions. One of them runs that
in a battle earlier In the war an in
genious French poilu who vas vel
looking the Eel of battle. noted that
on a hill off at the right Of the par
allel line Of trenches and v which,
the artillery had advanced, were a
number of dead horses. Perhaps he
remembered the famous fable of Troy.
Perhaps merely the need ofzinforma-
ton of the German line was the slim
ulant that inspired him. At any rate
under v of the darkness he made
his way out to a carcass of of the
animals well up the side Of the hill,
and after some hours work, managed
to skin it. The skin he took gack
of his comrades stuffed it. They left
an opening though, and then proceed
ed by a barrage from their particular
section, Of trench they returned the
carcass to its former place and the
soldier crawled inside. At this point
he lay hour after hour and reported
the movements Of the enemy. 1t was
some time before the deception was
discovered. This is said to have been
the real beginning Of camouflage in.
the present war. Stories are also told
of how ingenious fellows have con-
structed dummy guns that recoil and
flash powder much as if they had
fired real discharges. Old boots lying
out beyond. the trench parapets. and
broken stakes from the barbed wire
,entanglements have concealed peri
scopes for days. Aeroplane sheds
have been made to o like wheat
fields to the eyes of the birdmen and
like workmen's cottages.
the painter.
There was m important piece OF
I am told. that was per
formed by painters. This was on a
long road back of Verdun. 1t became
TO 10 many French
troops up to the support of the de-
tenders and since the road over which
they would. have to pass was under
constant fire from the German guns
it had to be painted out. Thousands
of yards of canvas were used and the
road was covered at the top and sides
for a stretch of some miles. This, was
painted to represent the landscape
of the surrounding country n the
troops were moved in comparative
- s.
is said that the n4eH whe de this
work are often amused at the SEEM
ing foolishness they are called upon
to perform. The Frenchman loves
a Joke and he certainly had a chance
to laugh when, to save a bridge that