New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1917-07-26
'SAMMYS' KNOCKING
At DOOR OF HE'LL
Going Right Through to Berlin
to Visit Kaiser

y! S-AN
frs. eontingents Of the American
army in France serve to recall the
fact that the United States is enter
ing a war already old and wise-wiso
with the dearly bought wisdom of
three long adventurous years-anl
stepped in all the diabolical wicked
ness that inceesant delvins into the
deviltries Of destruction can bring 20
1t.
Having escaped the first terrors OF
weapons which German science has
evolved through toiling years of mil
itary preparation, the American divi-
sions will nevertheless plunge every
thing into a seething cauldron which
has grown from the unavoidable POI
icy Of fighting the devil with fire. -
They will have quickly to learn rot
bnly to make the awful German
frightfulness with calm endurance,
but to return it with an ever increas-
ing measure. In doing this many
nerve-testing and soul searching ex-
periences undoubtedly lie before
them, but there are already thou
sands of young Americans in the
Canadian and British ranks who have
proved themselves additionally wor-
thy in the scorching flames of mod
ern war.
The American forces are fortunate
indeed to be able to base their edu-
cation upon the bitter lessons learned
by the French and British soldiers in
all the eventful days that have fol-
lowed that first rush of battle III
1914. Marvellously complete books
of instruction have been builded upon
those experiences and out of these
the American soldiers will CLEAN the
last-word knowledge that will A.
them for the foremost trenches.
Learning the Time Of Shells.
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
Afar and burst with terrifying re-
ports-sometime in most unexpected
places. The Germans are great be-
levers both in noise and high-ex-
plosive. They even mix their adored
HE" with their shrapnel shells
which break high in the air and send
their bullets showerfng down with the
whine of an angry winter wind. The
Americans soon will learn to distin-
guish the individual songs of the vari-
est doubt that the moment he dis
covers they are in the Zine" the
German will turn every acailable cal
ibre of weapon against them in a
flourish of Introductory hate" They
will come over in order-these Shrek
ing. srumbling misunderstanding in
size and noise all the way from the
nasty little pip squeaks or whiz-
n ryh hn int
twos. the five point mines and then
IN to what the British Tommies la
conically call the big stuff''-the
eight and eleven-inch howitzers and
the projectiles from heavy calibred
long range naval guns, known with
out affection as "Whistlins Percys."
There will be little opportunity to
hear a Big Bertha for those fa-
nous old 42-centimeter howitzers are
seldom used nowadays. 1t is be-
lieyed that the Germans planned to
bonn bard Arras with them, using
rrussic acid shells. but the British
advance on Easter Monday last put
a stop to that particularly nefarious
scheme against the already sadly bat
tered little Artois cathedral city.
There is also awaiting the new
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
builets-sounds we'll calculated to
stab with a moment of fear the heart
of the bravest man.
But above all the American soldiers
must equip themselves to endure the
lethal 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 lach-
rvmatory gas which while not dan
gerous to life irritates the tearducts
until one cries with blinded, smart
ing eyes for hours. The surprise of
both these gases is their altogether
pleaea mt smell. the letha1 variety sug-
costing the clean odor of a sanitary
hospital ward, while the so-called
tear gas has the appetiztng scent OF
Brushed ripe apples. Or cider.
Not Forgetting the "F1amenwerfer."
There is also the reason shaking
terror Of the "famenwerter,'' with
its roaring stream Of liquid fire far
ing with the velocity of a high pres
sure fire nozzle and with an offpour-
ing Of smoke rising like a black cy-
clone cloud to the heavens.
The first day of their stay in battle
trenches the Americans will make the
acquaintance of a very old, but
scarcely cherished. friend of the
Tommies and Poilus-another mem
Der of the Werfer family known as
Minnie" This is the German mine
thrower or minenwerfer, which filings
over at short range great heavy pro-
jectiles known as flying pigs be-
cause of their wabbly. ungaini:-
flight. They go off with deafening
roar. expending more energy on