Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1917-11-22
.AABy Bruce Barton, Editor Of
Every Week.

I arm, or an eye, or part of the
face, but are still able to strug-
gle back from the front line
trenches alone.
Go with me for a moment to
France 4 want you to See what
he saw. | want you to know the
truth. &.
It is the day before the big
push. For weeks the army has
I known the exact hour and mo-
ment when the barrage would lift
and the men leap out s'over lhe
top
The enemy has known it, too;
his preparations are as great and
careful as ours.
On the day before, the engi-
neers plant a line of painted white
posts q few yards apart, leading
from the rear straight to the bor-
ders Of No Mans Land.
Simple painted posts: what are
they for?
They are to guide the walking
wounded. Eyes blurred with
blood and suffering that might
lose the road can follow the trail
OF those painted posts; bodies
too weak from she'll shock or gas
to stand alone can find there a
monetary support.
The trail of the painted posts
is the trail of the walking wound
ed; the trail of blood and misery
and pain.
Just before dawn the men file
into the forward trenches. Sing
ing Not bit. Talking? Hard
~ q word. Only the silent, heavy
tramp Of men who have written.
their last letters home. Men with
faces carved out of stone.
They pass out of camp; they
pass the base hospitals; they pass
the canteen. And just before
they reach the front trench. at
the very front, under the fire of
the big guns themseIves-each
man pauses for just a second at a
Z dug -Out.
It ia the front line trench Of the
Y. NJ. G. A.
From it a hand reaches out; in
the hand a piece of choc olate for
each man aQ be eaten iin;scase he
falls wounded in No Man's Land.
a hearty Good Luck and God
Z Bless Youi - is WITH this, the
voice of the Y. M. C. A., secretary,
ringing in their ears that men &c
s'oversthe top
An hour passes; two hours.
And slowly. painfully, draggingly,
they come back. The men who
have lost an eye, and the men who
carry in their shoulders or their
abd6naens or their les,s the en-
emy's bullets and she'll.
Bleeding, staggering men, fol
lowing the trails Of the painted
posts.
And they stop at THE " M. g. "a
dug out FIRST. 1t lilies neares,
the guns. Nearer than the doctor
or hospital. There every man gets
e cup of hot tea if he wants it
there two orderlies stand witt
hypo podermics in their thands.
Do you want it?' they demand
Of each man. who passes through
And either he lthrus It's out hi.
arm to receive the SO othing po.
ton, or he mods his head ant
passes on.
4. On along the way 'of painte.
posts to the hospitals and rest.
Sometimes the idu g-out i.
shelled, and a Y. M. G.. "A. secre
tary loses his life two went on
together in one da y recently.
It's part Of the, game; they asl
/ 1or no sympathy: they ask no
even for pay; rnany of them ar
working Tor no thing at all. NJ
@ All they ask is money to acarr.
on. To be able to stand just be.
hind the froIat with chocolate TO
the men who are going tower tn
top: To lie able to stand ther
with hot tea and morphine 70
the men who are staggering bacl
along the way Of painted posts.
Thirty five million dollars i
sis q lot OF money. But you woul
not no say SO if you stood beside tn
way OF painted posts.
You would not say so if GU say
the procession of the walkin
wounded.
It would not be much if one Q
the walking wounded were you
brother or your cousin or you
son.
He may bel one OF them befor
the war is over; he may be owe
there even now. Stand with him
asks the Y M. C. A. Let the han,
that the " M. G.. "a. reaches ou
be your hand. Let the chocolat
that it gives be your chocolate, a
ne goes past the hug-out .'ove
the top
And be there with your cup o