Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-11-02
1 saw one regiment go INTO acrlon TOR
the first time.

ta04s4 01t -"
out, and there were only twenty-three
of them to answer the last roll call.
1t was a heartbreaking sight and I'M
possible to forget.
One day I went to some trenches our
division had Just taken over. The wa
ter was ADORE u knees, and there was
also about a foot of soft mud. In feel
ing around for a firmer foothold my
foot struck something more solid than
the ground around me. started
stamping and kicking about, but |
couldn't seem to make 1t give way. Be-
ing curious, of my comrades and
dug down with ~intrenching tools.
What we unearthed was the body of a
dead Frenchman. Heaven only knows
how long he had been there. but he
was as black as a derby hat.
At this time the Dickebusch-Holle-
beke road was alive with snipers. In
some way they would get through our
lines and secrete themselves along the
road, where they could pick Off indiyid-
uals without much fear of being seen.
l noticed that there was one place In
particular where we always heard a
bullet pass too close to be comfortable.
1t was a little wooden bridge, and !
don't think / ever crossed 1t without
hearing one whine past me.
One day / rode up with a second lieu
tenant of the Royal Engineers. AS we
crossed the bridge a bullet whizzed be-
tween us, but when I looked at the off,
~. H. J;I .o4 onnaor 20 hnxra rnfiood
it, SO l didn't say anything. About
three hours later we were coming back
the same way. Just before we came to
the bridge he said:
"That blasted sniper has potted at
me once too often. Well leave the
road here and sneak down opposite
that bridge under cover of the trees.
Let us see If we can find the blighter.
Well wait until he pots at somebody
else, and you keep your ears stretched
and try to locate where the report
comes FROM"
We tethered our horses to a tree and
crept down to a point just about OPP
posite the bridge. After a few min
utes an empty transport wagon came
along. AS this hit the bridge l dis
tinctly heard the crack of a rifle, but
it came from behind and to the right
Of us. We heard the bullet sing over
our heads and saw the driver duck and
put the whip to his horses.
Very quietly we crawled back In the
direction from which the report had
come. After going about 100 yards we
lay still and waited. Pretty o we
heard the rifle crack again, and 1t
wasn't very far away, but was still
behind us. We went a little farther,
and the lieutenant whispered: Keep
your eyes skinned. Watch the trees"
/ could see no sign of life anywhere,
but l knew that the sniper must be
very close. After several minutes wait
the report came again, and this time it
was so close that I jumped. We heard
the ejector fly back and the bolt snap
home again. And then 1 saw him!
The sniper was well up In a tree,
and he vas almost invisible, so well
was a screen of branches drawn up
around him. His rife was fitted up In
a tripod, and the legs of this tripod
WC1C AalCQ " LAC OldAChcS VI LnC tlcc.
All he had to do vas to sit there and
pull the trigger. / eased back the bolt
of my rifle so as to make no noise,
and / eased 1t home again. The lieu
tenant drew his revolver, and we took
a steady aim together.
Fire" he said softly, and the two
shots rang out as one. Mr.. SHIPPER
| a0n1o dnuun 1t1yn n fhoncon6 hriolr
l climbed the tree to have a look at
his nest, and 1t certainly was ingenious.
That rifle was fixed dead across the
center of the bridge, so all he had to
do was to pull the trigger when he
heard anything strike the wooden
planking of the bridge. 1t was a pref
ty little scheme, but 1t came to an end.
as all things, good or bad, must.
Other traps such as this were all too
common along this road, but eventual
ly we cleared the most of them out.
Many Of the snipers would wear civil
ian clothes, some would be wearing
the British uniform, and some would
have the nerve to s their own uni
forms.
W. SaPLdlCo low VI LhCSC tut
alive. Their admissions were almost
unbelievable. They confessed to hav-
ing patrolled the road every night and
actually greeted any of our chaps they
CHANGED to pass. They knew the
names of most of the regiments In that
vicinity, and some of them even knew
the nicknames our fellows had for
their officers. 1t is a job that requires
heaps of nerve, but it is a dirty, despi-
cable game.
A German sniper was killed one
night, and the fellows who brought
him down decided to play a Joke on
an Irishman in their regiment. They
took the body Of the sniper and carried
1t about a hundred yards off the road,
twhere they propped it up against a
tree and also fixed a rifle to its shout
der. Then they went in search of the
A.