Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1917-08-14
The Bomb Raid.


selected long before by our scouts. 1t
was not, as you might suppose, the
weakest point In the German line. 1t
was, on the contrary, the strongest. It
was considered that the moral effect OF
cleaning up q weak point would be
comparatively small, whereas to break
in at the strongest point would be
something really worth while. And If
we were to take chance 1t really
wouldn't pay to hesitate about degrees.
The section we were to raid had q
frontage Of $50 yards and depth OF
200 yards. 1t had been explained to US
that we were to be supported by a
"box barrage," or curtain fire, from
our artillery to last exactly twenty-six
minutes-that is, for twenty-six min
utes from the time when we started
"over the top" our artillery, several
miles back, would drop a curtain" OF
shells all around the edges Of that $50
yard by 200 yard section. We were to
have fifteen minutes In which to do
our work. Any man not out at the
end Of the fifteen minutes would neces-
sarily be caught in our own fire, as our
artillery would then change from a
"box" to pour straight curtain fire
covering all Of the spot Of our opera
lions.
Our officers set their watches very
carefully with those of the artillery Of
ficers before we went forward to the
front trenches. We reached the front
at II p. m, and not until our arrival
there were we informed Of the "zero
hour"-the time when the attack was
to be made. The hour Of 1910 had
been selected. The waiting from II
o'clock until that time was simply an
agony. Some of our men sat stupid
and inert. Others kept talking con-
stantly about the most inconsequential
matters. One man undertook to tell a
funny story. No one listened to 1t, and
the laugh at the end was emaciated
and CHASTITY. The inactiOn was driving
us all into state of funk. could ac-
tually feel my nerve oozing out at my
finger tips, and If we had had to wait
fifteen minutes longer I wouldn't have
been able to climb out Of the trench.
About half an hour before we were
to 20 over every man had his eye up
the trench, for we know 1.-THE rummies"
were coming that way. The rum gang
serves out stiff shot Of Jamaica just
before an attack, and it would be a
real test of temperance to see q man
refuse. There were no prohibitionists
In our sek Whether or not we got our
full ration depended on whether the
sergeant in charge was drunk or sober.
After the shot began to work one man
next me pounded my leg and hollered
In my ear: :.
II say, why all this red taper Let's
60 over now"
That noggin Of rum is a life saver.
When the hour approached for US to
start the artillery fire was 80 heavy
that orders had to be shouted into ears
from man to man. The bombardment
was. of course, along couple OF miles
Of front so that the Germans would not
know where to expect us. At Il O'Clock
exactly they began pulling down q sec
ton Of the parapet 80 that we wouldn't
have to climb over 1t and We were on.
There are six articles In this remark.
able series by Sergeant McClintock.
Two have already been printed, and
the third will appear soon. 1t IL the
most interesting one Of the series thus
far and Is entitled:
sovsr the Top and Give EN- He'll"
The English Tommys battle cry a. hs
breaks from his trench. The bomb raid
and what happened. OF sixty that start
ed forty-six failed to return because ths
Germans had prepared . surprise foI
| them Graphic description Of Sergeant
McClintock's terrible experience