The Washington herald., 1917-09-23

see everything the Boche is up to.
He's massing now in certain
trenches for a counter attack, and
when he is through concentrating
I'm going to turn my guns on him,
and there won't be much left. Mean
while, I'm for some breakfast.
Guns Pounding Away.
The guns were laundering outside.
all the German and Canadian artillery
in the sector pounding away for all
they were worth, when we four adven-
turers climbed into a car and started
for the best point of observation. BY
good luck, the German cannon at the
moment were concentrating entirely
on the ground they had lost, and were
not shelling the area, generally very
warm, into which we took our motor.
After run of a few minutes through
the waste and desolation of towns ut
terly destroyed whose few grass
grown ruins left from the fighting Of
two years ago seem to be survivaIs
from some long-buried civilization of
thousands of years ago, we left the
car and commenced a long walk,
whose itinerary l cannot describe. At
one point, near a destroyed coal mine,
was long train Of coal cars.
1t was loaded, standing on its siding
ready for movement. when the Ger
mans came in 1914. Either they were
unable to get il away under fire, or
unwilling to use up space on the vital
railway through Lens which all
through the war has supplied this sec
tor with men and munitions. The train
has remained, subject to the shell fire
of the French in 1914 and 1915, Of the
British last year, and now of the Ger
mans, in one of the hottest corners in
Europe. Great towns around # have
disappeared, blown TO pieces. Bridges.
tracks, even in some places the rail-
way cmbankment, have gone. Many
coal cars. directly struck by great
shells, have disappeared; others.
broken and twisted. lie below the en-
bankment or across the tracks.
But by curious freak of war. there
are a few cars, fun OF coal, that re-
main little damaged, their French
bills of lading. dated October, 1914
still attached to their sides. | found
one such car on which there was no
trace Of bullet hole. On each side
Of IT were masses Of twisted machinery
and broken rails. There it stood, iIs
precious cargo (why the Germans had
not burned the coal in their trench
braziers in winter / cannot imaginel
saved for France. But how they will
ever be able to get that car out Of the
miles Of desClatiOn that surround il.
even after the enemy is driven back
from Lens, none Of US could predict.
Advance Is UnpIeasant.
Tho
vance toward the front were extreme
" unpleasant Thousands Of shells.
many Of them of the largest size, We're
going over our heads, and in several
places We ran as fast as possible
through open spaces, tripping over
barbed wire and into shell holes, cast
ing s!delong and fearful glanccs, as
We ran, at buildings and Stag heaps
mat seemed murjerouSly near. from
which We knew enemy eyes. aided by
incompatible telescope lenses made
In Germany" were watching US. But
there was really little danger. The
terrible upraar in tie outskirts OF Lens
before us meant that both sides were
concentrating on infantry ighting. and
at SStti unacs there are no guns idle
to shell a few odd men lodging about
field.
At length we got under cover again.
Then came half an hour Of climbing
through mudhOles and ontanglemenIs,
UP and down shelltorn slopes till final
ly, after a squeeze through q ditch
tull Of mud, We arrived at our goal
and found the whole battle spread out
before US.
1t was like war in Wilkes Barre.
Tho whole
far as we could see was made UP of
Stag heaps, pit heads crowned by torn
and smashed machinery and dwelling
houses. just before us were rows OF
houses, beyond a railway. There. we
were told, We're the Germans. Just on
this side. not far in front Of Us, the
Canadian infantry We're Crouching. At
one point not far away shells from
the guns of both sides were crashing
into rows of ruined workmen's cot
tages, and even above the noise of the
explosions a sound as of a thousand
pneumatic riveterS working at once on
the framework of a skyscraper came
to our ears-the machine suns were at
work. Here the infantry were fight
ing; now and then sBulking figures Of
our own men. some carrying machine
guns, some bombs, some rifles. ap-
peared for a moment. dauntlessly
working their way up into the strug-
gle, but no Germans were visible. and
the flying dust and bits Of brisk and
motor made hopeless the attempt TO
see any details of the combat.
Ate Lunch in Shell Hole.
We ate our lunch in a shell hole 80
yards from the enemy, again crossed
some fields, and some water, in view
of the Germans, and climbed another
hill farther back from the battle.
where it was possible to see more at
less risk. On the way across the open
space ] was emboldened by the failure
of the German guns to disturb us. and
stopped before a great concrete dug
out, evidently a German Headquarters,
hidden under the ruins of a smashed
cottage on the western outskirts of
the Cite de Riaumont, a suburb of
Lens of which part, a few hundred
yards to the east, is still held by the
enemy.
In front of the dugout stood a post
bearing sign, in big black letters,
'Durchgang Verbeten." The tempta-
ton was too great. 1 broke the post
down and with some difficulty de-
tached the signboard, and disappeared
on the run with it under my arm,
hoping some German forward observ-
ing officer was gnashing his teeth at
my impudenCe. He would have no
difficulty in reading the sign from his
post. 1t is my souvenir of the battle
of Lens; I think the sign is symbol
ical of much; there are many places to
which admission is forbidden by the
German army which Brittons and
Frenchmen, Canadians and Aus
tralians, and even Americans, will