Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-02-26
CEDAR RAPIDS MAN WHO DROVE
AMBULANCE IN FRANCE HAS
FASCINATING STORY.
CAPACITY AUDIENCE HEARS
TALES OF vERDUN SERVICE
Straightforward Story Told by Mar.
shall Hides Nothing and Brings
Home ForcibIy Horrors Of War
Many Personal Experiences Add to
Realism of Interesting Talk.

Telling a straightforward and blunt
story of war unadorned with high
flown language or eXtravaganr de-
scription, yet withal so real and vivid
that the word pictures came fast and
etfectually, Vera Marshall, Of Cedar
Rapids. who served for siv months
with the French army as ambulance
driver in the vicinity of Nerdun. held
an audience of at least 1900 for an
hour and forty minutes at the Odeon
Sunday afternoon.
Mr. MarshalrS address was the third
of the Turn to the Right" meetings
being held at the Odeon Sunday after
moons, and was a talk long to be re-
membered in that it brought home as
no amount Of reading or even pictures
could have done the horrors of war.
told by one who had seen and known
and worked with the men who are be-
ing slaughtered daily in Europe.
Beginning with his decision to go TO
Europe and serve as an ambulance
driver. decision made just year
ago. Mr.. Marshall sketched rapidly his
trip over-io Bordeaux. France. where
he and a companion landed March 6.
1916. He enlisted at once as a private
in the French army. but an injury
forced him into a hospital, where he
was compelled to remain for several
days. Here he deliberately accustomed
himself to watching gruesome sights.
knowing full well that he would have
to have the nerve in the ambulance
work.
After leaving the hospital Mr.. Mar
Shalls talk became a series of Incl
dents which ne told simply and
directly. but the facts themselves were
SO astounding that his audience was
almost GREATNESS many times. His
first experience under shell fire, how
he played bridge with some French
officers in a dug out, and how an
enormous shell exploded near him.
were the beginnings OF his adventures.
Describes Verdun Sector.
1t was on June that Marshall and
several other Americans who were in
the ambulance service We're sent TO
verdun by circuitous route. for fear
there might be spies in the crowd. The
Verdun sector Mr.. Marshall described
as eight miles long and twelve feet
deep. a space literally packed with
600, 900 soldiers and the other neces-
sary equipment OF war, so that there
was not even room for the ambulance
drivers tents.A They had to drive
twelve miles every night TO carry the
wounded from the battlefield to the
dressing station. All ambulance work
was done at night after the first few
days.
Among many intensely interesting
incidents told were the episode Of the
Sengalese soldiers from Africa, who
could not be taught to stay in the
trenches following the preliminary at
tack. and were moved down by the
enemy's machine guns time after time;
Of the "shells of mercy turned on the
batlefelds after a fight. to kill the
wounded because 1t was impossible to
90 and bring them IN, OF the heaps of
bodies piled twenty feet deep In some
places, and how men actually died
sta n'ding UP, because there was not
enough room for them to fall down.
Tells Of Personal Experiences.
Following his description of some OF
the general effects Of the war, Mr.
Marshall spoke of some Of the ex-
periences that had befallen him per-
sOnaly, and which We're therefore
brought closer to him. and in that way
enabled him to tell them with more Of
d personal touch. Among these were
the story Of a heap of men he had
seen swept down by one shell. Fifty
men were in the group when the shell
came, and sixteen Of these were killed
outright, while thirty-four were
wounded. Another episode told Of a
soldier who was being taken to the
dressing station in an ambulance.
when he weakly requested piece of
bread. Further conversation revealed
that he had been lying on battle
field for four days and five nights with
nothing to eat or drink, with three
dead men ON top of him to escape the
fragments Of flying shells.
Striking in the extreme was Mar
shall's description of the adventure he
and a companion had in a ruined
church. where they We're seeking some
thing they might carry home as
souvenir Striking a light they found
themselves standing on life-sized
figure Of Jesus Christ, nailed to the
cross. Again he told Of standing and
watching the curtain Of fire" at YER
dun, the dazzling preliminary attack
which was two hours and forty min
utes of steady commandment, during
which time 1850 shells were used,
valued at $4,000. 900.
Story Of Young Soldier Boy.
In closing his talk Mr.. Marshall told