Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1917-04-05
AMERICANS MAKING
NAMES IN BALKANS

PARIS, April 5.--A little band of
American college men are making
name for America in the Balkans to-
day.
This band is composed of more than
80 young Americans who sailed for
France about a year ago to become
ambulance drivers for the American
Ambulance Field service, under the di-
rection of A. Piatt Andrew, of La
Porte, Ind, and Gloucester, Mass,
former assistant secretary of the U. S.
treausry.
Two sections of ambulances in addi-
ton to many others now working on
the western front are with the French
armies in the Monastir region or re-
conquered southern Servia.
Carrying wounded always at night,
over wild roads through rocky noun
tain passes and over mountains is only
part o fthe work these American COL
legians are doing, according to Ennis
Brown of Charleston, S. c., who has
just reached Paris on his way back to
America. Brown joined the ambul
ance service while a student at Vir-
ginia University. He is the first Amer
lean to return since the Americans
embarked at Marseilles for Salonica.
For months since our Allies took
Monastir our ambulances have been
very busy in the Balkans" Brown told
the writer today. From our main
headquarters near Monastir we have
carried the wounded from the trenches
north of Monastir; from Koritza to
the west, where the French blesses
come from the front Ines by mule back
over the mountins and from other
points wherever we are directed by the
French military authorities. Some
times it has been necessary to use
good strong American arm work to
pull even our light American cars
over the difficult roads.
ITO give some sort of an idea what
the wounded are going through. it is
sometimes fifteen days before a man
reaches a good comfortable hospital
after he wounded on the front line
west of Koritza Our ambulance can
only penetrate as far as Kortza. Here
we take aboard men woh have travelled
for days on mule back. We then rush
them as fast as possible toward COM
fort in the nearest thing to a mule that
can be found in the Balkans-Our lit
tie Detroit made ambulances.
Sometimes the American drivers
take their cars almost to the front
trenches north of Monsatir. Usually,
however, we can pick up a load in the
town itself
All drivers are armed with reyolv-
ers now on account of the Turkish and
Bulgar comitadjis who have no use for
Americans. Several drivers, including
John Imbrey of Washington, D. c.,
have had adventures with them, but
luckily so far no one has been hurt"
When Brown left the Balkans seven
cars of the two sections had been
smashed by shells, four of them be-
yond repair. Among the members OF
his section were: Arthur Plumenthal,
of Wilmington, n c., famous football
star at Princeton in 1918; Lowering
Hill, New York City, former Harvard
student; Powell Fenton, Philadelphia,
OF the University of Pennsylvania;
Charles Baird of New York city and
many others, mostly Harvard students.
Before Brown went to the Balkans
he had driven an American ambulance
through the big verdun last year. The
termination of his six months enlist
ment and i'll health caused him to-
leove for home Despite finding him
self on a ship en- route which was the
victim of a submarine in the Mediter-
ranean, Brown reached Toulon and
Paris in safety.