The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1917-08-17
COMFY QUARTERS
IN THE TRENCHES
French Miners Have FASH
toned Some Remarkable
Dug Outs.
1corespondence AgyOcIated Press

sleep underground in comparative COM
fort, even In the front lines when the
Germans are hurting tens OF thousands
Of shells on the ground above them,.
thanks 10 the work Of the companies
Of excayators formed since the begin
ming of the war. The men chosen to
construct these shelters, which have
preserved so many thousands OF lives,
are soldiers whose age varies between
forty.fiVe and fifty and who would have
been. unfit to take part in the active
operations Of modern battles, where
Quickness of movement and litheness
OF limb are absolute necessities. No
matter what the nature Of the soil,
whether hard rock, Quick-sand, chalk
or marshy land, these veterans have
overcome all the difficulties and have
succeeded in constructing formidable
bomb.proot shelters all along the line
Of the front from the North Sea TO the
Swiss frontier until at the present mo-
ment any fighting unit arriving at al.
most any part of the line finds habit
able dugout awaiting it.
The correspondent Of The Associated
Press has seen and been inside dozens
o ftbese subterranean cities-for such
they may be termed-at many places,
and, even where all the natural condi'
lions are difficult, has found the shell
ters commodious, welldrained and we'll
ventilated. In some cases battalion
finds accommodation in single shell.
ter, and each man lodged in it is pro-
vided with simple bed consisting OF
wire.netting foundation supported by
wooden uprights. On this the soldier
lays his regulation bundle OF straw and.
covering himself with his army blank
OF and greatcoat, can sleep with free
dom from anxiety as to any lombard
ment in progress outside. The shell
ters are provided generally with cleo
trio light or aCetylene lamps, sanitary
convenienCes, and, in some cases. with
complete shower.baths.
First aid posts and dressing stations
with all modern surgical appliances
are also to hand, so that the surgeon
attached to the unit may attend imme
diately to any wounded men brought in
from the nearby battlefield.
So well are the shelters protected
from the view OF the enemy that, al
though in many instances the under
ground lodging covers an area of 5000
square yards, not once in the course Of
the past year has one Of them been de.
stroyed by the enemys fire They
have many exits, the plan being to pro-
vide one for each section or quarter
company so that in case one exit
should be hit and blocked, the men in.
side may escape through another open,
Ing.
At the beginning of the war the SOL
aiers actually in the fighting line
made their own shelters, which wer.
Just holes dug in the ground and Gov
cred with tree-trunks and earth and
affording very little protection, besides
taking up much of the time of the sol.
diers and costing very much labor ana
money for transporting the necessary
timber.
1t was then decided to utilize the
older classes of the reserve of the ter.
ritorial army who had been called to
the colors and who, despite their pre-.
vious military training, had been found
unable to bear the strain of campaign.
ing. Several companies of them were
formed and they were first given the
task OF constructing shelters in the
Somme district and around Verdun.
Their officers were chosen from the en-.
gineer corps and from men who in civil
life were engaged in similar undertak.
tngs, such as builders and miners. Most
OF the men were peasants used to dig
gtng in the fields and their work was
very satisfactory, but this kind of ex.
cavating work was different and they
suffered considerably from the unusual
motion OF having to throw the earth
upward, or wheeling It in barrows up
steep inclnes.
One of the officers overcame this
trying difficulty by inventing an ap.
paratus for carrying loOsened earth or
rock to the surface by use of electric
power. BY this arrangement two men
can 90 the work formerly done by ten.
When the earth has reached the sur,
face 1t falls into barrows and is wheel.
ed away along the level and distribut.
ed about in such a manner as not to
attract the attention OF the enemy's air.
men always flying about the lines to
observe what is going on in the oppos.
Ing position.
Special army saw.mins have been
started to provide the props and plank.
Ing for the shelters and everything is
done at minimum cost.
The veterans so employed have sus.
tanned losses when working in exposed
positions, but no danger appears to
daunt them and they continue their
lob as though they were working in the
fields at home. They have adapted
themselves to the use OF the most mod.
srn tools, and although the great ma.
Iority Of them had no previous expert.
snce Of electric drills and borers they
now use them as well as practiced
miners.
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