The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1918-07-31


l25th Michigan Infantry, in which
are number of Belding boys, Jack
Barren and others, who while with
the Flint company have their homes
here.
Somewhere in2
In Front Line Trenches.
June IA, 1918.
Last night just before midnight |
had finished a letter home telling how
Fritz had been shelling Co. z all day
and how / decided to stop it. (You
see we are holding one of the most
important salients i'm this line in this
sector). / stopped it by calling upon
our artillery to deliver retaliatory fire
upon the post of command of the Ger
man major opposite to US. By care
full observation we had succeeded in
locating it. Our artillery knocked it
into cooked hat and his fire stopped
at once. We were quite amused think
ing how Fritz would be looking among
the ruins for his calabash pipe Well
wrote quite a joke letter about il.
will not joke about war again for
Fritz evidently had a card up his
sleeve.
II had no more sealed the letter
and started it upon its way and was
about to seek sweet repose in my wal
nut bed, Eyes we have accumulated
them from the ruined houses and plac-
ed them in our dugouts), when he
opened up his first number of his pro-
gram. His fire all morning along
our entire line had been registration
fire so that he might know that his
engines of war were propsrly laid, so
they could fire accurately in the dark.
To the minute, at midnight, he started
with every p-ece Of artillery within
reach, IT'S, 105's, trench mortars,
minenwurfers and everything that
could hurl shell. His fire embrac-
ed the Singalese (so-called African
colonial troops,) and our entire sector
so we could not tell the exact point of
his maneuver.
1t was the most terrific and stupen-
dous thing / ever heard or that mortal
could dream. 1t was as regular as
music and each instrument played its
describe it. 1t was like monster
carnival of cannibal drums set in the
earth. 1t was barbaric music at it's
sublimest and was tuneful in its way
l well remember kettle drum solo
| by Thomas orchestra at Ann Arbor,
riot of sound, but that was pitiful
replica of the real thing. The very
earth trembled and unconsciously
your cry being began to sing the Song
of the gum Unwillingly your very
heart strongs began to respond to the
awful harmony. 1t was sublime and
awe-inspiring in its majesty
A new note crept into the harmony.
1t was the short angry bark of our
own 75's and the deep throated growl
Of cur loss, the pitiful yet sinister
lclanking and clicking of the machine
: guns combined with automatic rifles
and regular rife fire. Then grad
ually the swelling note of the hand
4 bombs andy. BIS or rifle grenades;
and all along the line fireworks tell
( ing of local distress. aiding, guiding
and directing with their tell-tale mes
sages of color and form the opera
tons inc dent to the maneuver.
For two hours this din, this carni-
val of devils, this song of the war
gods continued and then gradually
died away to silence-to silence the
more absolute because of the hellish
melody gone before. And all was
quiet. All was at peace except for
the occasional inquiring flare sent up
by the faithful warders and watchers
on the edge of No Mans Land
And through it all could see each
of those brave lads fighting his own
little fight in the inky blackness of
the night. | could see his mother as
she threw her arms around my neck
and confided her son to my care:
could see the sweetheart, all shyness
gone, begg ng me tc bring her loved
one home ] could see a strong-heart-
ed father with tears upon his cheeks
and feel his warm handclasp and
goodbye as he asked me to look after
his boy. Her boy-his boy, out
there on the edge of Nc Mans Land
with a mission--one of the thousand
in my command and yet each one a
particular cne doing his little BIT to
hold the onrushing Boche. All this
N j could see upon the screen of my
memcry and more, and those at home
who think it is nice job to hold a
place of command, pray the good
Lord that you have not the lives Of a
thousand men dependent upon your
Judgment and skill
Thus have / described as best
might, as best my language gives
me power, the devils carnival during
which L company proved itself, during
which the steel and discipline, the
hopes and ideals of our months of
training have bene bu.lded into the
very souls of our men. And did they
respond |? Well, listen and l will tell
you the details.
On my left front occupying a very
difficult position and opposite the
enemy stronghold was If company.
The intensity of the fire burst like a
tornado. especially on two platoons
and thinned out to right and left
along the line as we have since de-
termined. Upon that little band Of
watchers in the front line of observa-
tion it fell. These men were not
supposed to hold these watcher-posts
IN case of attack but were supposed
to fall back to regularly prepared pc
sitions little in the rear where they
would be in conjunction with the bal
: ance of their command.
But the barrage fell like sledge-
hammer. and caught them without
warning at their posts and smashed
- l. - IL