The daily banner., 1918-03-14
"Over the Top
Bv An American Soldier
Who Went
ARTHUR GUY EMPEY
Machine Gunner Serving in France
(Cooyright, 1917, by Arthur Guy HmpeD
CHAPTER x.
Machine Gunner Serving in France
"The DAVIS Work"

I was fast learning that there is
regular routine about the work of the
trenches, although it is badly upset at
times by the Germans.
The real work in the fire trench
commences at Sundown. Tommy is
like a burglar, he works at night.
Just as il begins to get dark the
word "stand to" is passed from traV-
erse to traverse, and the men get busy.
The first relief. consisting of two men
TO a traverse, mount the fire step, one
man looking over the top, while the
other sits at his feet, ready to carry
messages or to inform the platoon OH
Ger of any report made by the sentry
as to his observations in No Mans
Land. The sentry is not allowed 70
relax his watch for a second. If he Is
questioned from the trench or asked
his orders. he replies without turning
around or taking his eyes from the eX-
panse of dirt in front of him. The re-
mainder of the occupants of his traV-
erse either sit on the fire step, with
bayonets fixed, ready for any emer-
gency, or if lucky, and dugout hap
pens to be in the near vicinity of the
traverse, and if the night is quiet, they
are permitted to go to same and try
and snatch few winkS of sleep. Little
sleeping is done; generally the men SIT
around, smoking fags and seeing who
can tell the biggest lie. Some of them,
perhaps with their feet in water, would
write home sympathizing with the
"goyernor' because he was laid up
with q cold, contracted by getting his
feet wet on his way to work in Wool
wich arsenal. If a man should manage
to doze off, likely as not he would wake
with a start as the clammy, cold feet
of a rat passed over his face, or the
next relief stepped on his stomach
while stumbling on their way to relieve
the sentries in the trench.
Just try to sleep with belt full OF
ammunition around you, your rifle bolt
biting into your ribs, intrenching tool
handle sticking into the small of your
back, with tin hat for pillow ana
feeling very damp and cold, with
"cooties" boring for oil in your arm
pits, the air foul from the stencil of
grimy human bodies AMI smoke from
juicy pipe being whitfield into your nos
trils, then you will not wonder why
Tommy occasionally takes Il turn in
the trench for rest.
While in a front-line trench orders
forbid Tommy from removing his
boots, puttees, clothing or equipment.
The "cOotieS" take advantage of this
order and mobilize their forces, and
Tommy swears vengeance on them and
mutters to himself, Just wait until
hit rest billets and am able to get my
own back"
Just before daylight the men turn
to" and tumble out of the dugouts, man
the fire step until it gets light, or the
welcome order "stand down" is given.
Sometimes before "stand down" is or
dered, the command "fEe rounds rap
i'd" is passed along the trench. This
means that each man must rest his
rifle on the top and fire as rapidly as
possible five shots aimed toward the
German trenches. and then duck with
the emphasis on the ''duck'). There is
"a great rivalry between the opposing
forces to get their rapid fire all off
first, because the early bird, in this in
istance, catches the worm-sort of gets
the jump on the other fellow. catching
him unawares.
We had sergeant in our battalion
named Warren. He was on duty witt
his platoon in the fire trench one after