The Jasper news., 1918-09-12
CHAPTER TX.
Laid Up for Repairs.

Laid Up for Repairs.
One night after l had been at Dix
nude for about three weeks, we made
charge In the face Of very heavy
fire. Our captain always stood at the
parapet when we were going over, and
made the sign Of the cross and shouted,
For God and France" Then we would
go over. Our officers always led us,
but have never seen a German officer
lead a charge. They always were be-
hind their men, driving instead Of lead
ing. l do not believe they are as brave
as they are said to be.
Well, we went over this time, and
the machine guns were certainly going
1t strong. We were pretty sore about
the chaplain and the Swiss and all
that, and we put up an awful fight, but
we could not make it and had to come
back. Only one company reached the
Boche trenches and not man Of 1t
came back who had not been wounded
on the way and did not reach the
trench. They were just wiped out
The captain was missing, too. We
thought he was done for, but about
two o'clock In the morning, he came
back. He simply fell over into the
trench, all in. He had been wounded
four times, and had lain in a shell
crater full Of water for several hours.
He would not go back for treatment
then, and when daylight came, 1t was
too late, because we were practically
cut off by artillery fire behind the front
line trenches.
When daylight came, the artillery
fire opened up right on us, and the
Germans had advanced their lines into
some trenches formerly held by US and
hardly forty-five yards away. We re-
ceived bombs and shells right In our
faces. A Tunisian in our company got
crazy, and ran back over the parados.
He ran few yards, then stopped and
looked back at us. l think he was
coming to his senses, and would have
started back to US. Then the spot
where he had been was empty, and a
second later his body from the chest
down fell not three yards from the
parados. / do not know where the
top part went. That same shell cut O
groove in the low hilltop before it ex
ploded. He had been hit by bic
shell, and absolutely cut In two.
have seen this happen to four men, but
this was the only one in France.
About seven o'clock, we received re
endorsements, and poured fresh troops
over and retook the trench. No sooner
had we entered it, however, than the
Germans turned their artillery on US
not even waiting for their OWN troops
to retire safely. They killed number:
of their own men in this way. But thu
fire was so heavy that, when they coun
ter-attacked, we had to retire again
and this time they kept after us an(
drove us beyond the trench we hat
originally occupied.
We left them there, with our artil
lery taking care of them. and our ma
chine guns trying to entilade them, an,
moved to the right. There was
bunch of trees there, about like small
woods, and as we passed the German
concealed In 1t opened fire on us, an,
we retired to some reserve trenches
We were pretty much scattered by thi
time, and badly cut up. We reformet
there, and were Joined by other of on
troops, in small groups-what was lief
of squads and platoons and singly
Our captain had got 1t fifth time
meanwhile, but he would not leave us
as he was the ranking officer. He ha
a scalp wound, but the others were Il
his arms and shoulders. He could no
move his hands at all.
But he led our charge when we "a
for the woods. We carried some me
chine guns with us as we went, an
the gunners would run a piece, set VI
fire while we opened up for them, an
run on again. Some troops came GU
of a trench still farther TO the RICH
and helped us, and we drove the Gel
mans out of the woods and occupied
ourselves.
From there, we had the Germans /
our old trench almost directly froI