The Huttig news., 1918-04-20
CHAPTER XIV.
Picks and Shovels.

had not slept long before the sweet voice or the sergeant informed toat "No. 1 section had clicked for another blinking digging party" smiled to myself with deep satisfaction. I had been promoted from mere digger to a member of the Suicide club. and was exempt from all fatigues. Then came an awful shock. The sergeant looked over in my direction and said:
 Don't you bomb throwers think you are wearing top hats out here. Cord in to orders you've been taken up on the strength of this section. and will have to do your bit with the pick and shovel, same as the rest of us.
 put up howl on my way to- get my shovel, but the only thing th;f re- sulted was a JOSS CT guuu nunHor on my part.
 We fell In at eight o'clock, outside of our billets, sort of masquerade party. I was disguised as common laborer had pick and shovel, and about one hundred empty sandbags. The rest, about two hundred In all, were equipped likewise: picks, shovels, sandbags, rifles and ammunition.
 The party moved out In column of fours, taking the road leading to the trenches. Several times we had to string out in the ditch to let long col umns of limbers, artillery and supplies get past.
 The marching, under these condi- tions, was necessarily slow. Upon ar rival at the entrance to the communi- cation trench. I looked at my illumi- mated wrist watch-it was eleven o'clock.
 Before entering this trench, word was passed down the line, mo talking or smoking, lead off in single file, GOV ering party first"
 This covering party consisted of 30 men, armed with rifles. bayonets. bombs, and two Lewis machine guns. They were to protect us and guard against surprise attack while dig gsng In No Mans Land.
 The communication trench was about half mile long, zigzagging ditch, eight feet deep and three feet wide.
 Now and again, German shrapnel would whistle overhead and burst In our vicinity We would crouch against the earthen walls while the shell frag- ments slapped" the ground above us
 Once Fritz turned loose with ma chine gun, the bullets from which "cracked" through the air and kicked up the dirt on the top, scattering sand and pebbles, which, hitting our steel helmets, sounded like hailstones.
 Upon arrival In the fire trench an officer of the Royal Engineers gave us our instructions and acted as guide.
 We were to dig an advanced trench two hundred yards from the Germans (the trenches at this point were six hundred yards aparb.
 Two winding lanes, five feet wide, had been cut through our barbed wire, for the passage of the diggers. From these lines white tape had been iald on the ground to the point where we were to commence work. This m or der that we would not get lost in the darkness. The proposed treueh "aS also laid out with tape.
 The covering party went out first. After short walt, two scouts came back with information that the work ing party was to follow and "carry on with their work.
 In extended order, two yards apart, we noiselessly crept across No Mans Land. It was nervous work; every minute we expected a machine gun 10 open fire on us. Stray bullets "eracked' around us, or ricochet sang over- head.
 Arriving at the taped diagram ol the trench. rifles slung around our shoulders, we lost no time in gettlng