The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1918-08-09


that train; it was all his fault ESQ we
reasoned) !; why hadn't he speeded up a
little or been on time, then we would
have gotten off before the order ar
rived? Now it was no Blighty for us.
That return journey was misery to
us; just can't describe it.
When we got back to rest billets, we
found that our brigade was in the
trenches (another agreeable surprise)
and that an attack was contemplated.
Seventeen of the forty-one will never
get another chance to go on leave;
they were killed in the attack. Just
think If that train had been on time,
those seventeen would still be alive.
I hate to tell you how I was kidded
by the boys when got back, but 1t was
good and plenty.
Our machine gun company took over
their part Of the line at seven o'clock,
the night after I returned from my
near leave.
At 3 80 the following morning three
waves went over and captured the first
and second German trenches. The
machine gunners went over with the
fourth wave to consolidate the cap
tured line or "dig in" as Tommy calls
it.
Crossing No Mans Land without
clicking any casualties, we came to
the German trench and mounted our
guns ON the parados Of same.
never saw such mess in my life
punches of twisted barbed wire lying
about, shell holes everywhere. trench
all dashed in, parapets gone, and dead
bodies, why, that ditch was full of
them, theirs and ours. It was a regu-
lar morgue. Some were mangled hor-
ribly from our shell fire, while others
were wholly or partly buried in the
mud, the result Of shell explosions cav
ing in the walls of the trench. One
dead German was lying on his back,
with rifle sticking straight up in the
air, the bayonet of which was buried
to the hilt in his chest. Across his feet
lay a dead English soldier with bull
let hole in his forehead. This Tommy
must have been killed just as he ran
his bayonet through the German.
Rifles and equipment were scattered
about, and occasionally steel helmet
could be seen sticking out of the mud.
At one point, just IN the entrance to
a communication trench, was stretch
er. On this stretcher a German was
lying with white bandage around his
knee, near to him lay one of the
stretcher-bearers, the red cross on his
arm covered with mud and his helmet
filled with blood and brains. Close by,
sitting up against the wall of the
trench, with head resting on his chest,
was the other stretcher-bearer. He
seemed to be alive, the posture was so
natural and easy; but when got
closer could see large, jagged hole
In his temple. The three must have
been killed by the same shell-burst.
The dugouts were all smashed in and
! knocked about, big sQuare-cut timbers
splintered into bits, walls caved in and
entrances chOked.
Tommy, after taking a trench, learns
to his sorrow that the hardest part Of
the work is to hold it.
In our case this proved to be so.
The German artillery and machine
guns had us tapped (ranged) for fair;
it was worth your life to expose your
self an instant.
Don't think for minute that the
Germans were the only sufferers; we
were clicking casualties so fast that
you needed an adding machine to keep
track of them.
Did you ever see one of the steam
shovels at work on the Panama canal?
Well, 1t would look like a hen scratch
ing alongside of Tommy digging in"
while under fire. You couldn't see day.
light through the clouds of dirt from
his shovel.
After losing three out of six men of
our crew we managed to set up our
machine gun. One of the legs of the
tripod was resting on the chest of a
half-buried body. When the gun was
firing, it gave the impression that the
body was breathing. This was caused
by the excessive vibration.
| Three or four feet down the trench,
about three feet from the ground, a
foot was protrudlng from the earth.