The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1918-07-04
HUN ATROCITIES PICTURED
IJEJTT. ROOTH HOLDS AUDIENCE
BY NARROWING NARRATIVE.
People Have Done Much Already But
Pleads With Them to Buy Thrift
Stamps and Certificates.

years and eleven months in the
world war from the time of his
leaving with the first Canadian con-
tingent, where he was a commission
ed officer with the Canadian Field Ar
tillery. and dwelling for the most
part on the barbarous treatment OF
the Boche toward their prisoners and
even the inhumane treatment to their
own soldiers, Lieut. c. B. Booth prov
ed an interesting talker and per-
sonage at the Modjeska theatre re-
Gently, says the Augusta Chronicle.
The Canadian officer, who twice
was gassed by the Germans and is
in this country on leave of absence
With the hope of recuperating, elicit
ed applause when he told his audi
tors that his mother was Southern
er, coming from Virginia, and that
there is a strong relation for him
existing with the Southern people.
When the war was declared Aug
ust 4, 1914, Canada did not have
to send many troops to assist the
mother country, Great Britain, but it
was discussed in parliament and a
division of $4,000 men was decided
upon, the speaker jocularly remark
ing that they believed at that time
that one division would be sufficient
to quell the Bun.
Enlisted for Service.
Lieut.. Booth had been a reserve
officer in Canada, but on the decls-
ion to send troops to France he i'm
,mediately enlisted in the Canadian
Field Artillery. After eight weeks
of training near Quebec, the divis-
ion was transported to England,
where they remained in training un-
til February Is, when they were
sent to France. Loaded into box
cars, 40 men or eight horses to the
car, and sometimes horses and men
in the same car, the division was
started to the firing line, distance
of 100 miles. Each man was ration
ed with two hard tack biscuit and a
can of corned beef, 'bully beef.
This ration was believed sufficient for
the journey at the time, but the
railroads were so congested with the
transfer Of supplies and troops that
one would have thought the men in
hard straits.
eve would, indeed, have been in
a hard way had not the English aud
American Red Cross come to our
rescue. At every stop we made we
found hot coffee and cake awaiting
us, and the same order of things pre-
walls today in this country, the Am
erican Red Cross working lnde-
fatigably for the mems comfort he
said.
The contingent was detrained IL
miles from the firing line. The or
der of warfare was new to the Ca
nadians who had devoted the great
er part of their time to open war
fare. In order to get acquainted
with the adopted style, platoons were
taken daily from each battery of the
Canadian artillery and sent with the
older fighting battalions to the front
line. Officers as we'll as men were
Included in the detail until the en-
tire division had been under fire.
The position given the Canadians
was impossible for an engagement
and was rear that place where the
American artillery was first assign
ed. In three weeks the total of
Canadian casualties. was but Is and
tall men of the maple leaf thought
that they were having an easy time
Of it.
Under Fire First Time.
Soon afterwards the Canadians
were ordered to Ypres. 1t was here
that Lieut.. Booth experienced his
first gas attack and believes that it
was one of the first attacks of this
nature made by the enemy. He and
q cousin, commanding officer of the
unit, were in an observation posi-
ton. Adjoining them were Algerian
troops. Looking over the observa-
ton parapet, they saw a heavy,
greenish cloud that looked as if it
might be fog. The Algerians had
begun to get restless, many of them
falling to the ground and acting
strangely. The cousin of the speak
er walked into the embankment and
died, gassed, in agony, seven minutes
later.
Chlorine gas was used at that
time. It is greenish in color and
five times heavier than air and is
used only with favorable winds
Later Lieut Booth in walking I'D