Norwich bulletin., 1918-02-01
What Has Gone Before:

What Has Gone Before:
 The author, an American boy who won his title of Sergeant" in total of 13 years in United States military service aroused to action by the sink ing of the Lusitania, went to England and enlisted in the British army. finally arriving somewhere in France He has his first experience under gun-fire from the Germans, and finally takes his place in a ntline trench. ,.
 Occasionally bullet would crack overhead, and a machine gun would kick up the mud on the bashed-in parapet. At each crack would duck and shield my face with my arm. One of the older men noticed this action of mine and whispered: Don't duck at the crack of bull let, Tank; the. danger has passed you never hear the one that wings you. Always remember that if you are going to get it, you'll get it, so never worry
 This made great impression on me at the time, and from then on, I adopted his motto "If you're going to get it, you'll get it."
 After an hours hard work, all my nervousness left me and l was laugh ing and joking with the rest. At 1 o'clock dinner came up in the I form of dixie of hot stew. !, I looked for my canteen. It had fa1- len off the fire step, and was half bur- | jed in the mud. The man on my left | noticed this, and told the corporal | dishing out the rations, to put my share in his mess tin. Then he whis- pered to me, Always take care of I your mess tin, mate"
 | had learned another maxim of the ] trenches.
 That stew tasted fine. was as hungry as a bear. We had seconds, or another helping, because three of the men had gone west" killed by i the explosion of the German trench mortar, and we ate their share but still l was. hungry so I filled in with bully beef and biscuits. Then | drained my water bottle. Later or I. learned another maxim of the front I line-"Go sparingly with your water The bully beef made me thirsty, an6 by tea time l was dying for a drink but my pride would not allow me tt ask my mates for water. I was fasr learning the ethics of the trenches.
 That night I was put on guard witt an older man. We stood on the fri
  ing out into No Mans Land. It wa. nervous work for me, but the othei fellow seemed to take is as part O the nights routine.
 Then something shot past my face My heart stopped beating, and I duck ed my head below the parapet. sof chuckle from my mate brought me t my senses and I feebly asked, "Fo Gods sake, what was that?"
 He answered; "Only a rat taking promenade along the sand bags
 felt very sheepish. -,. .-- About every 20 minutes the sentr- in the next traverse would fire a sta shell from his flare pistol. The "plop would give me a start of fright.
 never got used to this noise durin my service in the trenches.
 I would watch the arc described ,b the star shell, and then stare into x l Mans Land waiting for it to burs In it's lurid light the barbed wire an stakes would be silhoutted against it i. light like a latticed window The l darkness --94..s= Once, out in front of our wire, !, heard a noise and saw dark form moving. My rifle was lying acros , the sandbag gged parapet. l reached fo it, and was taking aim to fire, whe my mate grasped my arm and whis pered, Don't fire" He challenged i a low voice. The reply came back in stantly from the dark forms:
 Shut your blinkin' mouth, yo bloomin'> idiot; do you want us | click it from the Boches?"
 Later we learned that the wor, "No challenging or firing, wiring part out in front" had been given to tn
 sentry on our right, but ne had faile to pass it down the trench. An office had overheard our challenge and tn reply, and immediately put the offend , ing sentry under arrest. The sentr
 clicked 21 days on the wheel, that i he received 21 days field punishme1 No l, or "crucifixion," as Tomm a terms it.
 This consists of being spread eagle
 on the wheel of a Timber two hours
 day for 21 days, regardless of u
 weather. During this period your ra
 tions consist of bully beef, biscuits an n water. \ r A few months later I met this ser