The Nevada County picayune., 1918-09-26

force, lest It might prove menace to the German arms.
 After these hostile troops had crossed, the plan was to destroy the bridge to prevent their being re enforced. That was why the sergeant manning this switch had been kept waiting for the order to blow up the bridge. But the sergeant in the ex- citement and confusion thought that the cable to which his phone was con- nected had been disconnected and blew up the bridge on his own initiative while 1t was crowded by Frenchmen and long before the enemy could have had an opportunity to cut that cable.
 At the same time the officer at the switch connected with the explosives orders. He afterwards said that the order he received was hard to make out and that he had lost his presence of mind and threw In the switch, thereby killing thousands on the bridge and leaving many other thousands to the mercy of the enemy.
 Before there was time for more i'm pressions our entire unit was ordered to Vitry to be assembled in front of the cathedral. With sigh of relief we hurried away, for the French ar tillery began once more to send shells with much accuracy over the entire countryside. Wounded men from other detachments whom we passed on the road told us that the French had al 6v hn ty, prot different places. Everyone among us voiced the same opinion. We had al. ready sustained great losses on Bel. gian soil and each day brought new sacrifices. Our lines became thinner | and thinner. Many companies were entirely destroyed and all units suf- ! fered heavily. These companies whose forces had been reduced to a minimum and with the survivors half starved were opposed by an army well equipped with supplies and arms. The enemy constantly brought up fresh troops while our forces became fewer | from hour to hour. We realized that it was impossible to make a stand here. We were constantly learning | their losses in men and materials were enormous.
 I thought of the God of the Ger mans. Had he forsaken them? l I thought it so loud that the others could hear.
 "Yes," said another. "whom the Lord wishes to punish is first stricken with blindness. Probably he thought of Belgium, Donchery, Sommepy and Suippes, and still many other places and let us run into this perdition like 1 flying fiends."
 We reached Vitry. Here the misery seemed to be still greater than ever before, for in the entire town there was not a single house that was not overcrowded with wounded. In the midst of all this misery robbery four | ished. All residences had been emp tied of their furnishings and every thing was thrown into the streets tc make room for the wounded.
 The sanitary squads went over the town and took everything of any value. The intuition and railroad columns followed the same practice. They had plenty of room for plumber. This was amply proven by numerous seizures afterward of parcels put in the mall. which contained gold rings, watches, precious stones. etc. The business of the marauders flourished here in Vitry. The soldiers in the supply columns en- countered very little actual danger; {; they had an easy time as compared with soldiers fighting at the front.
 We soon reached the cathedral and reported to Lieutenant Elm. He also had defended his fatherland at a safe distance and here in the city. freshly shaved and in immaculate attire he looked very presentable.
 The contrast was vivid as he stood before us who were torn. dirty and GOV cred with blood, with unkempt hair. with boards grown and caked with mud and dirt.
 We were obliged to wait so we sat down and looked around us. The church was full of wounded; many died under the hands of the doctors. They were carried out to make room for others. The dead were carried to | one side, where whole rows of corpses lay. We counted more than sixty. On our way to Vitry we had begged some bread, but we were still hungry and our field kitchens were nowhere in sight. The crews of our field kitchens as we'll as our forage officers and non commissioned officers prefer to defend their fatherland many klometers be hind the battle fronts. They did not care about us as long as they were not obliged to go within range of the artillery fire. COmradeship has its limitations with them.