Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-08-31

but to surrender. The lieutenant said
his division had Just BEEN put into the
line and was told to hold II at all
costs. He said he had been told nothing
about Americans being around. All In
dications were that the movement OF
Americans to the sector was completely
unknown to the Germans.
I was with the men for twenty-four
hours before they went into the attack
and nothing could have been more SUI.
perb than their enthusiasm. They were
Just itching TO get at the boche again.
When they did. they showed they meant
what they said. Bivouacked In beautiful
woods, they spent most of yesterday
afternoon sleeping. and Just after night
fall got under way. Through villages
Of which only tortured upturned stones
were left, and over shell and trench
marked fields. they filtered toward the
front line. The first Of them got there
about midnight, and the relief Of the
French troops started. which was COM
pleted four hours later.
I was with the American commander
in a big " in a quarry some few
kilometers back of the line. It wal a
weird scene there in the damp and dark
Of that cellar lit by electric bulbs that
were not too numerous.
The sides Of the cave rang like a
bell in response to the never-ending
reverberation Of our guns, scattered all
about thirty feet above us. OF in a
corner a telephone operator sat in a
niche manipulating the wire threads that
tied our force together.
Sleeping men lay everywhere, safe
there in the ground where the heaviest
boche shell or bomb could not touch
them. The hours wore along event.
fully until just after midnight came
the order to attack at Z o'clock.
Military Machine wakes UP
In two minutes the whole of the big
cave was awake. The weary telephone
switchman was replaced by two fresh
men. outside, a motorcycle started Its
roaring, as messengers sped to the front
with maps and orders. Our American
military machine was at work.. TIT
gladstone sporting spirit OF the thing
was what gripped one. There wasn't
a soul there who wasn't glad the scrap
was at hand, and I knew the dough-
boys three kilometers ahead felt the
same way about It.
The preparations for the attack con-
tinued until, along about 8 o'clock, they
we're completed and then u artillery
started with extra zest. Four and hve
guns would go at once. The sharp bark
of the Incompatible TBS was broken
by the heavy roar Of the 1855 and every
now and then some big boy would
speak and the cave would ring like a
bell. Down through the entrances to
the cave seeped the pale light Of dawn.
1t was cloudy. The uns kept on
shooting, shooting. Presently the off,
GERS sat down to breakfast. The COM
mand was served in the cave u.
Breakfast is over and quiet seems TO
fill the cave. In n few minutes 1t will
be 7 o'clock. 1t is two minutes to 7
o'clock. now one minute.
Then all our guns cut loose. 1t was
the barrage ahead Of Our attackers.
There was no way to tell they had
started back there in the cave, but we
knew that behind the curtain Of steel
American doughboys were trotting
ahead hunting for the boche.
1t was twenty minutes past o'clock
when the first messenger came In with
the news that the attack had started
and was going we'll. Then messages
came every five minutes, messages from
cur companies, messages from the
French on the right, messages from the
sage saying a nasty German position
was holding us up. The American COM
mander read It and sent It on to the
artillery commander. and a few mo-
inents later high explosives were tear
Ing the boche position to pieces.
Eight o'clock brought the message
that our forces were well on the way,
Eight-ffteen brought the message that
they were still further on. and at 8
o'clock came word that the railroad
had been reached at s O'Clock at sew
eral points. This message told of the
American boys going on further than