Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1918-10-02
BY CLARENCE B. HOLLAND.

PAris.--A man can be only so
frightened. After that he dies sudden
ly, or laughs, or both. Also, no mat
ter how scared you are, curiosity sur
wives.
If shell is coming, you want to see
it land. If it is going to swat you, you
want to see how it goes about it.
We were going back from the front
back. The battle was behind us.
Privately each one of us didn't care
how much farther behind US it got 1t
could pick up its belongings and move
away from us as fast as we were NOV
ing away from it if it wanted. No
body would hear II protest from any of
us.
! At a crossroads our meteoric prog
reSs was halted by n young and severe
! soldier with VI. F. on his sleeve.
You can't pass he said; they're
| Smelling the road ahead"
He didn't need to tell us. We knew
It, As Il matter of fact we could have
told him things about that road being
sheled that he would never know.
A shell came screaming over our
| heads to ''wham" down alongside the
road u hundred yards beyond. 1t
wasn't big she'll In calmer mo-
ment, and at a greater distance, l
might have admitted that IL was a lit
tie shell, an insignificant shell, neg
| ligible three-inch shell. But when it
went over my head ! was willing to
take oath that II was A. centimeter.
| When | was dug out of the ditch into
which l had dived and the mud
scraped out of my eyes l took "A last
look down the road.
Cap as Shock Absorber.
Something was paining me in the re-
gion Of the knees Also there was "A
sound resembling that made by Broth
er Bones in the minstrel show. Minute
| examination demonstrated that the
| pain was caused by the knees assault
ing each Other venomously | stuck
my cap between them as shock alb
! sorber and looked again.
1t was busy little road. 1t was not
popular road. Everybody on it had
taken a dislike to it and was moving
| away with enthusiasm. In the dis
lance were three German prisoners
and one American private. The pri-
| waite was on a horse 1t looked a very
fast horse, but the Germans We're hav-
ing trouble with IT, 1t kept getting in
their way. They stumbled over it.
"Wham" came another shell. It's
explosion was almost drowned out by
| the sounds of concuSsion ut my side.
| They were caused by the beating to-
| gether of the knees of the driver of
| the Y NJ. C. A. car and by those of
| buck private. Their note was differ
ent, and the meter dissimilar, but the
| mir was much the same | could not
| quite make out which accomplished the
most knocks TO the minute, nor which
was loudest.
Several ration carts We're approach
ing. 1t was no slow, tlignlfied matron-
~ progress, Anybody who believes a
team of mules is incapable of speed
should have been there to see. The ra-
tion carts were filled with hard tack.
| 1 ne udTu ihth WIS us NCdEtu us IN!
thing else. and was trying to keep up
To the cart-but il was out of luck
1t had no arms 10 hang on with. The
air was fun of hard tack 1t flowed
out behind those ration carts like IL
ribbon. Il was Il >nowstOrm of hard
tack and nobody paused to ask where
1t fell
bitches Are Popular
Every ditch was unbelievahly popu,
lar 1t didn't have to be deep ditch
nor clean ditch, Any common OF
garden variety If ditch would do a
SiX-foot man was perfectly able to con.
ceal himself in siX-iuch ditch. Heads
would poke up and another shell
would land, Immediately il would be
come scene of desolation. a nfelesS
waste.
After awhile an airplaue went over
head 70 locate the battery that wa,
causing all the rumpuS Then the bat
terry stopped.
Go ahead" said the NJ. r "They'r,
through now"
He is the last VI. L. shall ever be
leve. This is positive. lie meant well
and spoke the truth according to hi
lights, but his lights we're dim. w,