The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1918-10-16
Yank.Lieutenant Feels Huns Will
Get Him, but viii Take
Few Along. A
PRo |Ill MAN IN UNIFORM
Vino Promotion From Corporal to
Platoon Leader for Daring Piece
of Work on Night Pa. \.
>.tro' Duty. ~

Scant nllI DOCK away. anu IL Was
dark, both the Opera and the bdule.
ward. The only light came from the
,kiosks advertising Paris newspapers,
patent bouillon and talcum powder.
There heard the typical story Of the
American second lieutenant, the pla+
toon leader who's doing wonderful
BIT In winning the war.
Call him Prettyman, which isn't his
name. He was a deputy superintend-
ent of banks before the war. AS he
said himself, he'd never been out In
his life after one In the morning ex.
cept, in q taxicab. He used to earn
1000 q year, have his bath every
morning and cocktail before dinner.
He Is a typical successful young New
Yorker
"Gosh,'' he said,, "I'm the proudest
man in this army. I've got two kinds
Of itches at the same time. -
1--WE came over on the Justicla, the
one that was torpedoed the other day."
he said. .'N... ....
"And they spewed us out at an
English port at eleven o'clock one
night, and at eleven the next night
we were back Of the lines in F!an-
ders. was only corporal then.
Then we We're moved to Alsace and
there we got our first taste of war.
Incidentally there got to be pla-
toan leader. ,
= ~ On Night Patrol.
"Here's what it was. Up IN the
first line the Heinies were just about
fifty yards away. One night the or
der came for patrol. Now, it's hard
to tell you about patrol standing
here in the boulevard. Out there it's
as black as the inside of your shoe.
| It's into that that patrol is sup
posed to go. And we went. Sure /
was. scared. Scared. green. 1 didn't
know where Twas, and ! had the lives
of 6O;men in the hollow Of my hand.
But we went. We laid for ii hours
right up against the German wire and
we located every machine gun they
had, and every man jack Of us got
back to our own lines safely.
,"My God! it was different from
New York. 1t was a lot different from
Paris. 1t was hell. But when the
Heinies came over the next day we
knew where they were coming from.
And we sloshed them.
"That country is full Of spies and
our wires from the front line back
were cut. So I went back myself.
They'd laid down the best box bar
rage I have ever seen. On, l got
through it, because was lucky, sup
pose. l got through it three times
that night, in fact. And me, never out
after one O'Clock in my life before ex.
cept in a taxicab.r Say, it was fierce.
Right out in the open country. All l
| had to tell me where I was were the
telephone wires. And they were cut.
I was almost sick to my stomach when
l hit the break in that friendly little
black wire I'd kept running through
| my hand. But we did get word
through. And all the Germans got by
| way Of prisoners were II cripples that
| had been sent up to the front line by
| mistake. ~'>tae. "
| Sand. say,3I feel they're going to get
me. I've got my second lieutenancy
and Tn going back up to the front In
a few days, as soon as this celebration
is over. And !, have bunch that I
wont come back. 49,.
'Tve5 got a little sister and dear
father that I'd like to 60 back to, but
| there's something bigger than that.
I'm wearing the uniform, am. 1t
| don't make bit of difference If die,
because there are four, five, as many
millions as you want, more. Only
when do die I'm going to take at
| least five Heinies with me. And I'm
| going to handle the sixty or seventy
or the hundred and twenty men un.
! der me so they'll do the same.
Allies Are Fine Soldiers.
"Sure, + get awful impatient with
the French sometimes because they
don't understand our language. And
the British sometimes rub me the
wrong way. I've had fist fights with
'em both-before 1 got&to be an Off
Ger. But they're all in the same game
and, you can tell the folks back home
that they're, damned good soldiers,
those British and French, every one Of
them. NOnly we're going to go them
| one better-particularly the-platoon
of the company of the -th.
You'll hear from us. Only if you're
dropping a line to the folks l know
just tell them that you saw me-in
Paris celebrating, and on the way to
the front, where don't expect ever
to come back from. Good-by, old man ;
| good luck! II
And he strobe across the street and
| disappeared. His job ahead Of him
10 do, full knowledge of the cost Of
1 that job. and proud to pay the price
derhanded-even to the ultimate. He's
the platoon leader, the u. s. 4. pla.
toon leader, thafs going to win THU
war.
| 'u' ': !.
onfimis%ie rho,inhf