El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1918-07-31
AIR RAIDS FAIL
To SCARE PARIS
People Are Tranquil, Even
Apathetic, Under Ire
mendous BOmbings.

Washington, d. C.. July 3l.-Writ-
Ting of a German arr raid on Paris,
one Of the American Red Cross in
spectors gives a thrilling account OF
how American troops and Red Cross
workers give aid to the city fin such
desperate moments lie describes an
air raid in this fashion.
Nowhere is there any sound but
Z the echoes OF footsteps. Not a street
light is TO be seen. not q single raw
of HEht-uothing but the inkiest and
most impenetrable darkness. Then all
Of the noise OF the world seems to
break loose ClauE. clang. cIang.
{ boOms the tocsin-Iike a gigantic
pneumatic rivetcc working on a col
! lOsal bell WhooO-o. shrieks the siren
: r. inning up and down the scale in an
+ awful vail.
The streets come to life. Doors
F open and slam shut The sidewalks
3 are full Of ghostly figures hurrying
] towards the caves. where the inhabi-
tants have fitted up cots. They get
Z up now TO make a sitting place for
the new corners The place fills up.
3 Every one looks apathetic. sleepy and
! bored. The children 80 10 sleep with
their heads on their mothers Shout
oers, and q girl in the uniform Of a
street car conductor swaps war yarns
with a pOilu in diugy blue jim the
last raid the front trucks of her car
were thrown from the rails by the
displacement or air caused by an eL-
plOdinE torpedo. The car and its in
mates were unhurt The DOiIu looks
a mite increiul0us but murmurs. 7
can wei believe you. mademoiselle.'
Then the Arches BARK.
Outside the noise continues for
about three or four minutes and then
t gnH .aaH III
Arches. or anti craft guns. which
commence 20 bark furiously from half
dozen different points. Searchlights
rake the sky.
suddenly there is an earthrock-
ing Whoom- No more doubt rs TO I
where the Boches are Whom, /
~ hoom- Mh0Omt- one involuutarily /
ducks ana tries turtlewise 10 cover
his head with his shoulders. a hid
eous noise resOunds up and down the /
deserted street falling walls and the I
tlnkling and crash OF showers Of /
broken glass and roofing tiles.
Inspect the Ruins.
Through the glass and litter OF I
the street an American Red Cross /
camionette come blowing It's way. one 4
or the city firemen stands on the I
running board They stop and the i
fireman flashes an electric lamp into I
. the ruins. makes a hasty inspection.
and then runs Up the street and dives 4
into the redlight cave
' Anybody here from Nos. 40 TO 81
he calls. A half a dozen voices yell I
out thar there is
Is everybody here from those
numbers Was there any one left in (
either OF those buildings
All Accounted for.
There is an anxious calling back
and forth and q rapid counting Of I
noses. All here is the answer.
Good Not much left OF those two
buildings Don't enter the ruins un-
I'll they have been inspected by the
engineering department Go TO the
sisters OF the poor II you want food
or place TO Sleep
"A vail and several curses compete.
but the fireman is gone.
The Arches have stopped and
there are no more whOoms. but peo-
pie stay in their cellars Tt IS only
9 o'clock, and experience has shown
that the Industrious and methodical
BoclIes VIII keep coming back again
until after midnight
American Soldiers Fight Fire.
a half q mile away o bright red
glow gets larger and larger and
lights the sky. A fire has broken out
in the railroad yards and is making
great heaQWay- Several cars Of oil Z
are burning fiercely and spreading 10
cars Of merchandise. Half q dozen
American soldiers are working fe-
Verishly trying 20 get the untouched
cars away from the fire
Two OF them have a switch engine D
and are shunting out whole strings OF
cars.
DO YOU know anything about
these French engines. sir- asks the
impromptu engineer I can't find the
damn brake
'-The fire is eating its way towards
2 pier on which stands g line OF
drums OF gasoline.
Come on; boys roll them kegs o
gas Oura here yells the corporal. I
and the line Of drums starts truudling
down the pier II is Internally hot.
and the average man does not know
Just how hot gasoline can get before
-t begins 10 misbehave; but the line
never wavers.
Roll 'em along. boys. Keep EN-
going. Everybody has got to die
sometime.
Then @AII's Clear
Little by little things become I
1uieter- The fires die down. The 1
Arches stop. Here and there a work u
ing party still continues its labors in =.
the ruins Some one is missing. and :
they want 10 get him out OF cellar. j
Vow the tOcsin sounds again. this Z
time with slow. stately. measured ,
beats This IS the 'alIs clear gnal
No more enemy planes are FLYING be- s
tween here and the fighting lines
People come out Of their cellars and h
90 home. Ii
Little Actual Damage.
The Boche has dropped more than
the $50 pound size. The net damage !
IS not very great A few houses de-
strOyed- many windows broken. a
few victims-very few but all too
many; a few holes blown in thei n
streets. some trees uurooted i'm the 4 q
vi I'd