Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1918-02-07


We started back for camp.
II was terrible experience. and We
were absolutely helpless. as We had
cot been furnished with the resl,irators
aud gas helmets at that time. We se-
rured these things soon after. hut all
the time ! had mine | never saw an i
other sign Of gas.
I found out afterward that those two
officers who had been In the dugont
we're both killed by the gas.
The officer who was with me at the
time OF the Cns attack was one Of the
most remarkable men ever met. For
several years before the war he had
been In the British secret servire In
Germany. so lie spoke German almost
as well ms he did English.
One day we stopped ut hospital in
RailleuI. and one Of the orderlics told
us that there were some German
wounded there. The officer asked me
II l would like to go In and see them
] said | would like II very much. so VIZ
went In. There was one poor devil all
by himself among some English pa
tents The officer went over md sat
on the edge 0f his bed and began to
talk TO him.
II you could have seen that poor fei
lows fnce when he henrd himself ad
dressed In his own lnnguage Hia
whole countenance lighted up. and he
began to tulk. Pretty soon the tears
begun to run down his cheeks. aud !
felt awfuIly sorry for the poor chap.
who was AWAY from all his own PEG
pie. severely wounded,
He said Tint he had Just been mar
ried before the beginning Of the war.
and he and his wife had saved all they
could. and two days before he was
cnlled up they had bought cow. He
was as worried as he could be for fear
something had happened to the COW.
The bombardment of Ypres began the
night of the April day we experienced
the gas. and with the bombardment be.
gan the infantry attack. was up at .
little place called Rbeninghlest. and ]
could hear the rifles and machine guns
at 1t for all they were worth. was
thanking my lucky stars that was on
my car instead Of motorcycle ma
rhine gun. when an orderly rode up and
told me that was to report ut head
quarters at once
All the way back to camp had the
feeling thut something was going to
happen, and when arrived there
was told,to report myself to the signal
F,,. "a with emu stNrss
Then l knew that was to carry dis
patches through the coming battle.
wish to make particular note OF the
fact that at the beginning Of this hat
tie, which lasted three weeks. we dis
patch riders numbered thirty-one in all
for our corps Half IN hour utter we
were fully equipped. and on our way to
the advanced report center. which
would he the scene Of our activities
until the fight was over
We were about 500 yards to the rear
q the FIRST line Of trenches and wers
given IN old barn to ourselves. and ~
laid out our blankets and made our
beds, for 1t was 1890 o'clock. The At
tack was increasing In fury. all kinds
Of shells landing around US, and the
Germans were using their same old
tactics Of hurting great masses Of
troops against our position.
Our machine guns gave the usual
good account Of themselves, and the
German dead we're piled up over our
wire entanglements In great heaps.
The Germans would fall back. reform
and come on again in their usual close
formation. So 1t went all night, and
when the morning came the dead
ground" between the two lines Of
trenches was grews0me looking place.
During the day the Germans bonn.
barded our first and second line trench.
es with high explosives and schrapnel
all day, and at night they resumed
! their infantry attack on our position
Day after day and night after night
the battle continued until we all fell
dead and numb all over. y
Sometimes the Germans would pen.
citrate our lines for few yards. and
then We would Immediately counter
before they had a. chance to strengthen
their position. We lost an awful lot Of
men. but even though don't know tn,
exact figures know l am safe In say
ing that the German losses were mor'
than double what ours were.
We dispatch riders were certainly
kept busy during this time. Our worl
was to be standing by every minute o.
the day and night. and the moment VI
were wanted to sling the dispatch cas-
over our shoulder and get away for tn
headquarters to the rear.
The riding at night was terrible. Tn
Germans were Smelling all the roads Il
the vicinity. and We had to 80 dashinl
along through the inky blackness .
breakneck pace. II was impossible (
see more than . yard or two ahead
!, and 20 It was . ease Of ride like tn
dickens and trust to luck. The roa
was covered with shell holes, and tn