New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-04-11
American, Home With a
Piece of She'll, Tells of
the Bombardment
All the Damage in
Amusement Centre
Missiles Fell All Around
Theatre, but Audience
Is Unmoved

AN ATLANTIC PORT, April lO.-A
she'll fragment from one of the seventy
tive-mile German guns, which have been
bombarding Paris, together with the
first detailed information Of the dam
age caused by the latest Hun monster,
were brought by passengers on a
French liner reaching this port today.
The piece of shell was brought over
as souvenir BY Percy r. Atkins, a
Y. NJ. c. A. secretary with the Ameri-
can forces, who picked it up immedi-
ately after the first CT the long-range
bombardments.
The famous palace of the Tuileries
was struck and damaged by one of the
shells and other public buildings have
been hit, according to the passengers.
Cali of the damage was confined to
the Montmartre district, the amusement
centre of Paris" said Captain Orland
March ind. of the American Ambulance
Field Service. "This is in the heart of
Paris, section about mile square.
and it is amazing what little damage to
property and loss of life resulted
"The Church OF st. Gervais was the
one struck on Guod Friday, with q COM
paratively large loss of life. The she'll,
I understand, penetrated the top of the
structure and sheared off one of the
main supports of the roof, which fell in.
(The Church of St. Gervais is a
Gothic structure of the sixteenth CEN
fury, one Of the foremost examples in
Paris. contains valuable works of art
and is noted for its stained glass win
dows)
"One of the shells dropped in from.
Of the Care de iOest, one of the big
railway terminals. and killed six men.
The area of bombardment is only two
or three miles from the American hos
pital at Neuilly.
"The noise of the long-range shell is
different from any other I have heard.
A soldier at the front can tell in
short while by the sound whether
shell is coming from his own guns, back
Of him, or in front, from the enemy.
''1he sound of the long distance she'll
is like one sent by your own guns, and
is therefore very deceptive. 1t is like
an Australian 'whizz-bang,' and the
shell lands with very little steam back
of it,"
Miss Madeleine 2. Doty, writer, re-
turning from trip around the world,
said that while she was drinking her
coffee at the Grand Hotel, in Paris,
one of the shells exploded back of the
Opera House, but did no damage to it.
Another shell, which hit the Tuil-
cries, left large hole in it's roof, she
said. Still another exploded at the
base of the Statue of Liberty, present
ed by the United States to France,
without harm, while the Place de la
Republique was also ploughed up by d
missile from the German gun.
The souvenir brought back by Mr..
Atkins was part Of shell which struck
in the Rue Drouet, off the Boulevard
ment on the street after the shell had
neatly blown out the two lower stories
Of dwelling, leaving the upper part
of the building, with several inhabi-
tants, intact.
The fragment formed part of the
fuse cap, which is screwed into the
nose of the shell; It is of aluminium
TO mean q centimetres, which would
make the size of the shell 10h inches,
slightly larger than had hitherto been
estimated.
"The people of Paris think the bonn
hardment a joke now" said Atkins.
"They go about their business as usual,
taking absolutely no notice Of it,"
AS proof of this one passenger said
that Anatole France was present at
the premier of one of his own plays
when the bombardment began. Shells
fell all about the theatre, but not one
Of the audience left before the final