Mexico Missouri message., 1918-09-26


their lives than the ordinary privates
they were allowed more privileges.
When It was at all possible our snipers
we're allowed dry quarters, the best Of
food, and they did not have to follow
the usual routine, but came and went
as they pleased.
Our snipers, as a rule, went over
the parapet about dusk, just before
Fritz got his star shells going. They
would crawl out to shell craters or
tree stumps or holes that they had
spotted during the day-ln other
words, places where they could see
the enemy parapets but could not be
seen themselves. Once in position,
they would make themselves comfort
able, smear their tin hats with dirt,
get a good rest for their rifles and
snipe every German they saw. They
wore extra bandoleers Of cartridges,
since there was no telling how many
rounds they might fire during the
night. Sometimes they had direct and
visible targets and other times they
pOtted Huns by guesswork. Usually
they crawled back just. before day
light, but sometimes they were out "a
hours at a stretch. They took great
pride in the number of Germans they
knocked over, and If our men did not
get eight or ten they thought they had
not done good nights work. OF
course It was not wholesale killing,
like machine cunning, but 1t was very
useful, because our snipers were al
ways laying for the German snlpers,
and when they got Snlper Fritz they
saved just so many of our lives.
The Limeys have a great little ex-
preston that means a lot: Garry on"
They say it is a cockney expression.
| When a captain falls in action, his
words are not message to the girl
he left behind him or any dope about
his gray-haired mother, but Garry on,
Lieutenant Whosis." If the lieutenant
gets his It is Garry on, Sergeant
Jacks" and so on as far as 1t goes.
| So the words used to mean, "Take
over the command and do the Job
right" But now they mean not only
that but keep up your courage, and
go to it," One man will say 1t to
another sometimes when he thinks the
first man is getting downhearted, but
more often, If he is a Llmey, he will
start kidding him.
our men, of course, did not say
"Carry on" and in fact they did not
have any expression in French that
meant exactly the same thing. But
they used to cheer each other along,
all right, and they passed along the
command when it was necessary, too.
wonder what expression the Ameri-
can troops will use. (You notice l
do not call them Sammies y
took my turn at listening post with
the rest of them, of course. A listen
No Mans Land, and is always held by
two men. Their job is to keep a live.
ear on Fritz and in case they hear any
thing that sounds very much like an
attack one man runs back to his lines
and the other stays to hold back the
Boches as long as he can. You can
figure for yourself which is the most
healthful job.
As many times as / went on listen
ing-post duty 1 never did get to feel
ing homelike there exactly. You have
to lie very still, of course, as Fritz is
listening, too, ana q move may mean
a bullet in the ribs. So, lying on the
ground with hardly a change of posi-
tion, the whole lower part of my body
would go to sleep before had been
at the post very long. used to brag
a lot about how fast could run, so
/ had my turn as the runner, which
suited me all right. But every time
got to a listening post and started
to think about what I would do If
Fritz should come over and wondered
how good q runner he was, / took a
long breath and said, ''Feet, do your
duty" And was strong on duty.
After I had done my stunt in the
front-line and reserve trenches / went
back with my company to billets, but
had only been there for day or two
before was detached and detailed to
the artillery position to the right of US,
where both the British and French
had mounted naval guns. There were
guns of all calibers there, both naval
and field pieces, and got a good look
at the famous $685." which are the
best guns In the world, in my estima-
ton, and the one thing that saved
Verdun.
The "75's" fired 30 shots minute,
where the best the German guns could
do was six. The American three-lnch
field piece lets go six times minute,
FVNI- ~.
secret Of the mechanism that made
this rapid fire possible. When the first
'75's" began to roar, the Germans
knew the French had found a new
weapon, so they were very anxious tC
get one Of the guns and learn the
secret.
Shortly afterward they captured
eight guns by mass attack In which
the allies claim, there were 1000 Ger
man froOns kfllod Tho Roahao af11dfo or