The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1918-06-06
| @IH7 BY /
iARThER GUY EnHyl
MACHINE GUNNER 5ERYING lN FRANCE


urging; grabbing our tools and stoop-
ing low, we legged ii across No Mans
Land. The covering party got away
to a poor start but beat us in. They
must have had wings because we low
cred the record.
Painting and out of breath, we tum-
bled into our front-line trench. I tore
my hands getting through our wire,
but, at the time, didn't notice it; my
journey was too urgent.
When the roll was called we found
that we had gotten it in the nose for
So casualties.
Our artillery put barrage on Fritz
front-line and communication trenches
and their machine-gun and rifle fire
suddenly ceased.
Upon the cessation of this fire.
stretcher bearers went out to look for
killed and wounded. Next day we
learned that 81 of our men had been
killed and 81 wounded. Five men were
| missing; lost In the darkness, they
| must have wandered over into the Ger
man lines, where they were either
killed or captured.
Speaking of stretcher bearers and
wounded, 1t is very hard for the aver
age civilian to comprehend the enor-
NOUS cost of taking care of wounded
and the war in general. He or she gets
SO accustomed to seeing billions of dol
lars in print that the significance of
the amount is passed over without
thought.
From an official statement published
!. -
stated that 1t costs between six and
seven thousand pounds (S30,OOO to $685.
000) to kill or wound a soldier. This
result was attained by taking the cost
of the war to date and dividing it by
the killed and wounded.
1t may sound heartless and inhuman,
but it is fact, nevertheless, that from
a military standpoint it is better for a
man to be killed than wounded.
If man is killed he is buried, and
the responsibility of the government
ceases, excepting for the fact that his
people receive a pension. But If man
is wounded 1t takes three men from
the firing line, the wounded man and
two men to carry him to the rear to
the advanced flrst-aid post. Here he is
attended by a doctor, perhaps assist
ed by two r. A. NJ. G. men. Then he is
put into a motor ambulance, manned
by crew of two or three. At the field
der an anesthedc, either to have his
wounds cleaned or to be operated on.
he requires the services of about three
to five persons. From this point an
other ambulance ride impresses more
men In his service, and then at the am
bulance train, another corps Of doc
tors, r. A. NJ. @. men, Red Cross nurses
and the trains crew. From the train
he enters the base hospital or casualty
clearing station, where a good-sized
corps of doctors, nurses, etc. are kept
busy. Another ambulance journey is
next in order-this time to the hospital
ship. He crosses the channel arrives
in Blighty-more ambulances and per-
haps a ride for five hours on an Eng
fish Red Cross train with its crew. of
Red Cross workers. and at last he
reaches the hospital. Generally he
stays from two to SIX months, or long
er, in this hospital. From here he is
sent to q convalescent home for six
weeks.
If by wounds he is unified for fur
Their service, he Is discharged, given
pension, or committed TO soldiers
home for the rest of his life-and still
the expense piles up. When you real
lie that all the ambulances, trains and
ships, not to mention the man power,
used In transporting q wounded man,
could be used for supplies, ammunition
and requirements for the troops at
the front, 1t will not appear strange
that from a strictly military stand
point, a dead man is sometimes better
than a live one (if wounded).
Not long after the first digging party,
our general decided. after a careful
tour Of inspection OF the communion
ton trenches, upon IAN ideal spot" as
he termed 1t, for machine-gun EN-.
placement; took his map, made a dot
on 1t, and as be was wont, wrote "iig
here" and the next night we dug.
There were twenty in rne party, my,
self included. Armed with picks,
shovels and empty sandbags we ar.
rived at the ~ideal spot" and started
digging. The moon was very bright,
but we did not care as we were well
ont of sight of the German lines