The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1918-10-05
Our Doughboys Mean Business
When They Take the First
Line Trenches.
their EFFICIENCY EVIDENT
Veterans Before They Enter the
Trenches, by First-Rate Military
Training II Not by Experience
Every Man In Line Has
Personal Grudoe to
Settle With Huns.

With the American Troops In Alsace-
Lorraine.-By the dim light or the
moon you could barely see the stream
If doughboys pouring out of the smell
tering woods and scraping over the
iusty French road toward the trenches.
They said very little and trudged along
with that measured swinging tread
which enables Europe's veterans to
sarry their heavy packs almost I'M
heard-of distances.
The stream seemed unending. as the
United Press staff car picked Its way
from squad to squad without using
lights, without falling in bitches and
without touching a single doughhoy.
Finally one section Of the human
stream halted in q ruined village. The
press car stopped, too, for beyond this
point everything except ammunition
and food goes en- foot
The officers gave the order to rest
and a lot Of packs dropped to the
yround, followed by doughboys. Their
ifles they never dropped. In the moon
light You could see the ground covered
with resting soldiers, mostly sitting
There was clicking of rifles and
sounds Of tightening packs. and bits OF
yossip which could come rnly from o
group heading for its first night In the
trenches.
Indifferent to Danger.
These were Uncle Sans citizen sol
!iers, new men Just over from "tht
states," as they have habit Of calling
home when over here. A few cues
lions revealed the fact that year agt
these boys were clerks, carpenters
Students and whatnot, In civilian
clothes. Six months ago they were II
training camp. Now they were sol
aters in France. and tonight they wcr'
making their genuine debut into tn
war for civilization.
There was no wild enthusiasm no
my evidence Of fear or even appre
henson among those citizen-soldter
NJ they rested before making the las
!ap into the trenches. There was
rnr.er-cf-fact sort Of confden..s prev
ilenr. and every man was making IN
nor Of the breathing spell 20 see tn:
he was 100 per cent ready for battl'
interest and talk centered around tn
clicking rifles and other equipment.
"This old guns sure going to d
some work from now on" said on
aoughboy to his pal. as he played wit
The rife fondly. sits the best gun
: his army"
: "Say, you never shot this gum" r
Piled the other. Nobody ever did, an
: nobody will but me. It's some Boch
3 yetter. It was made for me special
t 3d."
e Officers went through the crowd. 81
s ing a final warning about use Of q
< masks, and attention conferred arouI
r masks for a moment. A lot o. cha
l. tried them on again. Then packs aga
+ we're adjusted, and the group Of doug
r boys streamed slowly on.
f Ready for Business.
AS they got nearer the front trench
|. the word was passed to walk mo
t auietly. Conversation excep. In q
; iertones stopped, and they descend
Q into trenches. All you heard WAS I
4 steady knock Of hobnailed shoes
|" the trench duckboards, as these III
% arrivals were quietly initiated to t
r trenches in France. Quietly and wi,
Il out commotion the officers station
e their men, with lookouts WATCH
{. across moonlit No Mans Land, t
a. former occupants Of the trenches lie
O. and the relief was completed.
(. There is something about the fe
N less quiet way these new dougbhe
r take the trenches that makes
feel they know lot about warfa
They are veterans before they. en-
h the trenches, by f1rst-rate milits
3. training If not experience. Their
as cipline is fine, and their efficiency t.
IL you they are ready for business
or meaning whipping Germans.
ir "Well, you can tell Kaiser Bill we
rs here to fight" said one doughboy,
q. he took his station. "Hear the G
az mans say we're just crowd OF
Of trained boys. Wen soon show, tn
an we're soldiers"
It happens this doughboy's plat
ns did It very soon. The next night
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