The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1918-10-03
DETAILS TELL OF
MARKED VALOR
Yankee Youngsters Calamity
Do Part in Smashing Hin
denburg Line.
MOST GRUELLlNG ORDEAL
Story of Private Stranded for
Forty Eight Hours in
mo Mans Land"
(By Bert Ford.)


With the British Army in France,
Night, Oct. FL. n. S)-American
youngsters who helped the British
smash the Hindenburg line in the ter
rifle struggle on the st. Quentin Cam
brai front fought with the courage and
resourcefulness Of veterans.
The first details of the fghting OF
New York troops tell of self sacrifice,
personal bravery and presence of mind.
II was n grueling ordeal. and the en-
emy defenses under assault were
among the most difficult on the west
ern battle front, but the Yankee lads
showed nerve and pluck that won the
admiration of the seasoned British
veterans alongside whom they were
fighting. There was never any thought
of surrender. The dominant aim of ev-
cry American unit was to avenge fallen
comrades.
! The Yankees had many adventures,
ing age, was the most drastic of all.
Let Arthur Giles, of Brooklyn. tell the
story:
The five of us we're stranded in no
mans land for forty hours without
food. and with nothing to drink ex-
! cept the rainwater in shell holes. With
me were Ernest Minder, of the Bronx;
Walter Drury, aged %, a Cornell stu
! dent of Staten Island: Gideon Ander
son. aged 90. n Brooklyn carpenter, and
Leon Davidson, aged 20, also of Brook
lyn.
I'VE were in the first wave that at
| tackled and advanced so fast that We
got ahead of the others in the COM
pnny. The first thing we knew, we
were alone within twenty yards of the
Germans. They opened fire upon us
with machine guns from every point
of the compass.
"Well, we all tumbled into a shell
! hole as fast as we could. But it was
kind of lonesome. not seeing any of our
! fellows around. The machine gun bull
let's from both sides were singing over
our heads and the bursting shells were
making so much racket that we could
not hear each other talk.
Finally. we noticed q little, shallow
| trench not more than foot deep lead
ing toward a dugout with two doors.
We wrigSled out on our stomachs like
snakes and started for the dugout. The
Germans sure did try to pot us. While
some we're shooting at us. machine
guns in nests on the side of a hill put
down screen of bullets across both
entrances to the dugout.
Cooped Up All Day.
owe got in somehow and were
cooped up there all day Friday. The
sounds of the battle had ceased, but
we knew that machine guns were
there and on the doors of the dugout
and we expected an attack at any
minute. Why the Germans did not
rush us Is more than | can tell. l never
expected to get out alive and the Others
felt the same way. We planned to es
cape Friday night, but the Germans
kept sending up flares, which made
no mans land as bright as day
1--WE did not have anything to- eat
except some dirty black bread that we
found in the dugout and water from
our Canteens. Finally the water gave
out. The night was cold and we were
tired, but not one of us dared to go to
sleep.
"Day broke cold and rainy We tried
to console each other, but felt helpless
tie and we had wanted to accomplish
something. We wished we hadn't been
so speedy in tine rush
"On Saturday night we all decided
to take a chance together and try TO
crawl back to our own lines. We made
the small trench. creeping like cater
pillars, and reached deeper trench.
I'VE heard faint moaning. At first
we were suspicious but one Of the fcl-
a. A
lean, so we all decided to stick to-
gether and investigate. We crept
nearer cautiously, and were amazed to
find a fellow from our own regiment
but another company wounded in the
legs and unable to walk. He was ly-
ing in shell hole. half covered with
water He had lain there all day Fri
dav. Friday night and Saturday.
I'VE pulled him back to the dugout.
as we realized that we could not leave
him behind, and nobody wanted to
leave the rest of the bunch. And there
we were, back in the same old cave
again.
Zone Of the fellows began to COM
nIan of weakness and dizzy feeling.
ETe had been slightly gassed and we
were all complaining Of the same feel
ing pretty soon,
1--WE tried to help the wounded SOL
der, hl1t ne was III Diu SHd)e' anu
was getting worse all the time. Sat
urdav night dragged through and we
had begun to give up all hope when
suddenly terrific cannonade opened
up It was coming from our side and
we knew that II was q barrage that
was to be followed by an attack.
"Then the Germans opened up and
It was not long until Yankee and Ger
man shells were falling all around us.
Then there was a rush Of troops and
we could hear the voices Of Americans.
Some one polsed bayonct into the
door Of the dugout and yelled: Come
out. Show yourselves
Mighty Dangerous.
1--WE hollered not to shoot nor throw
grenades, for we were New Workers.
"It was mighty dangerous, for the
Americans might mistake us for Ger
mans In the darkness. The fellows
outside recognized good United States
talk, and took lis out, for by this time
we were so weak we could not stand
on our feet. We were revived and
learned that our fellows were breaking
the Hindenburg line. We were GER
tainly glad to get back with the gang