Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-08-31
KEYSTONE BOYS
WIN PRAISE OF
FRENCH GENERAL
Machine Gun Fire Frightens
Pennsylvanians Not
at All

Graphic stories of the One Hum
dred and Tenth Regiment of Pennsy1-
vania on tho Western front In France
! continue to hold tho tense interest
of all who are watching the epic
drama of the ages
Soldiers of tho Ono Hundred and
Tenth Infantry, who never thought
they could kill man. fought like
demons in that blood -strewn little
deep between the two hlllocks of
Chateau Thierry." declared the Rev.
DR.. Daniel L Marsh. pastor of the
Smithfield Street Methodist Episcopal
Church, who returned to Pittsburgh
from a trip to France as Y. NJ. G.
A. worker.
DR.. Marsh witnessed the charge
himself. He said that the charge o.
Company I. through the hollow and
up the hill was 80 enthusiastic and
so determined that $50 boys from
Pennsylvania. who never thought Of
war two years ago, swept through
four times their number in veteran
German troops, then climbed to the
top of the hill and bayoneted the re-
treating Hun as he scurried down.
DR.. Marsh brought back from
France many anecdotes Of excep-
tional bravery of the Keystone state
boys under the menacing fire Of the
Hun. The night after the battle. he
said. he worked in the field hospital
where three hundred men were being
treated. Among them was Private
Ira Deemer. of Apollo. Pa, a member
of Company NJ, which Company is
commanded by Captain Edward ].
Stackpole, Jr., of Harrisburg. Pri-
vate Deemer gave Mr.. Marsh some
souvenirs to bring back to his moth
er. One of them is a pocketbook, with
bullet glued to Men Testament. The
Hun bullet tore through the thickness
of the pocketbook and the Testament
and welded them, leaving a painful
burn above the soldiers heart. DR..
Marsh also told of the military fu-
neral for Private John Marshall, of
Monongahela City, who died of
wounds in France. He said that his
brother, member of the Ambulance
Corps, built the coffin with his own
hands. DIR. Marsh picked a spray of
white flowers from the head of the
grave and brought them to Pittsburgh
to be presented to the soldiers
mother.
In a violent hand to- hand combat.
Chester and Pottstown boys of the
Iron Division. aiding the French in
the capture of fortified wood, dis
played valor which earned for them
the official commentator of the
French commander.
Details of the exploit, with the Off
cial praise of the French general,
have been received at Chester from
Private Harry Culbert. Company B.
111th Infantry. who received a bullet
in the left leg during the engage
ment.
mentioned in the French commanders
praise, one from Company A and the
other from Company B. Company a,
of the 111th Infantry, comprises boys
from Pottstown and neighboring
towns. with a scattering of troops
from the former Eighteenth Regi-
ment Of Pittsburgh, Company B is
made up of boys from Chester, Mar
Gus Hook and neighborhood.
In the victory over the Huns the
platoon from Company A advanced
from the eastern edge of the woods
and the platoon from Company B
from the western edge
From the beginning of the at
tack" the French commander says.
the American detachments were
marked by their ardor, bravery and
then enthusiasm.
Each Sought His Adversary
I'm spite of the firing of the en-
emy's heavy and light guns. trench
mortars and riflemen placed in trees.
on their adversaries. A fierce hand
these men bravely threw themselves
to-hand contest Immediately took
place in the thick and almost impreg-
nable woods, where each man sought
his man.
The combat was violent and the
Americans never ceased to arouse the
enthusiasm and admiration of their
French comrades by their magnificent
behavior.
Lieutenant Schenkel especially dis
tinguished himself during this COM
bat, making a great impression on
his own troops and our soldiers. Led
on by his ardor. with seven men, the
lieutenant found himself surrounded
on all sides. This detachment fought
its way through by using the butts
of their rifles and bayonets on the
enemy's ranks And they succeeded
in rejoining their comrades Lieuten-
ant Schenkel himself killed with a
pistol a German officer"
Another Chester boy, Lester Han
nigan, was awarded a war cross for
bravery In this action, Culbert writes.
Bob" Campbell. also of Chester, took
part in the fight.
These words of praise are enough
to make us hold our chests out"
wrote Culbert, proudly.
Yell and Charge Like Indians
Another Iron Division soldier, Bur-
ton X. Jones, of the 1O3d Engineer
train. describes vividly an attack by
Pennsylvania boys. He writes to his
home at Phillipsburg, Pa.
The German machine gunners do
not scare our American infantry.
stood on the top of hill about three
days ago and watched company go
over the top. The yell they let loose
would have done credit to the battle
cry of several thousand Apache In
dians, and the way those Jerrys scat
tered! Wow! They ran every way
but forward.
Good old Pennsylvania can be
proud of its division, for it surely has
done nna