The Benson signal., 1918-05-04

gunners' dugout and wrote letters
home, saying that in the morning they
were going over the top, and also that
if the letters reached their destination
it would mean that the writer had been
killed.
These letters were turned over to
the captain with instructions to mail
same in the event Of the writer's being
killed. Some Of the men made out
their wills in their pay books, under
the caption, "Will and Last Testa-
ment"
Then the nerve-racking wait COM
menced. Every now and then would
glance at the dial Of my wrist watch
and was surprised to see how fast the
minutes passed by. About five minutes
to two I got nervous waiting for our
guns to open up. I8could not take my
eyes from my watch. crouched
against the parapet and strained my
muscles in a deathlike grip upon my
rifle. AS the hands on my watch
showed two o'clock binding red flare
lighted up the sky in our rear, then
thunder, intermixed with sharp, whis-
ting sound in the air over our heads.
The shells from our guns were speed
ing on their way toward the German
lines. With one accord the men
sprang up on the fire step and looked
over the top il the direction Of the
German trenches. A line of bursting
shells lighted up No Mans Land. The
din was terrific and the ground trem-
bled. Then, high above our heads we
could hear signing moan. Our big
boys behind the line had opened up
and OPS and 15-inch shells commenced
dropping into the German lines. The
flash of the guns behind the lines, the
scream of the shells through the air,
and the flare Of them, bursting, was a
spectacle that put Pains greatest dis
play into the shade. The constant
pup, pup, Of German machine guns and
an occasional rattle Of rifle firing gave
me the impression of a huge audience
applauding the work of the batteries.
Our 18-pounders we're destroying the
German barbed wire, while the heavier
stuff was demolishing their trenches
and bashing in dugouts or funk holes.
Then Fritz got busy.
Their shells went screaming over
head, aimed in the direction of the
flares from our batteries. Trench NOR
tars started dropping 'Minnies" in
our front line. We clicked several cas-
ualties. Then they suddenly ceased.
Our artillery had taped or silenced
them.
During the bombardment you could
almost read a newspaper in our trench.
Sometimes in the flare of a shell-burst
a mans body would be silhouetted
against the parados Of the trench and
it appeared like huge monster. You
could hardly hear yourself think. When
an order was to be- passed down the
trench you had to yell it, using your
hands as a funnel into the ear Of the
man sitting next to you on the fire step.
In about twenty minutes a generous
rum issue was doled out. After drink
ing the rum, which tasted like varnish
and sent a shudder through your
frame, you wondered why they made
you wait until the lifting Of the bar
| rage before going over. At ten min
| utes to four word was passed down,
''Ten minutes to go!" Ten minutes
| to live! We were shivering all over.
My legs felt as if they were asleep.
Then word was passed down: "First
wave get on and near the scaling lad
ders.",
Before q charge Tommy is the po-
litest Of men. There is never any push
ing or crowding to be first up these
ladders. We crouched around the base
of the ladders waiting for the word
| to 20 over. I was sick and faint, and
was putting away at an unlighted fag.
Then came the word, "Three minutes
to go; upon the lifting Of the barrage
and on the blast Of the whistles, Over
| the top with the best o. luck and give
| them hell" The famous phrase of
the western front. The Jonah phrase
of the western front. To Tommy it
means if you are lucky enough to come
back you will be minus an arm or
leg.
I glanced again at my wrist watch.
! We all wore them and you could hardly
call us "sissies" for doing so. It Was
minute to four. I could see the hand
move to the twelve, then dead 81
lence. 1t hurt. Everyone looked up
to see what had happened, but not for
long. Sharp whistle blasts rang out
along the trench, and with cheer the
men scrambled up the ladders. The
bullets were cracking overhead, and
occasionally a machine gun would rip
and tear the top of the sandbag para
pet. How I got up that ladder will