Jackson County journal. (Sylva, N.C.) 19??-19??, 1918-08-09
AQI11UQ GUY FN|pfY
1ACHINE GUNNER SERVING N FRANCE
| @IS7 81
lMIHuR GUY EfipfYl

'Get away, you blighter, leave me
alone. don't want any coward around
me-"
The words cut Lloyd like a knife.
out ne was desperate. Taking the re-
Volver out Of the holster of the diving
man he pressed the cold muzzle to the
soldiers head and replied:
Yes, 1t is Lloyd, the coward of
Company D, but 50 help me God, If
you don't tell me how to load that gun
LII put bullet through your brain !"
sunny smile came over the coun-
tenance of the dying man and he said
In faint whisper:
Good old boy! knew you wouldn't
disgrace our company"
Lloyd interposed: For Gods sake,
If you want to save that company you
are so proud of, tell me how to load
that ID gun!"
AS if reciting lesson in school. the
soldier replied in a weak, singsong
voice: Insert tag end of belt in feed
block, with left hand pull belt left
front. Pull crank handle back on roll
er, let 60, and repeat motion. Gun is
now loaded. To fire, raise automatic
safety latch, and press thumbpiece
Gun is now firing. If gun stops. ascer-
tain position of crank handle"
But Lloyd waited for no more. With
wild Joy at his heart, he took a belt
from one of the ammunition boxes ly-
ing beside the gun, and followed the
dying mans instructions. Then he
pressed the thumbpiece and burst of
fire rewarded his efforts. The gun
was working.
Training it on the Germans he shout
ed for joy as their front rank went
down.
Traversing the gun back and forth
along the mass of Germans, he saw
them break and run back to the cover
Of their trench, leaving their dead and
wounded behind. He had saved his
company, he, Lloyd, the coward, had
"done his bit" Releasing the thumb
piece, he looked at the watch on his
wrist. He was still alive at "3 49,"
"Ping pa bullet sang through the
air, and Lloyd fell forward across the
gun. A thin trickle of blood ran dow1
his face from a little, black round hole
in his forehead.
1.-THE sentence Of the court had beer
"duly carried out"
The captain slowly raised the linn
form dropping over the gun and, wip
, ing the blood from the white face, rec
ognized it as Lloyd, the coward Of l
company. Reverently covering the fac
with his handkerchief he turned to hi
, "noncoms" and, in a voice husky wit
+ emotions, addressed them:
, Boys, it's Lloyd, the deserter. H
+ has redeemed himself, died the deaf
e Of hero-died that his mates Nigh
+ live"
I That afternoon a solemn prOcessiO
\ wendell it's way toward the cemeter!
e In the front stretcher was carried b
two sergeants. Across the stretche
= the Union Jack was carefully spreat
I Behind the stretcher came capital
h and forty-three men, all that were lei
e of D company.
n Arriving at the cemetery, they hal
Il ed in front of an open grave. All abOl
, them wooden crosses were broken an
= trampled into the ground.
n A grizzled old sergeant, noting tn
# destruction, muttered under h
n breath: Course the cowardly blight
e who wrecked those crosses! II cOu
y only get these two hands around h
'. neck his trip West would be short
v The corpse on the stretcher SCENE
J. to move, or it might have been tt
e, wind blowing the folds Of the Unit
a Jack.