Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-03-06
For a While Bressac- Didn't Care
Whether He Lived or Died
But Who Could Die With Vii
1iere and Ruvel and Edenne
Hanging Around Just to Keep
Heroes From Dying?
(By George Randolph Chester and
Lillian Chester.)
Copyright, 1913, by the Newspaper
Enterprise Association.)

Paris, March 5.-Bressac lay list
lessly in his little white cot in his lit
tie white room, oblivious to all the
sounds Of the big hospital. His eye.
were staring at the dim. high ceiling.
and his hand lay mo,ioniess on the
coverlec. The only movement in him
was at regular intervals OF about Is
minutes, when his nrows knored
tensely, after which ,a closed his
eyes for a while.
The reason for that r%onosony' OF
slight movement vas this: Bressac
was In the fog with Janet and Mau-
peta, and 1t vas a raw. chilly morn
ing. The ground was rough. pitted
and SCARED with .,rojectiles CT every
size from mere bullets o big shells.
There was barbed wire scattered all
around, and from some place nearby
came the rafting purr OF the ma
chine u they had been sent out to
find.
Dimly he could distinguish the halt
dozen other men of the detachment,
Coulon in the lead. standing out a
little way from the res and Coulon,
advancing, and peerine all about hin.
for stray sharpshooters who might be
concealed in heavens knows VIVA,
mud-hole. was bending his elbow reg
iarly and putting something to his
mouth. He was eating a piece Of
bread:
Suddenly there was a reer in the
direction Of the sound OF the machine
gun fire. and CouIon fell face down
ward. n lay perfectly still. A man
came running from the group Of
which Coulon had been a part It
was Lieutenant hmbard:n. followed
by the rest Of his men. and. as he
passed Bressac and Janet and Mau-
peta. he called out:
over there they a-e.' lust that
No d~ran1atics about Lombard!n.
They all ran after him. stumbling
over strands OF half buried barbed
wire and scrambI:nE down into Ii;.ie
d~eclivities. and up on the other side:
and suddenly. through III. mist. they
came in sight Of Al old she'll craze
which had been supplied with very
carefully concealed fortificaticns. and
pumping lead at the scattered
FrenchJnen. with All possible vim.
Here they are" cried L;eu,enan.
Lombardin triunnphan,!y. and, with
his pistol in his hand. led the way
straight into tia; murderous fire.
The man mex 70 E.Essac dropped,
as they ran side by side. II was
Janet. He vas Bressac's hes. friend.
The man just ahead Of tBressac fell.
iosE- sAheNct Sb thiIpcl HI.
the crater. and ,urnbled over and over
down inside It.
That vas Iomhardin. There were
half a dozen of .hem rushing roge.n-
er right at the edg. Of the crater.
when Rresssc suddenly ceased to re-
member, 70 know, 10 feel. to exist,
When he comes to that poin. his
nroWs always knit; then he closes
his eye. il exhaustion for three or
S%x,. -. g
raa rested itself. il g back TO him
in the fog Nth Janet and Maupeta.
and from then on always including
Cou1on eating bread, 10 the edge of
the crater, where he knows nothing
more.
Ali this automatic. Hressac has
no interest in il. or in anything else.
a sent'e-faced s:ste- came in. NOV
ing softly as q thistlcdown. and bent
over him. her wide. stiff black cap
sticking out in the dinnczs like
winss.
Hressac allowed his eyes TO remain
shut. He lid not want to explain
why he had not eaten his dinner. or
how he felt. He did not care how
he felt. The sister moved out again.
AZ softly as she had come in, taking
his tray with her.
The director care in. A tall. lean
o!d feIiow. with a elIstening bald head
and a fringe OF white hair. and the
wrinkles Of hun1or around his ewes.
HI too. gazed down at Bressac on.
templauvely; but he was A man who
had inside eyes as well az outside
eyes. and he had seen countless Eres-
EAcs since this war began.
Good evening. Bressac.' A very
gentle tone. n calculated not to
arouse a sleeper.
No movement.
The doctor aays 0 are getting
on ~rplendtdly for no short a. time aft
er your operation, Bresgac."