The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1918-07-05
CHAPTER v-Continued.

Toward one o'clock the battle south
Of Sommepy reached its climax. When
the Germans advanced to make storm
ing attacks on all points the French
gave up their positions and retired In
the direction of Suippes. Whether our
company was no longer considered fit
to fight or whether we were not needed
any longer do not know. We received
orders to 90 Into quarters. But neither
a barn nor stable could be found so
that nothing remained but to camp In
the open. The houses were all filled
with wounded. Citizens Of the town,
who had not fled were all gathered In
a large barn. Their houses were most
ly destroyed so that they had to make
use of what shelter was offered them.
There was one exception to this ar
rangement and that wassa very old lit
tie motherly woman sitting, bitterly
crying, by the debris of her late home
and nobody could induce her to leave.
In the barn, which served as shell
ter to the civilians, were thrown to-
gether men and women, youths, chill
dren and old men. Many were wound
ed by shell splinters and cartridges
and others had suffered burns. Every
where was the most terrible misery;
sick mothers and half-starved infants
for whom there was no milk were
obliged to perish here old people died
from the excitement and fright Of the
previous few days and last Of all men
and women In the prime Of life slowly
died from wounds because there was
nobody to care for them.
A company Of Hessian reserves,
every one veteran, passed with
bowed heads and tired feet. They must
have had very long march. Their Of
ficers tried to make them move more
lively. They ordered that song be
sung but the Hessians were not In the
mood.
"Will you sing, you pigs?" cried an
officer and the pitiful-looking "pigs'
tried to obey this order. Family sound
ed from the ranks Of the overtired
men: Deutschland, Deutschland
Ueber Allies. Ueber Allies in Der Welt"
Despite their broken strength, their
tired feet, disguised and resentful,
these men sang their symphony Of SUI
per-Germanism.
Several comrades who like myself
had watched this troop pass came to
me and said, 'Let us go to the camp
and try to sleep so that we might for
get all this"
We were hungry and on the way
home caught several chickens. We
ate them half-raw and then laid down
in the open and slept until four o'clock
In the morning when we had to. be
ready to march.
Our destination on this day was
.Suippes. Before the march started the
following army order was read:
Soldiers, his majesty the emperor,
our supreme war lord, thanks the SOL
diers Of the Fourth army and sends to
them his full appreciation. You have
saved our beloved Germany from the
invasion of hostile hordes. We will not
rest until the last enemy lies on the
ground and before the leaves fall from
the trees we shall return home vic
torious. The enemy Is In full retreat
and the Almighty will bless our arms
further"
After this talk we gave three cheers,
something which had become routine
for us. And then we resumed our
march. We now had plenty Of time
and opportunity to discuss the graft
tude expressed by the supreme war
lord. We could not make out just what
!. fatherland we had to defend so FAR In
France. One Of the soldiers expressed
the opinion that the Lord had blessed
our arms, to which another replied:
"A religious man repeating such silly
sentiments is guilty of sacrilege. II he
speaks seriously"
Everywhere. on the march to Sup
pes, In the fields and In the bitches.
lay dead soldiers, most of them with
hideous-looking open wounds. Thou
sands of huge files swarmed on the
corpses, partly decomposed. and CIV
ling on fearful stencil. Among these
corpses. unsheltered under a blazing
sun. were encamped wretched fugi-
tives. because thsy were forbidden the