The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-11-02
Topeka Soldier in France Tells
of Fighting at Front.
Morris Milan in ArgOnne Bat
tie With the 35th.
ROADS STREWR With DEAD
And There Are No towards
With Hun Guards.
Tale of Warfare From Former
State Journal Boy.

Morris Milan of Topeka. who was
formerly in the business office of the
State Journal, has written some OF his
former associates of his experiences
with the 35th, in which he is assigned
to duty to carry to the front lines, with
the infantry. the carrier pigeons, and
return messages from advance posts
where the telephone lines cannot be
placed.
81 believe I know now just what 1t
would be like to be in hell and have
all your friends in heaven. You have
heard by this time about the drive and
attack that the 35th took part in. Some
say it was the hardest fought of the
war. / saw General Pershing on two
different occasions returning from the
lines that our infantry were holding.
saw sights that I'll never forget
dead boches piled up along the road
sides with their horses tangled up with
them, where perhaps she'll had hit
= German battery while it was in re-
treat.
81 used to think that when you
stood near old Mary the Second (the
State Journal pressJ that it was
pretty noisy place. but that press
would sound like whispers at a funer-
al compared with the noise of our
barrage and the explosion of the re-
turning Hun shells.
Prussian Guard Prisoners.
Ine IlrSL night the pdTTdSe SldTIcu
we were sent up to point on the
side of a hill, and that place was be-
tween our own artillery some hundred
yards away and in direct range and
under continuous fire from the boche
counter barrage. We had a few cas-
ualties that night from our battalion.
The next day they began bringing
back the prisoners, big, soldierly look
ing Dutchmen who were members Of
the Prussian guard, the kaiser's picked
and favored troops.
"Our next advance to a newly cap
tured town was made that night To
cover a distance of five miles, we had
TO spend almost as many hours. The
traffic was held up on account of
bridges out, shell holes on the road
which We had made with our own
artillery the day before. Michigan
avenue was never more crowded, and
the traffic line was ten miles long.
Workers were along the roadside, re-
pairing the road and burying dead
horses. In the fields along the side
stopped and airplanes lying nose down
In the mud. 1 hit for dugout as soon
as we landed, and it was wise idea,
for that night Jerry shelled the re-
mains of the town with gas most OF
the night. About every ten minutes
a guard woke me up to put on my
mask. There was very little sleep that
night on top of more than a week
with no rest, but instead, walking from
ten to twenty miles a night carrying
heavy pack.
Road Strewn With Dead.
"When I went to hunt a kitchen
the next morning I had to pass along
a road strewn with dead Dutchmen
By the time I found it 1 didn't have
much desire to eat. After a couple
of days of those sights and many
worse ones, OF seeing men with arms
and legs blown off and eyes blown out
got to the place where had to eat
I'VE did not get into actual wor%
with our birds in this attack for they
were handled by another section.
managed to get into it all and see my
share by taking up hot coffee and
rations to the doughboys at nights an6
helping carry the wo1rded in the day
time to the dressing stations up tn,
line. You don't have to be up in thu
front lines to get your share of thu
hell. III tell you that. Jerry exert.
a great deal of energy trying to stoI
the line that is advancing toward him
He can't gas line close to him will
safety to his own troops, but he cal
shoot it at you little way benin tn,
lfnes and also drop H. Els and shrap
mel where it can make life pretty un
comforta BILE for you. He can put clea
out of sight wagon and team or am
bulance and squad of men.
IT saw plenty of the drive, tho
wasn't running up with a gun into
machine gun nest as many of gu
heroes were. I just feel lucky that
was not left up there with a woooel
cross and two aluminium tags two fee
a. i've me.
Doesn't Want Souvenirs.
1T don't have much desire for an,
German souvenirs. They would re
mind me too much of the headed
blonde saurkraut eaters themselves
I'VE have had several runfors her
that Austria has arranged for a.
armistice. It looks as tho thi
wouldn't last much longer. It's mic
to hear about the boche running ava
and all that stuff, but our fellows hav
found out that somebody lied,' a
they say, when these boches stick t
their machine guns until they die Q
are shot SO they look like a sieve fror
der5tand when they do that, and the
did it many times five days ago, thu
they are in the fight, and that "
haven't convicted them of cowardic
I saw -one boche machine gunne
with nine holes in him, and he wa
still alive. He fought until his an
munition was gone, and the otht
three men in the nest, killed. Or
men showed the same bravery whe
they advanced over open ground
the face of sweeping machine gu
fire. The Germans, when they will
drew, left a tableful Of good 1ookir
eats which would have poisoned ar
man who attempted to eat 1t.
II have begun to receive the muc
appreciated Journal now, so CO
much war. 1 have just seen Pa
Morgan He was returning from
place in the line. Don't forget tn
We want letters and many of them"