The Washington herald., 1918-07-20
BY BERT FORD.

With the American Army in France
(by maiD.-Modern war has knocked
spots out Of the spectacular features
Of battle. because II Is chiefly ma
chine-made.
The scenes Of popular fancy-the
kind one reads about In history and
which have been perpetuated in po-
etry and on canvas, are relics of the
past. Seldom. IL ever, anything ap-
preaching them occurs on the west
ern front, in spite of the staggering
amount of men and war equipment
used.
War has been revolutionized, and
the second battle of the Marne proved
1.-THE battle in which the American
Expeditionary Forces by their dash
and courage added luster to the folds
of Old Glory.
There were no swapping fags nor
martial music to thrill our men in
olive drab. They did not march into
the fray en- masse nor to the front
in anything resembling the average
civilians conception of the entry of
troops into battle. 3.
They arrived in French trucks driy-
en- by Hindu-Chinese chauffeurs in
clouds of dust, tumbIed off. scurried
to cover and took up the camouhaged
positions made necessary by the Sc
verest open fighting of the war. They
became in q jiffy part Of the army
invincible.
And right there develops a feature
thateis one OF the most curious CT all
modern warfare-the successful con-
cealment OF whole divisions and corps.
Nobody who has not been privileged
to go TO the, front and travel back
of the lines can begin to appreciate
the marvel It Is a case Of doing a
Reller-the-Great with an army-by
modern military legerdemain, making
thousands of men, horses, mules,
guns. great and small. disappear as IL
the earth had swallowed them.
Delightful Country.
You can motor along country nigh
ways through the most delightful
farming country and scarcely catch
glimpse Of the army as you go. save
the truck and ambulance trains in the
rear, the sentries and stan and resi-
mental headquarters. The fighting
units are strung out over country,
plowed and seeded for this seasons
crops, but you don't see enough Of
good-sized regiment on the Job.
Thus has the art OF camoufiage been
developed-a new and interesting
science Of modern warfare stilI in it's
primary stages in spite of all that
has been done.
As you motor well within the zone
OF high explosives. shrapnel and gas,
you catch fieeting glimpses OF men
and animals and chow-guns between
the foliage, and batteries ingeniously
screened from the eagle eyes and the
lenses Of enemy aviators and balloon
observers. You are astounded to note
how cleverly the topography and the
beauties of nature have been pressed
into use in the scheme Of concealment
and deception known as camoufiage.
The army sleight-of-hand has be-
come such a big and necessary fea-
ture OF war that every army post has
Its annex OF war scenery which re-
minds you of visit back Of the stage
between theatrical performances. The
most skilled artists are doing their bit
in this respect, nor are camouflage ef-
fects confined to them. 1t is amusing
to see how army cooks and buck pri-
Yates shield themselves and their
kitchens and their animals. Camou-
flage certainly offers opportunity for
development limited only by the skill
and cleverness of the individual and
materials offered by nature.
Flood of Strife.
When our men were rushed into the
flood Of strife on the Marne and re-
lieved French units tagged by days
and nights Of incessant fighting.
hurled back the Germans with heavy
losses. and held the highways to
Paris. they passed thousands of refu-