The Washington herald., 1918-02-23
"OVER THE TOP"
By ARTHUR GUY EMPEY
Copyrighted by Arthur Guy Empey.

artillerymen had never thought it out
| that way. Those Scotties were bound
| to be sure winners, no matter how
the wind blew. So take a tip from
me, never bet with Scottie, cause
| you'll lose money.
AT one part of our trench where
communication trench Joined the
front line, a Tommy had stuck
up a wooden signpost with three
hands or arms on it. One of the
hands pointing to the German lines
read, To Berlin the one pointing
down the communication trench read.
To Blighty,' while the other said,
Suicide Ditch; Change here for
Stretchers.
Farther down from this post the
trench ran through an old orchard.
! On the edge of this orchard our bat
| terry had constructed an advanced OBJ
servation post. The trees screened it
from the enemy airmen and the roof
was turfed. 1t wasn't cushy like
ours: no timber or concrete reinforce
ments; just walls and roof of sand
bags. From it. a splendid view of
the German lines could be obtained.
/ This post wasn't exactly safe. 1t was
a hot corner, shells plunking all
around and the bullets cut leaves of
the trees. Many a time when reliev-
ing the signaler at the phone I had to
crawl on my belly like a worm to
keep from being hit.
Il was an observation post sure
enough. That's all the use it was.
Just observe all day, but never a
message back for our battery to open
up. You see. at this point of our
I 1.-Two 49,,
( fire a shell, unless specially ordered
/ TO do so from brigade headquarters.
Blime me, if any one disobeyed that
command, our general-yes, it was
! Old Pepper-would have court-mar-
tailed the whole expeditionary force.
Nobody went out of their way to dis
obey Old Pepper in those days, be-
/ cause he couldn't be called a parson;
he was more like a pirate. If at any
time the devil should feel lonely, and
sigh for proper mate. Old Pepper
would get the first call. Facing the
Germans wasn't half bad compared
with an interview with that old fire
brand.
IL a company or a battalion should
give way a few yards against a su-
pcriOr force of Boches, Old Pepper
would send for the commanding off,
Ger. In about half an hour the Off
Ger would come back with his face
! the ccio- OF a brick and in a few
! hours what was left of his command
would be ho'dinG their original posi-
tion.
Il have seen an officer who wouldn't
say damn for a thousand quid. spend
| five minutes with the old boy, anu
when he returned the flow of language
from his lips would make a navy
blush for shame.
What I'm going to tell you is how
two of us put it over on the old scamp
and got away with it. 1t was a risky
thing, too. because Old Pepper
wouldn't have been exactly mild with
us il he had got next to the game.
Me and my mate, lad named Hem
ry Cassell. a bombadier in ID 23S Bat
terry, or lance-coporal, as you call 1t
in the infantry. used to relieve the
telephonists. We would do two hours
on and four off. l would be on duty
in the advanced observation post,
while he would be at the other end
of the wire in the battery dugout sig
mailing station. We were supposed to
send through orders for the battery
to fire when ordered to do so by the
observation officer in the advanced
post. But very few messages were sent
1t was only in case of an actual at
tack that we would get a chance to
earn our two and six day. You see,
Old Pepper had issued orders not to
fire except when the orders came
from him. And with Old Pepper Or
ders is orders. and made to obey.
THE Germans must have known
about those orders, for even In the
day their transports and troops used
to expose themselves as If they were
on parade. This sure got up our nose,
sitting there day after day, with fine
targets in front OF us but unable to
send over a shell. We heartily cussed
Old Pepper. his orders, the govern
ment, the people at home, and every
thing in general. But the Boches
didn't mind cussing, and got very
careless. Blime me, they were baily
insulting. Used to, when using a GER
tain road, throw their caps in the air,
as taunt to our helplessness.
"Cassel had been a telegrapher In
civil life and Joined up when war was
declared. As for me. I knew Morse:
learned 1t at the signaler's school
back in 1910 With an officer In the
observation post we could not carry
on the kind Of conversation that's