The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1918-08-22
HOW PARTISAN
AIR RAID FEELS
Red Cross Inspector Tells Thrill.
ing Story of Desperate
Moments.
NOISE ACCOMPANIES ATTACK
Yank Engineers Go About Unperturbed
While Rescuing InIured-victims
Are Sent to the Sisters
OF the Poor.

Misunderstanding Of a German
air raid on Paris, one Of the American
Red Cross inspectors gives a thrilling
accoun Of how American troops and
Red Cross workers give aid to the city
in such desperate moments. He de-
scribes an air raid In this fashion:
Nowhere is there any sound but the
echoes Of footsteps. Not q street light
is to be seen, not a single ray of light
nothing but the inkiest and most i'm
penetrable darkness. Then all of the
noise in the world seems to break loose.
Clang-clang-clang booms the tocsin-
like a gigantic pneumatic riveter work
ing on q colossal bell. Whooo-o
shrieks the siren, running up and down
the scale In an awful wall.
''The streets come to life. Doors
open and slam shut. The sidewalks
are full of ghostly figures hurrying to-
ward the caves, where the inhabit-
ants have fitted up cots and hunks.
They get up now to make a sitting
place for the newcomers. The chill
dren go to sleep with their heads on
their mothers shoulders, and a girl
in the uniform of a street car conduc-
tor swaps yarns with a Poilu In dingy
blue. In the last raid the front trucks
Of her car were thrown from the rails
by the displacement of air caused by
an exploding torpedo. The car and
its inmates were unhurt. The Poilu
looks a mite i%ncredulous and MUIR
murs: Il can well believe you, made
moiselle.'
Arches Barrage Sky.
"Outside the noise continues for
about three or four minutes and then
subsidies as a new noise starts-the
Arches, or antiaircrft guns, which
commence to bark ~furiously from half
q dozen different points. Searchlights
rake the sky. The Arches continue
! their clamor, but they are not firing
at anything, merely keeping up a bar
rage fire to prevent the Boches flying
over the city.
Suddenly there is an earthrock-
ing whoom. No doubt as to where the
Boches are. Whom, whoom, whom!
One involuntariiy ducks and tries
turtlewise to cover his head with his
shoulders. A hideous noise resounds
up and down the deserted street
falling walls, and the tinkling and
crash Of showers of broken glass and
roofing tiles.
; Through the glass and litter of the
) street an American Red Cross camoi-
3 nette comes blowing its way. One Of
3 the city iremen stands on the running
| board.
".Anybody here from numbers 40
to SIP he calls. A half dozen voices
yell out that there Is.
"Is everybody here from those
numbers2 Was there anyone left In
either Of those buildingsr
"There Is an anxious calling back
and forth and a rapid counting OF
noses. All here is the answer!
Send Victims to Poor Sisters.
"Goodl Not much left of those two
buildings. Don't enter the ruins un'
til they have been inspected by the
engineering department. Go to the
Sisters Of the Poor II you want food
or a place to sleep.
# "a half-mile away a bright red glow
e gets larger and larger and lights the
J, sky. A fire has broken out In the
railroad yards and Is making great
q Roadway. Several cars Of oil are burn
ing fiercely and spreading to cars o.
merchandise.
"Two ~railroaders have got hold OF q
switch engine and are shunting GU
e whole strings of cars.
e "Do you know anything abou
these French engines, sirT asks tn
& impromptu engineer. I can't find tn
n d brake
Is "The fire is eating its way towar'
ID a pier on which stands a line o
sr drums Of gasoline.
h "'Come on, boys! roll these kegs Q
IL gas outa here yells the corporal, an
,r the line of drums starts trundlinI
&C. down the pier. 1t is Internally hot
and the average man knows just hoS
hot gasoline can get before 1t begin
to misbehave; but the line never wa
!. vers.
j.; "'Roll 'em along, boysl Keep 'er
10 going. Everybody has got to die some
l. time
little by little things become quiet
er. The fires die down. The Archie
!, stop. Now the tocsin sounds agar
" this time with slow, stately measure
beats. This Is the 'alls clear signal.