The evening world., 1918-06-12

easily get out OF this poisonous at
nosphere by climbing 10 the top OF
Nimy Ridge. only a few hundred
yards behind us. But We did not. for
that would be deserving our posts.
IAN these things" no continues.
combined 10 make It the most mis-
cradle. soul -torturing night we had
ever experienced. And. TO add 10 Il
ali, our artillery was In a hollow
nearby, where the gas was so thick
that Il prevented our gunners from
retalis;tny. making 1t all take and no
give. We all learned that night what
Il felt like to long to desert. We
learned that there are times whom n
man who Is brave enough 10 be a
coward deserves sympathy. But,
thank God. there are few such men
In our armies. The brave nan and
the coward, both. at times. eXperielce
the same sensation of fear, the cow
ard allowing tho emotion to
aim. while the brave man Erits his
teeth and carries on.
For nearly Ave hour. We endured
this misery. wondering whom we
would have inhaled enough Of tho
poison 20 put our names among the
casualties"
For n time Capt. Manion pulled of
his mask altobether. for he agrees
with other soldiers that masks give
the uncomfortable impression OF slow
sufocation. lie ~profanely decided
that he preferred n quick death 10 n
slow one! Another thing he remem =
bers In an earnest argument with a
little cockney who had lost his nerve
during this, his first night at the
front. He maintained plalntiyely
that this was no place for n white
man." with which sentiment" the
author comedies, dryly. I'VE all
agreed.
shortly we we're glad 10 reapply
our masks" he goes on. las the air
became almost thick enough to cur
with a knife, and that wise on our
chests kept tightening.
Though the nigdt seemed a thous-
and years long, IL finally came 10 an
end just as our nerves were at break
ing point. How glorious Gods fresh
air seemed to us after that atrocious
experience! And what a satisfaction
to know that, despite the agony OF 1t
all. we had done our bit like men!'
There is n other unusual tale OF
heroism In "a Surgeon in Arms
which deserves quotation and OF
which the chief actor was also a
medical oficer. This was Sergt, Gas
Grain, a sharp-tongued French Cana
dian assistant OF Capt. Manion's and
: "a cynical soul. who asserted that the
average soldier in sick parade was
suffering FROM ",r!g!d!ty OF tho ieet,
with a big r" He won the Military
Medal for bravery under shell Are at
the Somme.
But ono deed he performed which
think deserved more praise than any
, other" writes Capt. Manlon. while
working on the neld a Lieutenant
Colonel vas brought 10 him on a
stretcher. The Lieutenant Colonel's
wound was so slight as 10 cause a
sneer 10 hover about the ~Sergeant's
lips as he dressed IT.. A stretcher
squad carried the Colonel. to the rear
and another squad, under the Ser
: geant's direction, carried a badly
! wounded Tommy, An ambulance
came for them, The Sergeant had the
' soldier put in first and then the
: Colonel. But the Colonel angrily pro.
tested against the Tommy beinR
: allowed TO 20 in the same ambulance
e with him.
tires bten, monsieur replied the
Sergeant in "his quick. sharp tones
O and. turning to a stretcher SQUAD
: said: Remove the officer II wa,
9 quickly done, the Colonel staring IN
o angry establishment. the sergean,
coolly continuing his work while IN,
= officer awaited the coming OF another
ambulance. In my opinion this act o
an n. c. o, was worthy OF a V. C."
= "A Surgeon in Arms is pubhshe,
d by d. Appleton & Co.