Mohave County miner and our mineral wealth., 1918-09-14
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 Going Over on the Double

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 One outfit got held up several hours, had to stand there fretting and fu4iiing and cursing, and then later had to double time across a pitch-black coun- try to get to the front line in time to go over .winded with the bunch.
 We were hungry and thirsty. When whole army races over hills and far away, they are pretty apt to get sep arated from their kitchens. will say that some of the outfits got hot breakfast in the front line Friday morning. This means the supply boys worked like the devil, I can tell you. But that Wednesday night we had had nothing except iron rations since we started, and hardtack sure makes you crazy with thirst. '
 In the woods that evening-a sort of wild enchanted forest, it was, like the places in Anderson's fairy tales we got a,little- rest and little water. IL came from the water carts and we filled our cantcens. Thoce of us that had any sense kept a little for use later on. It was just as well, for there were only two wells in all the sector we took. was pretty busy checking ur the gas masks. That was my job, you know. A good many of the bunch had lost theirs. They always do. I had none to give them, so confiscated-weh; stofe-some French gas masks and passed them around. -* Even Light Packs Co. 'G'.l.
 It must have been about midnight when the order came to chuck every thing, even our light packs, and start on. That shows what ? hurry we we're lin. \" -'s'''sa,S s.
 1,s ! don't remember much, about. that part, we were so tired. There's. no way I can tell you how tired we were I saw one lieutenant, game as he ], could be, stumble and sink down three times before they finally laid him out on the side of the road. Just exhaus- tion, that's all. I could see the major himself-he was wounded afterwards standing in the ditch by the :oad passing out ammunition with his own hands. There's prince for you Imajor. I.~
 l remember we marched along the roads in darkness and wondered when the artillery preparation would begin. We know he guns were on hand be- cause we could see them, big guns, powerful, silent and waiting. We nev- CT guessed there wasn't going to be any artillery preparation at all. A little later we met the French guides I waiting there to lead us to our posi- tions.
 was with the captain, and was Supposed to keep in touch with him from then on. Dawn was just begin ming when we came up out of the last ravine and deployed along wheat field.
 We had studied the maps as best we could by candle lpht. If we could only have had eight hours for a little breathing spell and a chance to study the maps and the country ahead of us! But surprise was the game, and when that's your game, there's no time to lose, no time to put things in order, no time for anything at all.
 Zero was 4:35. The captain looked at his watch when we got in line. It : was 4:25. We had ten minutes. All along the line as far as you could see the Germans were signalling for ar tillery, blue flares and white and pink. It stretched away so far I knew that those Trenches had been right. It must be a big advance, an advance all i along the line. 4r..
 ' All along our platoon you could hear 1 the= bunch. chuckling and whispering and getting set-and some: of them } were singing eyer 50 softly. ren,iesm.- Der hearing "Fair Harvard Yes, \ and "Old Nassau" And a lieutenant I was humming "My Little Girl" " T Then at 4:30 sharp, the barrage opened. From the sound of it, think all the guns, big and little, French and American, from Soissons to Chateau Thierry went off in the same moment. They have told me isince that that is just what happened, that the watches were synchronized. sE These guns spoke as if single hand had fired single gun-the big gest gun the world had ever known. l have been under the guns or within sight of them every day and every might since March-or pretty nearly. 1 thought l knew what <gunfire was but never knew real gunfire before. l s One Minute More -~' l It was ASA. I could see the captain crossing himself and saying little prayer to himself. Come to think, of 4 it, he wasn't Catholic, as far as know. But it doesn't matter. I SUD- pose we all crossed ourselves-men- tally. . ~ a' ]
 And then 4:35! Zero! The time to