Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1918-11-12

lulO tie uuSOut the StISCuhI SAoutCe
to US that he thought the Turks were
afraid to attack. He also ordered one
of us to keep a live eye toward our
rear in case any of our troops should
try to signal us. When l looked
through little gully at the top of
the hole, toward the other trench, all
could see was barbed wire and
smoke and two or three corpses. |
began to shiver a little. and l was
afraid ! would get shell shock. too.
So began to think about Murray and
how he looked when they took him
off the wall. But that did not stop the
shivering, so / thought about my grand
mother and how she looked the last
time / saw her. was thinking about
her, guess, and not keeping very
good lookout, when a man rolled over
the edge and almost fell on me. He
was from the other trenches. carried
him into the dugout and then went out
again and stood my watch until the
relief came. We were doing half-hour
shifts.
When got into the dugout again
the man was coming to. He was just
been-by this time / was shivering
only once in while, when I did not
watch myself. He said four men had
been sliced up trying to get to us be-
fore he came; that they had lost
IL men out of their 80, including the
sergeant-major in command and two
corporals; that they were almost out
of ammunition; that the trenches on
both sides of them had been blown in
and that they were likely to go to
pieces at any moment. He said they
all thought the Turks would attack
behind their barrage, for he said the
curtain of fire did not extend more
than hundred yards in front of their
trench. What they wanted us to do
was to relay man back with the
news and either get the word to ad-
vance or retire or await reinforce
ments, they did not care which--only
to be ordered to do something. There
was not a commissioned officer left
with either Of the detachments, you
see, and you might say we were up
in the air-only we were really as far
in the ground as we could get.
The man thought there were other
of our lines not far behind us, but we
knew better; so then he said he did
not see how any one could get back
from there to our nearest lines. /
did not see either. Then we all fig
ured we were forgotten and would not
come out of there alive, and you can
believe me or not, but I die not much
care. Anything would be better than
just staying there in that awful noise
with nothing to do, and no water.
Our sergeant said he would not ask
any man to attempt to carry the mes
sage, because he said it was not only
certain death, but absolutely useless.
And he began to show that he was
near shell shock himself.
Then 1 began to shiver again, and 1
thought to myself that anything would
be better than sitting in this hole wait
ing to go "cafard," so 1 decided to vol
unteer. / did not think there was any
chance to get through, but it seemed
as if l just had to do something, no
matter what. / had never felt that
way before, and had never been
anxious to Ego west" with a shell for
company, but 1 have felt that way
since then several times, 1 can tell
you.
The man was telling us that some
time before they had seen the Turks
bringing up ammunition from some
storehouses, but they did not come
anywhere near. He said their sergeant
wanted our messenger to tell them
that, too. He would say a few words
very fast, then he would SILVER again,
and his jaws would clip together and
he would try to raise his hand, but
could not.
Then our sergeant asked the name
of the other sergeant, and when the
man told him he said the man was
senior to himself and therefore in
command and would have to be obeyed.
He seemed to cheer up a lot after
he said this and did not shiver any
more, so l thought l would volunteer
then, so 1 said to him, "Well, mon
vieux do you think we are seeing real
Smelling now?" And then l was going
to say l would 60 but he looked at
me in a funny way for a second and
then said, "Well, my son, suppose you
go and find OUT
l thought he was kidding me at first,
but then 1 saw he meant it. / thought
two things about it-one was that any
thing was better than staying there,
and the other was that the old dugout
was a pretty fair place after all. But
I did not say anything to the SER
geant or the other men-just went
out of the dugout. The sergeant and
another man went with me and boost
ed me over the back wall of the hole.
lay fiat on the ground for a minute to
get my bearings, and then started off.
I set my course for where l thought
the communication trenches were, to
the right. and just stood up and ran,
for I figured that as the shells were
falling so thick and it was open
ground l would not have any better
chance if / crawled.
l tripped several times and went
down, and each time thought 1 was
hit, because when l got it in the thigh
| at Dixmude it felt a good deal as
though I had tripped over rope
And one time when / fell shell ex-
ploded near me and began to shiver
again, and l could not go on for a
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