The citizen., 1918-05-30

or empt mess tins. Then we black
ened our hands and faces with ashes
from a camp fire 10 as to avoid being
seen as long as possible. After this
they loaded US into motor trucks and
took us up to "Shrapnel Corner" from
which point we went In on foot. Just
before we left a staff captain came
along and gave US a little talk.
"Tbis is the first time you men have
been tested" he said. You're Cana
dians. I needn't say anything more to
you. They're going to be popping them
of at great rate while you're on your
way across. Remember that you'd
better not stand up straight. because
our shells will be going over Just six
and half feet from the ground where
it's level. II you stand up straight
you're likely to be hit In the head, but
don't let that worry you. because u
you do get hit In the head you won't
know II. so why In h worry about
itf" That was his farewell. He jumped
on his horse and rode or.
The Bomb Raid.
The point we were to attack had
been selected long before by our
scouts. 1t was not, as you might sup
pose, the weakest point In the German
line. II was. on the contrary. the
strongest. II was considered that the
moral effect of cleaning up a weak
point would be comparatively small,
whereas to break In at the strongest
point would be something really worth
while. And II we were to take
chance 1t really wouldn't pay to hest
tate about degrees. The section we
were to raid had a frontage Of 150
yards and a depth Of 200 yards. II
had been explained to US that we were
to be supported by a "box barrage," 0i
curtain fire, from our artillery to last
exactly 20 minutes-that is. for u
minutes from the time when we start
ed "over the top" our artillery, sew.
eral miles back. would drop "curtaiu
of shells all around the edges Of that
$50 yard by 200 yard section. We
were to have Is minutes In which tc
do our work. Any man not out at the
end Of the 10 minutes would neces
sarily be caught In our own fire. as our
artillery would then change from Q
"box" to pour a straight curtain fire
covering all Of the spot Of our opera,
tions.
Our officers set their watches very
carefully with those Of the artillery
officers before we went forward to ths
front trenches. We reached the front
at IL p. m, and not until our arrival
there were we informed of the zero
hour"-the time when the attack was
to be made. The hour of II 10 had
been selected. The waiting from IL
o'clock until that time was simply an
agony. Some of our men sat stupid
and inert. Others kept talking con-
stantly about the most inconsequential
matters. One man undertook to tell q
funny story. No one listened to 1t, and
the laugh at the end was emaciated
and CHASTITY. The inaction was driving
US all into state of funk. could ac-
tually feel my nerve oozing out at my
finger tips, and II we had had to wait
Is minutes longer I wouldn't have
been able to climb out Of the trench.
About half an hour before we were
to go over every man had his eye up
the trench, for we knew "the rum
mics" were coming that way. The rum
gang serves out a stiff shot Of Jamaica
just before an attack, and II would be
a real test of temperance to see man
refuse. There were no prohibitiOnists
In our set. Whether or not we got our
full ration depended on whether the
sergeant In charge was drunk or sober.
After the shot began to work one man
next me pounded my leg and hollered
In my ear:
II say, why all this red taper Let's
go over nOw."
That noggin of rum is a life saver.
When the hour approached for US
to start. the artillery fire was so heavy
that orders had to be shouted into ears
from man TO man. The bombardment
was, of course. along a couple of miles
of front SO that the Germans would
not know where to expect US. At II
O'Clock exactly they began pulling
down "a section of the parapet so that
we wouldn't have to climb over 1t and
we were of.