Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-03-24


\ started pup pumping that tune.
blew a sharp blast on Il whistle. it was
d tho signal agreed upon; We turned
Sloose-and Fritz's gun suddenly stopped
Z in the middle Of a bar We had cooked
+ his goose and our rusc had worked.
!. After firing two belts each. to max G
8 sure OF our job. VIC hurriediy dismount-
: cd our guns and took cover in the dug
4 out. We knew what 10 expect soon
y we didn't have to wait lonS. three
fIsa Mos of "whZz- bangs" came over from
4 tritz's artillery. n further coniirmatio
that we had sent that musical machine
= gunner on his westward bound journey.
That gun never bothered us again.
We were the heroes OF the battalion,
3our captain congratulated us. said it
\ was neat piece of work, and. Conse
i quently, We were all pulled UP over the
stunt.
There are several ways Tommy uses
Z to disguise the location of his machine
gun. and get his range. Some of the
most commonly used stunts are as fol-
lows:
Is At night. when he mounts his gun
) oven the top OF his trench and wants
y 10 get the range OF Fritzs trench. lie
"gctting the sparks" This consists OF
firing bursts from his gun until the
bullets hit the German barbed wire.
He can tell when they are cutting the
wire, because a bullet when IL hits Il
( wire throws out a blue electric spark.
Machine gun fire is very damaging to
wire and causes many wiring party
10 go out at night when il is quiet TO
repair the damage.
To disguise the fare OF his gun at
night when firing, Tommy uses what is
called flare protector This is a
storepinc arrangement which fits over
the barrel casing Of tho gun and screens
r ri. NO rio lcft l,i,,
not from the front. So Tommy. always
K reSourceful. adopts this scheme. About
three feet or less in front Of the gun
he drives two stakes into the ground.
abou; five feet apart Across these
stakes inc stretches a curtain made out
Of empty sandhags ripped open. He
soaks this curtain in water and fires
through H. The water prevents il
catching fire and effectively screens the
fare of the firing gun from the enemy.
Sound is Il valuable asset in locating
machine gun, but Tommy surmounts
this obstacle by placing two machine
guns about 100 to 100 yards apart.
The gun on the right TO cover with its
fire the sector of tho left gun. This
| makes their fire cross: they are fired
simultaneously.
BY this method it sounds like one
gun firing and gives the Germans the
impression that the gun is firing from
point midway between the guns
which are actually firing. and they ac-
cordinSly shell that particular spot.
The machine Eunncrs chuckle and say.
Fritz is brainy boy. not ALI he
amt"
But the men in our lines at the spot
being shcllcd curse Fritz for his iG-
norance and pass a few pert remarks
down the line in reference to the ma
chine gunncrs being windy" and
afraid to take their medicine.
CHAPTER NNITI.
GINS Attacks and Spies.
4. Three days after had silenced
Fritz, the Germans sent over gas. 1t
+ did not catch us unawarcs, because the
wind had been made TO order. that il,
1t was blowing from the German
trenches towards ours at tho rate OF
about five miles per hour.
Warnings had been passed down the
trench to keep a sharp lookout for gas.
We had new man at tho periscopc.
on this afternoon in question; ! was
sitting on the fire step cleaning my
rife. when he called out 10 me-
There's sor; of greenish, yellow
cloud rolling along the ground out in
front, it's coming
But / waited for no more, grabbing
|Eby bayonet. which was detached from
the rife, / gave the alarm by banging
an empty shell case. which was hang
ing near the periscopc. At the same
instant, gongs started ringing down
the trench, the signal for Tommy to
don his respirator. or smoke helmet
as we call IL.
Gas travels quickly. so YOU must not
lose any time: you generally have about
eighteen or twenty seconds in which
to adjus, Your gas helmet;
a gas helmet is made OF cloth, treat
cd with chemicals. There are two WIN
dows, or glass eyes, in it, through
which you can see. .,laside there is a
rubbcr-covcred tube Which goes in the
mouth. You breathe through your
atfiosc; the gas passing through the
cloth helmet. is ncutra!iZcd by the ac-
tiou OF the chemicals. The foul air is
cxhalcd through the tube in the mouth
this tube being 80 constructed that it
prevents the inhaling of the outside air
or ,Sas. one helmet is good for five
hours OF the strongest gas. Each
Tommy carries two Of them slung
around his shoulder in waterproof
canvas bag. He must wear this bag at
all times. even while sleeping. To
change detective helmet YOU take out
the new one hold Your breath, pull! the
old one Off, placing the new one over
your head, tucking in the loose ends
under the collar of your tunic.
For minute. pandcmonium reiGncd
III our trench-'rommics adjusting their
helmets. bornbcrs running here and
there, and men turning out OF the dug
outs with hNed bayoncts, TO man the
fire step.
Rc-enforccments were pouring out OF
The communication trenches.
our guns crew We're busy mounting
the machine gun on the parape, and
/ bringing up extra ammunition from the
| duSout
German gas is hcavie. than air and
| soon fills the trenches and duSouts
where il has been known TO Iurk for