The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1918-11-20


The lines had gone on ahead, so we
were quite safe. Had a fine aero bat
tie right over us. The stunts that
those planes did cannot be described
by me.
Field Covered With Dead.
Late In the afternoon we adj
vanced again. Our route lay over an
open field covered with dead. We lay
down ON a hillside for the night, near
some captured German guns, and I'M
til dark I watched the cavalry, some
1900, come up and take positions.
"At $3.50 the next morning Sitz woke
me up and said we were to attack. The
regiment was soon under way, and we
picked our way under W. of a gas
infested valley to a town, where we
got our final Instructions, and left our
packs. I wished Sumner good luck, and
we parted.
1--WE formed up In q sunlen road on
two sides of a valley that was perpen-
dicular to the enemy's front; Hughes
right, Holcomb left, Sibley support. We
now began to get a few wounded; one
man, with ashen face, came charging
to the rear with shell shock. He shook
all over, foamed at the mouth, could
not speak. / put him under a tent, and
he acted as IL he had a fit.
81 heard Lieutenant Overton call to
one of his friends to send a certain
pin to his mother If he should get hit.
"At $50 we jumped off with a line
of tanks In the lead. For two kilos
the four lines of marines were as
straight as a die, and their advance
over the open plain In the bright sun
light was a picture I shall never for
get. The fire got hotter and hotter,
men fell, bullets sung, shells whizzed-
banged, and the dust of battle got
thick. Overton was hit by a big piece
of shell and fell. Afterward l heard
he was hit In the heart, so his death
was without pain. He was buried
that night and the pin found.
"a man near me was cut In two.
Others when hit would stand. 1t seemed,
an hour, then fall In a heap. I yelled
to Wilmer that each gun In the bar
rage worked from right to left, then
a rabbit ran ahead, and / watched him,
wondering IL he, would get hit. Good
rabbit-it took my mind off the "a
mage. Looked for Hughes way over
to the right; told Wilmer that I had
a hundred dollars, and be SUR to get
1t. You think Of all kinds of things.
"About 60 Germans jumped up out
of a trench and tried to surrender, but
their machine guns opened up, we fired
back, they ran, and our left company
after them. That made a gap that had
to be filled, SO Sibley advanced n of
his to do the job; then a shell lit In
a machine gun crew of ours and clean
ed IT out completely.
Lost II Gut Of 20 officers.
AT 10 80 we dug in; the attack
just died out. found a hole or old
trenct and when I was fiat on my
bac< / got some protection. Hol-
CONN was next me; Wilmer some way
off. We then tried to get reports. Two
companies we never could get In
touch with. Lloyd anne In and re-
ported he was holding some trenches
near a mill with six men. Gates,
with his trousers blown of, said he
had 16 men of various companies;
another officer on the right reported
he had and could see some 40 men,
all told. That, with the headquarters,
was all we could find out about the
battalion of nearly 500. OF the 20
company officers who went In, three
came out, and one. Gates. was slightly
wounded.
"From then on to about 8 p. m. life
was. a chance, and mighty uncomfort-
able. 1t was hot as a furnace, no wa
ter. and they had our range to a IT.
Three men lying in a shallow trench
neal me we're blown b bits.
We had a machine gun officer with
us and at six a runner came up and
reported that Sumner was killed. He
commanded the machine gun company
with us. He was hit early In the
fight by a bullet, / hear. i can get no
details. At the start he remarked
This looks ~easy-they do not seem
to have much art Hughes head
quarters were all shot up. Turner lost
a leg.
SWELL, we just lay there all through
the hot afternoon. 1t was great-a
shell would land near by and you
would bounce In your hole.
GAS twilight came we. SEN our wa
ter parties for the relief of the
wounded. Then we wondered If we
would get relieved. At nine o'clock
we got a message congratulating us,
and saying the Algerians would take
over ut midnight. We then began to
collect our wounded. Some had been
evacuated during the day, but at that
we soon had about 20 on the field near
us. A man who had been blinded
wanted me to hold his hand. Another,
wounded In the back, wanted his head
patted, and so 1t went; one man got
up on his hands and knees. / asked
him what he wanted. He said: Look
at the full moon,' then fell dead. ]
had him buried and all the rest ]
corld find All the time hullnte Suup