Evening star., 1918-02-23
j. s. FRONT |SL|KE
ONE LARGE MOVIE
Countryside for Miles Around
Is Screen, and Observation
Posts Are Box Seats.
SOLDIERS ARE ACTORS
BY THOMAS M. JOHNSON.

+ BY THOMAS NJ. JOHNSON.
Copyright. 1918. All rights resered)
WITH THE AMERICAN ARMY IN
FRANCE, February 21.-Every day
+ there may be seen at the front here a
movie show the equal of which was
never dreamed on Broadway. The movie
actors are our own soldiers and those
of the enemy and the screen the pano-
rama of the country miles along the
{ front.
I The trenches, roads and villages are
viewed from box seat placed on an
accommodating spot from which one
can see enrolled, like long hlm. the
daily drama of war. The box seat Is
the artillery observation post, whence
through a shotlike peep hole the OBJ
server increasingly sweeps the boche
lines with glasses telephoning to our
batteries orders which are quickly fol-
lowed by the booming of guns and the
roaring of shells speeding over to con-
found whatever knavish tricks he may
have discovered.
A few hours spent there are sufficient
to make any performance accompanied
by orchestra and red plush seats seem
stale and profitless.
Weather Bellies February.
Yesterday was a wonderful spring
like day belying the name OF February.
This has occurred often of late. the
sky being blue and cloudless and the
sun shining warm. Everything stood
out cameolike from looming Mont Sec
on the left along a dark, heavily wood
ed ridge to a far town in the boone
lines on the left. For a few minutes all
was silent, save the occasional rumble
of distant guns, affording time to oo,
serve the details of Mont Sec, the walled
of the village of Mont Sec, the solitary
clump of trees on the summit, also the
fact that the general shape OF tne
fortress resembles pictures OF the OLD
Confederate ironclad Merrimac, with
its fiat top and sloping sides.
Meanwhile an officer and CORPORAL
were busy at the telephone. They
ought to start in minute" said the
officer. Just then a roaring explosion
showed that they would.
A shell went whooptng away toward
q ruined village. Over there the ruins
stood out like white spires in the sun
light and suddeny amid the spires arose
a cloud of brownish white smoke. Then
the thud of the explosion was heard
That's right in what's left OF the
church" said the officer. but it's lit
to the right
+ He talked a moment at the telephone
Then came more shots and more smoke
arising from a point further to the
right this time; and one can imagine
the boche diving for cellars. muttering
"Verfuchter Amerikaner."
Men Working Wire shelled.
These events drew attention nearer
home. Down at our feet: so close It
seemed as IL we could talk to them,
score or so of our men were working
barbed wire. We could see their wooden
mallets rise and fall as they drove
posts. Men were unrolling wire calmly
yards from the place where the boone
dropped 500 shells few days ago
They were in a hollow and 80 we
imagined they were invisible. but we
had forgotten Mont Sec. Suddenly came,
Boom boom." and two shots SEEM
ed very close. An instant later. Bang.
bang and two shells exploding within
a few yards from our working party
enveloped them in coil OF smoke.
With tense faces our observers watch
ed the clearing smoke. and an ofncer
II any one is hit" When the smoke lift
ed it revealed half of the men diving
into the nearest trench and the other
half lying motionless on the ground.
silent and motionless. Finally they got
up and leisurely strolled toward the
trench. The officer heaved sigh OF re-
lief. "All SAFE" he said. but it's the
0eVil OF q JoD 10 tSdCu thShn IL ASAA
cowardly to duck when shell comes.
. the boche saw them from Mont Sec"
One man in the trench was rolling a
cigarette and others evidently were
e discussing the wisdom OF resumfng
work. In another minute they came
out again. When two more shells
threw up dirt and smoke after landing
even closer than before there was
again an anxious interval, after which
the men were seen to be either in the
trench or hugging the ground.
Yankees Cool Under Fire.
But they tried 1t third time and did
in fact get to swinging their mallets
{ showered them with dirt. An ofdcer
; appeared around a corner Of the trench
and from his motions 1t appeared that
he was complimenting the men on
their nerve and persistence. But also
: he told them they were more use alive
than dead, after which they all dis
appeared.
There are other things to be seen be-
sides the little interludes of life and
death. There is a new communicating
trench which the boche is digging along
the hillside because our artillery is
getting too active for comfort.
One saw the finish of a spectacular
alright between the boche and a plane
every one swore was an American, per-
haps because it succeeded in driving
the boche down behind the protecting
bulk of Mont Sec to the shelter Of its
own anti-aircraft batteries which filled
the sky with puffs of fleecy clouds But
the most vivid of all impressions was
that of a working party challenging
death three times as proof that il is
men like that. just plain private SOL