The Oroville weekly gazette. [volume] (Oroville, Wash.) 1905-19??, 1918-08-02

Dioody Passchendaele fight. and held
In the trenches SO DAYS without relief
At last the regiment was to be sent
Dack for rest. He was detailed with
~ men to go out and meet the grub
wagon. When they reached the
| trench where the rations were to be
delivered the sector was under heavy
smell fire. He ordered Is of the men
TO go back until called. McKellar
went init a shell hole and the other
iour into a dugout nearby. When
the fire died down the men came out
IN the open. AS McKellar stepped from
the she'll hole a "dud," an unexplod.
ed shell, just missed his head and
teil In front Of him. Immediately af-
terwards a shell exploded at his
heeis. The four men, 40 feet away.
were instantly killed, and McKellar
was fearfully mangled in the thighs,
hips and arm. He fell unconscious
In the hole made by the exploding
smell. He was conveyed to trench
hospital for first aid, and on through
the regular channels reached base
hospitals in both France and Eng
land. 1t was many months before he
was able to get around. He was sent
back to Canada, and two months ago
was discharged as incapacitated for
further service.
Mr. Mckellar paid high tribute to
the Red Cross and the Y. M. C. A..
He declared that he owed his life to
the Red Cross stretcher barers and
the treatment afterwards received
through the hands of the Red Cross
nurses. He eulogized the American
soldiers in France and on the way
and said that the people of England
and France could not do too much for
the American soldier. He illustrated
the trend of sentiment in those coun-
tries by giving his own experience.
Whenever he was visited in the hos
pitfalls he would tell the visitors that
he was an American serving in the
Canadian army and nothing was too
good for him.
We have given only hasty and i'm
perfect resume of Mr.. McKellar's ad-
dress. If it could all be put in words
as he expressed them the story would
be intensely interesting and exceed
ingly instructive as giving vivid in
sight of the life of a private soldier
in the war zone. The crowd that was
present followed the speaker closely,
from start to finish moving up close
to the speakers stand in order not
to lose word. The address was not
an oratorcal effort, but plain, blunt
story told by a plain blunt soldier,
who had been down into this hell on
[earth. has paid the price of war in
suffering, and yet comes out of the
fire more loyal to the cause of the
allies than when he first offered his
life to lend all the aid at his command
to crush autocracy. He is firm in
his belief that the allies will win be-
cause their cause is right, and right
will in the end always WIN over wrong.
He declares that America is to be the
deciding factor in the war. The Huns
are feeling their presence now, he
said, and when all the preparations
under way are carried out the end will
be near at hand. He said the Ameri-
can soldier was the best fed and best
cared for soldier fighting today, and
praised the people at home for back
ing the boys at the front His grill
ing of the disloyal and proGerman at
home was most delightful, which
shows how the soldiers feel toward
that element, an element that the
soldiers would take drastic means to
eliminate were it in their power.
Should Mr.. McKellar be induced to
speak again in Oroville he will have
for his audience the entire popula-
tiOn