The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1918-06-27

front line, where they stick to the end Of their
wires under terrific shell fire until ordered to re-
join their commands If they get through alive
AN experience OF this kind happened to me
short time ago in lonely chateau of the Ypres-
Aenin road" an English officer wrote home. 'HThe
chateau was the center OF perfect hell Of Ger
man shrapnel for nearly week, until 1t became
almost untenable and abandoned by the head
quarters stan.
'4The general gave instructions that telegraph
list was to remain behind to transmit important
messages from the brigades, and 1 was left in
charge OF the instruments In this shell-Swept
chateau for a day and a night.
ION the second day the Germans broke through
our trenches and the wires cut by the shell
fire. was given orders to evacuate the building
and smash up my instruments These 1 saved by
burying In a shellprOof trench. and then I had to
escape between fire and that of the
.enemys across field under terrible tornado OF
shrapnel.
ION the early morning of the same day one of
cable detachments cut up and another
captured by the Germans, only to be retaken by
sappers and drivers after a desperate and
glorious fight
The Hnemen also have regular patrols, stretches
of line which have to be constantly examined not
only for breaks but also to make sure that they
have not been tapped by enemy spies in such
way that every bit of information sent over them
finds It's way to the Germans In the Aisne once,
where the hill country offered good cover to spies
the wires constantly being tapped
One day Hneman passing along the road no
IceO q lot OF cdDle lying at one side. He StaTteG
to coil 1t up and found that o piece of wire had
been tied to the main line. When he traced It he
found that 1t to haystack. He went on
tapped the line and sent in word to headquarters
and an armed escort found a spy hidden In the hay
with several days supply OF food.
They are autocrats in their way, these wire re-
pairmen, and one is permitted to interfere with
the swift execution Of their work. Word coming
over the line that the wire to a battery was re-
paired is often the sweetest sound in the world to
an observation officer up front, It comes In
a rough brogue which French weather has not i'm
proved.
So when anybody else breaks in on the line and
interferes with the repairman he gets rolled es-
peciay he has been sitting for several hours In
a shell hole with icy rain dripping down his
back An English officer told Of what happened
TO general who broke in once.
"a general came in the hut and told me 4 rang
Up the telephone just now and said, Give me the
- brigade, please" but some one with a loud
voice replied deliberately and distinctly: Get on
the blinking line" I got on remarking that as
soon as convenient 1 should like to speak I
apologized and explained that the line had been
down and was being repaired. He went OF with
a merry twinkle in his eye"
As the number Of men In the American army
abroad grows with the weeks. the number OF line
men, those who make possible all that the artfl-
Iery and infantry together accomplish viii stead
lily Increase until they are small army In them
selves And probably 1t viii be long before an
nouncement viii be made that some plain Bill
Smith wire repairman, has been given a medal for
bravery under fire. which attracted attention even
among the hundreds Of brave acts which these
men perform every day.