Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-09-08

a .
His face was toward the east, his
hand was still erect, his automatic was
clutched in his dead fingers, and in his
line Of fire we looked and saw the Ger.
man machine run emplacement, with
the gun pointing directly at the corpse,
About that German gun, with their
backs toward the appraised American
hand, lay four Germans Of the machine
gun crew, three dead and one dying.
shot through the bodies and through
the head. We could only guess the
tragedy of how the machine gun had
held up our advance, OF how one man.
whose story may never be told, CHARGED
the gun alone; of his mortal wound
and Of his own victory. as with dying
fingers he pulled the trigger again and
again with sure aim, dispatching the
Germans who had turned to run. BY
the side Of the German gun there were
hundreds Of exploded cartridges and
empty belts.
Slowly we wandered through the
wheatf1elds and Open spaces, wheke
more and more gray-clad bodies showed
the line Of our advance; and half an
hour. later we came into the German
artillery positions. We came upon them
from the front, and they stood there.
nve IT'S in line, their muzzles stiIl
pointing at our lines, their sights still
ready, one with breech open. another
ready to fire, the large shells neatly
ranged IN stacks beside them, and some
or the gunnsrs dead nearby. They had
not had the time to damage their guns.
ana meanwhile our. guns were iirfnce
ana our men advancing. = - -
hnakl-ciad men in groups Of two and
d 10 sio, were walking toward us. and oc-
strung out along road. They were tina
slretcher bearers with their burdens
tne non-combatants who had gone over
WIN the infantry and who were now
Sdv,as , .ne hves OF the wounded. among
The struggling line were the slightIv
wounded who could walk. =
.... Xxx Ms& s
Our artillery had heightened fts
range by many miles now, and the
roads and fields through. which we
passed were gaping with deep holes,
and sometimes at the lips OF these
craters parts Of German bodies were
lying and near the roads dead horses
and broken munition carts were scat.
tered. We entered dense wood BY 4
narrow path and came toward hid.
den cavern. ~ Il
There we found an American cans
tain, sergeant and four Drivates.
rifles with bayonets fixed and re-.
volvers In hand. standing ready, while
from out the mouth Of this quarry
there issued, two and three abreast.
line Of Germans arms above their
heads. hands clasped, twenty. forty.
hundred Of them; and more and
more coming. They filled the whole
clearing. Two hundred, and still they
came. Three hundred, four hundred.
I do not know how many more, but
there were probably all Of regi.
ment, and I will never forget the
sneer on the German artillery col.
onels face which even humiliatins
defeat could not efface, nor will I
ever forget the laughter in the eyes
Of our captain and his sergeant and
the four privates who had made this
capture by throwing one grenade
into the cavern and awaiting O reply
which was a white nag.
That was one Of the happy incidents
of the first day of our offensive. All
the rest was bloodshed and terror, but
out of that day we, emerged tri.
umphant, for our men Of America,
paying the price theyaknow they must
pay, have broken the German might
and prepared to go onward to the
and prepared which this FIRST grea6
battle assures to America.
Copyright. 1918, By Edward Marshail.)