Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1918-11-16
Yank Tank Cysw
in Hot Fighting
Before Romaqne

With the American Forces In France
Oct. 26.--.American fighters In the
French two-man tanks ran into some
hot work In front OF Romagno DURING
the American army's advance alonS
the west bank OF the Meuse early In
october and Sergt. James AVERT, OF
Birmingham, Ala. with his BUDDY,
did their share In giving the Hun his
due. Avertt's "buddy" was killed In the
thick OF tho fight by bullet that en-
tered a peep hole In the side Of the tank
and struck him fair In the face.
II was during the American push
in the Argonnc sector. Avertt's tank
went along with lot OF other
brother tanks In line with the Amer
lean infantrymen crowfing them In
the rear AVERT was the machine gun
ner OF his tank while his buddy" ran
the engine and steered the tank.
II was so near a number OF Germans
encountered In a shallow trench that
I could see Ahe terror on their faces
when my gun began to let ny bullets
almost in their very faces" Sergeant
AVERT said. These were the INST
boches I ran into on this drive and
certainly let them have 1t as fast as
my old machine could fire, and that
was some fast and I just kept goinr
ahead and pounding away until ever
last one of them was stretched out on
the ground.
Passing beyond this hastily aug
trench, I in the meantime watching
my brothers on my right and left ana
| at the same time keeping tab on the
doughboys coming up. ! got sight or
little batch Of Germans behind hump
| in the hill along the roadway. or whnt
| had been a roadway before our heavy
! artillery opened up that morning. These
| were machine suners. 7 soon learned.
and bullets began to splash off IN"
tanks sides particularly those when
struck a glancing blow.
81 ordered my tank buddy at the
wheel to keep after those gunners II
it cost us all four wheels He did and
we went up after them sort or sfde Re
ways and I got around on to the side
of that hump and my brother on the
| other side was doing the same, and we
wiped that bunch out in jify-l be
lieve it was by enfiladins fire, as the
! offit ers call it.
Sergeant Avery explained that the
tank men. all Of whom were Amer
| leans. using two men tanks invented
by the French. always watched eacE
other closely. or endeavored to- ~"
idea being to keep n hundred yards or
so apart for their mutual protection
and it being important also tnat they
not get too far ahead OF the intartrE
Just beyond the hump was clumi
| of woods and we began to pour bullets
! into that" Sergeant Avcrtt continued
and for a time there was some smoke
arising above the trcetops so we knew
there were bocircs in there. About foui
Of us opened up in full force ano
showcred that woods with lead.
"The machine gun answers were
pretty stiff for awhile as we went for
ward. but I just kept peppcring away
and talking to my bud dy' all the time
and telling him what W" wer" @oins
tn do-clean ont that woods. My
brothers on either side someway hat
the same bunch. The douGhhoys back
of me too were firing right along wlth
us and the boche in that thicket mus
have thought all hell had broken loose
because first think I knew the firing
virtually stopped and I figured all Tho
boches had been killed or had decided
to beat it before we all got there r
force.
"Along about this time noticed tha
the tank boys on the right were
swinging around the side of the clumE
of trees. and from the position of then
| guns and the speed Of their tanks
| Judged that they were giving hts &c
some F'ritZes running away. ] thcr
swift ched so as to run along side the
thicket, at a distance. and Joined thf
tanks boys going around the end
Just about that time there was
volley of machine gun bullets ano
some anti tank gun stuff too, from 4
hill a bit to my left suddenly my tank
Just began to tremble or something
and then stopped, and shuddercd al
over. 7 looked down and my buddy was
limp in his seat. One of those damned
bullets had come in thru my buddy
peep-hole and hit him squarely in the
! face.
"My buddy was dead. His hnn
clutch on the throttle shut off the gas
and the old tank stopped. and there
was, and the other boys went on
That's about all I know about thai
fight, or whatever It was. and I'm
waiting around for another tank anc
another buddy too to take me W
front again where things are doine
every minute. This tank business Is
great business for the boys who like
to shoot
| AVERT said that when he went into
action he determined to keep count
Of the number OF Germans his machine
| gun touched off, but when ne begaf