The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1918-06-06
SHARE DANGERS
WITH SOLDIERS
7. M. c. A. Workers Are Almost
Constantly Under Fire
in France.
MANY HAIRBREADTH ESCAPES
Moments Delay Saves Red Triangle
Man From Death by SheII-Ex-
periences That Are Test
for Real Man.

everyday, everyhOur experiences iI
the lives of all soldiers and Y. M. G.
A. workers anywhere within rs miles
of the Boche guns. DR.. George Louis
Meylan, who has just returned from
France where he was engaged in rec
reatiOn work for the Y. M. G. A.,
threw some strong light on the con-
ditions under which all persons back
of the trenches live-and die. He had
been asked to tell some specific in
stances Of "Y'' workers under fire in
first-line trenches.
"ThOse over here who have not been
in the war zone must forget their old
time ideas of warfare and its dan
gers" said Doctor Meylan. "Forget
this old idea Of open fighting, with
troops battling across a plain the size
of large athletic field. Modern ar
tillery shoots for miles and is always
shooting. Every person within 20
miles OF the trenches is under fire
practically all Of the time, yet the re-
reports announce The artillery was
active and that means shells any,
where five to twenty-five miles back
Of the trenches.
Dodge Shells Constantly.
'Early in April the Germans made
night raids and their airplanes were
active in bombing. Two Of my or
ganizers were visiting camps eight or
ten miles back of the front-line
trenches. The Germans kept up the
bombardment for three days during
which time those 'Y' men were dodg
Ing shells constantly.
ION the second day they were in
Foyer de SOldat-One of the soldiers
recreation huts provided by the French
with 'Y' men in charge-when, within
few yards away, the other hitting the
hut. The 'Y' men were thrown down
by the conclusion. It seemed
miracle they were not hit, for soldiers
were killed and wounded all around
them.
ut is strange that although we have
only about one woman worker to every
hundred men workers, not a single
~ man had been killed up to the
time left France, whereas Hun shells
had killed two Of our women workers,
Miss Crandell and Miss Winona Mar
tin.
I'm certain woods the shells were
dropping so thickly that the French
ordered our men to aban-
don their hutS. AS the order was not
received until evening, a ~ man of
ny acquaintance decided not to leave
until next morning as he wished to
AXE his stuff Next morning he was
approaching the hut when a French
officer stopped him to exchange fare
wells. This took little more than q
minute, and the Red Triangle worker
started on his way when a shell ex-
,loded on the path near the hut at the
Joint where he would have been had
lie not been detained.
Close Calls Every Day.
"Some ~ workers are having hair
breadth escapes every day, not every
nan every day, but each in his time
Will regularity " JUSTLY Saying
ome men every day. Eight of our
men with the Canadians have been
,illed, and we cannot expect to escape
They work from six
,'clock in the morning until eleven
o'clock at night, seven days week.
With week off every three months
nd many never take their week off.
IN one occasion of which I know the
workers. were up at three o'clock in
he morning with hot coffee to warm
he French soldiers coming in after
three-mile wade through mud and
ain. Those Poilus appreciated that.
MANY of our workers slept on the
round in zero weather this winter,
With nothing but a blanket between
hem and the frozen earth, and with
10 shelter but a hut made often of
reen lumber which warped, letting
n icy blasts. A test for a real man.
IT went forward toward the
renches to meet the American sol
iers coming back after their baptism
f fire at Chemin des Danes and they
we're all eagerness for more. The
Germans had sent picked troops
gainst them their strongest men in
rand new equipment, to impress the
americans that Germany had an
bundance of everything, material
nd robust men. Quite a contrast to
le ill-equipped emaciated men the
rench had taken prisoners. The
mericans gave such good account of
in this fight that the
ropoh oor1Id not Yroico fbor1 opOrUh ~