South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-02-18
j. 5. HOSPITAL
TARGET FOR
TEUTON BOMBS
Hun Airmen Drop Heavy Mis-
SiIeS Which, However, Fail
to Find Mark-PatrOI
Has Thriller.

WITH THE AMERICAN ARM
les II. FRANCE. Saturday. Feb. 10
An American field hospital in a
town within our lines apparently
was the target for a German air
plane which flew over il last night
and dropped several unusually heavy
bombs
The hospital, in which were
number Of sick and wounded officers
and men. was the building nearest
the places where the German air
man dropped two different sets of
bombs
Fortunately none Of the missiles
reached their mark, although the
hospital patients and the residents Of
the town were severely shaken by
the explosions American anti-air-
craft guns engaged the enemy, but
without success. The hospital prob
ably will be moved to a less danger
Gus spot.
An American patrol having passed
the first line of German entangle-
ments and approached the second
line Saturday night, was suddenly
cut off by a current of electricity
along the first wire line.
Instead of attempting an immeGi
ate return to their trenches. which
would have meant certain death
from electrOcution or machine guns,
the Americans chung close to the
earth, and later, when the electricity
was cut off. returned in safety to
their positions.
Experience is Thrilling.
It was a thrilling experience for
| the patrol. A certain number Of men
set on from the American position
| in the hope of encoUntering a num-
| Der of. enemy at a point in the Ger
man trenches. They had succeeded
in getting through the first line and
had crawled on until the second line
was reached. When they were just
about to start under the second line
there was a blush glow, and turn
ing around they saw long, livid
sparks playing through the barbed
wire of the first line. The enemy
had turned on a powerful electric
current.
/ The patrol quickly hattened out
on the ground thinking they had
| been discovered and expected to
/ hear rnomentarily machine gun bull
let's go singing overhead. Nothing
OF the kind happened, however.
I Apparently the Germans merely
turned on the current by chance.
1 hoping that if any Americans were
within the entanglements they would
/ be killed on the wire or while trying
TO get out. The patrol returned safe
| ~ 10 the American lines when the
electricity was cut off.
German Hoax Fails.
J The Germans apparently having
discovered the meaning of the Amer
/ lean rocket signals last night caused
| the Americans for a considera BILE
distance along the front to prepare
for a gas attack. At first the Ger
mans sent into the air rocket of a
certain color which is the American
signal for gas attacks, but the hoax
was discovered soon after the troops
/ adjusted their gas masks.
The Germans next SER up a rocket
calling for barrage ~ the Ameri-
cans. but the American officers on
observation duty in an advanced
post, seeing whence the rocket came,
sent a message to the artillery in
time 10 prevent it from laying down
the needless shell fire. The com
mand TO fire was ready TO be given
when the information reached the
gunners that the enemy was respon-
sible for the barrage signal EX-
tremely quick work was necessary to
stop the order 10 fire, for the Ameri-
can artillery has shown a high de-
/ gree of speed in going into action.
The Germans are coming to real
lie this and they are not so free with
their shells as in the early days Of
the American occupation of the line.
In the language of the front. every
time that Fritz sends over one shell
now he gets an "arm-fun" in re-
turn.