The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1918-02-16
AMER R|CAN
SECTOR i
LOCI||i:D
Sammies Entrenc7 ; pposite
Mount Sec, WI ytands
Like Gil r
on Land.
ARE DODGING GAS FUMES
At Slightest Hint Of Poisonous Air,
Every Man Slips on
Mask as Protec-
tlon.
[By j. w. Pegler, United Press Staff

[By j. w. Pegler, United Press Stall
Correspondent
WITH THE AMERICAN ARMIES
IN FRANCE, Feb. 15. Delayed
The American sector Is opposite
Mount Sec. a great hill looming like
hump on the horizon visible from
the city of Toul, it is permissible to
announce today.
Mount Sec Is dotted with enemy
machine gun nests and observation
posts. The Sammies are already call
ing 1t Gibraltar" but a Pittsburgh
lad quoted Bob Fttzsimmons' famous
saying, the bigger they are the
harder they fall"
The hill is short distance within
the enemy's lines and affords obser-
vation of our territory like perpet-
ual sausage balloon. The American
artillery periodically touches up the
machine gun nests on it.
I Mount Sec is about three miles
northeast of Xivray, the town where
American soldiers were recently cap
tured In German raid. 1t is about
ten miles east of st. Mihiel and
twenty miles north of Toul.
It is known in trench-land OF
course, that President Wilson has re-
1ected the Austro-German peace feel
ers. But men and officers alike are
disposed to leave discussion of In
ternational affairs to those back
home-their present and immediate
task" is to back up the presidents
words with rifle and bayonet.
1--WE are working hard but we're
not boasting" declared a noted major
general in discussing the situation
with the United Press today. we
are not without appreciation of what
has been done by others and what
remains for US to do.
what the American armies have
done in the past means nothing-its
what this army does that counts
now"
Today was bright, clear and cold.
A freezing wind served to partially
dry up the mud in the trenches and
afforded welcome relief from the
wet and sogginess the men have been
experiencing.
The sector was the quietest it had
been In forty-eight hours as regards
artillerying. Airplanes flashed con
stantly through the sunlight. A saus-
age balloon hung lazily in the rear
of the American sector. Mount Sec.
the immediate objective of the
american nate, lOOlueO huge dtIOso
the German Lines.
The Boches are said to have at
tempted to take advantage OF the
breeze blowing toward the American
trenches to give the Sammies a
taste of gas. After hours of alert
ness. American sentries heard sus-
picfous humming from the enemy
trenches, accompanied by a suspic-
all This loH rpnnrt
that Fritz was loosing a gas cloud.
One man, believed to have been
gassed, was sent to the hospital but
his condition is not serious.
In addition to the gas cloud, the
Germans fired gas shells. which
loosed a banana like odor. These
did no harm.
Every Sammy on the road, whether
marching toward the trenches, driv
ing a ration wagon or goading ma
chine gun mules, wore gas mas'
in alert position ready to snap the
elastics over his head the instant
an alarm was sounded.
Far back of the lines, where roll
ing detonations and rafting window
panes were the only warlike sounds
the wounded in the hospitals wert
ready to don masks, which were
hanging within arms reach suspend
ed from nails at the head OF eacf
cot.
Perhaps the Boches' gas won
amount to much in the. face of all the
| anti gas equipment now supplied tn,
Sammies, but the boys aren't taking
any chances.
| Claims Great Victory.
| BERLIN. Feb. Is. (Via LondonO =
| The destruction of strong force.
guarding the English channel" wa