The Robesonian., 1918-09-02
SOLDIERS TELL
OF The WAR

Gassed Soldiers From the Front
Talk of What They Have Seen
and Experienced-They Tell of
German Cruelty and Heroic Sac
rifices Made BY American Sol
disrs-It is the Least the Folks
At Home Can Do to Support
Men Who Are Fighting For
Them. .... ~
In his talk at the court house the
other night. Sergeant A. w. Quinsby,
one of the two soldiers sent to Robe
son to assist in the War Savings
drive, illustrating the way the boys
Who have gone to France to fight Tor
iustice and right and world liberty
are sacrificing their lives, told OF a
19-year old boy who sacrificed his
life l,obly and unhesitatingly to save
his comrades. This boy had releas-
ed the pin in hand grenade prepara-
tory to throwing it from trench, but
before he could throw it his foot slip
ned and he fell, dropping the grenade.
When the pin is released 1T sets tne
grenade to explode in a very Jew sec
onds. The boy knew he did not nave
time to pick the bomb up and throw II
and that if it exploded as it was sew
eral of his comrades would be killed.
40 without a moments hesitation ne
threw himself upon the grenade and
the explosion that followed immediate
lv blew his body literally to pieces;
Not a piece of the boys body could
be found, but no one else was hurt;
The bows name was not given. HIS
name deserves to live and be honored
"a long as heroic deeds are told. Count
less deeds of heroism are done daliy
hv men in the service on the fields
Of France.
People over here, said Sergeant
on;nsbv. seem to think they have
dane great things if they buy Few
Tiherfv bonds and War Savings
stamps. It is the least they can do,
he said. to back up the boys who are
cheerfully undergoing hardshlps ana
sacrificing their lives. You canI
% too much for the boys "over there;
You ought to hate to have nai1-a6i- %
lar in YOUR pocket that might save the
life of some boy who is protecting
you. .,o,. with
the first body of national guards, 2lst
division. He stayed in England
few days, getting to London IN time
coa on al raid.
Women Doing Mems Work.
He will never forget, he says, the
SIGHT that met him in France, women
doing mems work. They were gwen
a GREAT welcome by the women. They
rode in box cars to the training camp:
There was rain and mud a-plenty, and
food was scarce, but there was no
crJ,mblinp: the boys took it all in a
Joking way. They drilled IN all xmas
of weather, but no one tried 70 oooge.
After drilling for two months 5ney
marched 40 miles, each man WIN ~
pounds on his back. They passed 70
their billet behind a curtain wnlcn
hung over a small door. Ihey nao
to march in single-file but this mar
row passage led to cave big enough
to hold 10000 men.
Gas Bombs.
Hanging about all over this cave
they found queer-looking bottles wnlcn
they were curious to know the con-
tents of, but before any one MADE
the fatal mistake of opening one OF
them they found they were gas bombs,
left there by Germans who had evac-
uated the cave, in the hope that the
soldiers who entered it would release
the gas and be killed. In every nook
and corner of the cave they found also
common tin cans connected by hidden
strings to bombs. If any soldier had
been so thoughtless as to pick up {,
can the bomb attached to 1T would
have been exploded.
Only SO Got Back.
Sergeant Quinsby told of an attack
by 500 Germans. They laid down
a heavy barrage and cut off his com,
pany of rs from hope of reinforce
ments or retreat. The Germans, how.
ever, had forgotten to cut the wire
entanglcments and when they ranne
over the Americans simply moved
them down as they tried to worl
through the wires, and only 60 Of then
got back, while the Americans los
only or 8 men.
Gassed.
A handful of men took a German
third-line trench when Sergean
Quinsby said a piece of shrapnel tor'
a piece of his British gas mask away
He had to change to his French mask
tie French masks being rot SO goo'
as the British, and inhaled some gas
He thought he would be all righ
and kept on, but was ordered bacl
ard presently all got black end tn
next thing he knew he was in a hos
pital with Red Cross nurse Dendin
over him. He had suffered from Dot
mustard gas and chlorine, the forme
going through his clothing, and HI
flesh YVES mass of blisters.
Nurses Work Long Hours WithOu
Rest.
The nurses stayed on foot 36 hour:
said Sergeant Quinsby. They refus
ed to go to bed All night long the
bathed in oil men who had been gass
ed. 1t was awful. The boy in tn
cot next you would roll over, gasp OF
"Good luck" to you, and would
gone.
German Cruelty.
Sergeant Quinsby said that tn