Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-07-30
Continued from Psee Oae

Continued from Paee Oae
Saturdays withdrawal of the Ger
mans before our notwithstanding pres.
sure took them at midnight across
the river and into strong hilled posi-.
tions on the northern bank. There
they placed many hundreds of ma
chine guns ranging on the river ana
trained their artillery to lay down bar
RACES on the stream. Two fresh
guard divisions were placed in front
Of the Americans. and the bridges
were destroyed behind the fleeing foe.
At midnight the enemy thought he
had a new line He had for a few
hours.
At 4 O'Clock a part of the famed
fighting unit stepped from the woods
on the southern bank, leaped into the
stream which Is about two feet deep
and got to the other bank before the
Germans were aware of 1t. But by
the time all were over the machine
guns cut loose and the barrage swept
them mercilessly. They held twenty
minutes and had to come back. But
the Germans were all wrong ii they
thought the Americans were through.
AT 5l5 another dash was made. ana
after bloody fighting this. too, was
driven back across the stream.
stayed on Ihird attempt
In the meanwhile our engineers
brought up two bridges, with every piece
of wood cut and fitted beforehand. and
threw them across the stream AT
o'clock four companies made the dash
To say they stayed across makes snort
story of valiant resistance. the Ter
mans put down a barrage behind them
along the stream and moved them down
with machine guns from their trees, from
behind rocks and the bushes.
While the situation was becoming pre-
carious for these men big plans were
executed behind them, and at O'CLOCK
the grand rush started. II put thou-
sands of Americans across he river ny
10 o'clock. BY this time our artillery
was locating the Germans and field guns
on the south bank were shooting point
blank into the boche machine-gun nests.
Our men got set on the northern bank
and started for the hills lining the
stream After half an hour of the BIZ
terest sort of fighting we got deep into
these positions and the enemy broke and
ran down the northern side of the hills
and over a valley to another series OF
hills near.
BY this time Americans were across
the river in dozen places. BY noon
they had captured Sergy, and two hours
began a withdrawal all along the line
they had expected to hold 1t was the
first charge Of the Americans which had
broken them. TIE German machine gum
rers in the trees were killed and the
others fled. We brought back few
prisoners That the Germans intended
to stand here is shown by pile after pile
of ammunition we found where the guns
| had been hurredly pulled out.
Huns Kill Wounded Americans
Never have the Americans done hotter
| fighting. Never did they show to better
| advantage Never did the Hun fight
nastier. It was not the deadly work OF
| the machine guns in the trees and houses,
| and even in the churches, that awoke the
wrath of our men. II was not the ter
rife barrage that angered them. But
when they saw Hun snipers kill their
| wounded comrades. then they saw red
| and made the enemy run.
Getting back our wounded presented
many difficulties. because the ambulances
had to walt on the south side of the
river. Scores of wounded men with
slight hurts acted as stretcher-bearers
for the more seriously wounded fellows,
The chaplain stayed in the front lines,
directed the work of the stretcher-bear-
ers and himself gave a hand when need
|
who thought themselves equal to the
task. carried stretchers until they drop
ped from loss Of blood or exhaustion,
Time after time the Germans played
machine guns on the stretcher-bearers.
| saw them wounded and they told me.
One overloaded truck came in with
wounded and reported that German
airpane had swept low and dropped a
bomb which destroyed an open truck
carrying wounded. The driver and two
wounded men were killed. Stretcher-
| bearers wading the river with helpless
wounded were fired on by German snip
ers in the hills beyond.
Our Line Will Hold
Our line now lies some distance to the
north of Ourcq. and the line will hold
! There are Americans and lots of them
back of that line who mean business
more than ever before If the enemy
wants to play rough with them he
sure will get his fill.
A number of soldiers of one com.
pany who had been in the fight hat
high praise for Captain John p Hur'
ley, of New York city. They said ht
was always in front and early in the
fight shed his coat and belt to dc
more business. Fran kRooney, of So,
West l+9th street, New York city, said
we redcneu Wnere We tnOuSnt W,
Lwere going. but the captain said. Com,
on, boys and we just kept going. Don
forget TO say a good word for the cap
tain. He's a real guy"
Louis FGrthals, Of 35i Prospect ave
nue.. Brooklyn, and Alfred F.. George
Jr.. of $50 Macon street. Brooklyn, tol,
thrilling story of charging machin
guns through the enemy barrage. The
heard a number Of men talking abou
Burr Finkel. hailing from Port Jervis
; II appears that Finkel's officers were al
put out. and he took charge of a platoo
and captured three machine guns. put
Ting their crews hors de combat. TIL
men seeemed to follow him naturally
| although he was only a private, and h
came through without a scratch. And.
said one of the men, we called him tn
boob OF our outfit -
Sergeant Ruben Brown of Alabama
said that from the time he started unit
, he stopped he covered ten kilometer
: He explained that he didn't mean to &
so far but. advancing uphill. the Gel
mans laid down a rolling barrage benin
= his outfit. The barrage moved close
n , and there was nothing to do but kee
= ! ahead of IT, So they went on down IL
e hill. pushing the Germans back unit
q | they reached a valley, where they wei