The Washington herald., 1918-02-18
CHAPTER xI.
Over the Top.

On my second trip to tho trenches
our officer was making his rounds OF
inspection, and we received the cheer
full news that at in the morning we
were to go over the top and take the
German front-Iine trench. Ny heart
turned to lead. Then the officer car
ried on with his instructions. To the
best of my memory I recall them as
follows: "At II o'clock a wiring party
will go out in front and cut lanes
through our barbed wide for the
passage OF troops in the morning. At
g o'clock our artillery will open up
with an intense bombardment which
will last until 1 o'clock. Upon the
lifting OF the barrage. the first of the
three waves will go over" Then he
left. Some OF the Tommies, first get
ting permission from the sergeant,
went into the machine gunners' dug
out, and wrote letters home, saying
that in the morning, they were going
over the top, and also that IL the let
ters reached their destination it would
mean that the writer had been killed
These letters were turned over to the
CdpldHl WIN 10 IIldll
in the event OF the writer's being killed
Some of the men made out their wills
in their pay book, under the caption,
will and last testament"
Then the nerve-racking wait COM
menced. Every now and then would
glance at the dial of my wrist-watch
and was surprised to see how fast the
minutes passed by. About 1:55 1
e.
open up. I could not take my eyes
from my watch. ] crouched against
the parapet and strained my muscles
in a death-like grip upon my rifle. AS
the hands on my watch showed 2
o'clock, binding red flare lighted up
the sky in our rear. then thunder. in
termixed with a sharp. whistling
sound in the air over our heads. The
shells from our guns were speeding on
their way toward the German lines
With one accord the men sprang up
on the fire step and looked over the
top in the direction of the German
trenches. A line OF bursting shells
lighted up No Mans Land. The din
was terrific and the ground trembled
Then, high above our heads we could
hear a signing moan. Our big boys
9.2's and 15-inch shells commenced
dropping into the German lines. The
flash of the guns behind the lines,
the scream of the shells through the
air, and the flare of them, bursting,
was a spectacle that put Pains great
est display into the shade. The con-
slant pup. pup, of German machine
guns and an occasional rattle of rifle
firing gave me the impression of a
huge audience applauding the work of
the batteries.
Our eighteen-pounders were destroy
ing the German barbed wire. while the
heavier stun was demolishing their
trenches and bashing in dugouts or
funk-holes.
Then Fritz got busy.
Their shells went screaming over
head, aimed in the direction of the
flares from our batteries. Trench NOR
tars started dropping "Minnies" in
our front line. We clicked several
casualties. Then they suddenly ceased.
Our artillery had taped or silenced
them.
During the bombardment you could
almost read newspaper in our trench
sometimes in the flare of a she'll
burst a mans body would be silhouet-
ted against the parados of the trench
and 1t appeared like a huge monster
You could hardly hear yourself think
When an order was to be passed down
the trench, you had to yell it, using
your hands as a funnel into the ear
or the man sitting next to you on the
nre step. In about twenty minutes a
generous rum issue was doIed out
After drinking the rum, which tasted
IKE Varnish and sent a shudder
through your frame, you wondered
why they made you wait until the
hftlng of the barrage before going
over. AT 1850 O'Clock, word was passed
down, Ten minutes to gon' Ten
minutes to live! We were shivering all
over. My legs felt as IL they were
asleep. Then word was passed down:
FIRST wave get on and near the
scaling ladders"
These were small wooden ladders
which we had placed against the
parapet to enable us to go over the
top on the lifting of the barrage. Lad
ders of Death we called them. and
veritably they were.
Before a charge Tommy is the DO
litest of men. There is never any
pushing or crowding to be first up
these ladders. We crouched around
the base Of the ladders waiting for
the word to go over. 1 was sick and
faint. and was putting away at an un-
lighted fag. Then came the word
Three minutes to go; upon the lifting
OF the barrage and on the blast OF
the whistles. Over the Top with the
Best Of Luck and Give Them He'll" I"
The famous phrase Of the. Western