The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1918-09-18

dUOut up dlSdu. lldt WAS real open
warfare and something | shall never
forget as long as / live.
In the beginning of the attack ou1
losses were slight everything was 50
unexpected. AS we went ahead we
saw few of our own dead but the
Germans were everywhere to be seen
Later on one division met with fright
full loses. After firing all night we
again advanced as the infantry could
not be stopped.
They were slowing up however and
the lines of wounded coming back
told their own story.
It was the afternoon before while
waiting at crossroad for caissons te
come up that I saw Carl Wallace who
Max undoubtedly knows.
He was quite a runner at schOo
and after his graduation obtained 9
commission in the Marines.
! He was just on his way to the
front with his Company and they
were the boys who got it pretty hea.
Wy and / am wondering if he is one
who did not come back.
The officers suffered unusual los.
es. Even greater than the men.
had no time to stop and talk.
just after that three hundred Ger.
man prisoners passed with a Colone
and a Major in the lead.
The French laughed good naturcd.
~ at them and showed none of that
hatred which believe the Germans
capable Of toward prisoners.
After the first days the odor be-
came noticeable and each succeeding
day more so
/ can almost smell them as / sit
here writing about it for human flesh
has a smell peculiar to it.
| AS there were dead bodies every
where which had not been buried ou1
noses were sorely taxed at times.
times.
As we advanced farther we saw ev
idence of stubborn fighting every
where. Many of the tanks that hat
gone over with the first waves o.
infantry we're scattered in the whea
fields. The gasoline tanks in every
one had exploded and left nothing
but charred mass of bones ant
flesh, of their occupants.
The German planes were always
active. Any number of times the!
would swoop on the batteries and fir,
on the machine guns. One Afternoon
was riding along the road wher,
all the traffic supplies for that par
of the front had to go when fiv,
planes appeared over head at heigh
of not more than 500 meters an,
| nd hot CD s<pa
stretch Of road.
There was nothing to be done bu
take it as indifferently as possible
and figure that if one was meant fo
you that was all there was to it.
With all their firing / never heard
bullet nor saw any of the many mel
and horses on the road fall.
There is only one answer and unit
we send over many planes it will
remain in their hands.
And a successful offensive in tn
open on a grand scale will not be pos
sible until we have more planes.
It is hard enough knowing jus
where your infantry is with the plane
to assist you, and when they are pre-
vented from observing the artiller,
is well nigh useless.
At one position we became acquain
ted with the Austrians 88s. Thes
guns have such an enormous muzzl
velocity that you cant hear then
coming and when they explode the,
sound like 1905. The first one tina
landed unexpectedly we thought wa
an .aeroplane bomb as we had hear
or preliminary whine. Everyon
took to shell holes as they came i
fairly steady for several hours.
would rather be shelled by 21O
than those little devils. With Their
you must simply stay down all tn
time. That afternoon l had sewers
narrow escapes.
One when three men were hit b
one Of them on the road two Of ther
being killed, / and another Lieuter
ant put them on an ambulace whe
another landed as close if not close
than the one that had killed the mel
1t was just luck that none wer
hit. Again after supper / was stand
ing by the guns when one burst with
in twenty meters Of me.
They have burst above and all al
ound US and none Of the Officers
our Battery have a scratch as r.
suit.
u We feel that we have "God wit
US" even though we do not wear th
: magic Belt Buckle with that inscrir
ton ON it.
! But the best is yet to come. On
morning after being ordered back I
our original echelon to go from th
section for good we were ordered .
gain to the front and with no rel
for either men or horses.
We proceeded back to support
small local attack in front Of the tow
Of Vierzy about ten kilometers sout
Of scissors. Upon arriving ths
night we went Immediately forwar
to take up new positions but the Al
tack began before we had taken GU
position.
We, were just in the town Of Vie,
zy which had not been long N &C
hands and the Germans shelled
when the attack began. Fires wey
burning and the shells were drop a
too close for comfort. In the =.
time the LIST and End platoons 4 b.
come separated and the Lieutenant i
charge Of the End had not the leas
idea Of the right road. We landed i