Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1918-07-04

on, according TO the code names ~
our map. Then to rub II In. they
holsied some more signs which read
Come ON. we are ready. stupid Eng
lish."
II IL still a mystery to me how they
obtained this knowledge. There hat
been no raids or prisoners taken, So
II must have been the work OF spies
In our own lines.
Three or four days before the big
push we tried TO shatter Frltz's nerves
by feInt attacks. and partially sue
ceeded ms the official reports Of july
/ show.
Although we were constantly BON
harding their lines day and pight. still
we fooled the Germans several times
This was accomplished by throwing
an intense barrnge into his lines
then using smoke shells we would put
curtain Of white smoke across No
Mans Land. completely Obstructing
his view OF our trenches, and
would raise our curtain OF fire
as n In an actual attack. All
down our trenches the men would
shout ana cheer. ana FRITZ wOuln turn
loose with mnchlne-gun. rifle, and
shrapnel fire, thinking we were com
ing over.
After three or four of these dummy
attacks his nerves must have been
npnr thp breaking potnt
On June "a, 1916. at 9:40 In the
morning our guns opened up, and hell
was let loose The din was terrific, a
constant boom-boom-boom In your ear.
At night the sky was a red glare.
our bombardment had lasted about
two hours when Fritz started reply
Ing. Although we were sending over
ten shells to his one, our casualties
were heavy. There was a constant
stream Of stretchers coming out of the
communication trenches and burial
parties were common sight.
In the dugouts the noise of the guns
almost hurt. You had the same sensa-
ton as when riding on the subway you
enter the tube under the river going
10 Brooklyn-a sort OF pressure on the
ear drums. and the ground constantly
trembling.
The roads behind the trenches were
very dangerous because Boche shrap-
mel was constantly bursting over them.
We avoided these dangerous spots by
crossing through open fields.
The destruction in the German lines
was awful and | really felt sorry for
them because realized how they must
be clicking 1t.
From our front-llne trench, every
now and again. we could hear sharp
whistle blasts In the German trenches.
These blasts were the signals for
stretcher bearers, and meant the
wOundlng or killing of some German In
the service Of his fatherland.
AtweIl and had tough time Of 1t,
patrolllng the different trenches at
night, but after awhile got used to 1t.
My old outfit, the machine gun com
pany, was stationed In huge elephant
dugouis about four hundred yards be-
hind the front-llne trench-they were
in reserve. Occasionally l would stop
in their dugout and have a confab with
my former mates. Although we tried
to be jolly, still, there was a lurking
feeling Of impending disaster. Each
man was wondering, IT, after the
slogan, "Over the top with the best of
luck had bssp sounded. would hs s.s sIill
be alive or Would he be lying "soiiie-
where in France In an old dilapldated
house, the walls Of which were Scared
with machlne-gun bullets, No 3 Sec
ton of the machine gun company had
It's quarters. The company's cooks pre-
pared the meals In this billet On the
fifth evening of the b0mbardment a
German eight-inch shell registered a
direct hit on the billet and wiped out
ten men who were asleep In the sup
posedly bOmb-proof cellar. They were
buried the next day and attended the
funeral.