Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1919-07-29

| NJ
hairbreadth escapes through seas of
exploding shells, of forlorn hopes attempted
and accomplished in this great war have been
written to stir the blood of future genera
| tons of men and women, the human hero
will not have monopoly of the glory. In the
| Signal corps there is bird brigade, an or
| ganization of carrier pigeons, half hundred
members of which have received citations,
medals, decorations and other military
honors
When the record is made up due recogni-
| ton is to be given these soldiers of the wing
for their feats in battle, for the lives they
| have saved for tn einfOrmation OF military
| value, beyond transmission but for them,
which they have carried. Special photo
| graphic records are to be made OF these bird
| heroes. Those that still live are to be given
comfortable homes in the big ZOOS of the
nation where their admirers may visit them.
They will FURNISH their plumage above tab
lets which recite the stirring deeds IN which
they have participated.
Chere Ami, the greatest of these birds,
deid in Washington the other day after long
and brave attempt to recover from her
wounds. The remains are to be mounted and
find place in that scientific hall of fame, the
Smithsonian Institution. For Chere Ami, it
may be remembered, brought out information
vital to the progress of that bloodiest of
American drives, that of Argonne Forest.
She was carrying this message from the front
line trenches to loft at Rampont when the
was shattered by bullet. The injured limb
was left dangling by the ligaments, and the
missile that had severed the leg passed
through the breast bone, biting deeply. In
spite of these injuries and great loss OF blood,
this pigeon flew twenty-five miles and deliv-
cred the message. The injured leg was am
putated, and it was thought that Chere Ami
would recover. She was brought to this
country with the other birds which won fame
in battle, and was operated upon, but human
skill could not save her life and she died
from wounds received in battle.
There is a Sergeant York among the
pigeon heroes. His name is Spike. This bird
has a record of having delivered 1fty-two
messages. No pigeon can boast of a prouder
war record than Spike. He is now stationed
at one of the numerous lofts in Potomac
Park, Washington where he is Sitting on the
world with all the bird seed he can eat and
a nice nest looking out upon Washington
Monument and the new Lincoln Memorial,
down the Mall to the capitol mile away.
Spike is carrier pigeon like the 10000
other birds which were part of the Ameri-
can army. He has two service stripes on his
left wing and a wound stripe on his right,
having been gassed near Sedan with the
Forty division on the day before the
armstice was signed. After he was gassed
Spike had his tail feathers pulled out, this
being the army treatment for gas cases in the
carrier pigeon service.
Spike had many narrow escapes. Once
with three other birds he was abandoned in a
crate near the German lines and left to the
mercies of the Hun. But even under these
trying circumstances he found opportunity for
heroic usefulness. A machine gun section
that had been cut off from it's base found the
crate and sent back a message on a cigarette
paper in the capsule tied to Spikes leg. The
pigeon found it's way back to the loft and the
section was relieved in less than twenty-four
hours.
Over five hundred birds were used by our
soldiers in the Saint Mhiel offensive.
Birds were rushed up to the new sectors and
with less than twelve days training rendered
rapid and dependable service. The German
birds were equally busy at that time, but the
| messages they carried back to headquarters
were not of the same joyful tenor as those
rushed back by Americas messengers.
During the advance of the Yanks at Saint
Mihiel they came upon hurriedly abandoned
German loft in flames. High in the air above
it, circled the former occupants, alarmed and
bewldered at the catastrophe that had so
suddenly come upon their home. American
pigeoneers hurried mobile loft to the scene
and the tired birds accepted it, though most
reluctantly, as substitute for their own.