Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-03-08

with u brand-new piece of face and looking
not very much the worse for his misfor-
tune)
The next day we moved our headquar.
ters to a ravine about 800 yards outside
the town. Although 1t was wide open to
the sky, this was a more comfortable spot.
Each of us dug a hole in the side oe the
ravine, and for an office we put up piece
of corrugated iron for a roof and campu-
fiaged it with bushes. AS we had to be
constantly going and coming. it didn't
take the boche long to discover our new
location. From that moment he included
us in his strafing of the town. but our
ravine was small and the sides so steep
that he couldn't quite get us. His shells
would drop on each tip OF the ravine but
he never got more than fragment of
shell into the ravine itself, although he
gave us plenty of gas His airpanes were
what we feared most. Although we got
bulletins from the rear that the Allies had
supremacy of the air, the German planes
were constantly overhead even while we
were reading these reassuring messages.
If the boche couldn't get US with artillery,
at least he could with air bombs, and he
tried his hardest. Once he even flew low
enough to throw hand grenades at us. But,
he was a rotten shot and we came out un-
scathed.
According to schedule. we were to be
relieved at the end OF the fifth day, but
the relieving battalion failed to get us on
two successive nights and we were kept
there seven days. Our supply of ratons
ran out at, the end of the fifth day, and
for two, days we had virtually nothing to
eat except'a little that l managed to bring
in on my way back on the last day. On
the night before the seventh day the re-
lieving battalion managed to get to our
positions, but not until dawn. We tried
to risk getting out even then. but to get
out in daylight one was under constant
observation, as the hillsdes were almost
bare. We sent out one company over
| the hill at about a. M, but they got
| pretty badly shot att so the major wisely
| ordered the rest of the battalion to stand
pat. BY that time they had started to go
out and had pulled out of their positions
| in the valley. The only thing to do was
| for them to come into the ravine (Which
was at the base Of the him until dark
! This they did. and three-quarters of bat
| TALON sat huddled in the ravine all day,
| praying that our luck would hold good and
the boches would fail to register on the
| ravine itself
"rhe major was naturally worried by the
battalion not having got out. So I took
stanch little Irish boy as orderly and
| we made dash for it over the hill and
| back to regimental headquarters with a
| report of our situation. Instead of being
| angry at our failure TO get out during the
| night the colonel was all sympathy. He
took me in TO report to the general. He
| pressed me to stay for luncheon, but had
| only time for cup of coffee and sand
wich land Lord, how good it tastedD Then
I went to the Y. NJ. C. A. hut and bought
all the cigarettes, chocolates and crackers
they would sell me. The colonel loaded me
| up with canned food and hardtack, and
made my way back TO battalion head
quarters. where was welcomed with open
arms and Immediately relieved of my bag
| of food.
I'VE all came out that night at dusk
Not a shot was fired The men took Off
their packs on the main road beyond the
crest of the hill. | had been fortunate
enough to arrange for four big trucks to
come up that night and transport these