Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-07-14

and we had to go over the top the
next morning. Well, I was getting
more used to war then. Just one days
experience made me more used to it.
THAT night everyone was secretly
busy, getting ready, for the next day
which was to be a hot one. we all
knew. I was taken from the front
line that night with about ten others
back to a barb wire dump where we
loaded ourselves win rolls of barb
wire and iron stakes. 1 worked like
q slave all that night, tired as I was.
Finally when it started to get light
I went back to the front line. There
were all the boys lined up in battle
formation. ready to go over the top.
"stay Low"
"The lieutenant in charge Of us told
us to get down low in the trench, keep
quiet and be ready to jump up and
start. We stayed in that position for
about half an hour. 1t, was then
about 5 o'clock. Everything was
quiet. very quiet. You could hear a
pin drop. 1T remained this way for
quite a while and then all at once
everything opened up like a bad
thunder storm. 1t was a steady roar.
that but W n like that morning.
The boys were all thinking to them
selves and saying nothing. Besides
h noise Of the guns you could hear
the shells go way up over your head
and on over to the Boche. I just
imagined the terror that the Boche
were in and the damage that the
shells were doing on that side. We
got very few shells back from the
Germans because our artillery hre
was 50 far superior to theirs that
they could not. This steady roar OF
our cannons ceased. About If
teen minutes had passed and the lieu
tenant passed the word to us that six
thirty was zero hour We all drew
g long sigh and thought of all we had
ever done and expected to do. Some
fellows were praying to themselves,
I believe. but L didn'tsat that time,
al the time, about five minutes,
when the word came down to get
ready. Everybody looked at his rife
and then saw that his bayonet was
all right and then his leggins.
Goes Over Top.
1.-The next command was not given
to us by our lieutenant. All at once
everybody jumped up and hollered
the parapet in a minute. I looked to
the right and way down as far as 1
could see was great waves Of Ameri-
can soldiers with their bayonets gilt
tering in the air and the same to the
left. I looked back and mere were
the support waves coming in. every
body walking very slowly, so as to
keep together and reserve strength.
1 had some load I want to tell you.
It was more than most of them had.
I had a big roll of barb wire, three
Rfa roo nv rat3Nna fNt1N4 hrAlHo6
rounds of rife ammunition. a halt
dozen grenades and my rife. I must
bring in the tanks. We, the Second
battalion of the 28th infantry, were
the first wave to go over, and there
was nothing in front of us but the
tanks. French tanks. I counted about
fifteen of them. They are small but
strong. They have a three-inch gun
and two machine guns in them. They
were a-peppering away. The tanks
go ahead and destroy machine gun
nests and such, If the artillery has not
destroyed them already. All this
time the artillery was still roaring
away. I had seen nj soldiers fall yet.
There was 80 much smoke and dust
on ahead Of us that we could not see
the enemy. I thought surely they
would be all killed when We got there,
all that didn't retreat. l meal the
enemy.
"As the barrage lifted and the
smoke was rising we came within
sight Of a torn down village. II, was
just the ruins Of what was ones a
small farm village. When we had
gone on about half a kilometer aud
got to the edge Of the village. Cantig-
ny, what did we meet but a big bunch
Of ~sauareheads with their hands up
hollering for their lives. Many Of the
soldiers were 30 excited that they just
mastered them in cold blood. They
designated some soldiers to take them
back ~ prisoners. Then we came to
some old dug-outs. A certain SER
geant with us said. 'Raus nit 'em.'
and you maybe say they didn't come
out ~hot-footed. You'd ought to hear
them scream and holler for their
lives, but, 1t did no good sons-
times. Some soldiers got 30 excited
that they killed them as fast as they
could. We'll. from here on was hard
for US. The machine gun bullets just
to get down. There was . she'll hole
just in front of me and I took adj
VANTAGE Of 1t. / plunged in headlong.
/ could hear bullets cutting the grass
above my head. When their machine
guns had ceased we got UP and start
ed once more. It was getting bad
then. Shells were coming from the
5Boche guns In showers. When I rot
up that time, I saw my hrst Arneri-
can soldier killed. his head blown
completely of. Then we were halted
and the command came, Dig In. ana
beit4ve mi, We did dig In. I took III
my burden from my back and dug
with all my might. 81
- DieI Dc:
"The machine suns were playfnx 81
% Is fast that We had our choice dfE
Tor de, and 4 dng. stopped on}y
when the bulleaS came too clos "a
me xnd then I 1aySd nat On 1tAe
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