The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1919-01-27

Showed Their Individual Superb
GRITTY in Hand-to.Hand
Battling.
WOUNDED TELL Of VICTORIES
Give Graphic Descriptions OF Personal
Encounters With Enemy-Battal.
ion Of Marines Brings Down
.. German AirpIane.

Paris.-When the change came
from trench warfare to the more OF
less warfare Of movement, the Ameri
cans got their long-desired oppoItu
nifty to display their physical prowess
and their individual superiority in
hand.to.hand fighting. And they liked
it--thls close fighting-as evidenced
by the smiles and laughs Of the boys
in the American army hospitals when
they recount tales Of bayOnet charg
ing, hand grenading at close quarters
and even the good, old American style
Of using the fists.
Andrew Dumas Of Burke, n. Y, was
suffering bit Of pain from wound
In his hip, caused by sErarnel, but
he forgot his sriferings when he told
OF doing away with three opponents
Of Prussianism with his bayonet. Du-
mas was injured while fighting in the
sector north of Verdun where the
Americans, straddling the Meuse
river, met resistance Of the most stub
born kind.
1--WE crept out one night on scout
ing proposition and met up with quite
n gang Of Huns" Dumas said. 1--WE
couldn't resist the temptation to have
Il 80 at them at close quarters. l
know of three of them that went down
with my bayonet. I wasn't injured
until two days later"
Calls It "Hot Stuff"
Another Yank, who says "close up
fighting is shot stuff" is Sergeant
Adolph Stein Of $50 St. Clair street,
LAwrenceburg, Ind.
Its STEMS second time in the hos
pital since the middle Of August.
His first wound was from Ger
man high explosive, but his second
trip to the hospital was caused by
machine gun bulIets-in each leg.
He said he was just in reach Of the
machine gun nest when he fell. But,
he added, his comrades Carried on"
and got the gun.
- Just to show yon the difference be-
tweensEAmericans and Germans. I've
seen one American hold off five and
sig Germans with rife. and had Il
man In my platoon, who, after being
wounded himself. brought In thirteen
prisoners single handed" "
Burt III. Daley Of st. Clnirsville,
O., who was wounded by a machlne
gun bullet In the hip. in fighting around
Thiaucourt, also told Of close fight
ing. He said his platoon took
many prisoners, the Germans prefer
ring to surrender rather than try
to stand up to the Americans in hand
tohand combat @,<fi.@1 =. g.
Surrounded by Germans because
the American advance In the Cham
payne had been too rapid, regiment
to which William Robert Smoker, $40
May street, Philadelphia, was at
tached. fought its way through the
enemy Gordon and took prisoners.
Smoker, injured later by shrapnel in
the right leg, told how his regiment
shortly returned to the attack and
advanced three miles. For their
bravery Smoker said the entire regi.
Inent was awarded the French foura-
gere. y..
" Down a German Flyer.
An interesting story of how an en-
tire battalion of marines, including
q machine gun company, had a hand in
bringing down a German airplane is
told by N. w. Afflerbaugh of Wood
River, Neb. .. ....
tour battalion was in reserve in
small forest" explained Aff1erbaugh,
who was later wounded in both legs
by shrapnel. "All of a sudden we saw
an American plane making for home.
The plane seemed to be crippled. I'M
mediately back Of the American was
a German plane, trying it's best to
finish the American. Both machines
We're flying low, just few hundred
feet above the earth.
tEMery fellow there was just ach-
ing to get crack at the Hun, plane
and we waited until the American
had passed on and the German was
just above us. We all turned loose
with our rifles and the machine
gun company let fly with it's rat-a-tat-
tat.
1.-The Boche Immediately turned
and tried to make for home, but he
was forced to land about two city
blocks from us. When we reached
the spot where he came down we
found that his plane had been rid
died with bullets and that he had any
number Of bullet wounds in his legs
arms ard body. However, guess he
Will get over it, for he was imne'
diately hustled of to hospital"