The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1919-04-09
GRAPHIC STORY
TOLD DBYLEfLORE
COUNTY HERO
Private Claude ROmine
Fought With Sixth
Regiment Marines.
BELLEAU WOOD, ST.
MIHIEL, SOISSONS,
And Argonne Forest
Awarded CrOix de
Geurre with Palm.

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Private Claude Rom;ne was born
and reared in the Bear Creek
vicinity near Morgan City, Leflore
County, Miss. He enlisted in the
Marine Corps, U. S. Service, at Mem
phis, Tenn, as soon as war was de-
clared, being assigned to service in
the S2nd Co, 9th Regiment Marines,
and embarked early in the game at
Quantico, Va, for France, where he
spent Is months and arrived in Green
wood last Saturday morning for a
three days visit to his uncle and
aunt, Mr.. and Mrs. J. L. Larry. From
here he went to Shaw, Miss, for a
brief visit to his mother, Mrs. J. w.
Hopkins-thence to Camp Taylor, KY,
to receive his final discharge from
the Army Service.
Private Romine served with dis
tinction in the fiercest of the fighting
at Beileau Wood, Soissons, ST. Mihiel,
Argonne Forest, the Meuse, the
Marne, etc, with the chivalrous Ma
rines where he scored seven citations
for heroic service and was decorated
with the highest medal awarded by
the French Army-the Croix de
Geurre with Palm. He later received
serious wounds from Hun ell-fire,
from which it required three months
to partially recover.
The people of Leflore county nat
urally feel proud of The immortal
glory reflected upon them by this pa
triotic young hero in the thickest of
the fighting on the historic battle
fields of the great world war, and he
was the center of attraction during
his three days visit here.
Private Romine told the story Of his
! thrilling experiences ''at the front
to those present at the banquet Civ
en- Saturday evening at the ConfesleF~
ate Memorial Building in such an in
tensely interesting manner that Supt.
c. E. Saunders requested him to re
late the story to the Senior Glass Of
the High School the following Mon
day morning, when Miss Mamie Gil
liam very kindly made stenographic
copy of it for The Daily Common
wealth, which is published in full in
order that all our people may read
the tragic description of some of the
most destructive battles in the his
tory of the world from the lips of
one of our own native sons:
PRIVATE ROMINE'S STORY.
On the 18th day of March, 1918,
was the first time we went into the
trenches. We were sent in what was
called the Toul-Tyrone sector. When
we went in, we were sent in with the
intention that we were just to stay
there until we got used to trench
warfare. We stayed there something
like forty-five days The latter part
of April, after being in there so long.
sleeping in the mud, and wallowing
in the mud like hogs, we got tired of
it. The American tactics are, Away
to do something. So we kept getting
up and having fun, especially at
night, shooting off machine guns anG
/ rifles, and cutting barbed wire en-
! tanglements.
On the 2Sth day of April we real
lied that the Germans were coming
over to see what we were doing, and
they threw a barrage on US.
Meantime l was detached as run
ner between company headquarters
and battalion headquarters, which
was about two miles in the rear
When the Germans dropped bar
rage on US we were handicapped. We
did not have sufficient flares to call
for a barrage from our own artillery.
So our Company commander had to
get sufficient flashes to call for a
barrage from our own artillery, and l
was given twentythree minutes to
make the run.
At the time he gave me the mes
sage / did not realize fully what l
was going through; in fact, l did not
realize it until I had left headquart-
r L. -
through a barrage. Well, l took it
in the best of heart. I would not
only sacrifice my own life; I would
sacrifice it for the entire company.
So I made the best of it could, and
made the run, come back, and we went
over the top at the correct time; we
way in No Mans Land. 1t seemed
like a pretty stiff fight, but of course
it was right, and we came back with
twenty-three prisoners. We lost a
good many men, but we did not have
any captured.
At the time did not know that
was decorated. We were pulled out o
the lines on the 18th Gay of May
Our intention was to go to Montdidiel
front and relieve the First Division
We hiked for, three days and three
nights until we got within about thir
ty kilometers of the front lines, to {
small town by the name Of Montigny
where we halted for five days, and j
was there was decorated.
On the 31st Of May we got word t.
| pack up our equipment, so we go
our equipment ready, and on the frs
day Of June we were loaded ont
French Trucks. about five o'clock il
the morning. We did not know, a
the time, where we were going no
what we were going to do. We lef
without even sandwich; some ha,
water, some did not.
We rode three days and thre
pight1 81 - French trucks; thsu y