Norwich bulletin., 1919-03-12

FHIVA E AQELAhD 6AhbEAQ to leave the dugout, which was in a communication trench, within a few feet of the front line. the German si:clls were falling squarely in front Of the dugout door. Captain Freeland ordered me to await the lifting of the barrage, which is shifted a few feet every five minutes Or so, and then to try to make a dash through.
 't waited. In about Q minute hand grenades began 10 burst in the door way and we knew that the attacking forces were upop us. The Germans threw five grenadcs at our dugout and got some pieces from Une in the back Of the head One of the splinters is in there yet, though ] tried to con- vince a German doctor tEat he hadn't
 go, all the btiS out
 "One of the erenades tIrst inside the d1gout, causing havoc among our group of fva and setting off q stock of flare rockets that we had in there. It WIS some Fourth of July celebration for a few seconds, with those rock cts screechinr and bdrstirg in all di- rections. Quickly sizing UP the sit us ton we decided to go out and get in to the fighting. I was first out the door. Two Germans-evitentl those who had helped in throwing the gren2des-lay there dead. Another one vas on his fant, and still showing signs of fight, ! plunged n.y bayonet into l i'm and he @roaned and crumpled up, falling in a heap.
 T dash%> 1Jt into the trench and got | into the In' with the hoys of the company NR) were fighting like de- lY p1 T a lcing like cray ghosts through the l fCg and TliG&- in No Mans Land. They were coming in sWarms. All of this | time eur artillery was silent. But we 1 never EaNorni We had seen our own { ron falling III abo5t us and it made | fighting demons out of the com ma1d.
 1 -.Ng rnhbor boots. We stood in | t.e water aooye our knees and pump ! al lead eye" the parapc. at the ad- 1 N!r0ir- Germans. who we're coming i "- .u close '1rmation, We were get 1 .ir results too. and fighting like the ! 0.-N himself. Occasionally as a hail nf arguFde4 and smal; shell would i .lrr into our trench vCu would hear ! ....ro t-7"rl.Ir boy call out. How do ..o.' 5j.o ,Noao apples % and our ansWoe
 - %. i''gc,' and more lead at the
 "rrla uer' on for B few minutes 0H' Vo V-rr' holding OUT men iu ] lt.#n"E-i" ii-u'irg when SuGscone hap ! ,''''2 tr 'go.. around ard there. be ] Hid Us -as what looked ike half a iIsgiro0t Cf Germans. We aknew f ! Ea. a'l I'D with Us but we fought on i t."a'r 'h"n ever. arG manyl a Ger
 nlau paid the price.
 ."A, this stage Of the fght a rife IN i-, 1..F | and ! fell Falling I 2rasped out linily for something to save me from | si.ki1- in the three feec of water in | tls5 bottom of the trench, and my hand | happened to catch the telephone wire that ran along that sector. l chung tC < as drowning man cliEgs to a straw 1nu lil say now that f I hadn't han. lp,ned to catch it. I would have drown
 cd then and there. as other men O loHr outfit who fell woulded did, fo | hadn't the strength to get to my feet.
 T was. cli1ging to that wire in des r"ration when I heard harsh Raus | ! d1dn't know what it rceant then. bu ! ] well learned in the morifs that fol
 lowed. l was a prisoner Of the Ger
 mans, and WIS being ordered to get u
 and get out.
 Husky Huns dragged me out of tn water and set me on my feet. An
 other Raus' and I was moving for . ward, under German guard down th ; American trenches that had fallen in ,l t1 their hands. The Torl sector ha, , been my finish and Seicheprev my Wa
 terloO as a member of Uncle Sam forces.
 .I was quickly relieved cf my sid
 lms, my ammunition an1 sas mask L-DoWn the trench a hit we came upol tho bodies of several Americans wh F had been killed and wh1 had falle1 | lighting the brave fight. The bodie . hcckcd the trench. I hesltated as
 cime to the bodies. Tiaus care tn ] harsh command. I grittcd my teetl ! and vas almost suffocated with tn l combined anger and saclilege of be
 lng made to walk on the bodies of m, dead companions. But I had to do if
 r was not long before got somt
 1 satisfaction. A few wards farther down the trench lay the bodies of sev
 "r3l Germans who had given thei , lives fghtinE against the American de
 lenders The guard didn't have t
 'rge me 10 walk over those dead Ger
 mans. I tramped over them with . out batting eve, and tramped a hard as l dared, too! I was bitter a . ! -'N''tt ett NllC IctlN llIdL HIl IeIdllPn me Some further distance down tn 2 trench the Germans began to raid ou D "1cup that were their prisoners. On came 10 mo ard snatched off my wris
 watch. Another went through m s pockets and took whatever appeale ] to him, but he returned c9J francs 9 vas carrying. Still another searche l cat a little prayer book that Rev. NJ ! j. Ginet, M. g., gave mo before I lief f home. The German looked at it an s handed it back.
 ,. "Herded together there we knew rr Q what was 10 become of us I wa - suffering severe pain from fhe wound 9 in my head and shoulder and wa Q Needing protusely. All inter office came along and, making litter out C D a shelter half anR some poles he foun r lindy he ordered Lieutenant Bur
 l who had been captured unwounde with our party, and l to act a a.rctcher bearers for a wcunded Ger l man. I protested I was so weRl tha = could hardly walk. But it did n . good. I had to carry. Ir the mean
 time another German rad spied m Q rubber boots and made nc take ther Q off and give them to him. ] was lei 9 with nothing but worn stockings t
 caver my fec.
 s T picked uo one end of the litter 0