The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1919-02-07
back also, but our division commander
uttered words to this effect, Establish
. line and hold it at all costs.''

y "o WIN w HooAsiOuo oAOuS su0 Z 0ksof
Metz road just northwest Of Chateau
Thierry and let the French fall back
thru our lines. On came the Boche
and for the first time in the war they
met men opposed to them that took de.
liberate aim before firing shot. Wave
after wave wllted and fell and il re.
member right after twelve waves had
been moved down by machine gun and
rife fire they stopped. Prisoners later
told that they had never seen soldiers
take careful aim before firing before.
The French just shoot in the direction
of the enemy, figuring that certain
percentage of the shots should take ef-
feet. 1
For 80 days the division held the Ger.
mans at bay and had even rolled them
back for some distance. Here the Mar
ines fought the famous battle of Belleau
Wood. The Germans had supremacy Of
the air at this place and on our division
front on June 9th the enemy made 80
flights over our line. He also had ten
observation balloons up. HIS artillery
was raking our front line, reserves and
all back areas with terrific artillery
fire. High explosive and yperite fairly
rained on the division, yet they grimly
held in spite of all conditions. "Hold
the line at all COSTS" they did hold.
This is what the End division met on
the Chateau Thierry front. These Ger.
man divisions wholly or in part faced US
at different times, the 10Th, 237th, 10th,
the 28th, the 9th Prussian Guard,
the 23lst and the 87th, of which the lat
ter was known as the "Aluminum" div
ision.
Up to July 1st the End, against the
most powerful opposition that the Ger
man army could exert, had advanced its
front by dogged unrelaxing pressure an
average of over two kllometers and had
taken over 800 prisoners and more than
80 machine guns, minnenwerfers and
automatic rifles. At this time Germany
was proclaiming to the world the COM
ing overthrow and dissolution of the
Allied armies.
From July 1st on to our relief we got
hundreds more prisoners and war booty
in general.
Our next move was to the Solssons
front where the 1st and End divisions
with the gallant 1st Moroccan negroes
between, hit the center of the line be-
tween Scissors and Chateau Thierry
The German line gave way and forced
the German high command to pull his
troops out of the Chateau Thierry re-
gion. In this battle the End alone took
over 5000 prisoners.
Next we went to Pont A Mouson
where we entered trenches for few
days of trench fighting. We took it
easy here. Then the great st. Mihiel
drive came and the End was at it's old
work of of-rushing the original old line
trenches as shock troops again. In this
drive the End took Thiacourt and Joul-
ny and captured whole train load of,
artillery, also complete German hos
p'tal. They didn't even have time to
move the xray equipment from it.
On the Champagne front the French
Blue Devils we're unable to take Blanc
Mont Ridge so the End was detached
from the American army and sent to-
take the Ridge. After bloody battle
and in the face of murderous machine
gun fire the marines and the 9th and 23d
flanked the hill and hit from three sides.
The Ridge soon fell and we presented
Blanc Mont Ridge to the French. !
We went from, here to the Argonne
front where on November LIST the End
division was given the post of honor
(the center of attack) in the great offen-
sive that opened on November l, 1885,
Never did division force an enemy
back as fast as the End forced the Ger
mans in this offensive. When the ar
mistice went into effect on Nov. 1ltk we
had advanced over 20 miles. On the
morning of Nov. 11th We had hard
fight. Casualties were heavy but We
crossed the Meuse and were dug ia
when the II o'clock hour came.
Soon began our long march to Ger
many. With>full packswe passed thru
Stenay. Montmedy and into Belgium.
We passed thru the Belgian cities Of
Virton and Arlon and then marched
thru Luxemburg. At the German bor.
der we halted for a few days and OF
Sunday December 1st, we entered Ger
many.
On Dec. 14th we came in sight of tls
Rhine and that night we crossed on TN
Kron Prince Wilhelm bridge just nortb
Of Coblenz.
Wishing you . prosperous New Yefs
as we'll as any Of your readers that may
know9meI ! remain, sincerely yours,
THOMAS s. BAsKEN Pvt. lei. y
Amb. Co: 10, End Div. 4.E.F.