American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1919-03-14

Forces, is Opinion OF captain Mih-
ear.
Fresh from overseas service, and
very glad to get home, Captain Virgil
Minear of Rockland, talked interest
fngly to the editor of the Press few
DAYS ago. Captain Minear left here
on May 8, 1917, and attended the first
officers training camp at the Pre-
sidio. He was a good American citl-
zen when he left, with pride IN
American ideals and institutions, but
what he observed overseas, he SAID,
had made him a better American than
he ever could have been without the
experiences he has undergone.
After leaving the officers training |
camp Captain Minear reported to the |
Twentieth Field Artillery at San An
tonic, Texas, as a second lieutenant.
Three days later he was placed in |
command of a battery and had bat
terry throughout the war. After the
signing of the armistice he started
for Germany with the army of occu7s
patton, and got as far as Luxembourg,
when he took advantage of an oppor-
Iunity to get out of the service He
sailed for home December IA, and
arrived home about ten days ago,
Captain Minear endured all the
hardships and privations OF soldier
life in war time, and was subject to
its dangers. Yet he came through
without a scratch, and lost only two
of his battery of 1874 men. This was
largely a matter of good fortune, but
no doubt, in a measure, was result
of the care he exercised over his men,
The first man of his battery to be
killed was a cook. In order to nave
warm food for his men at all times
Captain Minear had his cook tent To-
Gated within few yards of his bat
terry The cook experienced trouble
in building a fire without a good deal
of smoke, as the almost constant rains
kept the fuel wet. Captain Minear
warned and demonstrated with the
cook several times, telling him that
some day, when the weather cleared,
German plane would spot the
smoke, and then something would
happen. The cook defended himself
by saying that it was not possible to
make a fire with wet wood without
making a smoke.
One day the expected happened, a
German plane spotting the smoke
from the cook tent Within a few
minutes two shells landed squarely
on the tent killing the cook and
wounding another man. After that,
the captain remarked, there was no
trouble The cooking crew could
build a fire any old time with any
kind of fuel, without creating smoke.
1t is only necessary, he added, to To-
cate an object in order to blow 1t up,
so accurate has gunnery become.
Captain Minear and his battery par
ticipated in some of the biggest bat
ties of the war having been on the
battle front between four and five
months. He was in the St Mihiel
drive, going over the top only 5Ot
yards behind the assaulting wave
He also participated in the biggest
battle of the war, the Argonne scrap
The artillery preparation for this
battle was indescribable. On the
night of September 25th the artillery
opened up along fifty mile front
and kept up a drumfire until 7:3'
the morning of the 26th, when the ad
vance began. The guns roared Sc
continuously he said, that one coult
not distinguish between the shots, ant
although there was a drizzling rail
falling making it almost Impossible
for one to see any object howeve
near, the gun flashes were so con
stant as to enable one to read tn
headlines in a newspaper at consider
able distance from the guns.
Captain Minear is proud of havin
fired 10000 rounds of ammunition Il
three big scraps, with the loss of bu
two men. Although not wounded
Captain Minear was gassed the nigh
of September 81 and was in hos
pital for a month. He was in Thia
court when the armistice was signed
Soldering is not accompanied b
the thrills that most people lmagln
are it's dominating features, he saiC
1t is simply the hardest and most e1
hausting kind of work. Soldiers, q
times, are forced to go until the
drop in their tracks. Many tim
he said he had been so tired that b
lay down and slept in the mud, wit
only one blanket, when the chillin
cold would have made sleep impo'
sible under normal conditions.
Regarding the resistance met b
the Americans Captain Minear said
Don't imagine the Germans won
fight. The Americans went U
against the flower of the Germa
army, and advanced against defens'
and natural distractions that wei
considered to be invulnerable. Vile
the German has the advantage or
little better than an even break,
will fight like a demon. But when
at disadvantage he Will 'kar
Grad" quick enough"
The most interesting part OF u
captains remarks referred to the II
pressions he received while abroad.
To begin with, he said, the soldie
as a whole feel that the people
home have done just as much to "
the war as the soldiers, by keepil
up the supplies that we're necessai
The place 10 get square meals
France was at the front. Red ia