Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-01-02
SMASHED BY HUN
FIRE COMPANY c
NEVER FALTERED
Scrgeants Led the Way When
Every Officer Was
Shot Down
DIES A HERO AT 18 YEARS
Brief History of War Is Writ
ten by Brave Com
mander
DIES A HERO AT 1S YEAR

4 brief little history of the deeds
in battle of Company C, 112th In
fantry, written by it's commander,
Captain r. r. Friechbaum, of
Chambersburg, who succeeded Cap
tain H. II. Stine in command of the
unit to-day reads like a novel. The
plain, bold statements of how the
men met the enemy, beat down every
obstacle and pressed always on
through the Hun lines show perhaps
more than anything else why the
Kaiser's once mighty war machine
crumbled to bits.
Company C, of the old Eighth
Pennsylvania National Guard, was
the foundation upon which the or
ganization was built. 1t was largely
recruited here and in Cham bersburg
by Captain Slime. The battle toll
shows that 26 men were killed and
100 wounded in action.
Every commissioned officer was
either killed or wounded, but the
company never faltered. The top
sergeant assumed command and
WITCH lt WAS SilOI uOWn man
took his place and the work went
on without Il halt. Captain Kriech-
baum's brother was killed along with
number of other good men, one,
Winfield Carey, died at the age of
Is, with his commanders praise that
not better soldier fought in France.
The record made by Company G.,
writes Captain Kriechbaum, is the
same made by every company in the
division which won the name of
Iron" and decorated by Pershing
with the Red Keystone. Captain
kriechbaum's letter follows:
Dec. 10, 1918.
Capt. Fl. NJ. Stine.
Harrisburg, Pa.
Dear Captain:
Your letter of Nov. 9Th, was re-
ceived to-day and was more than
glad to hear from you.
Your letter has been read by quite
number OF. old Company boys,
am going to send it to Sergeant
Storey who is keeping the company
records at division headquarters.
You ask about several of the boys
who were killed and l am sending
YOU complete list of c of the Sth
boys who were killed.
Clarence D. Armstrong and Cor
poIdl hllternOuSe were Killed near
Chateau Thierry on July Is. Arm
strong was killed by one of the first
shells that came over in the bom-
bardment that preceded the Boche
offensive of that date.
He was killed while asleep. Cor
poral Kitterhouse was instantly kill
ed about n. m. same date by shell
that made a direct hit in the dug
out he was occupying.
Corporal Bishop was killed in
Chateau Thierry by shell fire while
we were moving through the town
after the Boche.
The Hun had left q sacrifice gun
in the Bois de Barbillon and it con-
tinued firing on one street corner
until 1t was captured.
McSherry was killed by mime
werfer fire in the Forest de Fere at
La CroiX Rouge Fuse on the morn
ing of July 26.
McSherry was one of the bravest,
finest boys who ever lived.
Feeling Wounded
I was at the edge of the woods
looking down over the clearing to-
ward the farm, using my glasses to
locate machine guns that were hold
ing us up, when the Boche opened up
with his minnewerfers and of course,
/ lald down and hugged the ground,
Il man at my side had his juglar
vein cut and a shell struck under
the clump of bushes / was trying to
hide behind and tossed me in the
air. | took off my coat and tried to
find wound, but there was nothing
wounded but my feelings.
After the bombardment | went
back where my p. c. was and found
four c Company men dead, all
members of headquarter sections.
When | found McSherry dead the
tears ran down my cheeks and I
was not ashamed of it, as he was
never nervous, always ready to carry
a message anywhere, cheerful, con-
stantly joking when things were at
their worst and in general doing
things that kept up the spirits of the
men.
\ At Fismette, on the morning of
August 8, Companies i II and c
crossed the Vesle river and took the
town.
Theodore Crist was killed while
carrying a message from his platoon
to me, NJ. G.. fire.
\ Hero at rs
Winfield Carey was killed by ma
chine gun fire the same morning.
Carey, as you know, was only IS