The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1919-07-15

three good-sized craters interrupting
any traffic; as trucks went forward,
they found the engineer work at
each of the craters completed; truck
drivers, ambulance attendants, staff
captains and colonies all had to get
out. forage about the landscape for
stones and wood to fill in the mud
holes and start traffic moving.
When you realize that every ten
yards of the road for q distance of
eight or nine miles toward the rear
was occupied by truck, ration cart,
ambulance or ammunition truck, you
can realize something of the conges
ton of this particular road. After
traffic had been at a standstill the
entire twenty-four hours OF Nov. 4,
it started again, and supplies began
to filter to the troops ahead, keeping
contact with the boche.
Perhaps 1t was the tremendous
tie-up which Influenced the staffs at
army and corps headquarters; liaison
was not all 1t should have been. But
anyway a sort Of general order went
out to all divisions that Sedan must
be taken.
At that time the lineup of the d.
visions was about as follows:
Forty-sec d, Seventy eighth
(First corps). Thirty second, First
(Fourth corps).
In any event, the Forty-second
was the left division of'the left corps,
and the First division was the right
division of the middle corps. On the
left of the Rainbows were the French,
who had managed to drive through
in Champagne, and made liaison.
1Ik - h.
alton maps, was on the extreme
of advance. The Rainbows axis of
advance merely touched the suburbs
on this side of the Mouse.
The French, who had surrendered
their imperial hopes at Sedan in that
fateful 1870, were burning to have
the honor of avenging that defeat by
retaking it. What the psychology of
the American staffs was l hesitate to
say, but in any case all American
divisions were breathless with desire
of Capturing Sedan" The Rainbow
command thought that the honor
properly belonged to their soldiers,
as it was in their plan of advance,
as directed by the First corps and
First army.
Accordingly Brig Gen. Douglas
Macarthur was watching his brigade
of doughboys advance against sitter
resistance one afternoon. with visions
of Sedan in his eye. Gen. MacAr-
thur, be it said, always dressed the
part. He wore long fur coat, with
peaked English shape barrack cap,
Just enough difference from the aver
age officers uniform to lend distinc-
ton. His striker was close behind
III az rd
the contact line was cautiously feel
ing it's way forward.
Hands up! You're my prisoner!"
came from an unmistakable Yankee
voice behind him.
Quickly turning, the general saw
the business end of service rifle
pointed at him, and an American
doughboy negligently lingering the
trigger. You boche swine, you,
come on back to the captain!" called
the man. The general protested his
rank. Jaw, come off that stuff, and
come quick. The First doesn't fall
for that line of bunk" and Gen. Mac
Arthur realized that he was held
prisoner by the First.
1t required a trip to First division |
headquarters, far to the rear and
right, to convince his captors that
truly ne was douglas macarthur, OF |
the Eighty third infantry brigade, of
the Rainbow division, and not Ger
man spy at all. Then what Gen.
wanted to know was what
the First division was doing in the
Forty seconds line of advance; just
then the French were wanting to
know what the Rainbow was doing
going into the outskirts of Sedan.
Capt. Dwight Smith, operations Of
fcer of the 149th F. A., happened to
stumble onto a group of French artil-
lerv officers. getting ready to open
fire on a clump of woods. where
are you going to open?" he asked.
ION that clump there" they replied.
But you can't fire there: we cap
tured that yesterday" he shouted.
That's our sector" came the calm
reply. 1t took quite a bit of argu-
nent to convince them that it would
be impolitic to fire there.
So there were many complications
before the famous communique that
units of the Forty second Drain
bowl and one regiment of the First
'regular) division entered Sedan to-
lay" was issued
HORL ICK'S