Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-08-14
No Wonder Germany Quit
NUMBER FORTY-THREE


the trenches in France were queer
combinations of shacks and build
ings" said Major Frank c. Mahin, of
the Army Recruiting Station, S25
Market street, Harrisburg. AL
though these camps We're frequently
within the trench area, they We're
so carefully hidden in the woods
that they were invisible from enemy
aeroplaneS. The camps consisted
of wooden shacks, elephant iron
huts (big pieces of heavy corrugated
iron bent into a quarter circle, two
making a section) and shallow dug
outs. None of these were shell
proof, so at each camp there would
be big, deep dugouts into which
the men would go in case of a bonn
bardment, that is, if they didn't get
hit before they reached the dugout.
Many of these camps were most at
tractive. The shacks were covered
with vines, had flower beds around
them, with rustic porches and rail-
ings to the paths. The paths of
gravel and lined with white shells,
or pieces of white stone. You see
the French had been occupying
those camps for four years and they
wanted to be homelike. Inside the
buildings were hunks in tiers, filled
with straw; there were also shelves,
tables and chairs or stools in each
shack and. usually they were lighted
by electric light. Instead of having
pillows in the hunks one end was
raised about six inches to give the
effect of a pillow. When things
were quiet these camps We're de-
lightful summer resorts. Every
body had a chance to keep clean,
wash clothes, shave, get a COM
Portable nights sleep and plenty of
rest during the day too. Contrary
to our old method there were no
guards at these camps, except one
man who stood by the gas alarm
day and night. The gas alarm was
a bell, an iron triangle or a klaXon,
and day and night every man wore
his gas mask in the alert position
ready to slip into it when the alarm
went. At first it seemed very queer
to us to be within a couple of miles
of the enemy and not have sentries
patroling the outskirts of the camp,
but we soon realized they were abb
solutely unnecessary as the troops
in the trenches on in front did all
the required guard duty to prevent
enemy patrols slipping through and
disturbing our slumbers sweet. But
every once in a while our slum bers
would be most pleasantly dis
turbed by a wild whoosh! and the
stunning crash of an exploding shell.
Instantly fragments would go tear
ing through the inch planks of the
shack walls, perhaps killing or
wounding half dozen men. Before
the reverberation of the explosion
had ceased everybody in the camp
would be on his way to a dugout
in whatever state of dishahile he
happened to be in, but every man
had one thing and that thing was
his gas mask. Perhaps yol would
make the dugout before the next
shell would arrive and perhaps you
wouldn't, but if that shell didn't get
you it gave you added speed to
hasten on your way. Once in safe
ty everyone sat or stood around in
the damp dimly lighted sub-ter-
ranean chamber until the shelling
ceased and then group by group the
men would disappear up the stair
way on their way back to bed. If
the shells had wounded anyone, a
first aid station would be establish
ed near the stairs and as soon as
the bombardment was over code
telephone message would be sent
for an ambulance to come up for
the wounded. In the morning if
anyone had been killed, The dead
would be buried and things would
drop back into the normal rut
Frequently the cemetery would be
right alongside of the .camp-in one
case / know of, within ten yards
of shack. Many of the French
graves in these little military ceme-
teries would have regular head
| stones, while others would have the
simple wooden crosses customairly
used. One night in that camp the
! first shell of a bonn bardment landed
| right square in the cemetery and
! proceeded to tear it up beautifully
1t ripped up a head stone and hurl-
ed it through the side of the neigh
boring shack and deposited the
hundred and fifty pound stone fair
and square on the chest of a sleep
| ing soldier. Fortunately, all thai
| happened to him was a badly brusi-
ed body, but mentally he was very
miserable. He announced to his
company commander that it was
high time he was sent out of there
for the shells had started bringing
their own head stones with them
and it was no place for his Mothers
son."