Evening journal., 1919-04-14
TELLS OF WORK
With engineers
Delaware Boy Helped Put
in Water System for
Men in Trenches
HUNTER WAS OFTEN
UNDER SHELL FIRE

his experiences from the time he left
this country, on August % last, until
the letter was written. The writer
states that he spent much Of the time
before the armistlce was signed with
contingent OF men from the 59th Plo-
neers, assisting the engineers, mostly in
putting I'm water systems 10 furnish
good drinking water TO the men in the
! trenches. Often, he states. they would
enter towns that the fleeing Germans
had only been driven out Of few hours
before. After telling Of going on the
| u. 5. 6. Leyiathian and the ilnc trip
over. the writer says:
1--WE landed in Brest, Northern France.
on the Sth of September, where, after
few miles OF hiking, we came 10 a
rest camp, and pitched tents in a field
which was the only means Of getting
/ shelter, for il was pouring rain.
Here we remained for a week doing
odd Jobs, principally for own own COM
/ fort during the day, and sleeping In
our little sheler tents at night, 1t was
our first experience at sleeping OUT
doors, so that the exposure, together
with the intense rain and dampness,
caused us 10 lose some men.
Al the end OF a week we marched
back 10 port where we boarded train
OF cattle cars and rode for three days
and two nights, with forty men 10 a
car. arriving at Foulaln at 4 o'clock on
Monday afternoon, September IA. Here
we camped for ten days as we had al
Bresl doing our military work and get
ting acquainted with the wearing and
use OF our gas masks. On the morn
h. NJ
again rode on the cattle ears for a
day and a night alighting o Clermont,
/ a town which had been taken from the
Germans only about q hours before
our arrival This was the first sight
Of the ravages OF war. for We were
now behind the front lines, so we made
ourselves as comfortable as possible
/ in O damaged building.
/ We all were resting peacefully when
about , o'clock In the morning on the
/ 2Sth we got orders 10 roll packs and
| Immediately after mess, which was
/ two hours later we gOt orders TO as
! semble and finally started out for a
/ long and tiresome hike. haltlng at
| Dead Mans Hill, Just outside Of Aines
and a little back q. the firing line.
on the morning Of the third day we
again resumed our march into the Ar
| g0nne Forest. where we assisted a
company OF the 25th Engineers in the
! construction Of a railroad which would
connect two other railroads. thus en-
abling supplies 10 be brought TO the
front where the boys were In hot pur-
suit after the fast retreating Huns. In
this particular place we got rather a
warm reception for the enemy shells
were going whlzzing over us and the
] airplanes were battling over our heads,
In some instances they came so close
| that we were compelled to hide In
the weeds and she'll holes TO escape
! their observation for they were all
mounted with machine guns and are
| known 10 use them whenever they see
a man.
! With the assistance OF some thirty
! five hundred men we completed our task
/ in about three days and then went TO
| Reiccourt, a distance OF several miles
where after few days the company
was all split up into details and again
were sent out with an officer 10 rejOin
the 26th Engineers and assist them in
/ any work which was considered most
urgent, all along the front line.
My first detail Of that kind happened
10 be a place called Montfaucon where
! together with twenty-five privates, a
corporal and a sergeant reported 20 an
officer Of the 26th Engineers who had
la detail OF his own consisting Of about
/ twelve men putting in a water system
which with our assistance was In
working condition and supplying water
| 10 the boys in the trenches within the
! - NaHrH 4 NnWn nH
compelled 10 dig in about three feet and
pitch our tents over it TO avoid shrap-
mel for the enemy shells were seemingly
falling in all directions. We all real
| lied the danger we were in and were
quick 10 obey the commands OF our
superior officers, so fortunately none
was injured. From that time until the
armistice was signed | kept no record
Of dates and very seldom knew when
! Sunday came for the enemy was max
/ ing it too interesting for us otherwise.
I remained with the 10th Engineers
| for forty-two days and our main duties
were TO keep water to the front, some
/ times we entered a town six hours
after Il had been evacuated by the Ger
mans in some instances they made IL
a little too hot for US and we were
compelled to take refuge In cellars and
/ dugouts.
They occasionally dosed us with gas
and some OF the boys who were slow
/ in putting on their gas masks got
! slightly affected. In all we were very
fortunate for we had but very few
casualties considering the work we ac-
complished and the danger we were in.
The German aviators were very daring
but always found their equal when
ever they came over the line. Il was a
common occurrence TO see a few or
them drop each day.
But the last and final drive was
something I shall never forget. ar
rived at a place called La-dhue-Farme.
late in the evening, together with the
rest OF our detail. We had put up in
tan old shack which was rlddled with
/ holes. Il seemed like as il the enemy
saw us coming, and very soon we had
10 take shelter for the night in a near
by dug-out. which fortunately for our
selves. was the safest place, because
there was nothing left OF our shack in
/ the morning. At about IA o'clock our
heavy artillery started sending over
| few large ones, which ended up in a
Fbarrage. The earth trembled and th-
air seemed like a flash Of lightning; in
fact, | do not believe anything could
/ live within its range, and about 10
o'clock the next morning the road was
strung with German prisoners, some
] stll wearing their gas masks on the
alert, and all were glad TO be captured.
We completed our job in about eight
days and then went 10 Nouart and from
Ftharn N Cfanov xNha~e ave rttf in an