The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-06-09
Major William Rankin Talks In
Churches Sunday In an interest
Ing Way About Experiences
In World War.
SACRIFICES THEY MADE
Destruction In France and Courage Of
French Wildly Portrayed by Re-
turned keokuk Physi-
clan.


Major William Rankin who has
Just returned from fifteen months
service with the army in France,
spoke to the mems class Of the First
Baptist church yesterday morning on
some of his experiences in the war
zone.
DR.. Rankin left on February Is,
1916, with the 32nd division. His
record shows that his unit was under
shell fire for 179 days with but ten
days rest period during that time.
Beginning his experiences with the
news that the Tuscania had been
sunk, which was heard by his regi-
ment as they were crossing. he said:
1--WE did not feel the bitterness
when the Tuscania was sunk that we
did when we heard Of the sinking of
the Lusitania. That was war, but
the sinking OF the Lusitania was
murder. 1t is going to be long
time before We can give our hand to
the Germans after what they have
done In the air raids on defense
less towns and the murder of de-
sfenseless women and children they
earned our hatred and we do not
hate them for any Of their acts that
were acts of war. such as we our
selves would have done.
They thought they could terrOrize
the people by throwing long range
shells into Paris. But they did not
know the French or Americans If they
had thrown shells into New York
they would only have made us fight
the. harder.
What the French Suffered.
He described the mode Of life Of
the French peasants in the villages,
with the cows in one end of the
house and the family living in the
other All the people who wore
shoes at all wore wooden shoes. he
said.
| AS an illustration of the supreme
sacrifice that was made by the people
of France he pointed out that all the
colleges, and Libraries and public
buildings in southern France were
used as hospitals, and every woman
and girl who was able to do SO was
nursing the sick and wounded sol
diers.
/ 1--WE could not help but love the
,Frenchman, for he was never envious
although he admired the Americans"
The Hun Always a Savage.
| 1t was while his division was in
| the training area that the German
drive on Amiens and their Impotence
| to go to its aid in order that it might
not suffer the fate of Louyain. The
great cathedral Of Amiens was about
to meet the fate of the wonderful
Rheims cathedral.
Every possible means was given
J to promise that the cathedral would
not be used for military purposes
and yet they could not stay the hand
of the German destruction.
THAT was not the worst thing they
could do. l believe that when a
nation loses all It's humanity and alb
ducts the children and women and
takes them back into Germany, God
will find it harder to forgive that"
In describing the Argonne forest
! he spoke Of it as mass of trees
that had been cut off about twelve
feet high by the artillery. and 1t was
literally covered with shell holes.
The difficulty that the American
troops had in getting through and in
kgetting the artillery up into position
was described as Enthusiastically
American. The men had to carry the
ammunition up by hand as the Gals
sons could not get through the mud
and the trees.
The Privates Did IL All.
"And 1t was the doughboys who
did that" he said. Our division was
in the center in the Argonne drive
and for the work that we did had
every flag in the division decorated
with the Croix de Guerre l do not
claim that we did any better work
than several Of the divisions either.
"It is said that General Pershing
ordered the artillery taken up into
position at the Argonne. The gen.
eral commanding the division said
that It could not be done through the
mud Take up the artillery was the
reply.
1.-The commander Of the division
knew that 1t had to go UP, so he
ordered the brigadier general to get
the artillery up, and received the
reply that he had given himself.
Take up the artillery was the
order, and the brigadier general knew
that 1t had to go up so he ordered
that colonel to get It up.
''The colonel ordered the major;
the major ordered the captain; the
captain passed 1t along to the lieu
tenant: the lieutenant ordered the
second lieutenant: the second lieu
tenant ordered the sergeant; the
sergeant ordered the corporal; the