The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1919-01-16
'CHINks" DROVE
YANkS TO WAR
Continued from page 81


way one night, and we steered out of.
our way twenty miles in order to
avoid it.
1--WE landed at Liverpool, England,
on June 23rd, but had to lay over in
the harbor until June oath because
the tide receded before we could get
into the docks. We only stayed in
Liverpool few hours and marched
over to the railroad station, where we
went to Winchester. We rested there
for four days and then went to South
hampton. We got on board tug there
and landed at Cherbourg, France, on
June 30th.
From there, we got on box cars
| (thirty-fve men in dinky box car)
and went to LeMans. Our machine
gun battalion was sent a few days later
to Mayet, France, and I stayed there
until August 9th, when 7 was trans
ferred to the Bird Corps Replacement
Battalion at Pontoise, near Paris. I
spent three days visiting in Paris and
seeing the sights, and the went
through Chateau Thierry just after the
drive there on my way to Coulonges.
1t was near Coulonges that I met the
ll25th Infantry, so put in for my
transfer and got back with the old 33rd
Michigan Infantry on August 23d.
That same night, we got into motor
trucks French trucks driven by
Cinnamon and landed at Montigny,
near Scissors, on August oath. On the
might of the Goth we marched to
within seven kilometres Of the front
lines and rested there until the night
Of the 9th.
We marched the seven kilometres
to the front lines the night of August
27-28th, and relieved French Divis-
ion near Juvigny, France. We were
IsandWiched in between the best troops
that France has, and we were the only
Americans on that sector.
We didn t do any fighting on the
28th, but on the 10Th, I went sover
the top for the first time. Believe me,
was scared when the Boche landed
counter barrage of artillery as we
were advancing upon them. Big, shells,
small shells, some that whistled, some
that said you-u-u-u but didn t hit
me - all kinds of shells they threw
lat Us in all endeavor to stop our at
tack. But we lit right into them, and
gained our first objective. / never
thought could ever be as cool as I
was, after the first scare was over, and
1t seemed just as natural to be right
out IN front of the men as it did to
walk down to the Post Office. At 2:l5
big shell landed right in front of
where Major Wilson and I were sitting
in shell hole. It knocked me down
and covered me with dirt from head
to foot and wounded the Major: but
was not even scratched They land
Led all around me all that day and
night, but after I got used to the
noise of the explosions, q / didn It
seem to mind it much. We went into
support on the Doth and though the
Boche shelled US all the while, L
came out Of the show safe and sound.
Then we went to Joinville, France.
on the 18th of September, and stayed
there in rest until the 22nd, when we
took some more trucks diven by
Cinnamon and landed az the Verdun
Sector, in mud hole called Lavoye.
On the 25th, we started marching for
the front, being the division in re-
| serve. We camped out all the while,
and it was rainy, wet, muddy weather
all the time; it sure was fright, and
saw the time when I saw glad to
sleep on rock piles to escape the damp
ness.
Finally on my 25th birthday, Sept.
29th, we started out at night for the
real front lines, and reached it the
next afternoon. As / was acting regi-
mental adjutant at the time, didn It
have to go into the front lines proper.
but was half mile back. Talk about
Smelling! The Dutch started in one
morning, throwing gas shells, and we
kept our gas masks on for one hour
and ten minutes straight through. On
October 4th, our Division with other
American Divisions, launched an at
tack and we kept that up until the
goth of October, when we went into
reserve about ten kilometres back of
the lines. The 32rd Division was the
first American Division to pierce the
Kremhilde Stellung line, and for hav-
ing done this, we are all going to wear
red arrow through a red line on our
left shoulder, showing that we have
pierced every line that we bucked up
against. Just think Of being twenty
one straight days in the line, in the
worst weather imaginable. TIL tell
you got pretty much all in; in fact, I
had to go to the hospital on the 18th
and didn't get back to the regiment
until the 5th of November.
About the End of November, our
l ~