The Washington times., 1920-02-08
By Rene Bache.

NY Am611c00 u1OtucT Wuo0O cOs~s~s
"a boy lost his iife IN France. or any
4 4 wife whose husband died In the wal.
"over there" has right 10 demand that
the body be brosght back and given to her
for burial in this country. The Govern.
ment promised as much, and the War De-
partment will do its best to make the
promise good.
But there are difficulties which by most
people are not understood at all.
The principal agent Of destruction used
in the great conflict was high explosives,
in shells, in bombs, and In other instru-
ments for killing II is estimated that 8
per cent of the 1900 American dead were
literally blown to pieces. How in such
cases could the fragments be collected and
identified?
In numerous Instances where bur fight.
ing men were killed by high-explosive
shells their fate was shared BY French
comrades-in-arms Burying parties picked
UP such remains as they could find and
inferred them, marking rart OF the ground
as the grave of an American soldier and
another part as the grave OF French
soldier There were many cases where
bodies of horses or other animals killed
at the same time were buried with the
bodies of men.
There are $4,000 Americans who died In
hospitals. of wounds Or disease. outside the
war zone. Eleven thousand OF these are 10
be brought back Immediately; the rest win
remain, by the expressed wish q their
families, where they are.
With those who lost their lives IN the
war zone the situation is entirely different
Already they have been buried twice, the
first interment being usually by the regi-
mental chaplain, without q coffin--just
covering of the body with earth, to get Il
out of sight and for sanitation's sake.
This was always practicable when our
troops we're advancing. When they re-
treated, the American dead were often OF
necessity left unburied. The Germans IN
tered them higgledy-piggledy in treuches
dug for the purpose. Indeed, In many In
stances the Yanks were obliged TO bufs
their own dead in this wretched fashion.
When the fighting lines were long sta
tionary, bodies sometimes lay unburfed Tor
weeks before 1t was possible 10 reach them
without undue risk.
Many small temporary cemeteries were
established, in which thousands OF uncof-
fined bodies were laid to rest. The sites
chosen were usually on low ground, be-
cause in such places the burial parties
we're relatively safe from shellIire. BW
there came four months Of continuous rain.
and the cemeteries we're Hooded. One
there was which for a long time Was under
four feet of water, which washed some of
the corpses out of the shallow graves, so
that they floateh to the surface.
This is distressing. but II Is the trutA.
Everything was done that could be done IN
the circumstances. A concrete dam was
built around this particular cemetery, ana
attempts were made TO set the water CUT
with gasoline pumps. 80.
But the water seeped IN beneath the
concrete as fast as II could be pumped
out; and finally, as a last resort, mon
equipped with long rubber boots and gas
masks we're sent IN TO grub literally for
the bodies. II was dreadful task, but
they got them.
The possibilities OF mistake IN return
ing to American families the bodies of
dead soldier boys are many ana dreadfu,
TO contemplate. Recently zoo were broHeht
back from Russia, and out OF that small
number no fewer than twelve were sent
After the Spanish war and subsequent
fighting in the Philippines, the bodies Of
many dead American soldiers were brought
back to the United states. Several on the
coffns we're found 10 contain the cospses
of Chinese coolies
Frequently II happened IN France that
American soldiers and German soldiers
perished together and were buried toteth.
or. Nothing is more certain than that