The Powder River County examiner and the Broadus independent. [volume] (Broadus, Mont.) 1919-1935, 1921-10-14


ties In the early part of 1918 and re-
NAMED in German prison camps un-
til the close of the war. He is now
In Helena for a few days and will
leave shortly for Minneapolis, where
expects to resume his studies, as a
ward of the government.
Although he has passed through
the most terrible of experiences and
has served in two campaigns in which
the Montana troops were engaged,
Roberts is but "a years of age. A
native of Huron, s. D., he came to
Montana in February, 1916. and was
employed on a ranch near Miles City
until the Mexican troubles, when he
went to the border as a member of
the machine gun company, under
Captain Foote, of the Second Mon
tana. Upon his return from the Dor
der he went into Company E of Miles
City. of the Second Montana, with
which he remained until after his |
command got into France, when he
was transferred to the 10th infantry,
Company A, with which he remain
ed for the few weeks he was permit |
ted with the American forces.
On Front Early
His regiment reached the front on
January 20, 1918, and for few
weeks it was merely held at the front
to familiarize the troops with the con-
ditions and to enable them to get
acquainted with its functions. The
regiment had engaged in no battle
at this time, the men being assigned
to patrol duty only, and it was while
on one of these expeditions that Rob-
erts was captured.
On the night Of February 8, 1918,
a patrol of / 3 men, of which Roberts
was a member, was sent out to in
spect and repair the wire entangle-
ments in front of the American
trenches. The patrol had advanced
to a point about 100 feet beyond the
trenches when it ran into an ambus-
cade of about IS Germans, by which
the patrol was practically annihil-
ated.
Besides Roberts, there were two
: other Montana boys in this patrol:
Bobby White of Miles City, pal of
Roberts, who was killed at his side,
: and Christ Sorenson of Big Sandy.
: AS far as Roberts has been able to
: learn only he and Sorenson escaped
and all the rest were killed.
! Roberts was wounded by three
! bullets, one in his right hand, one in
his arm, and one in the back of the
>, neck. However, his injuries were
8 not serious and he was picked uI
ty the Germans and taken to a dug
: out where he was piled with lues
e lions concerning the American forces
He was one of the first of thu
r Americans to be taken captive by thu
: Germans, and they were very anxiou!
: to learn of the numbers and disposi
e ton of the Yankee troops. To al
= of their questions Roberts refused
n answers and his first chastisemen
: was slap in the face.
Threatened by Germans
n He was told that was not all HI
y would get If he continued his silence
: whereupon he told his questioner
: they could Ego to HE'LL
: Unable to obtain any information
8 from Roberts, the Germans put hin
n in an ambulance and took him t.
: Guerney, on the French-German Dor
der, and without any further ques
e tioning or threats and without beinl
/ advised of their intentions, he wa
n placed under an anaesthetic and hi
IS sight destroyed.
= Roberts says the last persons h
= saw as he was going under was
J German surgeon and two nurses. H
n was kept under an anaesthetic TO
eight days and when he regained hi
r senses, February Is, his sight wa
n gone.
o His right eye was removed fror
'e its socket while cross was scratch
e ed upon the cornea of the left eye
r presumably by needle. Robert
IT says his eyes were in the best of cor
le dition when he was taken captive an
l. that no explanation was ever give
r him as to why he was so mutilatet
but that he has always been Statistic
l. that the cruel act was performed a
er punishment for his refusal to furnis
le information.
e. Roberts was later told that tn
/, German army surgeons tried to gra
Of his right eye into the eye-socket of
m sightless German soldier, but the e
A fort failed.
ID From Guerney he was removed
he the prison camp at Teifen and late
1t to Darmstadt, where he remained III
III y uuc 4O, 1910, 1IOAu NAc1 Q AC VIZ
= taken to Munster, on the Holland DO
| der, and from there he was tran
ported to a camp in Russia, whit
Roberts says was the worst prise
maintained by the Germans, ar
which he describes as Giving hell
II No Protection
ii This, he says, was an open cam
with no barracks, and only holes
, the ground covered with tin as pr
Fl lection for the prisoners. Here
was starved almost to death, becor
ing so weak he could hardly lift h
head. The food consisted mainly
soup, coffee made of acorns and app
seeds ground up, occasionally chul
of horse meat, with miserable bre;
made Of potato Feelings. rye. stra
and almost anything that could
gathered up which would constitu
~ q substitute for wheat bread.
Fl He remained in this camp thr