The Bingham County news. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1918-1930, 1921-09-30

give du lued VI the size VI american
cemeteries in France the following
statistics are Illuminating:
Cemetery. Dept No. Burials
Allerey Saoen ct Loire ~ 495
Bazoilles. Vosget .........-.-.-. COS
Belleau Wood, Aisne .-.. 2,045
Bony. Aisne, ..--...............-. 1,766
Chaumont, Haute Marine, - $40
Fismes, Marine ......... 1,712
Lambezellec, Finistere . LAO
lie Mans, Sarthe " S55
LibOurne, Ardennes - 744
Ploisy, Aisne ....-.----...-.-... 1854
Ronagne Sous Montfaucon,
Meuse Observation-Disclosures ,O61
Seringes ct Nesles, Aisne ...-. 1892
Thiau Court. Meurthe ct
MOSelle 1855
Every piece of available lumber
was salvaged and used for crosses
and for coffins Old barracks were
torn down and German prisoners set
to work to make the rough boxes
and the sacred markings for Ameri
can graves. Let no one resent the
crudity of these caskets. They are
more glorious than the most mag
nificent sarcophagus could ever be.
1t Is interesting to note that the
Marine Typographical !Detachment
sent a party of two Officers and two
foot of the ground was traversed
and during the eight days spent in
that tangled and shell wrec ked fer
est they found only four battle
graves Of American soldiers which
were missed by searching parties.
Each of the four graves was marked
by colored disk of cardboard, one
quarter of the disk being stars on a
blue background, and the remain
ing three quarters displayed the red
and white stripes the aluminium
Identification disks were there also
angling from rustic cross. The
typographical party also found at
least a dozen shallow graves Of Ger
mans in Belleau Wood. The Wild
boar, while foraging throu ,n the
underbrush had uprooted the Ger
man bodies and nothing vas left Ct
the Boche save bones, shoes ana HE
metal accoutrements of their uni
forms.
AS zones of fighting were aban
doned the Grave Registration its
began their work of searching and
assembling the dead. Each unit
was flung out in skirmish formation
and was required to pass over every
square inch of ground. Every ere
vess was investigated and every
shell hole, which was partially fill
ed up, was opened in the search. All
unmarked graves and all that wc~a
mrked unknown" were opened and
further efforts made to identify
them. Sometimes Identification has
been established through finding
the manufacturer name on the
woven strap of the soldiers shoes, or
some peculiar coin or trinket in the
pockets of the uniform, or even by
reason Of the marked leggings
which he had borrowed from a COM
name.
To demonstrate this care in identi-
ficatiOn, | cite an instance in the
Hois De Belleau where, on Nov. Is,
1918, grave was found which con-
tanned a body from which had just
been removed, letter to those "at
home' and a small testament. The
dead boy had promised his mother
to carry that Bible until death, and
he had kept the faith.
The Grave Registration Service
has disinterred the bodies from iso-
lated graves with the greatest care
and tenderness and carried them to
concentration cemeteries. The u.s.
ual method is TO place the body
when exhumed on soft ourlap laid
upon the ground, then another
wrapping is placed around this and
securely tied. The body is then
ready to be placed In Its coffin.
The government has done every
thing humanity possible to dissipate
the great fear of American mothers
that they should have their sons
bodies returned to this country, mis-
takes in Identification might occur.
Every precaution has been taken to
guard against such contingency.
Another duty OF the Graves Reg
istration Service was to notify the
nearest of kin Of the death OF their
soldier boy. Despite the urgency OF
the work this notification was "hu-
manized" and although the numbers
sent were so great as to require the
use of form letters. yet a touch OF
sympathy kept them from being en-
tirely official and gave the very in
formation most craved.
That these letters were appreciat-
ed Is evidenced by the replies. One
such reply, which I shall quote here