Carolina watchman. [volume] (Salisbury, N.C.) 1871-1937, 1931-11-13
China And Japan Are Preparing For War

plosive shells, the chatter of machine
guns whose cacaphony was like unto
the mummery of maniacs, the spite
tul crack of rifles the harsh ear
shattering bursts of grenades, the
>shrieks and groans of the MORALLY
wounded; gone were all these accus-
toned sounds, there remainded only
silence, a silence more nerve shatter-
ing than the diapason of war. Men
stood or sat in attitudes of intense
concentration, listening for the famil-
lar sounds that weary ears had become
accustomed to. Distrustful of the
silence, distressed by the e~nveloping
lack Of sound. Each busy with his own
problems, each with the same proplem,
the struggle to adjust, the struggle to
believe. For minutes, for hours, and
in some for days, they maintained the
same wary attitude of watchful wait
ing, unable to regain the old reckless
spirit that pervaded the atmosphere iii
the days Immediately preceding Nov
ember 11th., at 1900 A. M. The
weary nerves of war worn men refus-
ed to relax at the command of the
mind, and the mind refused to believe
that self preservation wa no longer
the first consideration, that again the
world was sane, and mans hand was
not against man with the lust to kill.
After long never ending minutes and
hours of numbering silence, men crept
out of shelters, in ones and twos,
looked curiously out over the space
called no mans land where death had
stalked so surely a few short spaces
hitherto, they experimental with
the idea, and as surely gambled with
fate and death as any man ever did on
the field of conflict, they took a
chance though not believing that
hostilities had ceased, they expected
a trick, a bullet, yet they took the
chance, they gambled their lives to
reach a solution of hat pulling
silence. Gradually more and more men
came out into the open, grouped
themselves n small groups and dis
cussed the possibilities of an armistice
being a fact. They asked questions of
their non-coms, their officers, asked
each other questions, that were as
much riddles to the one asked as to
the asker. Strict orders against
fraternizing with the enemy had been
issued, and for a space were adhered
to, but soon curiosity overcame dis
cipline, and by e and twos in var
ious sectors the doughboys of America
drifted towards the German lines, the
Germans met them half way, they
|cIusrered in small groups snapped
| cigarettes and ornaments, those who
spoke German, and those Germans who
spoke English translated for the others,
each found out that the other was
not the monster he had been taught to
expect when he met his opponent.
Little amenities were advanced, eager
questions asked and answered, half shy
condolences exchanged; gradually a
peace settled upon the hearts and
minds of those men of both sides, they
knew that an armistice was a reality,
that no longer need they fear the life
ending impact of a bullet, or piece
of shrapnel. Then and then only did
they give way to wild whoops and
dances of delight, then and then only
did those who reacted quickly become
carefree and jubilant. Forgotten were
the dark days and nights that they
had just lived, forgotten were the mud
and slime, the coolies and cold, for
gotten were the wounded and dead,
except by those whose task was their
care, there was room for nothing but
the new freedom from fear, the new
feeling of security, the cessation of
the mighty roar of war. Shattered
nerves either mended themselves
quickly and permenantlv, or collapsed
entirely and forever. Those who
suffered least while the chaos of war
ragged, suffered most when the tension
of battle was taken away leaving the
nerves without the narcotic of excite