Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1942-10-23
(Tenth OF a Series.)
BY LELAND STOWE,

Lie major pointed but the ex-
panse OF Wheatlands and Occasional,
knots OF trees revealed nothing, not
even the river, and Rzhev seemed
lost in prairie. I was still trying
TO figure out where the Nazis' line
might be when our chauffeur sud-
denly went berserk. We were driv-
ing cross country and he stepped
on the gas so sharply that I was
Two feet off the seat before I could
grab for an anchor. Then we were
hurdl1ng ruts and bitches like mad
heading for small group of peas
ants cabins half a mile away.
The major grinned: "They put
nve shells over when I came across
an hour ago. he explained.
That greatly increased my inter-
est In that invisible line along the
Volga but we made the cabins with
out any close-range music and
more miraculously, without turn
ing upside down. From there on to
the advanced Russian artillery bat
teries was but another short dash.
Guns were belching on both sides
and Nazis planes had been nosing
around overhead all day but this
little ridge seemed very cozy COM
pared with the open farm lands we
had just traversed.
Headquarters Deep in Hillside.
In fact, this was as cozy and neat
an artillery position as you would
be likely to find on any front in the
war. The ridge had just enough
shoulder to it and good comfortable
length of gully on it's lee side, cut
down almost straight into the
earth, so that the dugouts were real
caves which even direct hit would
scarcely penetrate. We had to wait
for the artillery units commander
before we could proceed to where
the guns were sounding off.
The major led us up the steep,
earthen steps and then into the
commanders two-room headuuar-
ters which were carved deep into
the bowels of the hillside. 1t was
like walking into the entrance of a
mine but once inside the walls were
tall, whitewashed and six or eight
persons could nicely crowd into the
lieutenant-colonePs inner room. In
side here even the Russian guns
sounded dull and far away.
The, lieutenant colonel almost
needed a shoehorn to get into his
subterranean home. He was six feet
of solid Drawn and boisterous two
listed masculinity. A Ukrainian
Paul Bunyan, and he left my hand
feeling like pound of hamburger
just out of the grinder. But what
a face and what voice!
American correspondent? horo-
sho, horosho" doomed 1t. Col Ana
tole Alexandrovitch Smirnov. In
Russian horosho means, good, but
when this man Smirnov said it, it
sounded like a cathedral organ with
all the stops out.
Nazis Caught Mapping.
We followed the lieutenant colo
mel down into the gully, across the
brook and back toward where his
batteries were concealed. All the
time he was talking, laughing and
eesticulating as if this war was one
of the greatest holidays that had
ever been invented.
TOO bad you didn't come two
days sooner" he said. 1--WE gave
Fritz one hell of a massaging. We
caught whole division half asleep.
That's no joke. Lots of the Fascists
didn't even have their pants on.
They were scared out of their wits.
Hundreds of them drowned trying
to swim the Volga. We threw all
that was left back across the Volga.
Caught them without their pants.
Ha, ha. ha."
1t. Col. Smirnov roared with
laughter and on we went. There
was a lull as we approached a bat
terry and at first it was almost i'm
possible to see the guns even though
they were big ones. The battery's
captain snapped to attention and
barked out his report to the lieu
tenant colonel. AS we strobe closer
Smirnov said, Great fellows-just
watch them"
Every man of the gun crew was
standing alertly in his place, his eyes
on the lieutenant colonel awaiting
the command to resume firing. They
were all in their 20s as bronzed
and tough as their commander
There were no German shells
bursting near just now, but these
chaps didn't loko as if they would
pay any attention if there had been.
Batteries Well Concealed.
well give the Germans this
round for you" laughed Smirnov
Other guns stood only few yards
away and all at the same eleva-
ton. The captain barked his order.
Big heavy shells were pushed into
place. A soldier with the firing
cord gripped in his hand leaned for
ward tensely, his eyes focused on
the captains lifted arm in the little
hillock behind us. All the other
gun crewmen stuffed their fingers
in their ears and I followed suit
The pause seemed exaggerately
long. Then the cord jerked and the
air around us rocked with a series
of mighty roars. The huge guns
bounced back on their recoils.
whats the range?" I asked.
The lieutenant colonel grinned
broadly.
Cant tell you that but they'll
feel it all right
Then at varied intervals it was the
same thing all over again-except
when Messerschmidts came proWl-
ing with too much curiosity in the
neighborhood of our immediate Sec
tor AS for the German guns we
heard them quite regularly but
these Russian batteries were too
well placed and too perfectly tucked
away inside natures palm. Lit
orally the Nazis were not hitting
within mile of them.
The Red Army gun crew boys
were full of smiles-between rounds,
that is. when they worked they
were the epitome of concentration
and efficiency.
Scornful of Nazi Accuracy.
''Those Germans are no good with
artillery" shifted the lieutenant