Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 97, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 April 1916 — COSTS SNIPER LIFE [ARTICLE]

COSTS SNIPER LIFE

Smoke of Extra Shot Reveals His Position. Shows Ten Waiting British Marksmsn Where Troublesome German Sharpshooter Is Hiding—He Troubles No More. '' l London. —A noncommissioned officei of a spipers’ section who has just returned to the front after what he describes as “six glorious days of leave” sends home an interesting account of how a German sniper was put out of action. “When I arrived,” he said, “I found a spirit of great and indignant offensiveness prevailing in the snipers’ section. ‘What’s wrong?’ I asked. I was told that a German sniper—a breed we had congratulated ourselves on having thoroughly exterminated, or at least mastered, on our battalion front —had for some days past been making himself very,objectionable by his wonderful ability in breaking periscopes. He had also made all our ‘overland short cuts’ very unhealthy. These short cuts save us both time and trouble, and are very neecssary in bad weather when the condition of the trenches is none too good. *- “On the seventh day the tragical climax came. He had ‘outed’ forever an officer. ‘You must get on to this sniper and put him out of action. What are your snipers doing?’ asked the 0, O. of Our sergeant. “Then we decided one and all that ‘Goggles,’ so called because he wore big spectacles, must and should evacuate the firing line of reality for the reserve trenches of eternity. A specially selected party of ten would carry out a drastic plan of campaign. The odds would hardly be sporting, but then, ‘all’s fair in love and war,’ so ‘Goggles’ would have to go. The next morning we silently, and withjthe utmost care, selected our positions. “Soon he came —at least his first shot did—and it spat viciously against the parapet in front. The noise a bullet makes hitting your parapet is most annoying, especially as this one was none too far from us. This shot immediately roused us to action. Hardly had the report of his rifle died away ere ten telescopes were searching the German parapets, scruitinizing every inch, in an endeavor to pick up the little puff of blue smoke that should give us his position. “No luck. We waited. It is a slow game this, and essentially one of patience. He might not fire again for another hour or more, or he might fire any minute. Slowly the time passed. Thirty minutes —an hour and a half. Bang! bang! He’d fired twice with only a slight pause between each spot. "Oh, indiscreet ‘Goggles!’ That second shot had sealed his fate. For the first time he had shown an ounce of indiscretion. “Within the next few seconds nine rifles were trained with deadly accuracy on a loophole of small dimensions and insignificant appearance in the trenches opposite. Like one man we all fired and then waited. Nothing further happened. —~ “Three days passed and no more periscopes were broken. Then, timidly at first, and later with greater confidence, we used the ‘overland short cuts.’ Never a glimpse or a sign did we see of the bespectacled countenance of ‘Goggles.’ ”