Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 232, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 October 1917 — THROUGH THE TRENCHES [ARTICLE]

THROUGH THE TRENCHES

WITH ALFRED THOMPSON—A VIVID PICTURE OF FIGHT- _ —ING ON FRENCH FRONT. ' September 17, 1917. Dear Dad:

Haven’t written for some time to you, so will do so now. After our four days evacuation work we returned to our old cantonment, where I had just gotten nicley settled when we received orders to move. We have been attached at last to a division, the 131st, and have moved up to its headquarters. We have been here three days now and today our division goes on repos way back of the lines and we will follow it, tomorrow probably. They will probably stay on repos for 15 days and then ,jo back to the front. From now on we follow them. As they are now in a very quiet sector of the front, their next job will probably be in a very active sector, and if »so we will get some good work. At least, I hope so. The night before we left the Boche raided a nearby village and dropped some bombs that did a lot of damage. There was a company of American engineers quartered there and I the bombs scared seven years’ growth out of them. They had been trying to get* the Americans to dig some caves or abris that day but they were not keen for it. The next morning they were up nearly crying for shovels. Going through one good bomb raid causes anyope of any delusions as to the effect. The bombs are the most miserable part of the war I have seen yet. I bet those Americans feel the same way I do. Some of the boys went to a post yesterday and on the way back they had to flop quick in a muddy ditch to escape some shrapnel that broke near them. They came home covered with mpd. In a case like that, though, there, aren’t many who stop to look for a nice, dry place to flop. There is not any time to hesitate. The Boche had another bombing party last night. They didn’t concentrate their attentions on this village, for which I am thankful, but on a little village a little ways off. They did, however, drop some five or six bombs near us and the* terrific explosions settled my doubts as to whether I should stay in bed or not, and I dug for an abris. I had been hearing the firing and bombs at the village and was hesitating as to whether I should get out of bed or not, but the bombs that fell were entirely too close for comfort and I dug for shelter. But there were no more bombs dropped here and I soon went back to bed and sleep. The bombs did no damage except to a field.

Yesterday section 63 of NortonHarjes came here and is doing the ambulance work here. We are just waiting for orders to go on repos and are not forking. Went up on the hill yesterday, as I thought there was a battery working there, because the explosions and white smoke coming down from there sounded like a battery of at least 105’s. But when I arrived I found a gang of soldiers practicing throwing hand grenades. I stood off as a safe distance and watched them. They stood in a little trench, hit the grenades on their hands to set off the fuse, then leisurely threw them out. They rolled along the ground, smoking, and then exploded with a terrific crash. They are only about the size of a pear and are the same shape and they must be filled with terribly high explosive to explode with so much force. They say when the soldiers take an enemy trench they throw hand grenades in the dugouts to kill any survivors seeking shelter there. Today Dick Lowell and I caught a cannon here and rode about five miles up toward the trenches and then got off and joined some other boys there who had walked the distance. We all walked up through a village battered with shell fire almost beyond recognition, as a village, then on up the road until we came to the rear trenches of the French. These we entered and found the commandant, who said it was all right to visit the front lines, as long as we had helmets and gas masks. He gave us a guide, who led us down into a deep trench, about seven feet deep. This we followed for a long time, finally branching off and seemingly running in every direction. Many are dug through what appears almost solid rock. They zig-zag every five feet or so, and yon can never see more than fifteen or twenty feet ahead of you. Finally, after walking like what seemed a mile, we emerged in the front trenches and our guide cautioned us to walk quietly. We. walked for miles, it seemed, through the trenches, going down into dugouts which go very, very deep into the earth, examining the machine gun emplacements, the signal rockets stacked in piles here and there, the hand grenade shelters, full of powerful little hand grenades, and a thousand other intensely interesting things. Then our guide, a second lieutenant, whom we had picked up on the way, led us beyond the main front trenches into some advanced listening posts, which are only 30 and 40 yards respectively from the German trenches. We could hear the Germans moving in their trenches and tried to hear them talking but couldn’t dp so. We peered over the

parapet, which the guide said was safe, and we could see the parapet of the Boche trenches almost within spitting disatnce, it seemed. “No Man’s Land” is truly a desolate, lifeless place. Covered with a maze of barbed wire entanglements that it would be impossible to penetrate, until the artillery had blown it up, and a few scattered trees, it looked like “No Man’s Land.” I took a couple of pictures of it as I happened to have my camera with me that I bought the other day. I certainly hope they turn out well. I c&n’t describe the desolation of those few yards between the German trenches and those of the French; The trenches seemed almost deserted. It is only at long intervals that we find men in the trenches. Mqst of them are down in their deep dugouts, sleeping or just lying around. A few French 75’s screamed over our heads but otherwise all was very quiet. There were no German shells arriving when we were there, although the trenches were littered with bld shells, not exploded, and others that had. I picked up the end of a German 105, but lost it on the way home. There was no excitement there while we were there, but everything was intensely intersting to me. The officer took us down in his dugout and gave us some potent stuff that fairly make’s one’s teeth drop but. The trenches are all named and are very deep, except in places where you have to stoop low. It is a very quiet sector. There is no danger going up. I would not have missed it for anything. To be in the trenches and see first hand is much more interesting than reading about it. I may never get another chance and I am very glad I made such good use of it. There were only four casualties there all day up until 3 o’clock this p. m., and they were all caused' by one shell. One was killed and three wounded. We rode back with two of the wounded to the hospital here, on one of the S. S. U. 63’s 8. v. cars. I took seven or eight pictures m the trenches themselves and hope they turn out well. Everything is so different there from what I had expected. I looked to find many men in the trenches, but the trenches themselves are almost deserted and the men are all in their dugouts, which you enter by a little bit of an opening and go down and down into the bowels of the earth, it seems, everything in total darkness, until finally you see a little room with men sitting around and a table and candle burning. In these there are long bunks, where the men were sleeping in their clothes and snoring heavily. There is no infantry action in this sector, only artillery battles and not so very many of them. It is all pretty heavily wooded where we are except in “No Man’s Land and near the trenches. There the trees are blasted and withered by shell fire, the shattered trunks looking very weird rising out of a tei** rible maze of barbed wire. Saw a great many unexploded shells, bombs and torpedoes, which are shot from a rifle, huge trench mortar shells, etc. The trenches are banked with sandbags and reinforced with wire. We saw the microphone, listening wires and all. Telephone wires run through the trenches. On the whole it was the most interesting day I ever spent. Was terribly tired from walking so far and my shoes and puttees were covered with mud from the trenches and I missed my lunch, but it was worth much more than that just to take a peep> into the awful desolateness of No Man s Land.” That term is certainly a happy one, for no man lives or moves there, a few little birds are the only signs of life. I am sitting in my ambulance writing and about a mile away there is a French battery that breaks forth with a crash every few minutes. I can also see shrapnel bursting there every few minutes, with a crack and whine, and cloud of smoke. Another clear night, tonight, I fear, and perhaps another air raid. I almost pray for rain, disagreeable as it is, because the planes do not move in rainy weather. Must close, lots of love to all.

ALF.