Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 32, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 February 1919 — HAS SIX GOLD STRIPES. [ARTICLE]

HAS SIX GOLD STRIPES.

(Last installment.) After quite a tramp, taking my time, .as I didnt feel like exerting myself, I came to a French aid station under the side of a steep hill. I had not come straight back so was not behind our division. This was along a main road and it was so crowded with traffic it seemed that nothing was moving at all. Artillery, ammunition trains, trucks, ambulances, British armored cars, cavalry and infantry on bicycles; the-tanks all took to the fields. Finally out of all this German-killing machinery, I espied a flivver all painted up in war colors, but a Ford just the same, and driven by a Yank, too, if he did have a French uniform on. He invited me to take the front seat, he turned around, got some other wounded in the rear, and we made for Villers•Coterets. There was not so much traffic going that way and we got to a castle by 4 o’clock. A French field hospital yas in there. A battery of 6-inch guns was just outsire firing continually, but I was all in and slept just the minute the doctor got through with me. Slept on the grass till 8 o’clock and then inside on some straw. The next morning the Yankee wounded (there were several there were put in trucks, (the ambulances were for stretcher patients) and rode to field hospital 13 once more. Pub of that truck into another, which took me to iSeulis. There were some wounded there; a train load was leaving every hour or two. I got out about eleven that night, and the next day we entrained at French mobile hospital 18, about 35 miles *west of Paris. After one day there, was taken in a French hospital train to Nantes, through LeMans and Chartres. ■Five weeks there and out to St. Aignan again. This time we went east to Dijou, then to Is-sur-Lille. I wrote from there but had to scratch the name of the place out. From Is-sur-Lille we went to Neufchateau, the nthrough Domrimy, birthplace of Joan of Arc, also through Vaucouleurs, where she went to get assistance from Sire Robert of Bandricourt, and, incidentally, where my barracks bag is stored. We got off at Sorcy, on the Meuse, where we had hiked through in January. But things had changed since then. It was an American rail head, there were American box cars; Yankee engineers; and the *' little narrowguage railway which ran up to the front had American engines, cars

and men. This was Sept. 9. We hiked to Cornieville once more, fed with the 18th Inf. supply company, slept on the floor in an old billet, and the next,morning left for Co. G somewhere up near Mont Sec. Well it was easy to see what was up. The forest was so full of artillery and horses, Yank and French, they hardly had room to turn around. There were American hospitals, with nurtes, where a Woman was not allowed last winter. We stopped in the woods with our supply company, had dinner and waited for darkness to camouflage the rest of the journey. After dark we (there were four of us) followed up the supply company wagon, through Roulencourt into Rambucourt, 500 yards from the front line trenches. The town* was so full of men that if Fritz had shelled it, it would have been a bad place to be in. But Fritz didn’t know it. - He’s not so wise as he thought The next morning, the 11th, S I foifnd the company clerks and we looked through the mail sack and found some letters for yours truly, the first since the middle of July. " . I spent the next day hunting up -old friends and enquiring about Those that weren’t there. But again that terrible strain, for I thought I knew what was on the next day, hut

it was worse this time than before. And again, in the evening, came that order from the top sergeant, “Make your normal packs.” ——.. About 10 o’clock we moved out in single file, across the fields, and at 1:30 were in our “jumping off place” a half hour after the barrage had started. It wasn't rapid firing like the barrage at Soissons, but seemed to be picking out its targets. It was all heavy artillery, putting the “taboo” to Heine’s batteries we hoped, Wei lit did. In the meantime, *we were pretty sleepy and had three hours to wait, so nearly everyone lay down in his place and slept, notwithstanding it was pouring down rain. First relief outside!

Dec. 9.—. Now I’ll finish this time. This is getting pretty long. To resuw: At 5 o'clock the rolling barrage started and we began to move forward. I was in the first wave this time. I think I told you about trying to cross the little stream, Mad River, after advancing through two kilos of trenches, wire and dugouts. There was not a German in the trenches. I noticed £hat the heavy shells from our batteries had fallen in their dugouts and emplacements. They certainly had complete information. Their spy system was outdone, as well as their thoroughness. Mad River was impassable by artillery ibut trucks loaded with the necessary timbers for a bridge, already cut, followed the third wave. Some engineers came up and said they had an hour before the 75’s were to cross that bridge! About three hours later, after I got hit an the leg, I came back over the same ground and the artillery had crossed, made their new positions, and were firing as if they had never moved. It was certainly queer to go down those roads in an ambulance where the day before it would have been suicide to have ventured on foot. . . I wanted to see the north side of Mont Sec, but only got around bo the side of it. That’s the nearest to Germany I’ve\ ever been. Went through field hospital 3 at Rouloncourt, 41 at Sorcy, then by train to base hospital 46, where I had the attack of fever. Fro mthere we came by American hospital train to Bordeaux, through Troyes, Orleans, Tours, Pontiers and Angouleine. I figure I’ve seen enough of France and expect to embark at Bordeaux. (J get my sixth gold stripe next Saturday.) -- , . Now this is already the longest letter I ever wrote, so I’ll close with love to all, front ' Your loving son, CLIFFORD.