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diff --git a/42721-0.txt b/42721-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..0d52ac7 --- /dev/null +++ b/42721-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,5294 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 42721 *** + +A GERMAN DESERTER'S WAR EXPERIENCE + +[Illustration: Decoration] + +TRANSLATED BY J. KOETTGEN + +NEW YORK +B. W. HUEBSCH +MCMXVII + + +COPYRIGHT, 1917, BY +B. W. HUEBSCH + +Published, April, 1917 +Second printing, April, 1917 +Third printing, June, 1917 +Fourth printing, July, 1917 +Fifth printing, August, 1917 + +PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA + + + + +TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE + + +The following narrative first appeared in German in the columns of the +_New Yorker Volkszeitung_, the principal organ of the German speaking +Socialists in the United States. Its author, who escaped from Germany +and military service after 14 months of fighting in France, is an +intelligent young miner. He does not wish to have his name made public, +fearing that those who will be offended by his frankness might vent +their wrath on his relatives. Since his arrival in this country his +friends and acquaintances have come to know him as an upright and +truthful man whose word can be relied upon. + +The vivid description of the life of a common German soldier in the +present war aroused great interest when the story presented in these +pages to the English speaking reader was published in serial form. For +here was an historian of the war who had been through the horrors of the +carnage as one of the "Huns," one of the "Boches"; a soldier who had not +abdicated his reason; a warrior against his will, who nevertheless had +to conform to the etiquette of war; a hater of militarism for whom there +was no romance in war, but only butchery and brutality, grime and +vermin, inhuman toil and degradation. Moreover, he was found to be no +mean observer of men and things. His technical training at a school of +mining enabled him to obtain a much clearer understanding of the war of +position than the average soldier possesses. + +Most soldiers who have been in the war and have written down their +experiences have done so in the customary way, never questioning for a +moment the moral justification of war. Not so our author. He could not +persuade his conscience to make a distinction between private and public +morality, and the angle from which he views the events he describes is +therefore entirely different from that of other actual observers of and +participators in war. His story also contains the first German +description of the retreat of the Teutonic armies after the battle of +the Marne. The chief value of this soldier's narrative lies, however, in +his destructive, annihilating criticism of the romance and fabled +virtues of war. If some of the incidents related in this book appear to +be treated too curtly it is solely due to this author's limited literary +powers. If, for instance, he does not dwell upon his inner experiences +during his terrible voyage to America in the coal bunker of a Dutch ship +it is because he is not a literary artist, but a simple workman. + +The translator hopes that he has succeeded in reproducing faithfully the +substance and the spirit of the story, and that this little book will +contribute in combating one of the forces that make for war--popular +ignorance of war's realities. Let each individual fully grasp and +understand the misery, degradation, and destruction that await him in +war, and the barbarous ordeal by carnage will quickly become the most +unpopular institution on earth. + +J. KOETTGEN. + + + + +CONTENTS + + +CHAPTER PAGE + TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE v + + I MARCHING INTO BELGIUM 1 + + II FIGHTING IN BELGIUM 8 + + III SHOOTING CIVILIANS IN BELGIUM 23 + + IV GERMAN SOLDIERS AND BELGIAN CIVILIANS 32 + + V THE HORRORS OF STREET FIGHTING 38 + + VI CROSSING THE MEUSE 45 + + VII IN PURSUIT 49 + + VIII NEARLY BURIED ALIVE ON THE BATTLEFIELD 58 + + IX SOLDIERS SHOOTING THEIR OWN OFFICERS 65 + + X SACKING SUIPPES 73 + + XI MARCHING TO THE BATTLE OF THE MARNE--INTO + THE TRAP 82 + + XII AT THE MARNE--IN THE MAW OF DEATH 89 + + XIII THE ROUT OF THE MARNE 99 + + XIV THE FLIGHT FROM THE MARNE 108 + + XV AT THE END OF THE FLIGHT 120 + + XVI THE BEGINNING OF TRENCH WARFARE 130 + + XVII FRIENDLY RELATIONS WITH THE ENEMY 142 + + XVIII FIGHTING IN THE ARGONNES 148 + + XIX CHRISTMAS IN THE TRENCHES 156 + + XX THE "ITCH"--A SAVIOR 164 + + XXI IN THE HELL OF VAUQUOIS 172 + + XXII SENT ON FURLOUGH 178 + + XXIII THE FLIGHT TO HOLLAND 183 + + XXIV AMERICA AND SAFETY 189 + + + + +A GERMAN DESERTER'S WAR EXPERIENCE + + + + +I + +MARCHING INTO BELGIUM + + +At the end of July our garrison at Koblenz was feverishly agitated. Part +of our men were seized by an indescribable enthusiasm, others became +subject to a feeling of great depression. The declaration of war was in +the air. I belonged to those who were depressed. For I was doing my +second year of military service and was to leave the barracks in six +weeks' time. Instead of the long wished-for return home war was facing +me. + +Also during my military service I had remained the anti-militarist I had +been before. I could not imagine what interest I could have in the mass +murder, and I also pointed out to my comrades that under all +circumstances war was the greatest misfortune that could happen to +humanity. + +Our sapper battalion, No. 30, had been in feverish activity five days +before the mobilization; work was being pushed on day and night so that +we were fully prepared for war already on the 23rd of July, and on the +30th of July there was no person in our barracks who doubted that war +would break out. Moreover, there was the suspicious amiability of the +officers and sergeants, which excluded any doubt that any one might +still have had. Officers who had never before replied to the salute of a +private soldier now did so with the utmost attention. Cigars and beer +were distributed in those days by the officers with great, uncommon +liberality, so that it was not surprising that many soldiers were +scarcely ever sober and did not realize the seriousness of the +situation. But there were also others. There were soldiers who also in +those times of good-humor and the grinning comradeship of officer and +soldier could not forget that in military service they had often been +degraded to the level of brutes, and who now thought with bitter +feelings that an opportunity might perhaps be offered in order to settle +accounts. + +The order of mobilization became known on the 1st of August, and the +following day was decided upon as the real day of mobilization. But +without awaiting the arrival of the reserves we left our garrison town +on August 1st. Who was to be our "enemy" we did not know; Russia was for +the present the only country against which war had been declared. + +We marched through the streets of the town to the station between crowds +of people numbering many thousands. Flowers were thrown at us from every +window; everybody wanted to shake hands with the departing soldiers. All +the people, even soldiers, were weeping. Many marched arm in arm with +their wife or sweetheart. The music played songs of leave-taking. People +cried and sang at the same time. Entire strangers, men and women, +embraced and kissed each other; men embraced men and kissed each other. +It was a real witches' sabbath of emotion; like a wild torrent, that +emotion carried away the whole assembled humanity. Nobody, not even the +strongest and most determined spirit, could resist that ebullition of +feeling. + +But all that was surpassed by the taking leave at the station, which we +reached after a short march. Here final adieus had to be said, here the +separation had to take place. I shall never forget that leave-taking, +however old I may grow to be. Desperately many women clung to their men; +some had to be removed by force. Just as if they had suddenly had a +vision of the fate of their beloved ones, as if they were beholding the +silent graves in foreign lands in which those poor nameless ones were to +be buried, they sought to cling fast to their possession, to retain what +already no longer belonged to them. + +Finally that, too, was over. We had entered a train that had been kept +ready, and had made ourselves comfortable in our cattle-trucks. Darkness +had come, and we had no light in our comfortable sixth-class carriages. + +The train moved slowly down the Rhine, it went along without any great +shaking, and some of us were seized by a worn-out feeling after those +days of great excitement. Most of the soldiers lay with their heads on +their knapsacks and slept. Others again tried to pierce the darkness as +if attempting to look into the future; still others drew stealthily a +photo out of their breast-pocket, and only a very small number of us +spent the time by debating our point of destination. Where are we going +to? Well, where? Nobody knew it. At last, after long, infinitely long +hours the train came to a stop. After a night of quiet, slow riding we +were at--Aix-la-Chapelle! At Aix-la-Chapelle! What were we doing at +Aix-la-Chapelle? We did not know, and the officers only shrugged their +shoulders when we asked them. + +After a short interval the journey proceeded, and on the evening of the +2nd of August we reached a farm in the neighborhood of the German and +Belgian frontier, near Herbesthal. Here our company was quartered in a +barn. Nobody knew what our business was at the Belgian frontier. In the +afternoon of the 3rd of August reservists arrived, and our company was +brought to its war strength. We had still no idea concerning the purpose +of our being sent to the Belgian frontier, and that evening we lay down +on our bed of straw with a forced tranquillity of mind. Something was +sure to happen soon, to deliver us from that oppressive uncertainty. How +few of us thought that for many it would be the last night to spend on +German soil! + +A subdued signal of alarm fetched us out of our "beds" at 3 o'clock in +the morning. The company assembled, and the captain explained to us the +war situation. He informed us that we had to keep ready to march, that +he himself was not yet informed about the direction. Scarcely half an +hour later fifty large traction motors arrived and stopped in the road +before our quarters. But the drivers of these wagons, too, knew no +particulars and had to wait for orders. The debate about our nearest +goal was resumed. The orderlies, who had snapped up many remarks of the +officers, ventured the opinion that we would march into Belgium the very +same day; others contradicted them. None of us could know anything for +certain. But the order to march did not arrive, and in the evening all +of us could lie down again on our straw. But it was a short rest. At 1 +o'clock in the morning an alarm aroused us again, and the captain +honored us with an address. He told us we were at war with Belgium, that +we should acquit ourselves as brave soldiers, earn iron crosses, and do +honor to our German name. Then he continued somewhat as follows: "We +are making war only against the armed forces, that is the Belgium army. +The lives and property of civilians are under the protection of +international treaties, international law, but you soldiers must not +forget that it is your duty to defend your lives as long as possible for +the protection of your Fatherland, and to sell them as dearly as +possible. We want to prevent useless shedding of blood as far as the +civilians are concerned, but I want to remind you that a too great +considerateness borders on cowardice, and cowardice in face of the enemy +is punished very severely." + +After that "humane" speech by our captain we were "laden" into the +automobiles, and crossed the Belgian frontier on the morning of August +5th. In order to give special solemnity to that "historical" moment we +had to give three cheers. + +At no other moments the fruits of military education have presented +themselves more clearly before my mind. The soldier is told, "The +Belgian is your enemy," and he has to believe it. The soldier, the +workman in uniform, had not known till then who was his enemy. If they +had told us, "The Hollander is your enemy," we would have believed that, +too; we would have been compelled to believe it, and would have shot him +by order. We, the "German citizens in uniform," must not have an opinion +of our own, must have no thoughts of our own, for they give us our enemy +and our friend according to requirements, according to the requirements +of their own interests. The Frenchman, the Belgian, the Italian, is your +enemy. Never mind, shoot as we order, and do not bother your head about +it. You have duties to perform, perform them, and for the rest--cut it +out! + +Those were the thoughts that tormented my brain when crossing the +Belgian frontier. And to console myself, and so as to justify before my +own conscience the murderous trade that had been thrust upon me, I tried +to persuade myself that though I had no Fatherland to defend, I had to +defend a home and protect it from devastation. But it was a weak +consolation, and did not even outlast the first few days. + +Traveling in the fairly quick motor-cars we reached, towards 8 o'clock +in the morning, our preliminary destination, a small but pretty village. +The inhabitants of the villages which we had passed stared at us in +speechless astonishment, so that we all had the impression that those +peasants for the most part did not know why we had come to Belgium. They +had been roused from their sleep and, half-dressed, they gazed from +their windows after our automobiles. After we had stopped and alighted, +the peasants of that village came up to us without any reluctance, +offered us food, and brought us coffee, bread, meat, etc. As the +field-kitchen had not arrived we were glad to receive those kindly gifts +of the "enemy," the more so because those fine fellows absolutely +refused any payment. They told us the Belgian soldiers had left, for +where they did not know. + +After a short rest we continued our march and the motor-cars went back. +We had scarcely marched for an hour when cavalry, dragoons and huzzars, +overtook us and informed us that the Germans were marching forward in +the whole neighborhood, and that cyclist companies were close on our +heels. That was comforting news, for we no longer felt lonely and +isolated in this strange country. Soon after the troop of cyclists +really came along. It passed us quickly and left us by ourselves again. +Words of anger were to be heard now; all the others were able to ride, +but we had to walk. What we always had considered as a matter of course +was now suddenly felt by us to be a great injustice. And though our +scolding and anger did not help us in the least, it turned our thoughts +from the heaviness of the "monkey" (knapsack) which rested like a leaden +weight on our backs. + +The heat was oppressive, the perspiration issued from every pore; the +new and hard leather straps, the new stiff uniforms rubbed against many +parts of the body and made them sore, especially round the waist. With +great joy we therefore hailed the order that came at 2 o'clock in the +afternoon, to halt before an isolated farm and rest in the grass. + + + + +II + +FIGHTING IN BELGIUM + + +About ten minutes we might have lain in the grass when we suddenly heard +rifle shots in front of us. Electrified, all of us jumped up and +hastened to our rifles. Then the firing of rifles that was going on at a +distance of about a mile or a mile and a half began steadily to increase +in volume. We set in motion immediately. + +The expression and the behavior of the soldiers betrayed that something +was agitating their mind, that an emotion had taken possession of them +which they could not master and had never experienced before. On myself +I could observe a great restlessness. Fear and curiosity threw my +thoughts into a wild jumble; my head was swimming, and everything seemed +to press upon my heart. But I wished to conceal my fears from my +comrades. I know I tried to with a will, but whether I succeeded better +than my comrades, whose uneasiness I could read in their faces, I doubt +very much. + +Though I was aware that we should be in the firing line within half an +hour, I endeavored to convince myself that our participation in the +fight would no longer be necessary. I clung obstinately, nay, almost +convulsively to every idea that could strengthen that hope or give me +consolation. That not every bullet finds its billet; that, as we had +been told, most wounds in modern wars were afflicted by grazing shots +which caused slight flesh-wounds; those were some of the reiterated +self-deceptions indulged in against my better knowledge. And they proved +effective. It was not only that they made me in fact feel more easy; +deeply engaged in those thoughts I had scarcely observed that we were +already quite near the firing line. + +The bicycles at the side of the road revealed to us that the cyclist +corps were engaged by the enemy. We did not know, of course, the +strength of our opponents as we approached the firing line in leaps. In +leaping forward every one bent down instinctively, whilst to our right +and left and behind us the enemy's bullets could be heard striking; yet +we reached the firing line without any casualties and were heartily +welcomed by our hard-pressed friends. The cyclists, too, had not yet +suffered any losses; some, it is true, had already been slightly +wounded, but they could continue to participate in the fight. + +We were lying flat on the ground, and fired in the direction indicated +to us as fast as our rifles would allow. So far we had not seen our +opponents. That, it seemed, was too little interesting to some of our +soldiers; so they rose partly, and fired in a kneeling position. Two men +of my company had to pay their curiosity with their lives. Almost at one +and the same time they were shot through the head. The first victim of +our group fell down forward without uttering a sound; the second threw +up his arms and fell on his back. Both of them were dead instantly. + +Who could describe the feelings that overcome a man in the first real +hail of bullets he is in? When we were leaping forward to reach the +firing line I felt no longer any fear and seemed only to try to reach +the line as quickly as possible. But when looking at the first dead man +I was seized by a terrible horror. For minutes I was perfectly +stupefied, had completely lost command over myself and was absolutely +incapable to think or act. I pressed my face and hands firmly against +the ground, and then suddenly I was seized by an irrepressible +excitement, took hold of my gun, and began to fire away blindly. Little +after little I quieted down again somewhat, nay, I became almost quite +confident as if everything was normal. Suddenly I found myself content +with myself and my surroundings, and when a little later the whole line +was commanded, "Leap forward! March, march!" I ran forward demented like +the others, as if things could not be other than what they were. The +order, "Position!" followed, and we flopped down like wet bags. Firing +had begun again. + +Our firing became more lively from minute to minute, and grew into a +rolling deafening noise. If in such an infernal noise you want to make +yourself understood by your neighbor, you have to shout at him so that +it hurts your throat. The effect of our firing caused our opponent to +grow unsteady; his fire became weaker; the line of the enemy began to +waver. Being separated from the enemy by only about 500 yards, we could +observe exactly what was happening there. We saw how about half of the +men opposing us were drawn back. The movement is executed by taking back +every second man whilst number one stays on until the retiring party has +halted. We took advantage of that movement to inflict the severest +losses possible on our retreating opponent. As far as we could survey +the country to our right and left we observed that the Germans were +pressing forward at several points. Our company, too, received the order +to advance when the enemy took back all his forces. + +Our task was to cling obstinately to the heels of the retreating enemy +so as to leave him no time to collect his forces and occupy new +positions. We therefore followed him in leaps with short breathing +pauses so as to prevent him in the first place from establishing himself +in the village before him. We knew that otherwise we should have to +engage in costly street fighting. But the Belgians did not attempt to +establish themselves, but disengaged themselves from us with astonishing +skill. + +Meanwhile we had been reënforced. Our company had been somewhat +dispersed, and everybody marched with the troop he chanced to find +himself with. My troop had to stay in the village to search every house +systematically for soldiers that had been dispersed or hidden. During +that work we noticed that the Germans were marching forward from all +directions. Field artillery, machine-gun sections, etc., arrived, and +all of us wondered whence all of this came so quickly. + +There was however no time for long reflections. With fixed bayonets we +went from house to house, from door to door, and though the harvest was +very meager, we were not turned away quite empty-handed, as the +inhabitants had to deliver up all privately owned fire-arms, ammunition, +etc. The chief functionary of the village who accompanied us, had to +explain to every citizen that the finding of arms after the search would +lead to punishment by court-martial. And court-martial means--death. + +After another hour had passed we were alarmed again by rifle and gun +firing; a new battle had begun. Whether the artillery was in action on +both sides could not be determined from the village, but the noise was +loud enough, for the air was almost trembling with the rumbling, +rolling, and growling of the guns which steadily increased in strength. +The ambulance columns were bringing in the first wounded; orderly +officers whizzed past us. War had begun with full intensity. + +Darkness was falling before we had finished searching all the houses. We +dragged mattresses, sacks of straw, feather beds, whatever we could get +hold of, to the public school and the church where the wounded were to +be accommodated. They were put to bed as well as it could be done. Those +first victims of the horrible massacre of nations were treated with +touching care. Later on, when we had grown more accustomed to those +horrible sights, less attention was paid to the wounded. + +The first fugitives now arrived from the neighboring villages. They had +probably walked for many an hour, for they looked tired, absolutely +exhausted. There were women, old, white-haired men, and children, all +mixed together, who had not been able to save anything but their poor +lives. In a perambulator or a push-cart those unfortunate beings carried +away all that the brutal force of war had left them. In marked contrast +to the fugitives that we had hitherto met, these people were filled with +the utmost fear, shivering with fright, terror-stricken in face of the +hostile world. As soon as they beheld one of us soldiers they were +seized with such a fear that they seemed to crumple up. How different +they were from the inhabitants of the village in which we were, who +showed themselves kind, friendly, and even obliging towards us. We tried +to find out the cause of that fear, and heard that those fugitives had +witnessed bitter street fighting in their village. They had experienced +war, had seen their houses burnt, their simple belongings perish, and +had not yet been able to forget their streets filled with dead and +wounded soldiers. It became clear to us that it was not fear alone that +made these people look like the hunted quarry; it was hatred, hatred +against us, the invaders who, as they had to suppose, had fallen upon +them unawares, had driven them from their home. But their hatred was not +only directed against us, the German soldiers, nay, their own, the +Belgian soldiers, too, were not spared by it. + +We marched away that very evening and tried to reach our section. When +darkness fell the Belgians had concentrated still farther to the rear; +they were already quite near the fortress of Liège. Many of the villages +we passed were in flames; the inhabitants who had been driven away +passed us in crowds; there were women whose husbands were perhaps also +defending their "Fatherland," children, old men who were pushed hither +and thither and seemed to be always in the way. Without any aim, any +plan, any place in which they could rest, those processions of misery +and unhappiness crept past us--the best illustration of man-murdering, +nation-destroying war! Again we reached a village which to all +appearances had once been inhabited by a well-to-do people, by a +contented little humanity. There were nothing but ruins now, burnt, +destroyed houses and farm buildings, dead soldiers, German and Belgian, +and among them several civilians who had been shot by sentence of the +court-martial. + +Towards midnight we reached the German line which was trying to get +possession of a village which was already within the fortifications of +Liège, and was obstinately defended by the Belgians. Here we had to +employ all our forces to wrench from our opponent house after house, +street after street. It was not yet completely dark so that we had to +go through that terrible struggle which developed with all our senses +awake and receptive. It was a hand to hand fight; every kind of weapon +had to be employed; the opponent was attacked with the butt-end of the +rifle, the knife, the fist, and the teeth. One of my best friends fought +with a gigantic Belgian; both had lost their rifle. They were pummeling +each other with their fists. I had just finished with a Belgian who was +about twenty-two years of age, and was going to assist my friend, as the +Herculean Belgian was so much stronger than he. Suddenly my friend +succeeded with a lightning motion in biting the Belgian in the chin. He +bit so deeply that he tore away a piece of flesh with his teeth. The +pain the Belgian felt must have been immense, for he let go his hold and +ran off screaming with terrible pain. + +All that happened in seconds. The blood of the Belgian ran out of my +friend's mouth; he was seized by a horrible nausea, an indescribable +terror, the taste of the warm blood nearly drove him insane. That young, +gay, lively fellow of twenty-four had been cheated out of his youth in +that night. He used to be the jolliest among us; after that we could +never induce him even to smile. + +Whilst fighting during the night I came for the first time in touch with +the butt-end of a Belgian rifle. I had a hand to hand fight with a +Belgian when another one from behind hit me with his rifle on the head +with such force that it drove my head into the helmet up to my ears. I +experienced a terrific pain all over my head, doubled up, and lost +consciousness. When I revived I found myself with a bandaged head in a +barn among other wounded. + +I had not been severely wounded, but I felt as if my head was double +its normal size, and there was a noise in my ears as of the wheels of an +express engine. + +The other wounded and the soldiers of the ambulance corps said that the +Belgians had been pushed back to the fortress; we heard, however, that +severe fighting was still going on. Wounded soldiers were being brought +in continuously, and they told us that the Germans had already taken in +the first assault several fortifications like outer-forts, but that they +had not been able to maintain themselves because they had not been +sufficiently provided with artillery. The defended places and works +inside the forts were still practically completely intact, and so were +their garrisons. The forts were not yet ripe for assault, so that the +Germans had to retreat with downright enormous losses. The various +reports were contradictory, and it was impossible to get a clear idea of +what was happening. + +Meanwhile the artillery had begun to bombard the fortress, and even the +German soldiers were terror-stricken at that bombardment. The heaviest +artillery was brought into action against the modern forts of concrete. +Up to that time no soldier had been aware of the existence of the +42-centimeter mortars. Even when Liège had fallen into German hands we +soldiers could not explain to ourselves how it was possible that those +enormous fortifications, constructed partly of reinforced concrete of a +thickness of one to six meters, could be turned into a heap of rubbish +after only a few hours' bombardment. Having been wounded, I could of +course not take part in those operations, but my comrades told me later +on how the various forts were taken. Guns of all sizes were turned on +the forts, but it was the 21- and 42-centimeter mortars that really did +the work. From afar one could hear already the approach of the +42-centimeter shell. The shell bored its way through the air with an +uncanny, rushing and hissing sound that was like a long shrill whistling +filling the whole atmosphere for seconds. Where it struck everything was +destroyed within a radius of several hundred yards. Later I have often +gazed in wonderment at those hecatombs which the 42-centimeter mortar +erected for itself on all its journeys. The enormous air pressure caused +by the bursting of its shells made it even difficult for us Germans in +the most advanced positions to breathe for several seconds. To complete +the infernal row the Zeppelins appeared at night in order to take part +in the work of destruction. Suddenly the soldiers would hear above their +heads the whirring of the propellers and the noise of the motors, +well-known to most Germans. The Zeppelins came nearer and nearer, but +not until they were in the immediate neighborhood of the forts were they +discovered by our opponents, who immediately brought all available +searchlights into play in order to search the sky for the dreaded flying +enemies. The whirring of the propellers of the airships which had been +distributed for work on the various forts suddenly ceased. Then, right +up in the air, a blinding light appeared, the searchlight of the +Zeppelin, which lit up the country beneath it for a short time. Just as +suddenly it became dark and quiet until a few minutes later, powerful +detonations brought the news that the Zeppelin had dropped its +"ballast." That continued for quite a while, explosion followed +explosion, interrupted only by small fiery clouds, shrapnel which the +Belgian artillery sent up to the airships, exploding in the air. Then +the whirring of the propellers began again, first loud and coming from +near, from right above our heads, then softer and softer until the +immense ship of the air had entirely disappeared from our view and +hearing. + +Thus the forts were made level with the ground; thousands of Belgians +were lying dead and buried behind and beneath the ramparts and +fortifications. General assault followed. Liège was in the hands of the +Germans. + +I was with the ambulance column until the 9th of August and by that time +had been restored sufficiently to rejoin my section of the army. After +searching for hours I found my company camping in a field. I missed many +a good friend; my section had lost sixty-five men, dead and wounded, +though it had not taken part in the pursuit of the enemy. + +We had been attached to the newly-formed 18th Reserve Army Corps +(Hessians) and belonged to the Fourth Army which was under the command +of Duke Albrecht of Wurttemberg. Where that army, which had not yet been +formed, was to operate was quite unknown to us private soldiers. We had +but to follow to the place where the herd was to be slaughtered; what +did it matter where that would be? On the 11th of August we began to +march and covered 25-45 miles every day. We learned later on that we +always kept close to the Luxemburg frontier so as to cross it +immediately should necessity arise. Had it not been so oppressively hot +we should have been quite content, for we enjoyed several days of rest +which braced us up again. + +On the 21st of August we came in contact with the first German troops +belonging to the Fourth Army, about 15 miles to the east of the Belgian +town of Neufchateau. The battle of Neufchateau, which lasted from the +22nd to the 24th of August, had already begun. A French army here met +with the Fourth German Army, and a murderous slaughter began. As is +always the case it commenced with small skirmishes of advance guards and +patrols; little after little ever-growing masses of soldiers took part +and when, in the evening of the 22nd of August, we were led into the +firing line, the battle had already developed to one of the most +murderous of the world war. When we arrived the French were still in +possession of nearly three-quarters of the town. The artillery had set +fire to the greatest part of Neufchateau, and only the splendid villas +in the western part of the town escaped destruction for the time being. +The street fighting lasted the whole night. It was only towards noon of +the 23rd of August, when the town was in the hands of the Germans, that +one could see the enormous losses that both sides had suffered. The +dwelling-places, the cellars, the roads and side-walks were thickly +covered with dead and horribly wounded soldiers; the houses were ruins, +gutted, empty shells in which scarcely anything of real value had +remained whole. Thousands had been made beggars in a night full of +horrors. Women and children, soldiers and citizens were lying just where +death had struck them down, mixed together just as the merciless +shrapnel and shells had sent them out of life into the darkness beyond. +There had been real impartiality. There lay a German soldier next to a +white-haired French woman, a little Belgian stripling whom fear had +driven out of the house into the street, lay huddled up against the +"enemy," a German soldier, who might have been protection and safety for +him. + +Had we not been shooting and stabbing, murdering and clubbing as much +and as vigorously as we could the whole night? And yet there was +scarcely one amongst us who did not shed tears of grief and emotion at +the spectacles presenting themselves. There was for instance a man whose +age it was difficult to discover; he was lying dead before a burning +house. Both his legs had been burnt up to the knees by the fire falling +down upon him. The wife and daughter of the dead man were clinging to +him, and were sobbing so piteously that one simply could not bear it. +Many, many of the dead had been burnt entirely or partly; the cattle +were burning in their stables, and the wild bellowing of those animals +fighting against death by fire, intermingled with the crying, the +moaning, the groaning and the shrieking of the wounded. But who had the +time now to bother about that? Everybody wanted help, everybody wanted +to help himself, everybody was only thinking of himself and his little +bit of life. "He who falls remains where he lies; only he who stands can +win victories." That one learns from militarism and the average soldier +acts upon that principle. And yet most soldiers are forced by +circumstances to play the rôle of the good Samaritan. People who could +formerly not look upon blood or a dead person, were now bandaging their +comrades' arms and legs which had been amputated by shells. They did not +do it because they were impelled by the command of their heart, but +because they said to themselves that perhaps to-morrow already their +turn might come and that they, too, might want assistance. It is a +healthy egotism which makes men of mercy out of those hardened people. + +The French had formed their lines again outside the town in the open. At +the moment when the enemy evacuated the town an error was made by the +Germans which cost many hundreds of German soldiers their lives. The +Germans had occupied the rest of the town with such celerity that our +artillery which was pounding that quarter had not been informed of the +changed situation, and was raining shell upon shell into our own ranks. +That failure of our intelligence department caused the death of many of +our comrades. Compelled by the firing of the enemy and our own artillery +we had finally to give up part of our gains, which later on we +recovered, again with great sacrifice. Curiously enough, the residential +quarter with the villas I mentioned before had not suffered seriously; +the Red Cross flag was hoisted on the houses in which temporary +hospitals were established. + +It is here that the Belgian citizens are said to have mutilated some +German wounded soldiers. Whether it was true, whether it was only +rumored, as was asserted also many times by German soldiers who had been +in the hospitals, I do not know. But this I know, that on the 24th of +August when the French had executed a general retreat, it was made known +in an army order that German soldiers had been murdered there and that +the German army could not leave the scenes of those shameful deeds +without having first avenged their poor comrades. The order was +therefore given--by the leader of the army--to raze the town without +mercy. When later on (it was in the evening and we were pursuing the +enemy) we were resting for a short time, clouds of smoke in the east +showed that the judgment had been fulfilled. A battery of artillery that +had remained behind had razed house after house. Revenge is sweet, also +for Christian army leaders. + +Outside the town the French had reformed their ranks, and were offering +the utmost resistance. But they were no match for the German troops who +consisted largely of young and active men. Frenchmen taken prisoner +explained that it was simply impossible to withstand an assault of this +war-machine, when the German columns attacked with the bayonet and the +cry of "Hurrah! hurrah!" which penetrated to the very marrow. I can +understand that, for we sometimes appeared to ourselves to be a good +imitation of American Indians who, like us, rushed upon their enemies +with shrill shouts. After a fight lasting three hours many Frenchmen +surrendered, asking for quarter with raised hands. Whole battalions of +the enemy were thus captured by us. Finally, in the night from the 23rd +to the 24th of August, the ranks of the enemy were thrown into confusion +and retreated, first slowly, then flying headlong. Our opponent left +whole batteries, munition columns, ambulance columns, etc. + +I found myself in the first pursuing section. The roads we used were +again literally covered with corpses; knapsacks, rifles, dead horses and +men were lying there in a wild jumble. The dead had been partly crushed +and pounded to a pulp by the horses and vehicles, an indescribably +terrible spectacle even for the most hardened mass-murderer. Dead and +wounded were lying to the right and left of the road, in fields, in +ditches; the red trousers of the French stood out distinctly against the +ground; the field-gray trousers of the Germans were however scarcely to +be noticed and difficult to discover. + +The distance between ourselves and the fleeing Frenchmen became greater +and greater, and the spirit of our soldiers, in spite of the hardships +they had undergone, became better and gayer. They joked and sang, forgot +the corpses which were still filling the roads and paths, and felt quite +at ease. They had already accustomed themselves to the horrible to such +a degree that they stepped over the corpses with unconcern, without even +making the smallest detour. The experience of those first few weeks of +the war had already brutalized us completely. What was to happen to us +if this should continue for months--? + + + + +III + +SHOOTING CIVILIANS IN BELGIUM + + +At 11 o'clock all further philosophizing was put a stop to; we were +ordered to halt, and we were to receive our food from the field kitchen. + +We were quite hungry and ate the tinned soup with the heartiest of +appetites. Many of our soldiers were sitting with their dinner-pails on +the dead horses that were lying about, and were eating with such +pleasure and heartiness as if they were home at mother's. Nor did some +corpses in the neighborhood of our improvised camp disturb us. There was +only a lack of water and after having eaten thirst began to torment us. + +Soon afterwards we continued our march in the scorching midday sun; dust +was covering our uniforms and skin to the depth of almost an inch. We +tried in vain to be jolly, but thirst tormented us more and more, and we +became weaker and weaker from one quarter of an hour to another. Many in +our ranks fell down exhausted, and we were simply unable to move. So the +commander of our section had no other choice but to let us halt again if +he did not want every one of us to drop out. Thus it happened that we +stayed behind a considerable distance, and were not amongst the first +that were pursuing the French. + +Finally, towards four o'clock, we saw a village in front of us; we began +at once to march at a much brisker pace. Among other things we saw a +farm-cart on which were several civilian prisoners, apparently snipers. +There was also a Catholic priest among them who had, like the others, +his hands tied behind his back with a rope. Curiosity prompted us to +enquire what he had been up to, and we heard that he had incited the +farmers of the village to poison the water. + +We soon reached the village and the first well at which we hoped to +quench our thirst thoroughly. But that was no easy matter, for a +military guard had been placed before it who scared us off with the +warning, "Poisoned"! Disappointed and terribly embittered the soldiers, +half dead with thirst, gnashed their teeth; they hurried to the next +well, but everywhere the same devilish thing occurred--the guard +preventing them from drinking. In a square, in the middle of the +village, there was a large village well which sent, through two tubes, +water as clear as crystal into a large trough. Five soldiers were +guarding it and had to watch that nobody drank of the poisoned water. I +was just going to march past it with my pal when suddenly the second, +larger portion of our company rushed like madmen to the well. The guards +were carried away by the rush, and every one now began to drink the +water with the avidity of an animal. All quenched their thirst, and not +one of us became ill or died. We heard later on that the priest had to +pay for it with his death, as the military authorities "knew" that the +water in all the wells of that village was poisoned and that the +soldiers had only been saved by a lucky accident. Faithfully the God of +the Germans had watched over us; the captured Belgians did not seem to +be under his protection. They had to die. + +In most places we passed at that time we were warned against drinking +the water. The natural consequence was that the soldiers began to hate +the population which they now had to consider to be their bitterest +enemies. That again aroused the worst instincts in some soldiers. In +every army one finds men with the disposition of barbarians. The many +millions of inhabitants in Germany or France are not all civilized +people, much as we like to convince ourselves of the contrary. +Compulsory military service in those countries forces all without +distinction into the army, men and monsters. I have often bitterly +resented the wrong one did to our army in calling us all barbarians, +only because among us--as, naturally also among the French and +English--there were to be found elements that really ought to be in the +penitentiary. I will only cite one example of how we soldiers ourselves +punished a wretch whom we caught committing a crime. + +One evening--it was dark already--we reached a small village to the east +of the town of Bertrix, and there, too, found "poisoned" water. We +halted in the middle of the village. I was standing before a house with +a low window, through which one could see the interior. In the miserable +poverty-stricken working man's dwelling we observed a woman who clung to +her children as if afraid they would be torn from her. Though we felt +very bitter on account of the want of water, every one of us would have +liked to help the poor woman. Some of us were just going to sacrifice +our little store of victuals and to say a few comforting words to the +woman, when all at once a stone as big as a fist was thrown through the +window-pane into the room and hurt a little girl in the right hand. +There were sincere cries of indignation, but at the same moment twenty +hands at least laid hold of the wretch, a reservist of our company, and +gave him such a hiding as to make him almost unconscious. If officers +and other men had not interfered the fellow would have been lynched +there and then. He was to be placed before a court-martial later on, but +it never came to that. He was drowned in the river at the battle of the +Meuse. Many soldiers believed he drowned himself, because he was not +only shunned by his fellow soldiers, but was also openly despised by +them. + +We were quartered on that village and had to live in a barn. I went with +some pals into the village to buy something to eat. At a farmer's house +we got ham, bread, and wine, but not for money. The people positively +refused to take our money as they regarded us as their guests, so they +said; only we were not to harm them. Nevertheless we left them an +adequate payment in German money. Later on we found the same situation +in many other places. Everywhere people were terribly frightened of us; +they began to tremble almost when a German soldier entered their house. + +Four of us had formed a close alliance; we had promised each other to +stick together and assist each other in every danger. We often also +visited the citizens in their houses, and tried to the best of our +ability to comfort the sorely tried people and talk them out of their +fear of us. Without exception we found them to be lovable, kindly, and +good people who soon became confidential and free of speech when they +noticed that we were really their friends. But when, at leaving, we +wrote with chalk on the door of their houses "Bitte schonen, hier wohnen +brave, gute, Leute!" (Please spare, here live good and decent people) +their joy and thankfulness knew no bounds. If so much bad blood was +created, if so many incidents happened that led to the shooting by +court-martial of innumerable Belgians, the difference of language and +the mistakes arising therefrom were surely not the least important +causes; of that I and many others of my comrades became convinced during +that time in Belgium. But the at first systematically nourished +suspicion against the "enemy," too, was partly responsible for it. + +In the night we continued our march, after having been attached to the +21-centimeter mortar battery of the 9th Regiment of Foot Artillery which +had just arrived; we were not only to serve as covering troops for that +battery, but were also to help it place those giants in position when +called upon. The gun is transported apart from the carriage on a special +wagon. Gun-carriage and guns are drawn each by six horses. Those horses, +which are only used by the foot artillery, are the best and strongest of +the German army. And yet even those animals are often unable to do the +work required of them, so that all available men, seventy or eighty at +times, have to help transport the gun with ropes specially carried for +that purpose. That help is chiefly resorted to when the guns leave the +road to be placed in firing position. In order to prevent the wheels +from sinking into the soil, other wheels, half a yard wide, are attached +round them. + +These guns are high-angle guns, i. e., their shot rises into the air for +several thousand yards, all according to the distance of the spot to be +hit, and then drops at a great angle. That is the reason why neither +hill nor mountain can protect an enemy battery placed behind those +elevations. At first the French had almost no transportable heavy +artillery so that it was quite impossible for them to fight successfully +against our guns of large caliber. Under those conditions the German +gunners, of course, felt themselves to be top-dog, and decorated their +21-centimeter guns with inscriptions like the following, "Here +declarations of war are still being accepted." + +We felt quite at ease with the artillery, and were still passably fresh +when we halted at six o'clock in the morning, though we had been +marching since two o'clock. Near our halting place we found a broken +German howitzer, and next to it two dead soldiers. When firing, a shell +had burst in the gun destroying it entirely. Two men of the crew had +been killed instantly and some had been seriously wounded by the flying +pieces. We utilized the pause to bury the two dead men, put both of them +in one grave, placed both their helmets on the grave, and wrote on a +board: "Here rest two German Artillerymen." + +We had to proceed, and soon reached the town of Bertrix. Some few houses +to the left and right of the road were burning fiercely; we soon got to +know that they had been set alight because soldiers marching past were +said to have been shot at from those houses. Before one of these houses +a man and his wife and their son, a boy of 15 or 16, lay half burnt to +cinders; all had been covered with straw. Three more civilians lay dead +in the same street. + +We had marched past some more houses when all at once shots rang out; +they had been shooting from some house, and four of our soldiers had +been wounded. For a short while there was confusion. The house from +which the shots must have come was soon surrounded, and hand grenades +were thrown through all the windows into the interior. In an instant all +the rooms were in flames. The exploding hand grenades caused such an +enormous air pressure that all the doors were blown from their hinges +and the inner walls torn to shreds. Almost at the same time, five men in +civilian clothes rushed into the street and asked for quarter with +uplifted hands. They were seized immediately and taken to the officers, +who formed themselves into a tribunal within a few minutes. Ten minutes +later sentence had already been executed; five strong men lay on the +ground, blindfolded and their bodies riddled by bullets. + +Six of us had in each of the five cases to execute the sentence, and +unfortunately I, too, belonged to those thirty men. The condemned man +whom my party of six had to shoot was a tall, lean man, about forty +years of age. He did not wince for a moment when they blindfolded him. +In a garden of a house nearby he was placed with his back against the +house, and after our captain had told us that it was our duty to aim +well so as to end the tragedy quickly, we took up our position six paces +from the condemned one. The sergeant commanding us had told us before to +shoot the condemned man through the chest. We then formed two lines, one +behind the other. The command was given to load and secure, and we +pushed five cartridges into the rifle. Then the command rang out, "Get +ready!" The first line knelt, the second stood up. We held our rifles in +such a position that the barrel pointed in front of us whilst the +butt-end rested somewhere near the hip. At the command, "Aim!" we slowly +brought our rifles into shooting position, grasped them firmly, pressed +the plate of the butt-end against the shoulder and, with our cheek on +the butt-end, we clung convulsively to the neck of the rifle. Our right +forefinger was on the trigger, the sergeant gave us about half a minute +for aiming before commanding, "Fire!" + +Even to-day I cannot say whether our victim fell dead on the spot or +how many of the six bullets hit him. I ran about all day long like a +drunken man, and reproached myself most bitterly with having played the +executioner. For a long time I avoided speaking about it with +fellow-soldiers, for I felt guilty. And yet--what else could we soldiers +do but obey the order? + +Already in the preceding night there had been encounters at Bertrix +between the German military and the population. Houses were burning in +every part of the town. In the market place there was a great heap of +guns and revolvers of all makes. At the clergyman's house they had found +a French machine-gun and ammunition, whereupon the clergyman and his +female cook had been arrested and, I suppose, placed immediately before +a court-martial. + +Under those conditions we were very glad to get out of Bertrix again. We +marched on in the afternoon. After a march of some 3 miles we halted, +and received food from the field kitchen. But this time we felt no +appetite. The recollection of the incidents of the morning made all of +us feel so depressed that the meal turned out a real funeral repast. +Silently we set in motion again, and camped in the open in the evening, +as we were too tired to erect tents. + +It was there that all discipline went to pieces for the first time. The +officers' orders to put up tents were not heeded in the slightest +degree. The men were dog-tired, and suffered the officers to command and +chatter as much as they liked. Every one wrapped himself up in his +cloak, lay down where he was, and as soon as one had laid down one was +asleep. The officers ran about like mad shouting with redoubled energy +their commands at the exhausted soldiers; in vain. The officers, of +course had gone through the whole performance on horseback and, +apparently, did not feel sufficiently tired to go to sleep. When their +calling and shouting had no effect they had to recourse to personal +physical exertion and began to shake us up. But as soon as one of us was +awake the one before had gone to sleep again. Thus for a while we heard +the exhortation, "I say, you! Get up! Fall in line for putting up +tents!" Whereupon one turned contentedly on the other side and snoozed +on. They tried to shake me awake, too, but after having sent some +vigorous curses after the lieutenant--there was no lack of cursing on +either side that evening--I continued to sleep the sleep of the just. + +For the first time blind discipline had failed. The human body was so +exhausted that it was simply unable to play any longer the rôle of the +obedient dog. + + + + +IV + +GERMAN SOLDIERS AND BELGIAN CIVILIANS + + +The march had made us very warm, and the night was cold. We shivered all +over, and one after the other had to rise in order to warm himself by +moving about. There was no straw to be had, and our thin cloaks offered +but little protection. The officers slept in sleeping bags and woolen +blankets. + +Gradually all had got up, for the dew had wetted our clothing; things +were very uncomfortable. The men stood about in groups and criticized +the incidents of the preceding day. The great majority were of the +opinion that we should tell the officers distinctly that in future it +would not be so easy for them to work their deeds of oppression. One of +the older reservists proposed that we should simply refuse in future to +execute a command to shoot a condemned man; he thought that if all of us +clung together nothing could happen to us. However, we begged him to be +careful, for if such expressions were reported they would shoot him for +sedition without much ado. Nevertheless all of us were probably agreed +that the reservist had spoken exactly what was in our minds. The bitter +feeling was general, but we would not and could not commit any imprudent +action. We had learned enough in those few days of the war to know that +war brutalizes and that brutal force can no longer distinguish right +from wrong; and with that force we had to reckon. + +Meanwhile the time had come to march on. Before that we had to drink +our coffee and arrange our baggage. When we were ready to march the +captain gave us a speech in which he referred to the insubordination of +the night before. "I take it," he said, "that it was the result of your +stupidity. For if I were not convinced of that I should send you all +before a court-martial, and all of you would be made unhappy for the +rest of your lives. But in future," he continued after a short +reflection, "I will draw the reins so tightly that incidents like these +can never happen again, and the devil must be in it if I can not master +you. An order is an order, even if one imagines himself too tired." + +We joined the mortar battery again, and continued our march. The country +we were passing was rather dreary and monotonous so that that part of +our march offered few interesting changes. The few tiny villages we came +through were all abandoned by their inhabitants, and the +poverty-stricken dwellings were mostly devastated. However, we met long +lines of refugees. These people had as a rule fled with the French army, +and were returning now, only to find their homes destroyed by the brutal +hand of war. After a lengthy march broken by rests and bivouacs we +neared the fairly large village of Sugny on the Belgo-French frontier +just inside Belgian territory. + +It was about noon, and though the steadily increasing thunder of guns +pointed to the development of another battle, we hoped to be able to +stay at the place during the night. We entered it towards one o'clock, +and were again quartered in a large barn. Most of the soldiers refused +the food from the field-kitchen, and "requisitioned" eggs, chicken, +geese, and even small pigs, and soon general cooking was in full swing. +Everywhere the pots were steaming. Unfortunately most had taken the +animals and foodstuffs from the inhabitants without paying for them. + +Several soldiers arrived with barrels and bottles of wine, which were at +once beheaded and emptied in spite of the warnings and admonitions of +the wiser amongst us. It naturally followed that several sergeants and +men were soon almost helplessly drunk. The proprietor of "our" barn had +three medium-sized pigs left. One of those intoxicated sergeants +attempted to kill one of the pigs with a blunt pocket-knife. He had +tormented the poor beast almost to death when some sober soldiers caught +him in the act. The animal was killed by a shot through the head, and +the sergeant had to go to sleep at once. But that was only one incident +of many, and not at all the worst one. The inhabitants of Sugny had to +suffer much from the drunkenness of our men. The open and secret +plundering of gardens, stables and houses was quite a common thing, and +as the soldiers were practically left to do what they pleased, no matter +what happened or how many complaints were made, matters could naturally +not improve. + +The people of Sugny were to be pitied. First they had been plundered by +the flying French soldiers, the allies of the Belgians, who had taken +along with them everything they could get together in a hurry, and now +the Germans were acting in no better way. + +In a family of seven we were told that the French had taken away all the +bread and meat. They had gone through all the cupboards and shelves, and +had even stolen the gold watches belonging to the daughters of the +house. These and similar tales we heard from several families of the +place, and what at first we did not think possible on our side we now +beheld with our own eyes--even our well-trained soldiers robbed, +pillaged, and stole. War makes no difference between friend and foe. + +The roaring of the guns, which could be heard very distinctly, kept the +inhabitants in constant fear and excitement, so that we were finally +quite able to understand why those people prayed to God to be so kind as +to give victory to the Germans. An old inn-keeper explained to me in +fairly fluent German: "You see it is not that we are for Germany. Heaven +forbid! We are just Belgians and are so accustomed to it that we would +rather remain Belgians to the end of our lives. But if the Germans had +to retreat now, the French would come again and our village would again +become the scene of battle. The little left to us would then be a prey +to the flames. Therefore the Germans must win." And then he began +praying again. + +That part of the country had twice harbored the French, and now we +Germans were there. That the population suffered from want and hunger +was not to be wondered at, and often we divided our rations with the +severely tried people. Myself and two mates had given our "iron ration" +(preserved meat and vegetables and a bag of biscuits) to a woman +"blessed" with eight children. At the call we could not show our "iron +one," so we each of us had to mount guard twice as a punishment for that +feeble proof of our charity. Our half-file leader, Lieutenant Spahn, +expressed the opinion that pity was idiocy, and if the woman had eight +children it was her own concern. Then he concluded literally with great +emphasis, "In war everybody is his own nearest neighbor, even if all +around us die in a ditch." + +Another soldier got fourteen days' close confinement. He was on his way +with bread for a hungry poor family, and had in his arms six of those +little army loaves which he had begged from the soldiers. He was met by +that same Lieutenant Spahn who was in company of some sergeants. When +Spahn asked him where he was taking the bread the sapper replied that he +was on his way to a poor family that was really starving. The lieutenant +then ordered him to take the bread immediately to the company. Thereupon +he overwhelmed the soldier with all the "military" expressions he could +think of, like, "Are you mad?" "Donkey!" "Silly ass?" "Duffer!" "Idiot!" +etc. When the soldier showed nevertheless no sign of confusion, but +started to proceed on his way, the lieutenant roared out the order +again, whereupon the soldier turned round, threw the bread before the +feet of Lieutenant Spahn, and said quietly: "The duffers and idiots have +to shed their blood to preserve also your junker family from the misery +that has been brought upon this poor population." + +That the sapper got only two weeks of close confinement for "unmannerly +conduct towards a superior" with aggravating circumstances, was a +wonder; he had indeed got off cheaply. + +According to martial law he had to work off his punishment in the +following manner: When his company went to rest in the evening, or after +a fight or a march, the man had to report himself every day for two +weeks at the local or camp guard. While the company was resting and the +men could move about freely, he had to be in the guard room which he +could only leave to do his needs, and then only by permission of the +sergeant on guard, and in company of a soldier belonging to the guard. +He was not allowed to smoke or read or converse or speak, received his +rations from the guard, and had to stay in the guard-room until his +company marched off. Besides that he was tied to a tree or some other +object for fully two hours every day. He was fettered with ropes and had +to spend those two hours standing, even if he had marched 30 miles or +had risked his life in a fight for the same "Fatherland" that bound him +in fetters. + +The resentment continued to grow and, in consequence of the many severe +punishments that were inflicted, had reached such a height that most +soldiers refused to fetter their comrades. I, too, refused, and when I +continued my refusals in spite of repeated orders I was likewise +condemned to two weeks of close confinement as an "entirely impenitent +sinner," for "not obeying an order given" and for "persistent +disobedience." + + + + +V + +THE HORRORS OF STREET FIGHTING + + +We left Sugny the next morning, and an hour later we crossed the +Belgo-French frontier. Here, too, we had to give three cheers. The +frontier there runs through a wood, and on the other side of the wood we +placed the 21-cm. mortars in position. + +Our troops were engaged with the rear-guard of the enemy near the French +village of Vivier-au-Court. We were brought in to reinforce them, and +after a five hours' fight the last opponents had retired as far as the +Meuse. Vivier-au-Court had hardly suffered at all when we occupied it +towards noon. Our company halted again here to wait for the mortar +battery. + +Meanwhile we walked through the village to find some eatables. After +visiting several houses we came upon the family of a teacher. Father and +son were both soldiers; two daughters of about twenty and twenty-two +were alone with their mother. The mother was extremely shy, and all the +three women were crying when we entered the home. The eldest daughter +received us with great friendliness and, to our surprise, in faultless +German. We endeavored to pacify the women, begging them not to cry; we +assured them again and again that we would not harm them, and told them +all kinds of merry stories to turn their thoughts to other things. + +One of my mates related that in a fight in the morning, we had lost +seven men and that several on our side had been wounded. That only +increased the women's excitement, a thing we really could not +understand. At last one of the girls, who had been the first one to +compose herself, explained to us why they were so much excited. The girl +had been at a boarding school at Charlottenburg (Germany) for more than +two years, and her brother, who worked in Berlin as a civil engineer, +had taken a holiday for three months after her graduation in order to +accompany his sister home. Both had liked living in Germany, it was only +the sudden outbreak of war that had prevented the young engineer from +returning to Berlin. He had to enter the French army, and belonged to +the same company in which his father was an officer of the reserve. + +After a short interval the girl continued: "My father and brother were +here only this morning. They have fought against you. It may have been +one of their bullets which struck your comrades down. O, how terrible it +is! Now they are away--they who had only feelings of respect and +friendship for the Germans--and as long as the Germans are between them +and us we shall not be able to know whether they are dead or alive. Who +is it that has this terrible war, this barbaric crime on his +conscience?" Tears were choking her speech, and our own eyes did not +remain dry. All desire to eat had gone; after a silent pressing of hands +we slunk away. + +We remained in the village till the evening, meanwhile moving about +freely. In the afternoon nine men of my company were arrested; it was +alleged against them that they had laid hands on a woman. They were +disarmed and kept at the local guard-house; the same thing happened to +some men of the infantry. Seven men of my company returned in the +evening; what became of the other two I have not been able to find out. + +At that time a great tobacco famine reigned amongst us soldiers. I know +that one mark and more was paid for a single cigarette, if any could be +got at all. At Vivier-au-Court there was only one tobacco store run by a +man employed by the state. I have seen that man being forced by +sergeants at the point of the pistol to deliver his whole store of +tobacco for a worthless order of requisition. The "gentlemen" later on +sold that tobacco for half a mark a packet. + +Towards the evening we marched off, and got the mortar battery in a new +position from where the enemy's positions on the Meuse were bombarded. + +After a short march we engaged the French to the northeast of Donchéry. +On this side of the Meuse the enemy had only his rear-guard, whose task +was to cover the crossing of the main French armies, a movement which +was almost exclusively effected at Sédan and Donchéry. We stuck close to +the heels of our opponents, who did not retreat completely till darkness +began to fall. The few bridges left did not allow him to withdraw his +forces altogether as quickly as his interest demanded. Thus it came +about that an uncommonly murderous nocturnal street fight took place in +Donchéry which was burning at every corner. The French fought with +immense energy; an awful slaughter was the result. Man against man! That +"man against man" is the most terrible thing I have experienced in war. +Nobody can tell afterwards how many he has killed. You have gripped your +opponent, who is sometimes weaker, sometimes stronger than yourself. In +the light of the burning houses you observe that the white of his eyes +has turned red; his mouth is covered with a thick froth. With head +uncovered, with disheveled hair, the uniform unbuttoned and mostly +ragged, you stab, hew, scratch, bite and strike about you like a wild +animal. It means life or death. You fight for your life. No quarter is +given. You only hear the gasping, groaning, jerky breathing. You only +think of your own life, of death, of home. In feverish haste, as in a +whirlwind, old memories are rushing through your mind. Yet you get more +excited from minute to minute, for exhaustion tries to master you; but +that must not be--not now! And again the fight is renewed; again there +is hewing, stabbing, biting. Without rifle, without any weapon in a life +and death struggle. You or I. I? I?--Never! you! The exertion becomes +superhuman. Now a thrust, a vicious bite, and you are the victor. Victor +for the moment, for already the next man, who has just finished off one +of your mates, is upon you--. You suddenly remember that you have a +dagger about you. After a hasty fumbling you find it in the prescribed +place. A swift movement and the dagger buries itself deeply in the body +of the other man. + +Onward! onward! new enemies are coming up, real enemies. How clearly the +thought suddenly flashes on you that that man is your enemy, that he is +seeking to take your life, that he bites, strikes, and scratches, tries +to force you down and plant his dagger in your heart. Again you use your +dagger. Thank heavens! He is down. Saved!--Still, you must have that +dagger back! You pull it out of his chest. A jet of warm blood rushes +out of the gaping wound and strikes your face. Human blood, warm human +blood! You shake yourself, horror strikes you for only a few seconds. +The next one approaches; again you have to defend your skin. Again and +again the mad murdering is repeated, all night long-- + +Finally, towards four o'clock in the morning, the rest of the French +surrendered after some companies of infantry had occupied two roads +leading to the bridges. When the French on the other side became aware +of this they blew up the bridges without considering their own troops +who were still on them. Germans and Frenchmen were tossed in the air, +men and human limbs were sent to the sky, friend and foe found a watery +grave in the Meuse. + +One could now survey with some calm the scene of the mighty slaughter. +Dead lay upon dead, it was misery to behold them, and above and around +them all there were flames and a thick, choking smoke. But one was +already too brutalized to feel pity at the spectacle; the feeling of +humanity had been blown to all the winds. The groaning and crying, the +pleading of the wounded did not touch one. Some Catholic nuns were lying +dead before their convent. You saw it and passed on. + +The only building that had escaped destruction was the barracks of the +25th regiment of French dragoons. However, we had not much time to +inspect things, for at seven o'clock the French artillery began already +sending shell after shell into the village. We intrenched behind a thick +garden wall, immediately behind the Meuse. Our side of the Meuse was +flat, the opposite one went up steeply. There the French infantry had +intrenched themselves, having built three positions on the slope, one +tier above the other. As the enemy's artillery overshot the mark we +remained outside their fire. We had however an opportunity to observe +the effects of the shots sent by our own artillery into the enemy's +infantry position on the slope in front of us. The shells (21-cm. +shells) whizzed above our heads and burst with a tremendous noise, each +time causing horrible devastation in the enemy's trenches. + +The French were unable to resist long such a hail of shells. They +retreated and abandoned all the heights of the Meuse. They had evacuated +the town of Sédan without a struggle. In fact, that town remained +completely intact, in contrast to the completely demolished Donchéry. +Not a house in Sédan had suffered. When the rallying-call was sounded at +Donchéry it turned out that my company had lost thirty men in that +fight. We mustered behind the barracks of the dragoons, and our company, +which had shrunk to ninety men, was ordered to try and build a +pontoon-bridge across the Meuse at a place as yet unknown to us. Having +been reinforced by eighty men of the second company we marched away in +small groups so as not to draw the enemy's attention to us. After an +hour's march we halted in a small wood, about 200 yards away from the +Meuse, and were allowed to rest until darkness began to fall. + +When it had become dark the bridge transportation column--it was that +belonging to our division--came up across the fields, to be followed +soon after by that of the army corps. All preparations having been made +and the chief preliminaries, like the placing of the trestle and the +landing boards, gone through, the various pontoon-wagons drove up +noiselessly, in order to be unloaded just as noiselessly and with +lightning speed. We had already finished four pontoons, i. e., twenty +yards of bridge, without being observed by our opponent. Everything went +on all right. Suddenly the transportable search-lights of the enemy went +into action, and swept up and down the river. Though we had thrown +ourselves flat upon the ground wherever we stood, our opponents had +observed us, for the search-lights kept moving a little to and fro and +finally kept our spot under continual illumination. We were discovered. +We scarcely had time to consider, for an artillery volley almost +immediately struck the water to our left and right. We were still lying +flat on the ground when four more shots came along. That time a little +nearer to the bridge, and one shot struck the bank of the river. + +Immediately another volley followed, and two shells struck the bridge. +Some sappers fell into the water and two fell dead on the bridge; those +in the water swam ashore and escaped with a cold ducking. One only was +drowned. It was the man of whom I told before that he was despised by +his fellow-soldiers because he had hurt the child of a poor woman with a +stone he had thrown through the window into her room. + + + + +VI + +CROSSING THE MEUSE + + +In spite of the continual and severe cannonading of the artillery we +succeeded in fetching away the two dead soldiers and bringing them on +land. The bridge had been much damaged so that we could do nothing but +replace the ruined pontoons by new ones. When the firing of the +artillery had died down somewhat we began the difficult task for the +second time. But we had scarcely begun when another salvo found its mark +and damaged the bridge severely; fortunately no losses were inflicted +upon us that time. We were now ordered to retire, only to begin afresh +after half an hour. + +The enemy's searchlights had been extinguished, and we were able to take +some ten pontoons into line without being molested. Then, suddenly, we +were again overwhelmed by the fire of the artillery; the enemy's patrols +had noticed us. Several batteries had opened fire on us at the same +time, and in ten minutes' time all our work was nothing but a heap of +sinking pontoons; twelve men were killed. + +We now were ordered to march away. Only eight of our party were left +behind to look after the dead and wounded. We set out to get out of the +danger zone. After having marched up-stream for a distance of about a +mile and a quarter we halted and observed that the bridge-building +section of the army corps was present again. We were told that we should +complete the individual links of the bridge on land. Those +bridge-links, consisting each of two pontoons, were firmly tied +together, provided with anchors and all accessories, completed on land, +and then let down into the water. The site of the bridge, which had +meanwhile been determined upon, was made known to us, and we rowed with +all our might down the river towards that spot. + +Our opponent, who had gained no knowledge of that ruse, did not molest +us, and in quick succession all the bridge-links reached the determined +place. The various links were rowed into their proper position with +tremendous speed, and joined together. It did not take quite twenty +minutes to get everything just sufficiently in shape. The infantry, who +had kept in readiness, then rushed across the bridge which had been +thickly strewn with straw so as to deaden the noise. + +At the same time we had begun to cross the river by pontoon at various +points, and before the French were properly aware of what was going on, +the other side of the river had been occupied by our troops and was soon +firmly held by them. + +The French artillery and infantry now began to pour a terrific fire on +the pontoons. We, the sappers, who were occupying the pontoons of the +bridge, were now for the greater part relieved and replaced by infantry, +but were distributed among the rowing pontoons to serve as crews. I was +placed at the helm of one of the pontoons. With four sappers at the oars +and eighteen infantrymen as our passengers we began our first trip in an +infernal rain of missiles. We were lucky enough to reach the other side +of the river with only one slightly wounded sapper. I relieved that man, +who then took the steering part. On the return trip our pontoon was hit +by some rifle bullets, but happily only above the water-line. To our +right and left the pontoons were crossing the river, some of them in a +sinking condition. + +The sappers, who are all able to swim, sought to reach the bank of the +river and simply jumped into the water, whilst the infantrymen were +drowned in crowds. Having landed and manned another pontoon we pushed +off once more and, pulling the oars through the water with superhuman +strength, we made the trip a second time. That time we reached the other +side with two dead men and a wounded infantryman. We had not yet reached +the other side when all the infantry jumped into the shallow water and +waded ashore. We turned our boat to row back with the two dead men on +board. Our hands began to hurt much from the continual rowing and were +soon covered with blisters and blood blisters. Still, we had to row, +however much our hands might swell and hurt; there was no resting on +your oars then. + +We were about twenty yards from shore when our pontoon was hit below the +water-line by several rifle-bullets at the same time. A shot entering a +pontoon leaves a hole no bigger that the shot itself, but its exit on +the other side of the pontoon may be as big as a fist or a plate. Our +pontoon then began to sink rapidly so that we sappers had no choice but +to jump into the icy water. Scarcely had we left the boat when it +disappeared; but all of us reached the river-bank safely. We were +saved--for the moment. In spite of our wet clothes we had to man another +boat immediately, and without properly regaining breath we placed our +torn hands again on the oars. + +We had scarcely reached the middle of the river when we collided with +another boat. That other boat, which had lost her helmsman, and two +oarsmen, rammed us with such force that our pontoon turned turtle +immediately and took down with her all the eighteen infantrymen besides +one of the sappers. Four of us saved ourselves in another pontoon and, +thoroughly wet, we steered her to the left bank. We had just landed when +we were commanded to bring over a pontoon laden with ammunition, and the +"joy-ride" was renewed. We crossed the Meuse about another five times +after that. + +Meanwhile day had come. On the left bank a terrible fight had begun +between the German troops that had been landed, and the French. The +Germans enjoyed the advantage that they were no longer exposed to the +French artillery. + +We got a short rest, and lay wet to the skin in an old trench shivering +all over with cold. Our hands were swollen to more than double their +ordinary size; they hurt us so much that we could not even lift our +water-bottle to our mouths. It must have been a harrowing sight to watch +us young, strong fellows lying on the ground helpless and broken. + + + + +VII + +IN PURSUIT + + +After a short rest we were commanded to search the burning houses for +wounded men. We did not find many of them, for most of the severely +wounded soldiers who had not been able to seek safety unaided had been +miserably burnt to death, and one could only judge by the buttons and +weapons of the poor wretches for what "fatherland" they had suffered +their terrible death by fire. With many it was even impossible to find +out the nationality they belonged to; a little heap of ashes, a ruined +house were all that was left of whole families, whole streets of +families. + +It was only the wine cellars, which were mostly of strong construction, +that had generally withstood the flames. The piping hot wine in bottles +and barrels, proved a welcome refreshment for the soldiers who were wet +to their skins and stiff with cold. Even at the risk of their lives (for +many of the cellars threatened to collapse) the soldiers would fetch out +the wine and drink it greedily, however hot the wine might be. + +And strangely enough, former scenes were repeated. After the hot wine +had taken effect, after again feeling refreshed and physically well, +that same brutality which had become our second nature in war showed +itself again in the most shameful manner. Most of us behaved as if we +had not taken part in the unheard-of events of the last hours, as if we +did not see the horrible reminders of the awful slaughter, as if we had +entirely forgotten the danger of extinction which we had so narrowly +escaped. No effort was made to do honor to the dead though every one had +been taught that duty by his mother from the earliest infancy; there was +nothing left of that natural shyness which the average man feels in the +presence of death. The pen refuses even to attempt a reproduction of the +expressions used by officers and soldiers or a description of their +actions, when they set about to establish the nationality or sex of the +dead. Circumstances were stronger than we men, and I convinced myself +again that it was only natural that all feelings of humanity should +disappear after the daily routine of murdering and that only the +instinct of self-preservation should survive in all its strength. The +longer the war lasted the more murderous and bestial the men became. + +Meanwhile the fight between our troops that had crossed the river and +the French on the other side of the Meuse had reached its greatest fury. +Our troops had suffered great losses; now our turn came. While we were +crossing, the German artillery pounded the enemy's position with +unheard-of violence. Scarcely had we landed and taken our places when +our section proceeded to the assault. The artillery became silent, and +running forward we tried to storm the slope leading to the enemy +positions. We got as near as 200 yards when the French machine-guns came +into action; we were driven back with considerable losses. Ten minutes +later we attempted again to storm the positions, but had only to go back +again exactly as before. Again we took up positions in our trenches, but +all desire for fighting had left us; every one stared stupidly in front +of him. Of course we were not allowed to lose courage, though the +victims of our useless assaults were covering the field, and our dead +mates were constantly before our eyes. + +The artillery opened fire again; reinforcements arrived. Half an hour +later we stormed for the third time over the bodies of our dead +comrades. That time we went forward in rushes, and when we halted before +the enemy's trench for the last time, some twenty yards away from it, +our opponent withdrew his whole first line. The riddle of that sudden +retreat we were able to solve some time later. It turned out that the +main portions of the French army had retreated long ago; we had merely +been engaged in rear-guard actions which, however, had proved very +costly to us. + +During the next hour the enemy evacuated all the heights of the Meuse. +When we reached the ridge of those heights we were able to witness a +horrifying sight with our naked eyes. The roads which the retreating +enemy was using could be easily surveyed. In close marching formation +the French were drawing off. The heaviest of our artillery (21-cm.) was +pounding the retreating columns, and shell after shell fell among the +French infantry and other troops. Hundreds of French soldiers were +literally torn to pieces. One could see bodies and limbs being tossed in +the air and being caught in the trees bordering the roads. + +We sappers were ordered to rally and we were soon going after the +fleeing enemy. It was our task to make again passable for our troops the +roads which had been pounded and dug up by the shells; that was all the +more difficult in the mid-day sun, as we had first to remove the dead +and wounded. Two men would take a dead soldier by his head and feet and +fling him in a ditch. Human corpses were here treated and used exactly +as a board in bridge building. Severed arms and legs were flung through +the air into the ditch in the same manner. How often since have I not +thought of these and similar incidents, asking myself whether I thought +those things improper or immoral at the time? Again and again I had to +return a negative answer, and I am therefore fully convinced of how +little the soldiers can be held responsible for the brutalities which +all of them commit, to whatever nation they belong. They are no longer +civilized human beings, they are simply bloodthirsty brutes, for +otherwise they would be bad, very bad soldiers. + +When, during the first months of the war a Social-Democratic member of +parliament announced that he had resolved to take voluntary service in +the army because he believed that in that manner he could further the +cause of humanity on the battle-field, many a one began to laugh, and it +was exactly our Socialist comrades in our company who made pointed +remarks. For all of us were agreed that that representative of the +people must either be very simple-minded or insincere. + +The dead horses and shattered batteries had also to be removed. We were +not strong enough to get the bodies of the horses out of the way so we +procured some horse roaming about without a master, and fastened it to a +dead one to whose leg we had attached a noose, and thus we cleared the +carcass out of the road. The portions of human bodies hanging in the +trees we left, however, undisturbed. For who was there to care about +such "trifles"? + +We searched the bottles and knapsacks of the dead for eatable and +drinkable things, and enjoyed the things found with the heartiest +appetite imaginable. Hunger and thirst are pitiless customers that +cannot be turned away by fits of sentimentality. + +Proceeding on our march we found the line of retreat of the enemy +thickly strewn with discarded rifles, knapsacks, and other +accouterments. French soldiers that had died of sunstroke were covering +the roads in masses. Others had crawled into the fields to the left and +right, where they were expecting help or death. But we could not assist +them for we judged ourselves happy if we could keep our worn-out bodies +from collapsing altogether. But even if we had wanted to help them we +should not have been allowed to do so, for the order was "Forward!" + +At that time I began to notice in many soldiers what I had never +observed before--they felt envious. Many of my mates envied the dead +soldiers and wished to be in their place in order to be at least through +with all their misery. Yet all of us were afraid of dying--afraid of +dying, be it noted, not of death. All of us often longed for death, but +we were horrified at the slow dying lasting hours which is the rule on +the battle-field, that process which makes the wounded, abandoned +soldier die piecemeal. I have witnessed the death of hundreds of young +men in their prime, but I know of none among them who died willingly. A +young sapper of the name of Kellner, whose home was at Cologne, had his +whole abdomen ripped open by a shell splinter so that his entrails were +hanging to the ground. Maddened by pain he begged me to assure him that +he would not have to die. Of course, I assured him that his wounds were +by no means severe and that the doctor would be there immediately to +help him. Though I was a layman who had never had the slightest +acquaintance with the treatment of patients I was perfectly aware that +the poor fellow could only live through a few hours of pain. But my +words comforted him. He died ten minutes later. + +We had to march on and on. The captain told us we had been ordered to +press the fleeing enemy as hard as possible. He was answered by a +disapproving murmur from the whole section. For long days and nights we +had been on our legs, had murdered like savages, had had neither +opportunity nor possibility to eat or rest, and now they asked us +worn-out men to conduct an obstinate pursuit. The captain knew very well +what we were feeling, and tried to pacify us with kind words. + +The cavalry divisions had not been able to cross the Meuse for want of +apparatus and bridges. For the present the pursuit had to be carried out +by infantry and comparatively small bodies of artillery. Thus we had to +press on in any case, at least until the cavalry and machine-gun +sections had crossed the bridges that had remained intact farther down +stream near Sédan. Round Sommepy the French rear-guard faced us again. +When four batteries of our artillery went into action at that place our +company and two companies of infantry with machine guns were told off to +cover the artillery. + +The artillery officers thought that the covering troops were +insufficient, because aeroplanes had established the presence of large +masses of hostile cavalry an attack from whom was feared. But +reinforcements could not be had as there was a lack of troops for the +moment. So we had to take up positions as well as we could. We dug +shallow trenches to the left and right of the battery in a nursery of +fir trees which were about a yard high. The machine-guns were built in +and got ready, and ammunition was made ready for use in large +quantities. We had not yet finished our preparations when the shells of +our artillery began to whizz above our heads and pound the ranks of our +opponent. The fir nursery concealed us from the enemy, but a little +wood, some 500 yards in front of us, effectively shut out our view. + +We were now instructed in what we were to do in case of an attack by +cavalry. An old white-haired major of the infantry had taken command. We +sappers were distributed among the infantry, but those brave +"gentlemen," our officers, had suddenly disappeared. Probably the +defense of the fatherland is in their opinion only the duty of the +common soldier. As those "gentlemen" are only there to command and as we +had been placed under the orders of infantry officers for that +undertaking, they had become superfluous and had taken French leave. + +Our instructions were to keep quiet in case of an attack by cavalry, to +take aim, and not allow ourselves to be seen. We were not to fire until +a machine-gun, commanded by the major in person, went into action, and +then we were to fire as rapidly as the rifle could be worked; we were +not to forget to aim quietly, but quickly. + +Our batteries fired with great violence, their aiming being regulated by +a biplane, soaring high up in the air, by means of signals which were +given by rockets whose signification experts only could understand. + +One quarter of an hour followed the other, and we were almost convinced +that we should be lucky enough that time to be spared going into action. +Suddenly things became lively. One man nudged the other, and all eyes +were turned to the edge of the little wood some five hundred yards in +front of us. A vast mass of horsemen emerged from both sides of the +little wood and, uniting in front of it, rushed towards us. That +immense lump of living beings approached our line in a mad gallop. +Glancing back involuntarily I observed that our artillery had completely +ceased firing and that its crews were getting their carbines ready to +defend their guns. + +But quicker than I can relate it misfortune came thundering up. Without +being quite aware of what I was doing I felt all over my body to find +some place struck by a horse's hoof. The cavalry came nearer and nearer +in their wild career. Already one could see the hoofs of the horses +which scarcely touched the ground and seemed to fly over the few hundred +yards of ground. We recognized the riders in their solid uniforms, we +even thought we could notice the excited faces of the horsemen who were +expecting a sudden hail of bullets to mow them down. Meanwhile they had +approached to a distance of some 350 yards. The snorting of the horses +was every moment becoming more distinct. No machine-gun firing was yet +to be heard. Three hundred yards--250. My neighbor poked me in the ribs +rather indelicately, saying, "Has the old mass murderer (I did not doubt +for a moment that he meant the major) gone mad! It's all up with us, to +be sure!" I paid no attention to his talk. Every nerve in my body was +hammering away; convulsively I clung to my rifle, and awaited the +calamity. Two hundred yards! Nothing as yet. Was the old chap blind +or--? One hundred and eighty yards! I felt a cold sweat running down my +back and trembled as if my last hour had struck. One hundred and fifty! +My neighbor pressed close to me. The situation became unbearable. One +hundred and thirty--an infernal noise had started. Rrrrrrrr--An +overwhelming hail of bullets met the attacking party and scarcely a +bullet missed the lump of humanity and beasts. + +The first ranks were struck down. Men and beasts formed a wall on which +rolled the waves of succeeding horses, only to be smashed by that +terrible hail of bullets. "Continue firing!" rang out the command which +was not needed. "More lively!" The murderous work was carried out more +rapidly and with more crushing effect. Hundreds of volleys were sent +straight into the heap of living beings struggling against death. +Hundreds were laid low every second. Scarcely a hundred yards in front +of us lay more than six hundred men and horses, on top of each other, +beside each other, apart, in every imaginable position. What five +minutes ago had been a picture of strength, proud horsemen, joyful +youth, was now a bloody, shapeless, miserable lump of bleeding flesh. + +And what about ourselves? We laughed about our heroic deed and cracked +jokes. When danger was over we lost that anxious feeling which had taken +possession of us. Was it fear? It is, of course, supposed that a German +soldier knows no fear--at the most he fears God, but nothing else in the +world--and yet it was fear, low vulgar fear that we feel just as much as +the French, the English, or the Turks, and he who dares to contradict +this and talk of bravery and the fearless courage of the warrior, has +either never been in war, or is a vulgar liar and hypocrite. + +Why were we joyful and why did we crack jokes? Because it was the others +and not ourselves who had to lose their lives that time. Because it was +a life and death struggle. It was either we or they. We had a right to +be glad and chase all sentimentality to the devil. Were we not soldiers, +mass murderers, barbarians? + + + + +VIII + +NEARLY BURIED ALIVE ON THE BATTLEFIELD + + +The commander of the artillery smilingly came up to the major of the +infantry and thanked and congratulated him. + +We then went after the rest of our attackers who were in full flight. +The machine guns kept them under fire. Some two hundred might have +escaped; they fled in all directions. The artillery thereupon began +again to fire, whilst we set about to care for our wounded enemies. It +was no easy job, for we had to draw the wounded from beneath the horses +some of which were still alive. The animals kicked wildly about them, +and whenever they succeeded in getting free they rushed off like +demented however severely they had been hurt. Many a wounded man who +otherwise might have recovered was thus killed by the hoofs of the +horses. + +With the little packet of bandaging material which we all had on us we +bandaged the men, who were mostly severely wounded, but a good many died +in our hands while we were trying to put on a temporary dressing. As far +as they were still able to speak they talked to us with extreme +vivacity. Though we did not understand their language we knew what they +wanted to express, for their gestures and facial expressions were very +eloquent. They desired to express their gratitude for the charitable +service we were rendering them, and like ourselves they did not seem to +be able to understand how men could first kill each other, could +inflict pain on each other, and then assist each other to the utmost of +their ability. To them as well as to us this world seemed to stand on +its head; it was a world in which they were mere marionettes, guided and +controlled by a superior power. How often were we not made aware in that +manner of the uselessness of all this human slaughter! + +We common soldiers were here handling the dead and wounded as if we had +never done anything else, and yet in our civilian lives most of us had +an abhorrence and fear of the dead and the horribly mangled. War is a +hard school-master who bends and reshapes his pupils. + +One section was busy with digging a common grave for the dead. We took +away the papers and valuables of the dead, took possession of the +eatable and drinkable stores to be found in the saddle bags attached to +the horses and, when the grave was ready, we began to place the dead +bodies in it. They were laid close together in order to utilize fully +the available space. I, too, had been ordered to "bring in" the dead. +The bottom of the grave was large enough for twenty-three bodies if the +space was well utilized. When two layers of twenty-three had already +been buried a sergeant of the artillery, who was standing near, observed +that one of the "dead" was still alive. He had seen the "corpse" move +the fingers of his right hand. On closer examination it turned out that +we came near burying a living man, for after an attempt lasting two +hours we succeeded in restoring him to consciousness. The officer of the +infantry who supervised the work now turned to the two soldiers charged +with getting the corpses ready and asked them whether they were sure +that all the men buried were really dead. "Yes," the two replied, "we +suppose they are all dead." That seemed to be quite sufficient for that +humane officer, for he ordered the interments to proceed. Nobody doubted +that there were several more among the 138 men whom we alone buried in +one grave (two other, still bigger, graves had been dug by different +burial parties) from whose bodies life had not entirely flown. To be +buried alive is just one of those horrors of the battlefield which your +bar-room patriot at home (or in America) does not even dream of in his +philosophy. + +Nothing was to be seen of the enemy's infantry. It seemed that our +opponent had sent only artillery and cavalry to face us. Meanwhile the +main portions of our army came up in vast columns. Cavalry divisions +with mounted artillery and machine-gun sections left all the other +troops behind them. The enemy had succeeded in disengaging himself +almost completely from us, wherefor our cavalry accelerated their +movements with the intention of getting close to the enemy and as +quickly as possible in order to prevent his demoralized troops from +resting at night. We, too, got ready to march, and were just going to +march off when we received orders to form camp. The camping ground was +exactly mapped out, as was always the case, by the superior command, so +that they would know where we were to be found in case of emergency. We +had scarcely reached our camping grounds when our field kitchen, which +we thought had lost us, appeared before our eyes as if risen from out of +the ground. The men of the field kitchen, who had no idea of the losses +we had suffered during the last days, had cooked for the old number of +heads. They were therefore not a little surprised when they found in the +place of a brave company of sturdy sappers only a crowd of ragged men, +the shadows of their former selves, broken and tired to their very +bones. We were given canned soup, bread, meat, coffee, and a cigarette +each. At last we were able to eat once again to our hearts' content. We +could drink as much coffee as we liked. And then that cigarette, which +appeared to most of us more important than eating and drinking! + +All those fine things and the expectation of a few hours of rest in some +potato field aroused in us an almost childish joy. We were as merry as +boys and as noisy as street urchins. "Oh, what a joy to be a soldier +lad!"--that song rang out, subdued at first, then louder and louder. It +died away quickly enough as one after the other laid down his tired +head. We slept like the dead. + +We could sleep till six o'clock the next morning. Though all of us lay +on the bare ground it was with no little trouble that they succeeded in +waking us up. That morning breakfast was excellent. We received +requisitioned mutton, vegetables, bread, coffee, a cupful of wine, and +some ham. The captain admonished us to stuff in well, for we had a hard +day's march before us. At seven o'clock we struck camp. At the beginning +of that march we were in fairly good humor. Whilst conversing we +discovered that we had completely lost all reckoning of time. Nobody +knew whether it was Monday or Wednesday, whether it was the fifth or the +tenth of the month. Subsequently, the same phenomenon could be observed +only in a still more noticeable way. A soldier in war never knows the +date or day of the week. One day is like another. Whether it is +Saturday, Thursday or Sunday, it means always the same routine of +murdering. "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy!" "Six days shalt +thou labor and do all thy work. But the seventh day--thou shalt not do +any work." These, to our Christian rulers, are empty phrases. "Six days +shalt thou murder and on the seventh day, too." + +When we halted towards noon near a large farm we had again to wait in +vain for our field kitchen. So we helped ourselves. We shot one of the +cows grazing in the meadows, slit its skin without first letting off the +blood, and each one cut himself a piece of meat. The meat, which was +still warm, was roasted a little in our cooking pots. By many it was +also eaten raw with pepper and salt. That killing of cattle on our own +hook was repeated almost daily. The consequence was that all suffered +with their stomachs, for the meat was mostly still warm, and eating it +without bread or other food did not agree with us. Still, the practice +was continued. If a soldier was hungry and if he found a pig, cow, or +lamb during his period of rest, he would simply shoot the beast and cut +off a piece for his own use, leaving the rest to perish. + +On our march we passed a little town, between Attigny and Sommepy, +crowded with refugees. Many of the refugees were ill, and among their +children an epidemic was raging which was infecting the little ones of +the town. A German medical column had arrived a short time before us. +They asked for ten sappers--the maids of all work in war time--to assist +them in their labors. I was one of the ten drafted off for that duty. + +We were first taken by the doctors to a wonderfully arranged park in the +center of which stood a castle-like house, a French manor-house. The +owner, a very rich Frenchman, lived there with his wife and an excessive +number of servants. Though there was room enough in the palace for more +than a hundred patients and refugees, that humane patriot refused to +admit any one, and had locked and bolted the house and all entrances to +the park. It did not take us long to force all the doors and make all +the locks useless. The lady of the house had to take up quarters in two +large rooms, but that beauty of a male aristocrat had to live in the +garage and had to put up with a bed of straw. In that way the high and +mighty gentleman got a taste of the refugee life which so many of his +countrymen had to go through. He was given his food by one of the +soldiers of the medical corps; it was nourishing food, most certainly +too nourishing for our gentleman. One of my mates, a Socialist comrade, +observed drily, + +"It's at least a consolation that our own gang of junkers isn't any +worse than that mob of French aristocrats; they are all of a kidney. If +only the people were to get rid of the whole pack they wouldn't then +have to tear each other to pieces any longer like wild beasts." + +In the meantime our mates had roamed through the country and captured a +large barrel full of honey. Each one had filled his cooking pot with +honey to the very brim and buckled it to his knapsack. The ten of us did +likewise, and then we went off to find our section with which we caught +up in a short time. But we had scarcely marched a few hundred yards when +we were pursued by bees whose numbers increased by hundreds every +minute. However much we tried to shake off the little pests their +attentions grew worse and worse. Every one of us was stung; many had +their faces swollen to such an extent that they were no longer able to +see. The officers who were riding some twenty yards in front of us began +to notice our slow movements. The "old man" came along, saw the bees +and the swollen faces but could, of course, not grasp the meaning of it +all until a sergeant proffered the necessary information. "Who's got +honey in his cooking pot?" the old chap cried angrily. "All of us," the +sergeant replied. "You, too?" "Yes, captain." The old man was very wild, +for he was not even able to deal out punishments. We had to halt and +throw away the "accursed things," as our severe master called them. We +helped each other to unbuckle the cooking pots, and our sweet provisions +were flung far away into the fields on both sides of the road. With the +honey we lost our cooking utensils, which was certainly not a very +disagreeable relief. + +We continued our march in the burning noon-day sun. The ammunition +columns and other army sections which occupied the road gave the +whirled-up dust no time to settle. All around us in the field refugees +were camping, living there like poor, homeless gypsies. Many came up to +us and begged for a piece of dry bread. + +Without halting we marched till late at night. Towards nine o'clock in +the evening we found ourselves quite close to the town hall of Sommepy. +Here, in and about Sommepy, fighting had started again, and we had +received orders to take part in it to the northwest of Sommepy. + + + + +IX + +SOLDIERS SHOOTING THEIR OWN OFFICERS + + +It was dark already, and we halted once more. The ground around us was +strewn with dead. In the middle of the road were some French batteries +and munition wagons, with the horses still attached; but horses and men +were dead. After a ten minutes' rest we started again. Marching more +quickly, we now approached a small wood in which dismounted cavalry and +infantry were waging a desperate hand-to-hand struggle with the enemy. +So as to astonish the latter we had to rush in with a mighty yell. Under +cover of darkness we had succeeded in getting to the enemy's rear. Taken +by surprise by the unexpected attack and our war whoop, most of the +Frenchmen lifted their hands and begged for quarter, which was, however, +not granted by the infuriated cavalrymen and infantry. When, on our +side, now and then the murdering of defenseless men seemed to slacken it +was encouraged again by the loud commands of the officers. "No quarter!" +"Cut them all down!" Such were the orders of those estimable gentlemen, +the officers. + +We sappers, too, had to participate in the cold-blooded slaughtering of +defenseless men. The French were defenseless because they threw away +their arms and asked for quarter the moment that they recognized the +futility of further resistance. But the officers then saw to it, as on +many earlier and later occasions, that "too many prisoners were not +made." The sapper carries a bayonet which must not be fixed to the +rifle according to international agreement, because the back of that +bayonet is an extremely sharp steel saw, three millimeters in thickness. +In times of peace the sapper never does bayonet practice, the bayonet +being exclusively reserved for mechanical purposes. But what does +militarism care for international law! We here had to fix the saw, as +had always been done since the beginning of the war. Humanity was a jest +when one saw an opponent with the toothed saw in his chest and the +victim, who had long given up all resistance, endeavoring to remove the +deadly steel from the wound. Often that terrible tool of murder had +fastened itself so firmly in the victim's chest that the attacker, in +order to get his bayonet back, had to place his foot on the chest of the +miserable man and try with all his might to remove the weapon. + +The dead and wounded lay everywhere covered with terrible injuries, and +the crying of the wounded, which might soften a stone, but not a +soldier's heart, told of the awful pain which those "defenders of their +country" had to suffer. + +However, not all the soldiers approved of that senseless, that criminal +murdering. Some of the "gentlemen" who had ordered us to massacre our +French comrades were killed "by mistake" in the darkness of the night, +by their own people, of course. Such "mistakes" repeat themselves almost +daily, and if I keep silence with regard to many such mistakes which I +could relate, giving the exact name and place, the reader will know why. + +During that night it was a captain and first lieutenant who met his +fate. An infantryman who was serving his second year stabbed the captain +through the stomach with his bayonet, and almost at the same time the +first lieutenant got a stab in the back. Both men were dead in a few +minutes. Those that did the deeds showed not the slightest signs of +repentance, and not one of us felt inclined to reproach them; on the +contrary, every one knew that despicable, brutal murderers had met their +doom. + +In this connection I must mention a certain incident which necessitates +my jumping a little ahead of events. When on the following day I +conversed with a mate from my company and asked him for the loan of his +pocket knife he drew from his pocket three cartridges besides his knife. +I was surprised to find him carrying cartridges in his trousers' pockets +and asked him whether he had no room for them in his cartridge case. +"There's room enough," he replied, "but those three are meant for a +particular purpose; there's a name inscribed on each of them." Some time +after--we had meanwhile become fast friends--I inquired again after the +three bullets. He had one of them left. I reflected and remembered two +sergeants who had treated us like brutes in times of peace, whom we had +hated as one could only hate slave-drivers. They had found their grave +in French soil. + +The murder did not cease as long as an opponent was alive. We were then +ordered to see whether all the enemies lying on the ground were really +dead or unable to fight. "Should you find one who pretends to be dead, +he must be killed without mercy." That was the order we received for +that tour of inspection. However, the soldiers who had meanwhile quieted +down a little and who had thus regained their senses took no trouble to +execute the shameful command. What the soldiers thought of it is shown +by the remark of a man belonging to my company who said, "Let's rather +look if the two officers are quite dead; if not, we shall have to kill +them, too, without mercy." An order was an order, he added. + +We now advanced quickly, but our participation was no longer necessary, +for the whole line of the enemy retired and then faced us again, a mile +and a quarter southwest of Sommepy. Sommepy itself was burning for the +greater part, and its streets were practically covered with the dead. +The enemy's artillery was still bombarding the place, and shells were +falling all around us. Several hundred prisoners were gathered in the +market-place. A few shells fell at the same time among the prisoners, +but they had to stay where they were. An officer of my company, +lieutenant of the reserve Neesen, observed humanely that that could not +do any harm, for thus the French got a taste of their own shells. He was +rewarded with some cries of shame. A Socialist comrade, a reservist, had +the pluck to cry aloud, "Do you hear that, comrades? That's the noble +sentiment of an exploiter; that fellow is the son of an Elberfeld +capitalist and his father is a sweating-den keeper of the worst sort. +When you get home again do not forget what this capitalist massacre has +taught you. Those prisoners are proletarians, are our brethren, and what +we are doing here in the interest of that gang of capitalist crooks is a +crime against our own body; it is murdering our own brothers!" He was +going to continue talking, but the sleuths were soon upon him, and he +was arrested. He threw down his gun with great force; then he quietly +suffered himself to be led away. + +All of us were electrified. Not one spoke a word. One suddenly beheld +quite a different world. We had a vision which kept our imagination +prisoner. Was it true what we had heard--that those prisoners were not +our enemies at all, that they were our brothers? That which formerly--O +how long ago might that have been!--in times of peace, had appeared to +us as a matter of course had been forgotten; in war we had regarded our +enemies as our friends and our friends as our enemies. Those words of +the Elberfeld comrade had lifted the fog from our brains and from before +our eyes. We had again a clear view; we could recognize things again. + +One looked at the other and nodded without speaking; each one felt that +the brave words of our friend had been a boon to us, and none could +refrain from inwardly thanking and appreciating the bold man. The man in +front of me, who had been a patriot all along as far as I knew, but who +was aware of my views, pressed my hand, saying, "Those few words have +opened my eyes; I was blind; we are friends. Those words came at the +proper time." Others again I heard remark: "You can't surpass Schotes; +such a thing requires more courage than all of us together possess. For +he knew exactly the consequences that follow when one tells the truth. +Did you see the last look he gave us? That meant as much as, 'Don't be +concerned about me; I shall fight my way through to the end. Be faithful +workers; remain faithful to your class!'" + +The place, overcrowded with wounded soldiers, was almost entirely +occupied by the Germans. The medical corps could not attend to all the +work, for the wounded kept streaming in in enormous numbers. So we had +to lend a helping hand, and bandaged friend and enemy to the best of our +ability. But contrary to earlier times when the wounded were treated +considerately, things were now done more roughly. + +The fighting to the south of the place had reached its greatest violence +towards one o'clock in the afternoon, and when the Germans began to +storm at all points, the French retired from their positions in the +direction of Suippes. + +Whether our ragged company was no longer considered able to fight or +whether we were no longer required, I do not know; but we got orders to +seek quarters. We could find neither barn nor stable, so we had to camp +in the open; the houses were all crowded with wounded men. + +On that day I was commanded to mount guard and was stationed with the +camp guard. At that place arrested soldiers had to call to submit to the +punishment inflicted on them. Among them were seven soldiers who had +been sentenced to severe confinement which consisted in being tied up +for two hours. + +The officer on guard ordered us to tie the "criminals" to trees in the +neighborhood. Every arrested soldier had to furnish for that purpose the +rope with which he cleaned his rifle. The victim I had to attend to was +sapper Lohmer, a good Socialist. I was to tie his hands behind his back, +wind the loose end of the rope round his chest, and tie him with his +back towards the tree. In that position my comrade was to stand for two +hours, exposed to the mockery of officers and sergeants. But comrade +Lohmer had been marching with the rest of us in a broiling sun for a +whole day, had all night fought and murdered for the dear Fatherland +which was now giving him thanks by tying him up with a rope. + +I went up to him and told him that I would not tie him to the tree. "Do +it, man," he tried to persuade me; "if you don't do it another one will. +I shan't be cross with you, you know."--"Let others do it; I won't +fetter you." + +The officer, our old friend Lieutenant Spahn, who was getting impatient, +came up to us. "Can't you see that all the others have been seen to? How +long do you expect me to wait?" I gave him a sharp look, but did not +answer. Again he bellowed out the command to tie my comrade to the tree. +I looked at him for a long time and did not deign him worthy of an +answer. He then turned to the "criminal" who told him that I could not +get myself to do the job as we were old comrades and friends. Besides, I +did not want to fetter a man who was exhausted and dead tired. "So you +won't do it?" he thundered at me, and when again he received no +reply--for I was resolved not to speak another word to the fellow--he +hissed, "That b---- is a Red to the marrow!" I shall never in my life +forget the look of thankfulness that Lohmer gave me; it rewarded me for +the unpleasantness I had in consequence of my refusal. Of course others +did what I refused to do; I got two weeks' confinement. Naturally I was +proud at having been a man for once at least. As a comrade I had +remained faithful to my mate. Yet I had gained a point. They never +ordered me again to perform such duty, and I was excluded from the guard +that day. I could move about freely and be again a free man for a few +hours. + +The evening I had got off I employed to undertake a reconnoitering +expedition through the surrounding country in the company of several +soldiers. We spoke about the various incidents of the day and the night, +and, to the surprise, I daresay, of every one of us, we discovered that +very little was left of the overflowing enthusiasm and patriotism that +had seized so many during the first days of the war. Most of the +soldiers made no attempt to conceal the feeling that we poor devils had +absolutely nothing to gain in this war, that we had only to lose our +lives or, which was still worse, that we should sit at some street +corner as crippled "war veterans" trying to arouse the pity of +passers-by by means of some squeaking organ. + +At that moment it was already clear to us in view of the enormous losses +that no state, no public benevolent societies would be able after the +war to help the many hundreds of thousands who had sacrificed their +health for their "beloved country." The number of the unfortunate wrecks +is too great to be helped even with the best of intentions. + +Those thoughts which occupied our minds to an ever increasing extent did +not acquire a more cheerful aspect on our walk. The wounded were lying +everywhere, in stables, in barns, wherever there was room for them. If +the wounds were not too severe the wounded men were quite cheerful. They +felt glad at having got off so cheaply, and thought the war would long +be over when they should be well again. They lived by hopes just as the +rest of us. + + + + +X + +SACKING SUIPPES + + +The inhabitants of the place who had not fled were all quartered in a +large wooden shed. Their dwelling places had almost all been destroyed, +so that they had no other choice but live in the shed that was offered +them. Only one little, old woman sat, bitterly crying, on the ruins of +her destroyed home, and nobody could induce her to leave that place. + +In the wooden shed one could see women and men, youths, children and old +people, all in a great jumble. Many had been wounded by bits of shell or +bullets; others had been burned by the fire. Everywhere one could +observe the same terrible misery--sick mothers with half-starved babies +for whom there was no milk on hand and who had to perish there; old +people who were dying from the excitement and terrors of the last few +days; men and women in the prime of their life who were slowly +succumbing to their wounds because there was nobody present to care for +them. + +A soldier of the landwehr, an infantryman, was standing close to me and +looked horror-struck at some young mothers who were trying to satisfy +the hunger of their babes. "I, too," he said reflectively, "have a good +wife and two dear children at home. I can therefore feel how terrible it +must be for the fathers of these poor families to know their dear ones +are in the grip of a hostile army. The French soldiers think us to be +still worse barbarians than we really are, and spread that impression +through their letters among those left at home. I can imagine the fear +in which they are of us everywhere. During the Boxer rebellion I was in +China as a soldier, but the slaughter in Asia was child's play in +comparison to the barbarism of civilized European nations that I have +had occasion to witness in this war in friend and foe." After a short +while he continued: "I belong to the second muster of the landwehr, and +thought that at my age of 37 it would take a long time before my turn +came. But we old ones were no better off than you of the active army +divisions--sometimes even worse. Just like you we were sent into action +right from the beginning, and the heavy equipment, the long marches in +the scorching sun meant much hardship to our worn-out proletarian bodies +so that many amongst us thought they would not be able to live through +it all. + +"How often have I not wished that at least one of my children were a +boy? But to-day I am glad and happy that they are girls; for, if they +were boys, they would have to shed their blood one day or spill that of +others, only because our rulers demand it." We now became well +acquainted with each other. Conversing with him I got to know that +dissatisfaction was still more general in his company than in mine and +that it was only the ruthless infliction of punishment, the iron +discipline, that kept the men of the landwehr, who had to think of wife +and children, from committing acts of insubordination. Just as we were +treated they treated those older men for the slightest breach of +discipline; they were tied with ropes to trees and telegraph poles. + + + "Dear Fatherland, may peace be thine; + Fast stands and firm the Watch on the Rhine." + + +A company of the Hessian landwehr, all of them old soldiers, were +marching past with sore feet and drooping heads. They had probably +marched for a long while. Officers were attempting to liven them up. +They were to sing a song, but the Hessians, fond of singing and +good-natured as they certainly are known to be, were by no means in a +mood to sing. "I tell you to sing, you swine!" the officer cried, and +the pitifully helpless-looking "swine" endeavored to obey the command. +Here and there a thin voice from the ranks of the overtired men could be +heard to sing, "Deutschland, Deutschland über alles, über alles in der +Welt." With sore feet and broken energy, full of disgust with their +"glorious" trade of warriors, they sang that symphony of supergermanism +that sounded then like blasphemy, nay, like a travesty--"Deutschland, +Deutschland über alles, über alles in der Welt." + +Some of my mates who had watched the procession like myself came up to +me saying, "Come, let's go to the bivouac. Let's sleep, forget, and +think no more." + +We were hungry and, going "home," we caught some chicken, "candidates +for the cooking pot," as we used to call them. They were eaten half +cooked. Then we lay down in the open and slept till four o'clock in the +morning when we had to be ready to march off. Our goal for that day was +Suippes. Before starting on the march an army order was read out to us. +"Soldiers," it said, "His Majesty, the Emperor, our Supreme War Lord, +thanks the soldiers of the Fourth Army, and expresses to all his +imperial thankfulness and appreciation. You have protected our dear +Germany from the invasion of hostile hordes. We shall not rest until the +last opponent lies beaten on the ground, and before the leaves fall from +the trees we shall be at home again as victors. The enemy is in full +retreat, and the Almighty will continue to bless our arms." + +Having duly acknowledged receipt of the message by giving those three +cheers for the "Supreme War Lord" which had become almost a matter of +daily routine, we started on our march and had now plenty of time and +opportunity to talk over the imperial "thankfulness." We were not quite +clear as to the "fatherland" we had to "defend" here in France. One of +the soldiers thought the chief thing was that God had blessed our arms, +whereupon another one, who had been president of a freethinking +religious community in his native city for many a long year, replied +that a religious man who babbled such stuff was committing blasphemy if +he had ever taken religion seriously. + +All over the fields and in the ditches lay the dead bodies of soldiers +whose often sickening wounds were terrible to behold. Thousands of big +flies, of which that part of the country harbors great swarms, were +covering the human corpses which had partly begun to decompose and were +spreading a stench that took away one's breath. In between these +corpses, in the burning sun, the poor, helpless refugees were camping, +because they were not allowed to use the road as long as the troops were +occupying it. But when were the roads not occupied by troops! + +Once, when resting, we chanced to observe a fight between three French +and four German aeroplanes. We heard above us the well-known hum of a +motor and saw three French and two German machines approach one another. +All of them were at a great altitude when all at once we heard the +firing of machine-guns high up in the air. The two Germans were screwing +themselves higher up, unceasingly peppered by their opponents, and were +trying to get above the Frenchmen. But the French, too, rose in great +spirals in order to frustrate the intentions of the Germans. Suddenly +one of the German flying-men threw a bomb and set alight a French +machine which at the same time was enveloped in flames and, toppling +over, fell headlong to the ground a few seconds after. Burning rags came +slowly fluttering to the ground after it. Unexpectedly two more strong +German machines appeared on the scene, and then the Frenchmen took to +flight immediately, but not before they had succeeded in disabling a +German Rumpler-Taube by machine-gun fire to such an extent that the +damaged aeroplane had to land in a steep glide. The other undamaged +machines disappeared on the horizon. + +That terrible and beautiful spectacle had taken a few minutes. It was a +small, unimportant episode, which had orphaned a few children, widowed a +woman--somewhere in France. + +In the evening we reached the little town of Suippes after a long march. +The captain said to us, "Here in Suippes there are swarms of +franctireurs. We shall therefore not take quarters but camp in the open. +Anybody going to the place has to take his rifle and ammunition with +him." After recuperating a little we went to the place in order to find +something to eat. Fifteen dead civilians were lying in the middle of the +road. They were inhabitants of the place. Why they had been shot we +could not learn. A shrugging of the shoulders was the only answer one +could get from anybody. The place itself, the houses, showed no external +damage. + +I have never in war witnessed a greater general pillaging than here in +Suippes. It was plain that we had to live and had to have food. The +inhabitants and storekeepers having fled, it was often impossible to pay +for the things one needed. Men simply went into some store, put on socks +and underwear, and left their old things; they then went to some other +store, took the food they fancied, and hied themselves to a wine-cellar +to provide themselves to their hearts' content. The men of the +ammunition trains who had their quarters in the town, as also the men of +the transport and ambulance corps and troopers went by the hundred to +search the homes and took whatsoever pleased them most. The finest and +largest stores--Suippes supplied a large tract of country and had +comparatively extensive stores of all descriptions--were empty shells in +a few hours. Whilst men were looking for one thing others were ruined +and broken. The drivers of the munition and transport trains dragged +away whole sacks full of the finest silk, ladies' garments, linen, +boots, and shoved them in their shot-case. Children's shoes, ladies' +shoes, everything was taken along, even if it had to be thrown away +again soon after. Later on, when the field-post was running regularly, +many things acquired in that manner were sent home. But all parcels did +not reach their destination on account of the unreliable service of the +field-post, and the maximum weight that could be sent proved another +obstacle. Thus a pair of boots had to be divided and each sent in a +separate parcel if they were to be dispatched by field-post. One of our +sappers had for weeks carried about with him a pair of handsome boots +for his fiancée and then had them sent to her in two parcels. However, +the field-post did not guarantee delivery; and thus the war bride got +the left boot, and not the right one. + +An important chocolate factory was completely sacked, chocolates and +candy lay about in heaps trodden under foot. Private dwellings that had +been left by their inhabitants were broken into, the wine-cellars were +cleared of their contents, and the windows were smashed--a speciality of +the cavalry. + +As we had to spend the night in the open we tried to procure some +blankets, and entered a grocer's store in the market-place. The store +had been already partly demolished. The living-rooms above it had +remained, however, untouched, and all the rooms had been left unlocked. +It could be seen that a woman had had charge of that house; everything +was arranged in such a neat and comfortable way that one was immediately +seized by the desire to become also possessed of such a lovely little +nest. But all was surpassed by a room of medium size where a young lady +had apparently lived. Only with great reluctance we entered that +sanctum. To our surprise we found hanging on the wall facing the door a +caustic drawing on wood bearing the legend in German: "Ehret die Frauen, +sie flechten und weben himmlische Rosen ins irdische Leben." (Honor the +women, they work and they weave heavenly roses in life's short +reprieve.) The occupant was evidently a young bride, for the various +pieces of the trousseau, trimmed with dainty blue ribbons, could be seen +in the wardrobes in a painfully spick and span condition. All the +wardrobes were unlocked. We did not touch a thing. We were again +reminded of the cruelty of war. Millions it turned into beggars in one +night; the fondest hopes and desires were destroyed. When, the next +morning, we entered the house again, driven by a presentiment of +misfortune, we found everything completely destroyed. Real barbarians +had been raging here, who had lost that thin varnish with which +civilization covers the brute in man. The whole trousseau of the young +bride had been dragged from the shelves and was still partly covering +the floor. Portraits, photographs, looking-glasses, all lay broken on +the floor. Three of us had entered the room, and all three of us +clenched our fists in helpless rage. + +Having received the command to remain in Suippes till further orders we +could observe the return of many refugees the next day. They came back +in crowds from the direction of Châlons-sur-Marne, and found a wretched, +dreary waste in the place of their peaceful homes. The owner of a +dry-goods store was just returning as we stood before his house. He +collapsed before the door of his house, for nothing remained of his +business. We went up to the man. He was a Hebrew and spoke German. After +having somewhat recovered his self-possession he told us that his +business had contained goods to the value of more than 8000 francs, and +said: "If the soldiers had only taken what they needed I should have +been content, for I expected nothing less; but I should have never +believed of the Germans that they would destroy all of my possessions." +In his living-rooms there was not even a cup to be found. The man had a +wife and five children, but did not know where they were at that time. +And his fate was shared by uncounted others, here and elsewhere. + +I should tell an untruth if I were to pretend that his misery touched me +very deeply. It is true that the best among us--and those were almost +always the men who had been active in the labor movement at home, who +hated war and the warrior's trade from the depth of their soul--were +shaken out of their lethargy and indifference by some especially +harrowing incident, but the mass was no longer touched even by great +tragedies. When a man is accustomed to step over corpses with a cold +smile on his lips, when he has to face death every minute day and night, +he gradually loses that finer feeling for human things and humanity. +Thus it must not surprise one that soldiers could laugh and joke in the +midst of awful devastation, that they brought wine to a concert room in +which there was a piano and an electric organ, and had a joyful time +with music and wine. They drank till they were unconscious; they drank +with sergeants and corporals, pledging "brotherhood"; and they rolled +arm in arm through the streets with their new "comrades." + +The officers would see nothing of this, for they did not behave much +better themselves, even if they knew how to arrange things in such a +manner that their "honor" did not entirely go to the devil. The +"gentleman" of an officer sends his orderly out to buy him twenty +bottles of wine, but as he does not give his servant any money wherewith +to "buy," the orderly obeys the command the best he can. He knows that +at any rate he must not come back without the wine. In that manner the +officers provide themselves with all possible comforts without losing +their "honor." We had five officers in our company who for themselves +alone needed a wagon with four horses for transporting their baggage. As +for ourselves, the soldiers, our knapsack was still too large for the +objects we needed for our daily life. + + + + +XI + +MARCHING TO THE BATTLE OF THE MARNE--INTO THE TRAP + + +A large proportion of the "gentlemen," our officers, regarded war as a +pleasant change to their enchanting social life in the garrison towns, +and knew exactly (at least as far as the officers of my company were +concerned) how to preserve their lives as long as possible "in the +interest of the Fatherland." When I buried the hatchet, fourteen months +after, our company had lost three times its original strength, but no +fresh supply of officers had as yet become necessary; we had not lost a +single officer. In Holland I got to know, some months later, that after +having taken my "leave" they were still very well preserved. One day at +Rotterdam, I saw a photo in the magazine, _Die Woche_, showing "Six +members of the 1st. Company of the Sapper Regiment No. 30 with the Iron +Cross of the 1st. Class." The picture had been taken at the front, and +showed the five officers and Corporal Bock with the Iron Cross of the +1st. Class. Unfortunately Scherl[1] did not betray whether those +gentlemen had got the distinction for having preserved their lives for +further service. + +We spent the following night at the place, and then had to camp again in +the open, "because the place swarmed with franctireurs." In reality no +franctireurs could be observed, so that it was quite clear to us that +it was merely an attempt to arouse again our resentment against the +enemy which was dying down. They knew very well that a soldier is far +more tractable and pliant when animated by hatred against the "enemy." + +The next day Châlons-sur-Marne was indicated as the next goal of our +march. That day was one of the most fatiguing we experienced. Early in +the morning already, when we started, the sun was sending down its fiery +shafts. Suippes is about 21 miles distant from Châlons-sur-Marne. The +distance would not have been the worst thing, in spite of the heat. We +had marched longer distances before. But that splendid road from Suippes +to Châlons does not deviate an inch to the right or left, so that the +straight, almost endless seeming road lies before one like an immense +white snake. However far we marched that white ribbon showed no ending, +and when one looked round, the view was exactly the same. During the +whole march we only passed one little village; otherwise all was bare +and uncultivated. + +Many of us fainted or got a heat-stroke and had to be taken along by the +following transport column. We could see by the many dead soldiers, +French and German, whose corpses were lying about all along the road, +that the troops who had passed here before us had met with a still worse +fate. + +We had finished half of our march without being allowed to take a rest. +I suppose the "old man" was afraid the machine could not be set going +again if once our section had got a chance to rest their tired limbs on +the ground, and thus we crawled along dispirited like a lot of snails, +carrying the leaden weight of the "monkey" in the place of a house. The +monotony of the march was only somewhat relieved when we reached the +immense camp of Châlons. It is one of the greatest military camps in +France. Towards three o'clock in the afternoon we beheld Châlons in the +distance, and when we halted towards four o'clock in an orchard outside +the town, all of us, without an exception, fell down exhausted. + +The field kitchen, too, arrived, but nobody stirred for a time to fetch +food. We ate later on, and then desired to go to the town to buy several +things, chiefly, I daresay, tobacco which we missed terribly. Nobody was +allowed however, to leave camp. We were told that it was strictly +forbidden to enter the town. "Châlons," so the tale went, had paid a war +contribution, and nobody could enter the town. With money you can do +everything, even in war. Mammon had saved Châlons from pillage. + +Far away could be heard the muffled roar of the guns. We had the +presentiment that our rest would not be of long duration. The rolling of +the gun firing became louder and louder, but we did not know yet that a +battle had started here that should turn out a very unfortunate one for +the Germans--the five days' battle of the Marne. + +At midnight we were aroused by an alarm, and half an hour later we were +on the move already. The cool air of the night refreshed us, and we got +along fairly rapidly in spite of our exhaustion. At about four o'clock +in the morning we reached the village of Chepy. At that place friend +Mammon had evidently not been so merciful as at Châlons, for Chepy had +been thoroughly sacked. We rested for a short time, and noticed with a +rapid glance that preparations were just being made to shoot two +franctireurs. They were little peasants who were alleged to have hidden +from the Germans a French machine-gun and its crew. The sentence was +carried out. One was never at a loss in finding reasons for a verdict. +And the population had been shown who their "master" was. + +The little village of Pogny half-way between Châlons-sur-Marne and +Vitry-le-François, had fared no better than Chepy, as we observed when +we entered it at nine o'clock in the morning. We had now got +considerably nearer to the roaring guns. The slightly wounded who were +coming back and the men of the ammunition columns told us that a +terrible battle was raging to the west of Vitry-le-François. At four +o'clock in the afternoon we reached Vitry-le-François, after a veritable +forced march. The whole town was crowded with wounded; every building, +church, and school was full of wounded soldiers. The town itself was not +damaged. + +Here things must have looked very bad for the Germans for, without +allowing us a respite, we were ordered to enter the battle to the west +of Vitry-le-François. We had approached the firing line a little more +than two miles when we got within reach of the enemy's curtain of fire. +A terrific hail of shells was ploughing up every foot of ground. +Thousands of corpses of German soldiers were witnesses of the immense +losses the Germans had suffered in bringing up all available reserves. +The French tried their utmost to prevent the Germans from bringing in +their reserves, and increased their artillery fire to an unheard-of +violence. + +It seemed impossible for us to break through that barricade of fire. +Hundreds of shells were bursting every minute. We were ordered to pass +that hell singly and at a running pace. We were lying on the ground and +observed how the first of our men tried to get through. Some ran forward +like mad, not heeding the shells that were bursting around them, and +got through. Others were entirely buried by the dirt dug up by the +shells or were torn to pieces by shell splinters. Two men had scarcely +reached the line when they were struck by a bull's-eye, i. e., the heavy +shell exploded at their feet leaving nothing of them. + +Who can imagine what we were feeling during those harrowing minutes as +we lay crouching on the ground not quite a hundred feet away, seeing +everything, and only waiting for our turn to come? One had entangled +oneself in a maze of thoughts. Suddenly one of the officers would cry, +"The next one!" That was I! Just as if roused out of a bad dream, I jump +up and race away like mad, holding the rifle in my right hand and the +bayonet in my left. I jumped aside a few steps in front of two bursting +shells and run into two others which are bursting at the same time. I +leap back several times, run forward again, race about wildly to find a +gap through which to escape. But--fire and iron everywhere. Like a +hunted beast one seeks some opening to save oneself. Hell is in front of +me and behind me the officer's revolver, kept ready to shoot.--The lumps +of steel fall down like a heavy shower from high above. Hell and +damnation! I blindly run and run and run, until somebody gets me by my +coat. "We're there!" somebody roars into my ear. "Stop! Are you wounded? +Have a look; perhaps you are and don't know it?" Here I am trembling all +over. "Sit down; you will feel better; we trembled too." Slowly I became +more quiet. One after the other arrived; many were wounded. We were +about forty when the sergeants took over the command. Nothing was again +to be seen of the officers. + +We proceeded and passed several German batteries. Many had suffered +great losses. The crews were lying dead or wounded around their +demolished guns. Others again could not fire as they had no more +ammunition. We rested. Some men of the artillery who had "nothing to do" +for lack of ammunition came up to us. A sergeant asked why they did not +fire. "Because we have used up all our ammunition," a gunner replied. "O +yes, it would be quite impossible to bring up ammunition through that +curtain of fire." "It's not that," announced the gunner; "it's because +there isn't any more that they can't bring it up!" And then he went on: +"We started at Neufchâteau to drive the French before us like hunted +beasts; we rushed headlong after them like savages. Men and beasts were +used up in the heat; all the destroyed railroads and means of +transportation could not be repaired in those few days; everything was +left in the condition we found it; and in a wild intoxication of victory +we ventured to penetrate into the heart of France. We rushed on without +thinking or caring, all the lines of communication in our rear were +interrupted--we confidently marched into the traps the French set for +us. Before the first ammunition and the other accessories, which had all +to be transported by wagon, have reached us we shall be all done for." + +Up to that time we had had blind confidence in the invincible strategy +of our "Great General Staff," and now they told us this. We simply did +not believe it. And yet it struck us that the French (as was made clear +by everything around us) were in their own country, in the closest +proximity of their largest depot, Paris, and were in possession of +excellent railroad communications. The French were, besides, maintaining +a terrible artillery fire with guns of such a large size as had never +yet been used by them. All that led to the conclusion that they had +taken up positions prepared long before, and that the French guns had +been placed in such a manner that we could not reach them. + +In spite of all we continued to believe that the gunner had seen things +in too dark a light. We were soon to be taught better. + +FOOTNOTE: + +[1] A proprietor of many German sensational newspapers. + + + + +XII + +AT THE MARNE--IN THE MAW OF DEATH + + +We got in the neighborhood of the line of defense, and were received by +a rolling fire from the machine-guns. We went up to the improvised +trenches that were to protect us, at the double-quick. It was raining +hard. The fields around were covered with dead and wounded men who +impeded the work of the defenders. Many of the wounded contracted +tetanus in consequence of contact with the clayey soil, for most of them +had not been bandaged. They all begged for water and bread, but we had +none ourselves. In fact, they implored us to give them a bit of bread. +They had been in that hell for two days without having eaten a mouthful. + +We had scarcely been shown our places when the French began to attack in +mass formation. The occupants of those trenches, who had already beaten +back several of those attacks, spurred us on to shoot and then began to +fire themselves into the on-rushing crowd as if demented. Amidst the +shouting and the noise one could hear the cries of the officers of the +infantry: "Fire! Fire! More lively!" We fired until the barrels of our +rifles became quite hot. The enemy turned to flee. The heap of victims +lying between us and our opponents had again been augmented by hundreds. +The attack had been beaten back. + +It was dark, and it rained and rained. From all directions one heard in +the darkness the wounded calling, crying, and moaning. The wounded we +had with us were likewise moaning and crying. All wanted to have their +wounds dressed, but we had no more bandages. We tore off pieces of our +dirty shirts and placed the rags on those sickening wounds. Men were +dying one after the other. There were no doctors, no bandages; we had +nothing whatever. You had to help the wounded and keep the French off at +the same time. It was an unbearable, impossible state of things. It +rained harder and harder. We were wet to our skins. We fired blindly +into the darkness. The rolling fire of rifles increased, then died away, +then increased again. We sappers were placed among the infantry. My +neighbor gave me a dig in the ribs. "I say," he called out. + +"What do you want?" I asked. + +"Who are you?" + +"A sapper." + +"Come here," he hissed. "It gives you an uncanny feeling to be alone in +this hell of a night. Why are you here too?--They'll soon come again, +those over there; then there'll be fine fun again. Do you hear the +others cry?" + +He laughed. Suddenly he began again: "I always shoot at those until they +leave off crying--that's great fun." + +Again he laughed, that time more shrilly than before. + +I knew what was the matter. He had become insane. A man passed with +ammunition. I begged him to go at once and fetch the section leader. The +leader, a lieutenant of the infantry, came up. I went to meet him and +told him that my neighbor was continually firing at the wounded, was +talking nonsense, and was probably insane. The lieutenant placed +himself between us. "Can you see anything?" he asked the other man. +"What? See? No; but I hear them moaning and crying, and as soon as I hit +one--well, he is quiet, he goes to sleep--" The lieutenant nodded at me. +He took the gun away from the man. But the latter snatched it quickly +away again and jumped out of the trench. From there he fired into the +crowd of wounded men until, a few seconds after, he dropped down riddled +by several bullets. + +The drama had only a few spectators. It was scarcely over when it was +forgotten again. That was no place to become sentimental. We continued +shooting without any aim. The crying of the wounded became louder and +louder. Why was that so? Those wounded men, lying between the two +fighting lines, were exposed to the aimless fire of both sides. Nobody +could help them, for it would have been madness to venture between the +lines. Louder and more imploring became the voices that were calling +out, "Stretcher-bearer! Help! Help! Water!" For an answer they got at +most a curse or a malediction. + +Our trench was filled with water for about a foot--water and mud. The +dead and wounded lay in that mire where they had dropped. We had to make +room. So we threw the dead out of the trench. At one o'clock in the +night people came with stretchers and took away part of the wounded. But +there was no help at all for the poor fellows between the lines. + +To fill the cup of misery we received orders, in the course of the +night, to attack the enemy's lines at 4:15 o'clock in the morning. At +the time fixed, in a pouring rain, we got ready for storming. Received +by a terrible fire from the machine-guns we had to turn back half-way. +Again we had sacrificed uselessly a great number of men. Scarcely had we +arranged ourselves again in our trench when the French began a new +attack. They got as far as three yards from our trenches when their +attack broke down under our fire. They, too, had to go back with +enormous losses. Three times more the French attacked within two hours, +each time suffering great losses and achieving not the slightest +success. + +We did not know what to do. If help did not arrive soon it would be +impossible for us to maintain our position. We were tormented by hunger +and thirst, were wet to the skin, and tired enough to drop down. At ten +o'clock the French attacked a fourth time. They came up in immense +masses. Our leaders recognized at last the danger in which we were and +withdrew us. We retreated in waves abandoning the wounded and our +material. By exerting our whole strength we succeeded in saving the +machine-guns and ammunition. We went back a thousand yards and +established ourselves again in old trenches. The officers called to us +that we should have to stay there whatever happened; reinforcements +would soon come up. The machine-guns were in their emplacements in a +jiffy. Our opponents, who were following us, were immediately treated to +a hail of bullets. Their advance stopped at once. Encouraged by that +success we continued firing more wildly than ever so that the French +were obliged to seek cover. The reinforcements we had been promised did +not arrive. Some 800 yards behind us were six German batteries which, +however, maintained but a feeble fire. + +An officer of the artillery appeared in our midst and asked the +commander of our section whether it would not be wise to withdraw the +batteries. He said he had been informed by telephone that the whole +German line was wavering. Before the commander had time to answer +another attack in mass formation took place, the enemy being five or +seven times as numerous as we were. As if by command, we quitted our +position without having been told to do so, completely demoralized; we +retired in full flight, leaving the six batteries (36 guns) to the +enemy. Our opponent had ceased his curtain of fire fearing to endanger +his own advancing troops. The Germans used that moment to bring into +battle reinforcements composed of a medley of all arms. Portions of +scattered infantry, dismounted cavalry, sappers without a lord and +master, all had been drummed together to fill the ranks. Apparently +there were no longer any proper complete reserve formations on that day +of battle. + +Again we got the order, "Turn! Attention!" The unequal fight started +again. We observed how the enemy made preparations to carry off the +captured guns. We saw him advance to the assault. He received us with +the bayonet. We fought like wild animals. For minutes there was bayonet +fighting of a ferocity that defies description. We stabbed and hit like +madmen--through the chest, the abdomen, no matter where. There was no +semblance of regular bayonet fighting: that, by the way, can only be +practised in the barracks yard. The butt-ends of our rifles swished +through the air. Every skull that came in our way was smashed in. We had +lost helmets and knapsacks. In spite of his great numerical superiority +the enemy could not make headway against our little barrier of raving +humanity. We forgot all around us and fought bloodthirstily without any +calculation. A portion of our fellows had broken through the ranks of +the enemy, and fought for the possession of the guns. + +Our opponent recognized the danger that was threatening him and retired, +seeking with all his might to retain the captured guns. We did not allow +ourselves to be shaken off, and bayoneted the retiring foes one after +the other. But the whole mass of the enemy gathered again round the +guns. Every gun was surrounded by corpses, every minute registered +numerous victims. The artillery who took part in the fight attempted to +remove the breech-blocks of the guns. To my right, around the third gun, +three Germans were still struggling with four Frenchmen; all the others +were lying on the ground dead or wounded. Near that one gun were about +seventy dead or wounded men. A sapper could be seen before the mouth of +the gun. With astonishing coolness he was stuffing into the mouth of +that gun one hand grenade after another. He then lit the fuse and ran +away. Friends and enemies were torn into a thousand shreds by the +terrible explosion that followed. The gun was entirely demolished. +Seventy or eighty men had slaughtered each other for nothing--absolutely +nothing. + +After a struggle lasting nearly one hour all the guns were again in our +possession. Who can imagine the enormous loss of human lives with which +those lost guns had been recaptured! The dead and wounded, infantry, +cavalry, sappers and artillery, together with the Frenchmen, hundreds +and hundreds of them, were covering the narrow space, that comparatively +small spot which had been the scene of the tragedy. + +We were again reinforced, that time by four regular companies of +infantry, which had been taken from another section of the +battle-field. Though one takes part in everything, one's view as an +individual is very limited, and one has no means of informing oneself +about the situation in general. Here, too, we found ourselves in a +similar situation. But those reinforcements composed of all arms, and +the later arrivals, who had been taken from a section just as severely +threatened as our own, gave us the presentiment that we could only +resist further attacks if fresh troops arrived soon. If only we could +get something to quiet the pangs of hunger and that atrocious thirst! + +The horses of the guns now arrived at a mad gallop to take away the +guns. At the same moment the enemy's artillery opened a murderous fire, +with all sizes of guns, on that column of more than thirty teams that +were racing along. Confusion arose. The six horses of the various teams +reared and fled in all directions, drawing the overturned limbers behind +them with wheels uppermost. Some of the maddest animals ran straight +into the hottest fire to be torn to pieces together with their drivers. +Then our opponent directed his fire on the battery positions which were +also our positions. We had no other choice--we had either to advance or +retire. Retire? No! The order was different. We were to recapture our +lost first positions, now occupied by the French, who were now probably +getting ready for another attack. Had we not received fresh food for +cannon so that the mad dance could begin again? We advanced across a +field covered with thousands upon thousands of torn and bleeding human +bodies. + +No shot was fired. Only the enemy's artillery was still bombarding the +battery positions. We were still receiving no fire from the artillery; +neither did the enemy's infantry fire upon us. That looked suspicious; +we knew what was coming. We advanced farther and farther without being +molested. Suddenly we found ourselves attacked by an army of +machine-guns. An indescribable hail of bullets was poured into us. We +threw ourselves to the ground and sought cover as well as we could. +"Jump forward! March, march!" Again we ran to meet our fate. We had lost +already more than a third of our men. We halted again, exhausted. +Scarcely had we had time to take up a position when we were attacked +both in front and the flank. We had no longer strength enough to +withstand successfully a simultaneous frontal and flank attack. Besides, +we were being almost crushed by superior numbers. Our left wing had been +completely cut off, and we observed our people on that wing raising +their hands to indicate that they considered themselves prisoners of +war. However, the French gave no quarter--exactly as we had acted on a +former occasion. Not a man of our left wing was spared; every one was +cut down. + +We in the center could give them no help. We were getting less from +minute to minute. "Revenge for Sommepy!" I heard it ringing in my ears. +The right wing turned, drew us along, and a wild stampede began. Our +direct retreat being cut off, we ran backwards across the open field, +every one for himself, with beating hearts that seemed ready to burst, +all the time under the enemy's fire. + +After a long run we reached a small village to the northeast of +Vitry-le-François. There we arrived without rifles, helmets or +knapsacks; one after the other. But only a small portion could save +themselves. The French took plenty of booty. All the guns we fought for +were lost, besides several others. Of the hundreds of soldiers there +remained scarcely one hundred. All the others were dead, wounded or +missing. Who knew? + +Was that the terrible German war machine? Were those the cowardly, +degenerated Frenchmen whom we had driven before us for days? No; it was +war, terrible, horrid war, in which fortune is fickle. To-day it smiles +upon you; to-morrow the other fellow's turn comes. + +We sought to form up again in companies. There were just twelve men left +of our company. Little by little more came up from all directions until +at last we counted twenty. Then every one began to ask questions +eagerly; every one wanted to know about his friend, mate, or +acquaintance. Nobody could give an answer, for every one of us had been +thinking merely of himself and of nobody else. Driven by hunger we +roamed about the place. But our first action was drinking water, and +that in such quantities as if we wanted to drink enough for a lifetime. +We found nothing to eat. Only here and there in a garden we discovered a +few turnips which we swallowed with a ravenous appetite without washing +or even cleaning them superficially. + +But where was our company? Nobody knew. We were the company, the twenty +of us. And the officers? "Somewhere," a soldier observed, "somewhere in +a bomb-proof shelter." What were we to do? We did not know. Soon after a +sergeant-major of the field gendarmes came up sitting proudly on his +steed. Those "defenders of the Fatherland" have to see to it that too +many "shirkers" do not "loiter" behind the front. "You are sappers, +aren't you?" he roared out. "What are you doing here? 30th. Regiment?" +He put a great many questions which we answered as well as we were able +to. "Where are the others?" "Over there," said a young Berliner, and +pointed to the battle-field, "dead or prisoners; maybe some have saved +themselves and are elsewhere!" "It doesn't matter," roared out our +fierce sergeant-major for whom the conversation began to become +unpleasant. "Wait till I come back." "Where are the officers?" Again +nobody could answer him. "What are their names? I daresay I shall find +them. Maybe they are at Vitry?" We gave him their names--Captain Menke, +First Lieutenant Maier, Lieutenants of the Reserves Spahn, Neesen and +Heimbach. He gave us a certificate with which to prove the purpose of +our "loitering" to other overseers and disappeared. "Let's hope the +horse stumbles and the fellow breaks his neck." That was our pious wish +which one of our chaps sent after him. + +We went into one of the houses that had been pillaged like all the rest, +lay down on mattresses that were lying about the rooms and slept--slept +like dormice. + + + + +XIII + +THE ROUT OF THE MARNE + + +None of us knew how long we had slept; we only knew that it was night. +Some men of our company had waked us up. They had been looking for us +for a long time. "Come along," they said; "the old man is outside and +making a hell of a row. He has got seventeen men together and is +swearing like a trooper because he can't find you." Drowsily and +completely bereft of any will-power of our own we trudged after them. We +knew we were again being sent forward. But we did not care; we had lost +all balance. Never before had I noticed such indifference on our part as +on that night. + +There the old man was standing. He saw us coming up, without headgear, +the uniforms all torn to tatters, and minus our knapsacks. He received +us with the greeting, "Where have you been, you boobies?" Nobody +answered. What did we care? Things could not get any worse than they +were. Though all of us resented the wrong done to us we all remained +silent. + +"Where is your equipment?--Lost?--Lost? That's a fine story. You rag-tag +miserable vagabonds. If they were all like you--" For a while he went on +in that style. That pretty fellow had suffered the "miserable vagabonds" +to go forward while he himself had been defending his "Fatherland" at +Vitry, three or four miles behind the front. We picked out the best +from among the rifles that were lying about, and soon we were again +"ready for battle." + +We were standing half-asleep, leaning on the barrel of our rifles and +waiting to be led forth again to slaughter, when a shot was fired right +in our midst. The bullet had shattered the entire right hand of a +"spoiled ensign," as the officers express themselves. His hand was +bandaged. "How did that happen?" asked the officers. An eyewitness +related the incident saying: "Like all of us he put his hand on the +mouth of the barrel when it happened; I did not see any more." "Had he +secured the gun? Don't you know that it is forbidden to lean with your +hand on the mouth of your rifle and that you have been ordered to secure +your rifle when it is loaded?" Then turning to the "spoiled ensign," who +was writhing with pain, he bawled at him: "I shall report you for +punishment on account of gross negligence and self-mutilation on the +battle-field!" + +We all knew what was the matter. The ensign was a sergeant, but a poor +devil. He was fully aware that he had no career before him. We soldiers +liked him because we knew that military life disgusted him. Though he +was a sergeant he chose his companions solely among the common soldiers. +We would have divided with him our last crust of bread, because to us +especially, he behaved like a fellow-man. We also knew how harshly he +was treated by his superiors, and wondered that the "accident" had not +happened before. I do not know whether he was placed before a +court-martial later on. Punishments for self-mutilation are the order of +the day, and innumerable men are being severely punished. Now and then +the verdicts are made known to the soldiers at the front to serve as a +deterrent. The people at home, however, will get to hear very little of +them. + +The captain passed on the command to an officer's representative, and +then the old man disappeared again in the direction of Vitry. He spurred +on his steed, and away he flew. One of the soldiers thought that the +captain's horse was a thousand times better off than we were. We knew +it. We knew that we were far below the beast and were being treated +accordingly. + +We marched off and halted at the northwestern exit of the village. There +we met sappers gathered from other companies and battalions, and our +company was brought up to 85 men. The officer's representative then +explained to us that we should not be led into the firing line that day; +our only task was to watch that German troops fighting on the other side +of the Marne should find the existing temporary bridges in order in case +they had to retreat. We marched to the place where the Saulx enters the +Marne. + +So we marched off and reached our destination towards six o'clock in the +morning. The dead were lying in heaps around us in every field; death +had gathered in a terrible harvest. We were lying on a wooded height on +our side of the Marne, and were able to overlook the country for many +miles in front of us. One could see the explosions of the shells that +were raining down by the thousand. Little, almost nothing was to be seen +of the men, and yet there were thousands in front of us who were +fighting a desperate battle. Little by little we could make out the +faint outline of the struggle. The Germans were about a mile and a half +behind the Marne in front of us. Near the banks of the Marne large +bodies of German cavalry were stationed. There were only two tumble-down +bridges constructed of make-shift materials. They stood ready to be +blown up, and had plenty of explosive matter (dynamite) attached to +them. The electrical priming wires led to our position; we were in +charge of the firing apparatus. Connected by telephone we were able to +blow up the bridges in an instant. + +On the other side things began to get lively. We saw the French at +various places pressing forward and flowing back again. The rifle fire +increased continually in violence, and the attacks became more frequent. +Two hours passed in that way. We saw the French bringing up +reinforcement after reinforcement, in spite of the German artillery +which was maintaining but a feeble fire. After a long pause the enemy +began to attack again. The French came up in several lines. They +attacked several times, and each time they had to go back again; each +time they suffered great losses. At about three o'clock in the afternoon +our troops attacked by the enemy with all his strength, began to give +ground, slowly at first, then in a sort of flight. Our exhausted men +could no longer withstand the blow dealt with enormous force. In a wild +stampede all of them tried at the same time to reach safety across the +bridges. The cavalry, too, who were in cover near the banks of the +river, rushed madly to the bridges. An enormous crowd of men and beasts +got wedged before the bridges. In a trice the bridge before us was +thickly covered with human beings all of whom were trying to reach the +opposite side in a mad rush. We thought we could notice the temporary +bridge sway under its enormous burden. Like ourselves the officer's +representative could overlook the whole country. He pressed the receiver +of the telephone convulsively to his left ear, his right hand being on +the firing apparatus after which another man was looking. With bated +breath he gazed fixedly into the fleeing crowds. "Let's hope the +telephone is in order," he said to himself at intervals. He knew as well +as we did that he had to act as soon as the sharp order was transmitted +by telephone. It was not much he had to do. Directed by a movement of +the hand the man in charge of the apparatus would turn a key that looked +like a winged screw--and all would be over. + +The crowds were still rushing across the bridge, but nearly half of our +men, almost the whole of the cavalry, were still on the other side. The +bridge farther up was not being used so much and nearly all had reached +safety in that portion of the battlefield. We observed the foremost +French cross that bridge, but the bridge remained intact. The +sergeant-major who was in charge of the other apparatus was perplexed as +he received no order; so he blew up that bridge on his own +responsibility sending hundreds of Frenchmen to their watery grave in +the river Marne. + +At the same moment the officer's representative next to me received the +command to blow up the second and last bridge. He was confused and +hesitated to pass on the order. He saw that a great crowd of Germans +were still on the other side, he saw the struggles of that mass of men +in which every one was trying to be the first one to reach the bridge +and safety beyond. A terrible panic ensued. Many soldiers threw +themselves into the river and tried to swim across. The mass of soldiers +on the other side, still numbering several thousands, were pressed +harder and harder; the telephone messages were becoming ever more +urgent. All at once the officer's representative jumped up, pushed aside +the sapper in charge of the apparatus, and in the next second a mighty +explosion was heard. Bridge and men were blown into the air for +hundreds of yards. Like a river at times of inundations the Marne was +carrying away wood and men, tattered uniforms and horses. Swimming +across it was of no earthly use, and yet soldiers kept throwing +themselves into the river. + +On the other side the French began to disarm completely the German +soldiers who could be seen standing there with hands uplifted. Thousands +of prisoners, innumerable horses and machine guns had fallen into the +hands of the enemy. Some of us were just going to return with the firing +apparatus which was now superfluous when we heard the tale of the +significance of the incident, confirming the suspicions of many a one +amongst us. An error had been committed, that could not be undone! When +the bridge higher up, that was being used to a smaller degree by the +soldiers, had been crossed by the German troops and the enemy had +immediately begun his pursuit, the staff of officers in command at that +passage intended to let a certain number of enemies cross the bridge, +i.e., a number that could not be dangerous to the German troops who were +in temporary safety. Those hasty troops of the enemy could not have +received any assistance after the bridge had been blown up, and would +have been annihilated or taken prisoners. For that reason it was +intended to postpone the blowing up of the bridge. + +However, the sergeant-major in charge of the firing apparatus imagined, +as his thoughts kept whirling through his head, that the telephone wires +must have been destroyed, and blew up on his own initiative the bridge +that was densely crowded with Frenchmen, before our opponent succeeded +in interrupting the wires. But at the same time the officer's +representative in charge of the firing apparatus of the second bridge +received an order, the words of which (as he later himself confessed) +were not at all clear to him, threw aside the receiver, lost the +absolutely necessary assurance, killed all the people on the bridge, and +delivered hundreds upon hundreds into the hands of the enemy. + +We had no time to gather any more detailed impressions, for we received +the order that all the men of our company were to gather at Vitry before +the cathedral. We began to sling our hook with a sigh of relief, that +time a little more quickly than ordinarily, for the enemy's artillery +was already beginning to sweep the country systematically. We heard from +wounded men of other sections, whom we met on the way, that the French +had crossed the Marne already at various places. We discussed the +situation among us, and found that we were all of the same opinion. Even +on Belgian territory we had suffered heavy losses; every day had +demanded its victims; our ranks had become thinner and thinner; many +companies had been used up entirely and, generally speaking, all +companies had suffered severely. These companies, furnished and reduced +to a minimum strength, now found themselves opposed to an enemy +excellently provided with all necessaries. Our opponent was continually +bringing up fresh troops, and we were becoming fewer every hour. We +began to see that it was impossible for us to make a stand at that +place. Soldiers of the various arms confirmed again and again that +things were looking just as bad with them as with us, that the losses in +men and material were truly enormous. I found myself thinking of the +"God of the Germans." Had He cast them aside? I "thought" it so loudly +that the others could hear me. "Well," one of them remarked, "whom God +wants to punish He first strikes with blindness. Perhaps He thought of +Belgium, of Drucharz, of Sommepy, of Suippes, and of so many other +things, and suffered us to rush into this ruin in our blind rage." + +We reached Vitry. There the general misery seemed to us to be greater +than outside. There was not a single house in the whole town that was +not overcrowded with wounded men. Amidst all that misery pillaging had +not been forgotten. To make room for the wounded all the warehouses had +been cleared and their contents thrown into the streets. The soldiers of +the ambulance corps walked about, and everything that was of value and +that pleased them they annexed. But the worst "hyenas" of the +battle-field are to be found in the ammunition and transport trains. The +men of these two branches of the army have sufficient room in their +wagons to store things away. The assertion is, moreover, proved by the +innumerable confiscations, by the German Imperial Post Office, of +soldiers' parcels, all of them containing gold rings, chains, watches, +precious stones, etc. The cases discovered in that or any other way are +closely gone into and the criminals are severely punished, but it is +well known that only a small percentage of the crimes see the light of +day. What are a thousand convictions or so for a hundred thousand +crimes! + +In Vitry the marauders' business was again flourishing. The soldiers of +the transport trains, above all, are in no direct danger in war. +Compared with the soldiers fighting at the front it is easy for them to +find food; besides, it is they who transport the provisions of the +troops. They know that their lives are not endangered directly and that +they have every reason to suppose that they will return unscathed. To +them war is a business, because they largely take possession of all +that is of any value. We could therefore comprehend that they were +enthusiastic patriots and said quite frankly that they hoped the war +would continue for years. Later on we knew what had happened when the +Emperor had made one of his "rousing" speeches somewhere in the west and +had found the "troops" in an "excellent" mood and "full of fight." Among +that sort of troops there were besides the transport soldiers numerous +cavalry distributed among the various divisions, army corps staffs, and +general staffs. + + + + +XIV + +THE FLIGHT FROM THE MARNE + + +We soon reached the cathedral and reported to Lieutenant Spahn whom we +found there. He, too, had defended his "Fatherland" in that town. Clean +shaven and faultlessly dressed, he showed up to great advantage +contrasted with us. There we stood in ragged, dirty, blood-stained +uniforms, our hair disheveled, with a growing beard covered with clay +and mud. We were to wait. That was all. We sat down and gazed at the +misery around us. The church was filled with wounded men. Many died in +the hands of the medical men. The dead were carried out to make room for +others. The bodies were taken to one side where whole rows of them were +lying already. We took the trouble to count the dead, who had been +mostly placed in straight rows, and counted more than sixty. Some of +them were in uniforms that were still quite good, whilst our uniforms +were nothing but rags hanging from our backs. There were some sappers +among them, but their coats were not any better than our own. + +"Let us take some infantry coats," somebody ventured; "what's the +difference? A coat is a coat." So we went and took the coats from +several bodies and tried them on. Taking off their clothes was no easy +job, for the corpses were already rigid like a piece of wood. But what +was to be done? We could not run about in our shirt-sleeves! All did not +find something to fit them, and the disappointed ones had to wait for +another chance to turn up. We also needed boots, of course; but the +corpses lying before our eyes had boots on that were not much better +than our own. They had worn theirs as long as we had worn ours, but we +thought we might just inspect them all the same. We looked and found a +pair of fairly good ones. They were very small, but we guessed they +might fit one or the other amongst us. Two of us tried to remove them. +"But they are a tight fit," one of the two remarked. Two more came up to +help. Two were holding the leg of the dead man while the two others +tugged at the boot. It was of no use; the leg and the foot were so rigid +that it was found impossible to get the boot off. "Let it go," one of +those holding the leg remarked, "you will sooner pull off his leg than +remove that boot." We let go just as the doctor passed. "What are you +doing there?" he asked us. "We want to get some boots." "Then you will +have to cut them open; don't waste your time, the rigid leg will not +release the boot." He passed on. The situation was not complete without +a brutal joke. An infantryman standing near said, pointing to the dead, +"Now you know it; let them keep their old boots, they don't want to walk +on their bare feet." The joke was laughed at. And why not? Here we were +out of danger. What were the others to us? We were still alive and those +lying there could hear no longer. We saw no other things in war, and +better things we had not been taught. + +It is true that on the way we had got some bread by begging for it, but +we were still quite hungry. Nothing was to be seen of our field kitchen. +The crew of our field kitchen and the foraging officer and sergeant +always preferred to defend their Fatherland several tens of miles +behind the front. What were others to them? What were we to them? As +long as they did not need to go within firing range of the artillery +they were content. Comradeship ceases where the field kitchen begins. + +There were, however, some field kitchens belonging to other parts of the +army. They had prepared meals, but could not get rid of the food; even +if their company, i.e., the rest of their company, should have arrived +they would have had far too much food. Many a one for whom they had +prepared a meal was no longer in need of one. Thus we were most +willingly given as much to eat as we wanted. We had scarcely finished +eating when we had to form up again. Gradually several men of our +company had come together. We lined up in a manner one is used to in +war. The "old man" arrived. One of the officers reported the company to +him, but evidently did not report the number of the missing. Perhaps the +old man did not care, for he did not even ask whether we knew anything +about the one or the other. He stepped in front of the company and said +(a sign of his good temper), "Good morning, men!" (It was seven o'clock +in the evening!) As an answer he got a grunting noise such as is +sometimes made by a certain animal, and a sneering grin. Without much +ado we were ordered to go to the tool wagons which were standing near +the northern exit of the town, and provide ourselves with rifle +ammunition and three hand grenades each. "At half past nine to-night you +have to line up here; each man must have 500 cartridges, three hand +grenades, and fuses for igniting them; step aside!" + +On our way to the implement wagons we noticed that everywhere soldiers +that had lost their companies were being drawn together and that new +formations were being gotten together with the greatest speed. We felt +that something was in the air, but could not tell what it might be. The +rain had started again and was coming down in torrents. When we were at +the appointed place at half past nine in the evening we saw all the +principal streets filled with troops, all of them in storming outfit +like ourselves. A storming outfit consists of a suit made of cloth, a +cap, light marching baggage, tent canvas, cooking utensils, tent-pegs, +the iron ration, and, in the case of sappers, trench tools also. During +the day we got our "Klamotten," i.e., our equipment together again. We +were standing in the rain and waited. We did not yet know what was going +to happen. Then we were ordered to take off the lock of our rifles and +put them in our bread bags. The rifles could not now be used for +shooting. We began to feel what was coming, viz., a night attack with +bayonets and hand grenades. So as not to shoot each other in the dark we +had to remove the lock from the rifle. We stood there till about 11 +o'clock when we were suddenly ordered to camp. We did not know what the +whole thing meant, and were especially puzzled by the last order which +was, however, welcomed by all of us. We judged from the rolling thunder +that the battle had not yet decreased in violence, and the sky was +everywhere red from the burning villages and farm houses. + +Returning "home" we gathered from the conversation the officers had +among themselves that a last attempt was to be made to repel the French; +that explained the night assault the order for which had now been +canceled. They had evidently made, or been obliged to make another +resolution at the general staff; perhaps they had recognized that no +more could be done and had rescinded the order for the attack and +decided upon a retreat, which began the next morning at 6 o'clock. We, +however, had no idea that it should be our last night at Vitry. + +We lodged in a shanty for the night. Being sufficiently tired we were +soon in a deep slumber. We had to rise at four o'clock in the morning. +Each of us received a loaf of bread; we filled our water bottles, and +marched off. Whither we were marching we were not told, but we guessed +it. The remaining population of Vitry, too, seemed to be informed; some +were lining the streets, and their glances were eloquent. Everywhere a +feverish activity was to be observed. We halted outside the town. The +captain called us to gather round him and addressed us as follows: "Our +troops will evacuate their positions on account of the difficult +terrain, and retire to those heights where they will take up new +positions." In saying that he turned round and pointed to a ridge near +the horizon. He continued: "There we shall settle down and expect the +enemy. New reinforcements will arrive there to-day, and some days hence +you will be able to send a picture postcard home from Paris." I must +avow that the majority of us believed that humbug at the time. Other +portions of the army were already arriving from all directions. We had +been marching for some hours when we heard that Vitry had already been +occupied again by the French and that all the material stored at Vitry, +together with all the hospitals, doctors and men, and whole companies of +the medical service had been taken there. + +Towards two o'clock in the afternoon we reached the heights the captain +had shown us, but he had evidently forgotten everything, for we marched +on and on. Even the most stupid amongst us now began to fear that we had +been humbugged. The streets became ever more densely crowded with +retreating troops and trains; from all sides they came and wanted to use +the main road that was also being used by us, and the consequence was +that the road became too congested and that we were continually pushed +more to the rear. Munition wagons raced past us, singly, without any +organization. Order was no longer observed. Canteen and baggage wagons +went past, and here already a wild confusion arose. Every moment there +was a stop and all got wedged. Many would not wait, and some wagons were +driven by the side of the road, through fields turned sodden by the +rain, in an attempt to get along. One wagon would be overturned, another +one would stick in the mud. No great trouble was taken to recover the +vehicles, the horses were taken out and the wagon was left. The drivers +took the horses and tried to get along; every one was intent upon +finding safety. Thus one incident followed upon another. + +An officer came riding up and delivered an order to our captain. We did +not know what it was. But we halted and stepped into the field. Having +stacked our rifles we were allowed to lie down. We lay down by the side +of the road and gazed at the columns, field kitchens, transports, +medical trains, field post wagons, all filing past us in picturesque +confusion. Wounded men were lying or sitting on all the vehicles. Their +faces showed that riding on those heavy wagons caused them pain. But +they, too, wanted to get along at any price for they knew from personal +experience what it meant to fall into the hands of an uncompromising +enemy. They would perhaps be considered as little as they and we +ourselves had formerly considered the wounded Frenchmen left in our +hands. Because they knew this, as all of us did, they did not want to be +left behind for anything in the world. + +We had as yet not the slightest idea what we were to do. Night came upon +us, and it poured again in torrents. We lay on the ground and felt very +cold. Our tired bodies no longer gave out any heat. Yet we stayed on the +ground too tired to move. Sections of artillery now began to arrive, but +most of the batteries had no longer their full number (6) of guns. One +had lost three, another two; many guns even arriving singly. Quite a +number of limbers, some 50 or so, passed without guns. Those batteries +had only been able to save the horses and had been obliged to leave the +guns in the hands of the French. Others had only two or four horses +instead of six. + +Presently some fifteen motorcars, fine solid cars, came along. We gazed +in astonishment at the strong, elegant vehicles. "Ah!" my neighbors +exclaimed, "the General Staff!" Duke Albrecht of Wurttemberg and his +faithful retainers! We were getting rebellious again. Every one felt +wild, and it rained curses. One man said, "After having sent thousands +to their doom they are now making off in motorcars." We were lying in +the swamp, and nobody noticed us. The automobiles raced past and soon +left all behind them. We were still quite in the dark as to our purpose +in that place. We lay there for hours, till ten o'clock at night. The +troops were surging back largely in dissolved formations. Machine-gun +sections arrived with empty wagons; they had lost all their guns. In the +west we heard the thunder of guns coming nearer and nearer. We did not +know whether we were going to be sent into battle again or not. + +The confusion in the road became worse and worse and degenerated in the +darkness into a panic. Refugees, who were wandering about with women and +children in that dark night and in the pouring rain, got under the +wheels of wagons; wounded men in flight were likewise crushed by the +wheels; and cries for help came from everywhere out of the darkness. The +streets were badly worn. Abandoned vehicles were lining the sides of the +road. We began to move at three o'clock in the morning, and before we +were fully aware of what was happening we found ourselves with the +rear-guard. Regiments of infantry, shot to pieces, arrived in a pitiful +condition. They had cast away their knapsacks and all unnecessary +impediments, and were trying to get along as fast as possible. Soon +after, the first shrapnel of the enemy began to burst above our heads, +which caused us to accelerate our march continually. The road, which had +also been used during the advance, was still marked by deep shell holes +that were filled with water to the very edge, for it rained without +interruption. It was pitch-dark, and every now and then somebody would +fall into one of those shell holes. We were all wet through, but +continued to press on. Some would stumble over something in the dark, +but nobody paid any attention. The great thing was to get along. Dead +horses and men lay in the middle of the road, but nobody took the +trouble to remove the "obstacle." + +It was almost light when we reached a small village and halted. The +whole place was at once occupied and put in a state of defense as well +as was possible. We took up positions behind the walls of the cemetery. +Other troops arrived incessantly, but all in disorder, in a wild +confused jumble. Cavalry and artillery also arrived together with a +machine-gun section. These, however, had kept their formations intact; +there was some disorder, but no sign of panic. One could see that they +had suffered considerable losses though their casualties had not been as +heavy as ours. The enemy was bombarding us with his guns in an +increasing degree, but his fire had no effect. Some houses had been hit +and set alight by shells. Far away from us hostile cavalry patrols +showed themselves, but disappeared again. Everything was quiet. Ten +minutes afterwards things in front of us began to get lively; we saw +whole columns of the enemy approach. Without firing a shot we turned and +retired farther back. Mounted artillery were stationed behind the +village and were firing already into the advancing enemy. A cavalry +patrol came galloping across the open field, their horses being covered +with foam. We heard the leader of the patrol, an officer, call out in +passing to a cavalry officer that strong forces of the enemy were coming +on by all the roads. We left the village behind us and sought to get +along as quickly as possible. We had no idea where we were. The cavalry +and artillery sections that had been left behind were keeping the enemy +under fire. Towards noon shrapnel was again exploding above our heads, +but the projectiles were bursting too high up in the air to do any +damage to us. Yet it was a serious warning to us, for it gave us to +understand that the enemy was keeping close on our heels--a sufficient +reason to convert our retreat into a flight. We therefore tried to get +away as fast as our tired out bones would let us. We knew there was no +chance of a rest to-day. So we hurried on in the drenching rain. + +The number of those who dropped by the way from exhaustion became +larger and larger. They belonged to various portions of the army. We +could not help them, and there were no more wagons; these were more in +front. Those unfortunate men, some of whom were unconscious, were left +behind just as the exhausted horses. Those that had sufficient strength +left crawled to the side of the road; but the unconscious ones remained +where they fell, exposed to the hoofs of the horses and the wheels of +the following last detachments. If they were lucky enough not to be +crushed to atoms they fell into the hands of the enemy. Perhaps those +who found our men were men and acted accordingly, but if they were +soldiers brutalized by war, patriots filled with hatred, as could also +be found in our own ranks, then the "boche" (as the French say) had to +die a miserable death by the road, die for his "Fatherland." To our +shame, be it said, we knew it from our own experience, and summoned all +our energy so as not to be left behind. I was thinking of the soldier of +the Foreign Legion lying in the desert sand, left behind by his troop +and awaiting the hungry hyenas. + +The road was covered with the equipment the soldiers had thrown away. +We, too, had long ago cast aside all unnecessary ballast. Thus we were +marching, when we passed a wood densely packed with refugees. Those +hunted people had stretched blankets between the trees so as to protect +themselves from the rain. There they were lying in the greatest +conceivable misery, all in a jumble, women and men, children and +graybeards. Their camp reached as far as the road, and one could observe +that the terrible hours they had lived through had left deep furrows in +their faces. They looked at us with weary, tired eyes. The children +begged us to give them some bread, but we had nothing whatsoever left +and were ourselves tormented by hunger. The enemy's shrapnel was still +accompanying us, and we had scarcely left the wood when shrapnel began +to explode there, which caused the refugees, now exposed to the fire, to +crowd into the fields in an attempt to reach safety. Many of them joined +us, but before long they were forbidden to use the road because they +impeded the retreat of the troops. Thus all of them were driven without +pity into the fields soaked by the rain. + +When we came to a pillaged village towards the evening we were at last +granted a short rest, for in consequence of our quick marching we had +disengaged ourselves almost completely from the enemy. We heard the +noise of the rear-guard actions at a considerable distance behind us, +and we wished that they would last a long time, for then we could rest +for a longer period. From that village the head man and two citizens +were carried off by the Germans, the three being escorted by cavalry. We +were not told why those people were being taken along, but each place +had to furnish such "hostages," whole troops of whom were being marched +off. The remaining cattle had also been taken along; troopers were +driving along the cattle in large droves. We were part of the +rear-guard. It is therefore easy to understand why we found no more +eatables. Hunger began to plague us more and more. Not a mouthful was to +be had in the village we had reached, and without having had any food we +moved on again after half an hour's rest. + +We had marched two miles or so when we came upon a former camping place. +Advancing German troops had camped there about a week ago. The bread +that had evidently been plentiful at that time now lay scattered in the +field. Though the bread had been lying in the open for about a week and +had been exposed to a rain lasting for days, we picked it up and +swallowed it ravenously. As long as those pangs of hunger could be +silenced, it mattered little what it was that one crammed into one's +stomach. + + + + +XV + +AT THE END OF THE FLIGHT + + +Night fell again, and there was still no prospect of sleep and +recuperation. We had no idea of how far we had to retire. Altogether we +knew very little of how things were going. We saw by the strange +surroundings that we were not using the same road on which we had +marched before to the Marne as "victors." "Before!" It seemed to us as +if there was an eternity between that "before" and the present time, for +many a one who was with us then was now no longer among us. + +One kept thinking and thinking, one hour chased the other. Involuntarily +one was drawn along. We slept whilst walking. Our boots were literally +filled with water. Complaining was of no use. We had to keep on +marching. Another night passed. Next morning troops belonging to the +main army were distributed among the rear-guard. In long columns they +were lying by the side of the road to let us pass in order to join up +behind. We breathed a sigh of relief, for now we were no longer exposed +to the enemy's artillery fire. After a march of some five hours we +halted and were lucky enough to find ourselves close to a company of +infantry that had happily saved its field kitchen. + +After the infantrymen had eaten we were given the rest, about a pint of +bean soup each. Some sappers of our company were still among that +section of the infantry. They had not been able to find us and had +joined the infantry. We thought they were dead or had been taken +prisoners, but they had only been scattered and had lost their way. We +had hopes to recover still many a one of our missing comrades in a +similar manner, but we found only a few more afterwards. In the evening +of the same day we saw another fellow of our company sitting on the +limber of the artillery. When he saw us he joined us immediately and +told us what had happened to him. The section he belonged to had its +retreat across the Marne cut off; nearly all had been made prisoners +already and the French were about to disarm them when he fled and was +lucky enough to reach the other side of the Marne by swimming across the +river. He, too, could not or did not want to find our company, and +joined the artillery so as not to be forced to walk, so he explained. +Our opinion was that he would have done better by remaining a prisoner, +for in that case the murdering business would have ended as far as he +was concerned. We told him so, and he agreed with us. "However," he +observed, "is it sure that the French would have spared us? I know how +we ourselves acted; and if they had cut us down remorselessly we should +now be dead. Who could have known it?" I knew him too well not to be +aware that he for one had every reason to expect from the enemy what he +had often done in his moments of bloodthirst; when he was the "victor" +he knew neither humanity nor pity. + +It was not yet quite dark when we reached a large village. We were to +find quarters there and rest as long as was possible. But we knew well +enough that we should be able to rest only for as long as the rear-guard +could keep the enemy back. Our quarters were in the public school, and +on account of the lack of food we were allowed to consume our iron +rations. Of course, we had long ago lost or eaten that can of meat and +the little bag of biscuits. We therefore lay down with rumbling +stomachs. + +Already at 11 o'clock in the night alarm was sounded. In the greatest +hurry we had to get ready to march off, and started at once. The night +was pitch-dark, and it was still raining steadily. The officers kept on +urging us to hurry up, and the firing of rifles told us that the enemy +was again close at our heels. At day-break we passed the town of St. +Menehould which was completely intact. Here we turned to the east, still +stubbornly pursued by the French, and reached Clermont-en-Argonne at +noon. Again we got some hours of rest, but in the evening we had to move +on again all night long in a veritable forced march. We felt more tired +from hour to hour, but there was no stopping. + +The rain had stopped when we left the road at ten o'clock in the morning +and we were ordered to occupy positions. We breathed again freely, for +that exhausting retreat lasting for days had reduced us to a condition +that was no longer bearable. So we began to dig ourselves in. We had not +half finished digging our trenches when a hail of artillery projectiles +was poured on us. Fortunately we lost but few men, but it was impossible +to remain any longer, and we were immediately ordered to retreat. We +marched on over country roads, and it was dark when we began to dig in +again. We were in the neighborhood of Challerange quite near the village +of Cerney-en-Dormois. It was very dark and a thick mist surrounded us. +We soldiers had no knowledge of the whereabouts of the enemy. As +quickly as possible we tried to deepen our trench, avoiding every +unnecessary noise. Now and then we heard secret patrols of the enemy +approach, only to disappear again immediately. + +It was there we got our first reinforcements. They came up in the dark +in long rows, all of them fresh troops and mostly men of the landwehr, +large numbers of whom were still in blue uniforms. By their uniforms and +equipment one could see that the men had been equipped and sent off in +great haste. They had not yet heard the whistle of a bullet, and were +anxiously inquiring whether the place was dangerous. They brought up +numerous machine-guns and in a jiffy we had prepared everything for the +defense. + +We could not get to know where the French were supposed to be. The +officers only told us to keep in our places. Our trench was thickly +crowded with men, and provided with numerous machine-guns. We instructed +the new arrivals in the way they would have to behave if an attack +should be made, and told them to keep quite still and cool during the +attack and aim accurately. + +They were mostly married men that had been dragged from their +occupations and had been landed right in our midst without understanding +clearly what was happening to them. They had no idea where, in what part +of the country they were, and they overwhelmed us with all sorts of +questions. They were not acquainted with the handling of the new +98-rifle. They were provided with a remodeled rifle of the 88 pattern +for which our ammunition could be used. Though no shots were fired the +"new ones" anxiously avoided putting their heads above the edge of the +trench. They provided us liberally with eatables and cigars. + +It was getting light, and as yet we had not seen much of the enemy. +Slowly the mist began to disappear, and now we observed the French +occupying positions some hundred yards in front of us. They had made +themselves new positions during the night exactly as we had done. +Immediately firing became lively on both sides. Our opponent left his +trench and attempted an attack, but our great mass of machine-guns +literally mowed down his ranks. An infernal firing had set in, and the +attack was beaten off after only a few steps had been made by the +opposing troops. The French renewed their attack again and again, and +when at noon we had beaten back eight assaults of that kind hundreds +upon hundreds of dead Frenchmen were covering the ground between our +trenches and theirs. The enemy had come to the conclusion that it was +impossible to break down our iron wall and stopped his attacks. + +At that time we had no idea that this was to be the beginning of a +murderous exhausting war of position, the beginning of a slow, +systematic, and useless slaughter. For months and months we were to +fight on in the same trench, without gaining or losing ground, sent +forward again and again to murder like raving beasts and driven back +again. Perhaps it was well that we did not know at that time that +hundreds of thousands of men were to lose their lives in that senseless +slaughter. + +The wounded men between the trenches had to perish miserably. Nobody +dared help them as the opposing side kept up their fire. They perished +slowly, quite slowly. Their cries died away after long hours, one after +the other. One man after the other had lain down to sleep, never to +awake again. Some we could hear for days; night and day they begged and +implored one to assist them, but nobody could help. Their cries became +softer and softer until at last they died away--all suffering had +ceased. There was no possibility of burying the dead. They remained +where they fell for weeks. The bodies began to decompose and spread +pestilential stenches, but nobody dared to come and bury the dead. If a +Frenchman showed himself to look for a friend or a brother among the +dead he was fired at from all directions. His life was dearer to him and +he never tried again. We had exactly the same experience. The French +tried the red cross flag. We laughed and shot it to pieces. The impulse +to shoot down the "enemy" suppressed every feeling of humanity, and the +"red cross" had lost its significance when raised by a Frenchman. +Suspicion was nourished artificially, so that we thought the "enemy" was +only abusing the flag; and that was why we wanted to shoot him and the +flag to bits. + +But we ourselves took the French for barbarians because they paid us +back in kind and prevented us from removing our own wounded men to +safety. The dead remained where they were, and when ten weeks later we +were sent to another part of the front they were still there. + +We had been fortunate in beating back all attacks and had inflicted +enormous losses upon the enemy without having ourselves lost many dead +or wounded men. Under those circumstances no further attack was to be +expected for the time being. So we employed all our strength to fortify +our position as strongly as possible. Half of the men remained in their +places, and the other half made the trenches wider and deeper. But both +sides maintained a continuous lively fire. The losses we suffered that +day were not especially large, but most of the men who were hit were +struck in the head, for the rest of the body was protected by the +trench. + +When darkness began to descend the firing increased in violence. Though +we could not see anything we fired away blindly because we thought the +enemy would not attempt an attack in that case. We had no target and +fired always in the direction of the enemy's trench. Throughout the +night ammunition and materials were brought up, and new troops kept +arriving. Sand bags were brought in great quantities, filled and +utilized as cover, as a protection from the bullets. The sappers were +relieved towards morning. We had to assemble at a farm behind the firing +line. The farmhouse had been completely preserved, and all the animals +were still there; but that splendor was destined to disappear soon. +Gradually several hundreds of soldiers collected there, and then began a +wild chase after ducks, geese, pigeons, etc. The feathered tribe, +numbering more than 500 head, had been captured in a few hours, and +everywhere cooking operations were in full swing. + +There were more than eighty cows and bullocks in a neighboring field. +All of them were shot by the soldiers and worked into food by the field +kitchens. In that place everything was taken. Stores of hay and grain +had been dragged away in a few hours. Even the straw sheds and +outbuildings were broken up, the wood being used as fuel. In a few hours +that splendid farm had become a wreck, and its proprietor had been +reduced to beggary. I had seen the owner that morning; but he had +suddenly disappeared with his wife and children, and nobody knew +whither. The farm was within reach of the artillery fire, and the farmer +sought safety somewhere else. Not a soul cared where he had gone. + +Rifle bullets, aimed too high, were continually flying about us, but +nobody cared in the least though several soldiers had been hit. A man of +our company, named Mertens, was sitting on the ground cleaning his rifle +when he was shot through the neck; he died a few minutes after. We +buried him in the garden of the farm, placed his helmet on his grave, +and forgot all about him. + +Near the farm a German howitzer battery was in position. The battery was +heavily shelled by the enemy. Just then a munition train consisting of +three wagons came up to carry ammunition to the battery. We had amongst +us a sergeant called Luwie, from Frankfort-on-the-Main. One of his +brothers, also a sergeant, was in the column that was passing by. That +had aroused our interest, and we watched the column to see whether it +should succeed in reaching the battery through the fire the enemy was +keeping up. Everything seemed to go along all right when suddenly the +sergeant, the brother of the sapper sergeant, was hit by a shell and +torn to pieces, together with his horse. All that his own brother was +watching. It was hard to tell what was passing through his mind. He was +seen to quiver. That was all; then he stood motionless. Presently he +went straight to the place of the catastrophe without heeding the shells +that were striking everywhere, fetched the body of his brother and laid +it down. Part of the left foot of the dead man was missing and nearly +the whole right leg; a piece of shell as big as a fist stuck in his +chest. He laid down his brother and hurried back to recover the missing +limbs. He brought back the leg, but could not find the foot that had +been torn off. When we had buried the mangled corpse the sergeant +borrowed a map of the general staff from an officer and marked the +exact spot of the grave so as to find it again after the war. + +The farmhouse had meanwhile been turned into a bandaging station. Our +losses increased very greatly judging from the wounded men who arrived +in large numbers. The farmhouse offered a good target to the enemy's +artillery. Though it was hidden by a hillock some very high poplars +towered above that elevation. We felled those trees. Towards evening we +had to go back to the trench, for the French were renewing their +attacks, but without any effect. The fresh troops were all very excited, +and it was hard for them to get accustomed to the continued rolling +rifle fire. Many of them had scarcely taken up their place when they +were killed. Their blue uniforms offered a good target when they +approached our positions from behind. + +At night it was fairly quiet, and we conversed with the new arrivals. +Some of them had had the chance of remaining in garrison service, but +had volunteered for the front. Though they had had only one day in the +firing line they declared quite frankly that they repented of their +decision. They had had quite a different idea of what war was like, and +believed it an adventure, had believed in the fine French wine, had +dreamt of some splendid castle where one was quartered for weeks; they +had thought that one would get as much to eat and drink as one wished. +It was war, and in war one simply took what one wanted. + +Such nonsense and similar stuff they had heard of veterans of the war of +1870-71, and they had believed that they went forward to a life of +adventure and ease. Bitterly disappointed they were now sitting in the +rain in a dirty trench, with a vast army of corpses before them. And +every minute they were in danger of losing their life! That was a war +quite different from the one they had pictured to themselves. They knew +nothing of our retreat and were therefore not a little surprised when we +related to them the events of the last few days. + + + + +XVI + +THE BEGINNING OF TRENCH WARFARE + + +On the next morning, at daybreak, we quitted the trench again in order +to rest for two days. We went across the fields and took up quarters at +Cerney-en-Dormois. We lodged in one of the abandoned houses in the +center of the village. Our field kitchen had not yet arrived, so we were +obliged to find our own food. Members of the feathered tribe were no +longer to be discovered, but if by any chance a chicken showed its head +it was immediately chased by a score of men. No meat being found we +resolved to be vegetarians for the time being, and roamed through the +gardens in search of potatoes and vegetables. On that expedition we +discovered an officer's horse tied to a fence. We knew by experience +that the saddle bags of officers' horses always concealed something that +could be eaten. We were hungry enough, and quickly resolved to lead the +horse away. We searched him thoroughly under "cover," and found in the +saddle bags quite a larder of fine foodstuffs, butter and lard among +them. Then we turned the horse loose and used the captured treasure to +prepare a meal, the like of which we had not tasted for a long time. + +It tasted fine in spite of our guilty conscience. One man made the fire, +another peeled the potatoes, etc. Pots and a stove we found in one of +the kitchens of the houses in the neighborhood. + +Towards evening long trains with provisions and endless rows of fresh +troops arrived. In long columns they marched to the front and relieved +the exhausted men. Soon the whole place was crowded with soldiers. After +a two days' rest we had to take up again the regular night duties of the +sapper. Every night we had to visit the position to construct wire +entanglements. The noise caused by the ramming in of the posts mostly +drew the attention of the French upon us, and thus we suffered losses +almost every night. But our rest during the daytime was soon to be put +an end to, for the enemy's artillery began to shell the place regularly. +Curiously enough, the shelling took place always at definite hours. +Thus, at the beginning, every noon from 12 to 2 o'clock from fifty to +eighty shells used to fall in the place. At times the missiles were +shrapnel from the field artillery. One got accustomed to it, though +soldiers of other arms were killed or wounded daily. Once we were lying +at noon in our lodgings when a shrapnel shell exploded in our room, +happily without doing any damage. The whole room was filled with dust +and smoke, but not one troubled to leave his place. That sort of +shooting was repeated almost daily with increasing violence. The +remaining inhabitants of the village, mostly old people, were all lodged +in a barn for fear of espionage. There they were guarded by soldiers. As +the village was being bombarded always at certain hours the officer in +command of the place believed that somebody in the village communicated +with the enemy with a hidden telephone. They even went so far as to +remove the hands of the church clock, because somebody had seen quite +distinctly "that the hands of the clock (which was not going) had moved +and were pointing to 6 and immediately afterwards to 5." Of course, the +spy that had signaled to the enemy by means of the church clock could be +discovered as little as the man with the concealed telephone. But in +order to be quite sure to catch the "real" culprit all the civilians +were interned in the barn. Those civilian prisoners were provided with +food and drink like the soldiers, but like the soldiers they were also +exposed to the daily bombardment, which gradually devastated the whole +village. Two women and a child had already been killed in consequence +and yet the people were not removed. Almost daily a house burned down at +some spot or other in the village, and the shells now began falling at 8 +o'clock in the evening. The shells were of a large size. We knew exactly +that the first shell arrived punctually at 8 o'clock, and we left the +place every night. The whole village became empty, and exactly at 8 +o'clock the first shell came buzzing heavily over to our side. At short +intervals, fourteen or sixteen at the most, but never more, followed it. +Those sixteen we nicknamed the "iron portion." Our opinion was that the +gun was sent forward by the French when it became dark, that it fired a +few shots, and was then taken to the rear again. When we returned from +our "walk," as we called that nightly excursion, we had to go to our +positions. There we had to perform all imaginable kinds of work. One +evening we had to fortify a small farm we had taken from the French the +day before. We were to construct machine-gun emplacements. The moon was +shining fairly brightly. In an adjoining garden there were some fruit +trees, an apple tree among them, with some apples still attached to it. +A Frenchman had hanged himself on that tree. Though the body must have +hung for some days--for it smelled considerably--some of our sappers +were eager to get the apples. The soldiers took the apples without +troubling in the least about the dead man. + +Near that farm we used mine throwers for the first time. The instruments +we used there were of a very primitive kind. They consisted of a pipe +made of strong steel plate and resting on an iron stand. An unexploded +shell or shrapnel was filled with dynamite, provided with a fuse and +cap, and placed in the tube of the mine thrower. Behind it was placed a +driving charge of black powder of a size corresponding with the distance +of the target and the weight of the projectile. The driving charge, too, +was provided with a fuse that was of such a length that the explosion +was only produced after the man lighting the fuse had had time to return +to a place of safety. The fuse of the mine was lit at the same time as +the former, but was of a length commensurate with the time of flight of +the mine, so as to explode the latter when the mine struck the target, +or after a calculated period should the mark be missed. The driving +charge must be of such strength that it throws the projectile no farther +than is intended. The mine thrower is not fired horizontally but at a +steep angle. The tube from which the mine is fired is, for instance, +placed at an angle of 45 degrees, and receives a charge of fifteen +grammes of black powder when the distance is 400 yards. + +It happens that the driving charge does not explode, and the projectile +remains in the tube. The fuse of the mine continues burning, and the +mine explodes in the tube and demolishes the stand and everything in its +neighborhood. When we used those mine throwers here for the first time +an accident of the kind described happened. Two volunteers and a sapper +who were in charge of the mine thrower in question thought the +explosion took too long a time. They believed it was a miss. When they +had approached to the distance of some five paces the mine exploded and +all three of them were wounded very severely. We had too little +experience in the management of mine throwers. They had been forgotten, +had long ago been thrown on the junk heap, giving way to more modern +technical appliances of war. Thus, when they suddenly cropped up again +during the war of position, we had to learn their management from the +beginning. The officers, who understood those implements still less than +we ourselves did, could not give us any hints, so it was no wonder that +accidents like the foregoing happened frequently. + +Those mine throwers cannot be employed for long distances; at 600 yards +they reach the utmost limit of their effectiveness. + +Besides handling the mine throwers we had to furnish secret patrols +every night. The chief purpose of those excursions was the destruction +of the enemy's defenses or to harry the enemy's sentries so as to +deprive them of sleep. + +We carried hand grenades for attack and defense. When starting on such +an excursion we were always instructed to find out especially the number +of the army section that an opponent we might kill belonged to. The +French generally have their regimental number on the collars of their +coat or on their cap. So whenever we "spiflicated" one and succeeded in +getting near him we would cut that number out of his coat with a knife +or take away his coat or cap. In that way the German army command +identified the opposing army corps. They thus got to know exactly the +force our opponent was employing and whether his best troops were in +front of us. All of us greatly feared those night patrols, for the +hundreds of men killed months ago were still lying between the lines. +Those corpses were decomposed to a pulp. So when a man went on nocturnal +patrol duty and when he had to crawl in the utter darkness on hands and +knees over all those bodies he would now and then land in the decomposed +faces of the dead. If then a man happened to have a tiny wound in his +hands his life was greatly endangered by the septic virus. As a matter +of fact three sappers and two infantrymen of the landwehr regiment No. +17 died in consequence of poisoning by septic virus. Later on that kind +of patroling was given up or only resorted to in urgent cases, and only +such men were employed who were free of wounds. That led to nearly all +of us inflicting skin wounds to ourselves to escape patrol duty. + +Our camping place, Cerney-en-Dormois, was still being bombarded +violently by the enemy every day. The firing became so heavy at last +that we could no longer sleep during the day. The large shells +penetrated the houses and reached the cellars. The civilian prisoners +were sent away after some had been killed by shells. We ourselves, +however, remained in the place very much against our inclination in +spite of the continuous bombardment. Part of our company lived in a +large farmhouse, where recently arrived reserves were also lodged. One +day, at noon, the village was suddenly overwhelmed by a hail of shells +of a large size. Five of them struck the farmhouse mentioned, almost at +the same time. All the men were resting in the spacious rooms. The whole +building was demolished, and our loss consisted of 17 dead and 28 +wounded men. The field kitchen in the yard was also completely +destroyed. Without waiting for orders we all cleared out of the village +and collected again outside. But the captain ordered us to return to +the place because, so he said, he had not yet received orders from the +divisional commander to evacuate the village. Thereupon we went back to +our old quarters and embarked again on a miserable existence. After +living in the trenches during the night, in continual danger of life, we +arrived in the morning, after those hours of trial, with shattered +nerves, at our lodgings. We could not hope to get any rest and sleep, +for the shells kept falling everywhere in the village. In time, however, +one becomes accustomed to everything. When a shell came shrieking along +we knew exactly whereabout it would strike. By the sound it made we knew +whether it was of large or small size and whether the shell, having come +down, would burst or not. Similarly the soldiers formed a reliable +judgment in regard to the nationality of an aeroplane. When an aeroplane +was seen at a great distance near the horizon the soldiers could mostly +say exactly whether it was a German or a French flying machine. It is +hard to say by what we recognized the machines. One seems to feel +whether it is a friend or a foe that is coming. Of course, a soldier +also remembers the characteristic noise of the motor and the +construction of the aeroplane. + +When a French flier passed over our camp the streets would quickly empty +themselves. The reason was not that we were afraid of the flying man; we +disappeared because we knew that a bombardment would follow after he had +landed and reported. We left the streets so as to convey the impression +that the place was denuded of troops. But the trick was not of much use. +Every day houses were set alight, and the church, which had been +furnished as a hospital, was also struck several times. + +Up to that time it had been comparatively quiet at the front. We had +protected our position with wide wire entanglements. Quite a maze of +trenches, a thing that defies description, had been constructed. One +must have seen it in order to comprehend what immense masses of soil had +been dug up. + +Our principal position consisted of from 6 to 8 trenches, one behind the +other and each provided with strong parapets and barbed wire +entanglements; each trench had been separately fortified. The distance +between the various trenches was sometimes 20 yards, sometimes a hundred +and more, all according to the requirements of the terrain. All those +positions were joined by lines of approach. Those connecting roads are +not wide, are only used by the relieving troops and for transporting +purposes, and are constructed in a way that prevents the enemy from +enfilading them; they run in a zigzag course. To the rear of the +communication trenches are the shelters of the resting troops +(reserves). Two companies of infantry, for instance, will have to defend +in the first trench a section of the front measuring some two hundred +yards. One company is always on duty, whilst the other is resting in the +rear. However, the company at rest must ever be ready for the firing +line and is likely to be alarmed at any minute for service at a moment's +notice should the enemy attack. The company is in telephonic +communication with the one doing trench duty. Wherever the country (as +on swampy ground) does not permit the construction of several trenches +and the housing of the reserves the latter are stationed far in the +rear, often in the nearest village. In such places, relieving +operations, though carried out only at night are very difficult and +almost always accompanied by casualties. Relief is not brought up at +fixed hours, for the enemy must be deceived. But the enemy will be +informed of local conditions by his fliers, patrols or the statements of +prisoners, and will keep the country under a continual heavy curtain +fire, so that the relieving troops coming up across the open field +almost always suffer losses. Food and ammunition are also forwarded at +night. The following incident will illustrate the difficulty even one +man by himself experiences in approaching such positions. + +Myself, a sergeant, and three others had been ordered on secret patrol +duty one night. Towards ten o'clock we came upon the line of the curtain +fire. We were lying flat on the ground, waiting for a favorable +opportunity to cross. However, one shell after the other exploded in +front of us, and it would have been madness to attempt to pass at that +point. Next to me lay a sapper of my own annual military class; nothing +could be seen of the sergeant and the two other privates. On a slight +elevation in front of us we saw in the moonlight the shadowy forms of +some persons who were lying flat on the ground like ourselves. We +thought it impossible to pass here. My mate, pointing to the shapes +before us said, "There's Sergeant Mertens and the others; I think I'll +go up to them and tell him that we had better wait a while until it gets +more quiet." "Yes; do so," I replied. He crawled to the place on his +hands and knees, and I observed him lying near the others. He returned +immediately. The shapes turned out to be four dead Frenchmen of the +colonial army, who had been there for weeks. He had only seen who they +were when he received no answer to his report. The dead thus lay +scattered over the whole country. Nothing could be seen of the sergeant +and the other men. So we seized a favorable opportunity to slip +through, surrounded by exploding shells. We could find out nothing about +our companions. Our search in the trench was likewise unsuccessful; +nobody could give us the slightest information though sappers were well +known among the infantry, because we had to work at all the points of +the front. An hour later the relieving infantry arrived. They had lost +five men in breaking through the barrier fire. Our sergeant was among +the wounded they brought in. Not a trace was ever found of the two other +soldiers. Nobody knew what had become of them. + +Under such and similar conditions we spent every night outside. We also +suffered losses in our camp almost every day. Though reserves from our +garrison town had arrived twice already our company had a fighting +strength of only 75 men. But at last we cleared out of the village, and +were stationed at the village of Boucoville, about a mile and a half to +the northeast of Cerney-en-Dormois. Cerney-en-Dormois was gradually +shelled to pieces, and when at night we had to go to the trench we +described a wide circle around that formerly flourishing village. + +At Boucoville we received the first letters from home by the field post. +They had been on their journey for a long, long time, and arrived +irregularly and in sheaves. But many were returned, marked, "Addressee +killed," "Addressee missing," "Wounded." However, many had to be marked, +"Addressee no longer with the army detachment." They could not quite +make out the disappearance of many "addressees," but many of us had just +suspicions about them, and we wished good luck to those "missing men" in +crossing some neutral frontier. + +The letters we received were dated the first days of August, had +wandered everywhere, bore the stamps of various field post-offices and, +in contrast with the ones we received later on, were still full of +enthusiasm. Mothers were not yet begging their sons not to risk their +lives in order to gain the iron cross; that imploring prayer should +arrive later on again and again. It was also at that place that we +received the first of those small field post-parcels containing cigars +and chocolate. + +After staying some ten weeks in that part of the country we were +directed to another part of the front. Nobody knew, however, whither we +were going to be sent. It was all the same to us. The chance of getting +out of the firing line for a few days had such a charm for us that our +destination did not concern us in the least. It gave us a wonderful +feeling of relief, when we left the firing zone on our march to the +railroad station at Challerange. For the first time in a long period we +found ourselves in a state of existence where our lives were not +immediately endangered; even the most far-reaching guns could no longer +harm us. A man must have lived through such moments in order to +appreciate justly the importance of such a feeling. However much one has +got accustomed to being in constant danger of one's life, that danger +never ceases to oppress one, to weigh one down. + +At the station we got into a train made up of second and third-class +coaches. The train moved slowly through the beautiful autumnal +landscape, and for the first time we got an insight into the life behind +the front. All the depots, the railroad crossings and bridges were held +by the military. There all the men of the landsturm were apparently +leading quite an easy life, and had made themselves comfortable in the +depots and shanties of the road-men. They all looked well nourished and +were well clad. Whenever the train stopped those older men treated us +liberally to coffee, bread, and fruit. They could see by our looks that +we had not had the same good time that they were having. They asked us +whence we came. Behind the front things were very lively everywhere. At +all the larger places we could see long railway trains laden with +agricultural machinery of every description. The crew of our train were +men of the Prusso-Hessian state railroads. They had come through those +parts many times before, and told us that the agricultural machines were +being removed from the whole of the occupied territory and sent to East +Prussia in order to replace what the Russians had destroyed there. The +same was being done with all industrial machinery that could be spared. +Again and again one could observe the finest machines on their way to +Germany. + +Towards midnight we passed Sédan. There we were fed by the Red Cross. +The Red Cross had erected feeding stations for passing troops in long +wooden sheds. Early next morning we found ourselves at Montmédy. There +we had to leave the train, and were allowed to visit the town for a few +hours. + + + + +XVII + +FRIENDLY RELATIONS WITH THE ENEMY + + +There was no lack of food at Montmédy. The canteens were provided with +everything; prices were high, however. Montmédy is a third-class French +fortress and is situated like Ehrenbreitstein on a height which is very +steep on one side; the town is situated at the foot of the hill. The +fortress was taken by the Germans without a struggle. The garrison who +had prepared for defense before the fortress, had their retreat cut off. +A railroad tunnel passes through the hill under the fortress, but that +had been blown up by the French. The Germans laid the rails round the +hill through the town so as to establish railroad communications with +their front. It looked almost comical to watch the transport trains come +rolling on through the main street and across the market place. +Everywhere along the Meuse the destroyed bridges had been replaced by +wooden ones. Montmédy was the chief base of the Fifth Army (that of the +Crown Prince), and contained immense stores of war material. Besides +that it harbored the field post-office, the headquarters for army +provisions, a railroad management, and a great number of hospitals. The +largest of them used to be called the "theater hospital," on account of +its being installed in the municipal theater and the adjoining houses, +and always contained from 500 to 600 wounded. + +Things were very lively at Montmédy. One chiefly observed convalescent +soldiers walking through the streets and a remarkable number of +officers, all of whom had been attached to the various departments. They +loitered about in their faultless uniforms, or rode along whip in hand. +Moreover, they had not yet the slightest idea of what war was like, and +when we met them they expected us to salute them in the prescribed +manner. Many of them accosted us and asked us rudely why we did not +salute. After a few hours we got sick of life twenty miles behind the +Verdun front. + +At Montmédy we were about twenty miles behind Verdun and some sixty +miles away from our former position. When towards one o'clock P. M. we +began to move on we guessed that we were to be dragged to the country +round Verdun. After a march of nine miles we reached the village of +Fametz. There we were lodged in various barns. Nearly all of the +inhabitants had stayed on; they seemed to be on quite friendly terms +with the soldiers. Time had brought them closer to each other, and we, +too, got an entirely different idea of our "hereditary enemy" on closer +acquaintance. When walking through the place we were offered all kinds +of things by the inhabitants, were treated to coffee, meat, and milk, +exactly as is done by German patriots during maneuvers and we were even +treated better than at home. To reward them for these marks of attention +we murdered the sons of those people who desired nothing better than +living in peace. + +Early next morning we moved on, and when we arrived at Damvillers in the +evening we heard that we were some three miles behind the firing line. +That very night we marched to the small village of Warville. That was +our destination, and there we took up our quarters in a house that had +been abandoned by its inhabitants. We were attached to the ninth +reserve division, and the following day already we had to take up our +positions. Fifteen of us were attached to a company of infantry. No +rifle firing was to be heard along the line, only the artillery of the +two sides maintained a weak fire. We were not accustomed to such +quietness in the trenches, but the men who had been here for a long time +told us that sometimes not a shot was fired for days and that there was +not the slightest activity on either side. It seemed to us that we were +going to have a nice quiet time. + +The trench in that section crossed the main road leading from Damvillers +to Verdun (a distance of some fifteen miles). The enemy's position was +about 800 yards in front of us. German and French troops were always +patroling the road from six o'clock at night till the morning. At night +time those troops were always standing together. Germans and Frenchmen +met, and the German soldiers had a liking for that duty. Neither side +thought for a moment to shoot at the other one; everybody had just to be +at his post. In time both sides had cast away suspicions; every night +the "hereditary enemies" shook hands with each other; and on the +following morning the relieved sentries related to us with pleasure how +liberally the Frenchmen had shared everything with them. They always +exchanged newspapers with them, and so it came about that we got French +papers every day, the contents of which were translated to us by a +soldier who spoke the French language. + +By day we were able to leave the trench, and we would be relieved across +the open field without running any danger. The French had no ideas of +shooting at us; neither did we think of shooting at the French. When we +were relieved we saluted our enemies by waving our helmets, and +immediately the others replied by waving their caps. When we wanted +water we had to go to a farm situated between the lines. The French too, +fetched their water from there. It would have been easy for each side to +prevent the other from using that well, but we used to go up to it quite +unconcerned, watched by the French. The latter used to wait till we +trotted off again with our cooking pots filled, and then they would come +up and provide themselves with water. At night it often happened that we +and the Frenchmen arrived at the well at the same time. In such a case +one of the parties would wait politely until the other had done. Thus it +happened that three of us were at the well without any arms when a score +of Frenchmen arrived with cooking pots. Though the Frenchmen were seven +times as numerous as ourselves the thought never struck them that they +might fall upon us. The twenty men just waited quietly till we had done; +we then saluted them and went off. + +One night a French sergeant came to our trench. He spoke German very +well, said he was a deserter, and begged us to regard him as our +prisoner. But the infantrymen became angry and told him to get back to +the French as quickly as possible. Meanwhile a second Frenchman had come +up and asked excitedly whether a man of theirs had not deserted to us a +short while ago. Then our section leader, a young lieutenant, arrived +upon the scene, and the Frenchman who had come last begged him to send +the deserter back. "For," so he remarked, "if our officers get to know +that one of our men has voluntarily given himself up we shall have to +say good-by to the good time we are having, and the shooting will begin +again." + +We, too, appreciated the argument that such incidents would only make +our position worse. The lieutenant vanished; he did not want to have a +finger in that pie; very likely he also desired that things remain as +they were. We quickly surrendered the deserter; each one of the two +Frenchmen was presented with a cigarette, and then they scurried away +full steam ahead. + +We felt quite happy under those circumstances and did not wish for +anything better. On our daily return journeys we observed that an +immense force of artillery was being gathered and were placed in +position further back. New guns arrived every day, but were not fired. +The same lively activity could be observed in regard to the +transportation of ammunition and material. At that time we did not yet +suspect that these were the first preparations for a strong offensive. + +After staying in that part of the country some four weeks we were again +ordered to some other part of the front. As usual we had no idea of our +new destination. Various rumors were in circulation. Some thought it +would be Flanders, others thought it would be Russia; but none guessed +right. + +We marched off and reached Dun-sur-Meuse in the afternoon. We had +scarcely got to the town when the German Crown Prince, accompanied by +some officers and a great number of hounds, rode past us. "Good day, +sappers!" he called to us, looking at us closely. He spoke to our +captain, and an officer of his staff took us to an establishment of the +Red Cross where we received good food and wine. The headquarters of the +Hohenzollern scion was here at Dun-sur-Meuse. The ladies of the Red +Cross treated us very well. We asked them whether all the troops passing +through the place were cared for as well as that. "O yes," a young lady +replied; "only few pass through here, but the Crown Prince has a special +liking for sappers." + +We lodged there for the night, and the soldiers told us that +Dun-sur-Meuse was the headquarters of the Fifth Army, that life was +often very jolly there, and every day there was an open air concert. We +heard that the officers often received ladies from Germany, but, of +course, the ladies only came to distribute gifts among the soldiers. + +Richly provided with food we continued our march the next morning, and +kept along the side of the Meuse. In the evening we were lodged at +Stenay. + + + + +XVIII + +FIGHTING IN THE ARGONNES + + +Finally, after two days, we landed at Apremont-en-Argonne. For the time +being we were quartered in a large farm to the northeast of Apremont. We +found ourselves quite close to the Argonnes. All the soldiers whom we +met and who had been there for some time told us of uninterrupted daily +fighting in those woods. + +Our first task was to construct underground shelters that should serve +as living rooms. We commenced work at about a mile and three quarters +behind the front, but had to move on after some shells had destroyed our +work again. We then constructed, about a mile and a quarter behind the +front, a camp consisting of thirty-five underground shelters. + +A hole is dug, some five yards square and two yards deep. Short tree +trunks are laid across it, and about two yards of earth piled upon them. +We had no straw, so we had to sleep on the bare ground for a while. +Rifle bullets coming from the direction of the front kept flying above +our heads and struck the trees. We were attached to the various +companies of infantry; I myself was with the tenth company of the +infantry regiment No. 67. + +The soil had been completely ploughed up by continued use, and the paths +and roads had been covered with sticks and tree trunks so that they +could be used by men and wagons. After an arduous march we reached the +foremost position. It was no easy task to find one's way in that maze of +trenches. The water was more than a foot deep in those trenches. At last +we arrived at the most advanced position and reported to the captain of +the tenth company of the 67th regiment of infantry. Of course, the +conditions obtaining there were quite unknown to us, but the men of the +infantry soon explained things to us as far as they could. After two or +three days we were already quite familiar with our surroundings, and our +many-sided duty began. + +The French lay only some ten yards away from us. The second day we were +engaged in a fight with hand grenades. In that fight Sapper Beschtel +from Saarbrucken was killed. He was our first casualty in the Argonnes, +but many were to follow him in the time that followed. In the rear +trenches we had established an engineering depot. There 25 men made +nothing but hand grenades. Thus we soon had made ourselves at home, and +were ready for all emergencies. + +At the camp we were divided in various sections. That division in +various sections gave us an idea of the endless ways and means employed +in our new position. There were mining, sapping, hand grenade sections, +sections for mine throwing and illuminating pistols. Others again +constructed wire entanglements, chevaux-de-frise, or projectiles for the +primitive mine throwers. At one time one worked in one section then +again in another. The forest country was very difficult. The thick, +tangled underwood formed by itself an almost insuperable obstacle. All +the trees were shot down up to the firing level. Cut off clean by the +machine-guns they lay in all directions on the ground, forming a natural +barricade. + +The infantrymen had told us about the difficulties under which fighting +was carried on uninterruptedly. Not a day passed without casualties. +Firing went on without a pause. The men had never experienced an +interval in the firing. We soon were to get an idea of that mass murder, +that systematic slaughter. The largest part of our company was turned +into a mine laying section, and we began to mine our most advanced +trench. For a distance of some 500 yards, a yard apart, we dug in boxes +of dynamite, each weighing 50 pounds. Each of those mines was provided +with a fuse and all were connected so that all the mines could be +exploded at the same instant. The mines were then covered with soil +again and the connecting wires taken some hundred yards to the rear. + +At that time the French were making attacks every few days. We were told +to abandon the foremost trench should an attack be made. The mines had +been laid two days when the expected attack occurred, and without +offering any great resistance we retreated to the second trench. The +French occupied the captured trench without knowing that several +thousands of pounds of explosives lay buried under their feet. So as to +cause our opponents to bring as many troops as possible into the +occupied trench we pretended to make counter attacks. As a matter of +fact the French trench was soon closely manned by French soldiers who +tried to retain it. + +But that very moment our mines were exploded. There was a mighty bang, +and several hundreds of Frenchmen were literally torn to pieces and +blown up into the air. It all happened in a moment. Parts of human +bodies spread over a large stretch of ground, and the arms, legs, and +rags of uniforms hanging in the trees, were the only signs of a well +planned mass murder. In view of that catastrophe all we had experienced +before seemed to us to be child's play. That "heroic deed" was +celebrated by a lusty hurrah. + +For some days one had gained a little advantage, only to lose it again +soon. In order to make advances the most diverse methods were used, as +was said before. The mining section would cut a subterranean passage up +to the enemy's position. The passage would branch out to the right and +left a yard or so before the position of our opponent, and run parallel +with it. The work takes of course weeks to accomplish, for the whole of +the loosened soil must be taken to the rear on small mining wagons. +Naturally, the soil taken out must not be heaped in one place, for if +that were done the enemy would get wind of our intentions and would +spoil everything by countermining. As soon as work is advanced far +enough the whole passage running parallel with the enemy's trench is +provided with explosives and dammed up. When the mine is exploded the +whole of the enemy's trench is covered by the soil that is thrown up, +burying many soldiers alive. Usually such an explosion is followed by an +assault. The sapping section, on the other hand, have to dig open +trenches running towards the enemy's position. These are connected by +transversal trenches, the purpose being to get one's own position always +closer to the enemy's. As soon as one's position has approached near +enough to make it possible to throw hand grenades into the enemy's +position the hand grenade sections have to take up their places and +bombard the enemy's trenches continually with hand grenades, day and +night. + +Some few hundred yards to the rear are the heavy modern mine throwers +firing a projectile weighing 140 pounds. Those projectiles, which look +like sugar loaves, fly cumbrously over to the enemy where they do great +damage. The trade of war must not stop at night; so the darkness is made +bright by means of illuminating rockets. The illuminating cartridge is +fired from a pistol, and for a second all is bright as day. As all that +kind of work was done by sappers the French hated the sappers +especially, and French prisoners often told us that German prisoners +with white buttons and black ribbons on their caps (sappers) would be +treated without any mercy. Warned by the statements of those prisoners +nearly all provided themselves with infantry uniforms. We knew that we +had gradually become some specialty in the trenches. + +If the infantry were molested somewhere by the enemy's hand grenades +they used to come running up to us and begged us to go and meet the +attack. Each of us received a cigar to light the hand grenades, and then +we were off. Ten or twenty of us rained hand grenades on the enemy's +trench for hours until one's arm got too stiff with throwing. + +Thus the slaughter continued, day after day, night after night. We had +48 hours in the trenches and 12 hours' sleep. It was found impossible to +divide the time differently, for we were too few. The whole of the +forest had been shot and torn to tatters. The artillery was everywhere +and kept the villages behind the enemy's position under fire. Once one +of the many batteries which we always passed on our way from camp to the +front was just firing when we came by. I interrogated one of the +sighting gunners what their target might be. "Some village or other," +the gunner replied. The representative of the leader of the battery, a +lieutenant-colonel, was present. One of my mates inquired whether women +and children might not be in the villages. "That's neither here nor +there," said the lieutenant-colonel, "the women and children are French, +too, so what's the harm done? Even their litter must be annihilated so +as to knock out of that nation for a hundred years any idea of war." + +If that "gentleman" thought to win applause he was mistaken. We went our +way, leaving him to his "enjoyment." + +On that day an assault on the enemy's position had been ordered, and we +had to be in our places at seven o'clock in the morning. The 67th +regiment was to attack punctually at half past eight, the sappers taking +the lead. The latter had been provided with hand grenades for that +purpose. We were only some twenty yards away from the enemy. Those +attacks, which were repeated every week, were prepared by artillery fire +half an hour before the assault began. The artillery had to calculate +their fire very carefully, because the distance between the trench and +that of the enemy was very small. That distance varied from three to a +hundred yards, it was nowhere more than that. At our place it was twenty +yards. Punctually at eight o'clock the artillery began to thunder forth. +The first three shots struck our own trench, but those following +squarely hit the mark, i.e., the French trench. The artillery had got +the exact range and then the volleys of whole batteries began to scream +above our heads. Every time the enemy's trench or the roads leading to +it were hit with wonderful accuracy. One could hear the wounded cry, a +sign that many a one had already been crippled. An artillery officer +made observations in the first trench and directed the fire by +telephone. + +The artillery became silent exactly at half past eight, and we passed +to the assault. But the 11th company of regiment No. 67, of which I +spoke before, found itself in a such a violent machine-gun fire that +eighteen men had been killed a few paces from our trench. The dead and +wounded had got entangled in the wild jumble of the trees and branches +encumbering the ground. Whoever could run tried to reach the enemy's +trench as quickly as possible. Some of the enemy defended themselves +desperately in their trench, which was filled with mud and water, and +violent hand to hand fighting ensued. We stood in the water up to our +knees, killing the rest of our opponents. Seriously wounded men were +lying flat in the mud with only their mouths and noses showing above the +water. But what did we care! They were stamped deeper in the mud, for we +could not see where we were stepping; and so we rolled up the whole +trench. Thereupon the conquered position was fortified as well as it +could be done in all haste. Again we had won a few yards of the Argonnes +at the price of many lives. That trench had changed its owners +innumerable times before, a matter of course in the Argonnes, and we +awaited the usual counter attack. + +Presently the "mules" began to get active. "Mules" are the guns of the +French mountain artillery. As those guns are drawn by mules, the soldier +in the Argonnes calls them "mules" for short. They are very light guns +with a flat trajectory, and are fired from a distance of only 50-100 +yards behind the French front. The shells of those guns whistled above +our heads. Cutting their way through the branches they fly along with +lightning rapidity to explode in or above some trench. In consequence of +the rapid flight and the short distance the noise of the firing and the +explosion almost unite in a single bang. Those "mules" are much feared +by the German soldiers, because those guns are active day and night. +Thus day by day we lived through the same misery. + + + + +XIX + +CHRISTMAS IN THE TRENCHES + + +Winter had arrived and it was icy cold. The trenches, all of which had +underground water, had been turned into mere mud holes. The cold at +night was intense, and we had to do 48 hours' work with 12 hours' sleep. +Every week we had to make an attack the result of which was in no +proportion to the immense losses. During the entire four months that I +was in the Argonnes we had a gain of terrain some 400 yards deep. The +following fact will show the high price that was paid in human life for +that little piece of France. All the regiments (some of these were the +infantry regiments Nos. 145, 67, 173, and the Hirschberg sharpshooting +battalion No. 5) had their own cemetery. When we were relieved in the +Argonnes there were more dead in our cemetery than our regiment counted +men. The 67th regiment had buried more than 2000 men in its cemetery, +all of whom, with the exception of a few sappers, had belonged to +regiment No. 67. Not a day passed without the loss of human lives, and +on a "storming day" death had an extraordinarily rich harvest. Each day +had its victims, sometimes more, sometimes fewer. It must appear quite +natural that under such conditions the soldiers were not in the best of +moods. The men were all completely stupefied. Just as they formerly went +to work regularly to feed the wife and children they now went to the +trenches in just the same regular way. That business of slaughtering and +working had become an every day affair. When they conversed it was +always the army leaders, the Crown Prince and Lieutenant-General von +Mudra, the general in command of the 16th Army Corps, that were most +criticized. + +The troops in the Argonnes belonged to the 16th Army Corps, to the 33rd +and 34th division of infantry. Neither of the two leaders, neither the +Crown Prince nor von Mudra, have I ever seen in the trenches. The staff +of the Crown Prince had among its members the old General-Fieldmarshal +Count von Haeseler, the former commander of the 16th Army Corps, a man +who in times of peace was already known as a relentless slave driver. +The "triplets," as we called the trio, the Crown Prince, von Mudra, and +Count von Haeseler, were more hated by most of the soldiers than the +Frenchman who was out with his gun to take our miserable life. + +Many miles behind the front the scion of the Hohenzollerns found no +difficulty to spout his "knock them hard!" and, at the price of +thousands of human lives, to make himself popular with the patriots at +home who were sitting there behind the snug stove or at the beer table +complaining that we did not advance fast enough. Von Mudra got the order +"Pour le merite"; they did not think of his soldiers who had not seen a +bed, nor taken off their trousers or boots for months; these were +provided with food--and shells, and were almost being eaten up by +vermin. + +That we were covered with body lice was not to be wondered at, for we +had scarcely enough water for drinking purposes, and could not think of +having a wash. We had worn our clothes for months without changing +them; the hair on our heads and our beards had grown to great length. +When we had some hours in which to rest, the lice would not let us +sleep. + +The air in the shelters was downright pestiferous, and to that foul +stench of perspiration and putrefaction was added the plague of lice. At +times one was sitting up for hours and could not sleep, though one was +dead tired. One could catch lice, and the more one caught the worse they +got. We were urgently in want of sleep, but it was impossible to close +the eyes on account of the vermin. We led a loathsome, pitiful life, and +at times we said to one another that nobody at home even suspected the +condition we were in. We often told one another that if later on we +should relate to our families the facts as they really were they would +not believe them. Many soldiers tried to put our daily experience in +verse. + +There were many of such jingles illustrating our barbarous handicraft. + +It was in the month of December and the weather was extremely cold. At +times we often stood in the trenches with the mud running into our +trousers' pockets. In those icy cold nights we used to sit in the +trenches almost frozen to a lump of ice, and when utter exhaustion +sometimes vanquished us and put us to sleep we found our boots frozen to +the ground on waking up. Quite a number of soldiers suffered from +frost-bitten limbs; it was mostly their toes that were frost-bitten. +They had to be taken to the hospital. The soldiers on duty fired +incessantly so as to keep their fingers warm. + +Not all the soldiers are as a rule kept ready to give battle. If no +attack is expected or intended, only sentries occupy the trench. About +three yards apart a man is posted behind his protective shield of +steel. Nevertheless all the men are in the trench. The sentries keep +their section under a continual fire, especially when it is cold and +dark. The fingers get warm when one pulls the trigger. Of course, one +cannot aim in the darkness, and the shots are fired at random. The +sentry sweeps his section so that no hostile patrol can approach, for he +is never safe in that thicket. Thus it happens that the firing is +generally more violent at night than at day; but there is never an +interval. The rifles are fired continually; the bullets keep whistling +above our trench and patter against the branches. The mines, too, come +flying over at night, dropping at a high angle. Everybody knows the +scarcely audible thud, and knows at once that it is a mine without +seeing anything. He warns the others by calling out, "Mine coming!" and +everybody looks in the darkness for the "glow-worm," i.e., the burning +fuse of the mine. The glowing fuse betrays the direction of the mine, +and there are always a few short seconds left to get round some corner. +The same is the case with the hand grenades. They, too, betray the line +of their flight at night by their burning fuse. If they do not happen to +arrive in too great numbers one mostly succeeds in getting out of their +way. In daylight that is not so hard because one can overlook +everything. It often happens that one cannot save oneself in time from +the approaching hand grenade. In that case there is only one +alternative--either to remain alive or be torn to atoms. Should a hand +grenade suddenly fall before one's feet one picks it up without +hesitation as swiftly as possible and throws it away, if possible back +into the enemy's trench. Often, however, the fuse is of such a length +that the grenade does not even explode after reaching the enemy's +trench again, and the Frenchman throws it back again with fabulous +celerity. In order to avoid the danger of having a grenade returned the +fuse is made as short as possible, and yet a grenade will come back now +and again in spite of all. To return a grenade is of course dangerous +work, but a man has no great choice; if he leaves the grenade where it +drops he is lost, as he cannot run away; and he knows he will be crushed +to atoms, and thus his only chance is to pick up the grenade and throw +it away even at the risk of having the bomb explode in his hand. I know +of hand grenades thrown by the French that flew hither and thither +several times. One was thrown by the French and immediately returned; it +came back again in an instant, and again we threw it over to them; it +did not reach the enemy's trench that time, but exploded in the air. + +Though in general the infantry bullets cannot do much damage while one +is in the trench it happens daily that men are killed by ricochet +bullets. The thousands of bullets that cut through the air every minute +all pass above our heads. But some strike a tree or branch and glance +off. If in that case they hit a man in the trench they cause terrible +injuries, because they do not strike with their heads but lengthwise. +Whenever we heard of dum-dum bullets we thought of those ricochet +bullets, though we did not doubt that there were dum-dum bullets in +existence. I doubt, however, if dum-dum bullets are manufactured in +factories, for the following reasons:--first, because a dum-dum bullet +can easily damage the barrel of a rifle and make it useless; secondly, +because the average soldier would refuse to carry such ammunition, for +if a man is captured and such bullets are found on him, the enemy in +whose power he is would punish him by the laws of war as pitilessly as +such an inhuman practice deserves to be punished. Generally, of course, +a soldier only executes his orders. + +However, there exist dum-dum bullets, as I mentioned before. They are +manufactured by the soldiers themselves. If the point is filed or cut +off a German infantry bullet, so that the nickel case is cut through and +the lead core is laid bare, the bullet explodes when striking or +penetrating an object. Should a man be hit in the upper arm by such a +projectile the latter, by its explosive force, can mangle the arm to +such an extent that it only hangs by a piece of skin. + +Christmas came along, and we still found ourselves at the same place +without any hope of a change. We received all kinds of gifts from our +relations at home and other people. We were at last able to change our +underwear which we had worn for months. + +Christmas in the trenches! It was bitterly cold. We had procured a pine +tree, for there were no fir trees to be had. We had decorated the tree +with candles and cookies, and had imitated the snow with wadding. + +Christmas trees were burning everywhere in the trenches, and at midnight +all the trees were lifted on to the parapet with their burning candles, +and along the whole line German soldiers began to sing Christmas songs +in chorus. "O, thou blissful, O, thou joyous, mercy bringing Christmas +time!" Hundreds of men were singing the song in that fearful wood. Not a +shot was fired; the French had ceased firing along the whole line. That +night I was with a company that was only five paces away from the enemy. +The Christmas candles were burning brightly, and were renewed again and +again. For the first time we heard no shots. From everywhere, +throughout the forest, one could hear powerful carols come floating +over--"Peace on earth--" + +The French left their trenches and stood on the parapet without any +fear. There they stood, quite overpowered by emotion, and all of them +with cap in hand. We, too, had issued from our trenches. We exchanged +gifts with the French--chocolate, cigarettes, etc. They were all +laughing, and so were we; why, we did not know. Then everybody went back +to his trench, and incessantly the carol resounded, ever more solemnly, +ever more longingly--"O, thou blissful--" + +All around silence reigned; even the murdered trees seemed to listen; +the charm continued, and one scarcely dared to speak. Why could it not +always be as peaceful? We thought and thought, we were as dreamers, and +had forgotten everything about us.--Suddenly a shot rang out; then +another one was fired somewhere. The spell was broken. All rushed to +their rifles. A rolling fire. Our Christmas was over. + +We took up again our old existence. A young infantryman stood next to +me. He tried to get out of the trench. I told him: "Stay here; the +French will shoot you to pieces." "I left a box of cigars up there, and +must have it back." Another one told him to wait till things quieted +down somewhat. "They won't hit me; I have been here three months, and +they never caught me yet." "As you wish; go ahead!" + +Scarcely had he put his head above the parapet when he tumbled back. +Part of his brains was sticking to my belt. His cap flew high up into +the air. His skull was shattered. He was dead on the spot. His trials +were over. The cigars were later on fetched by another man. + +On the following Christmas day an army order was read out. We were +forbidden to wear or have in our possession things of French origin; +for, every soldier who was found in possession of such things would be +put before a court-martial as a marauder by the French if they captured +him. We were forbidden to use objects captured from the French, and we +were especially forbidden to make use of woolen blankets, because the +French were infected with scabies. Scabies is an itching skin disease, +which it takes at least a week to cure. But the order had a contrary +effect. If one was the owner of such an "itch-blanket" one had a chance +of getting into the hospital for some days. The illness was not of a +serious nature, and one was at least safe from bullets for a few days. +Every day soldiers were sent to the hospital, and we, too, were watching +for a chance to grab such a French blanket. What did a man care, if he +could only get out of that hell! + + + + +XX + +THE "ITCH"--A SAVIOR + + +On January 5th the Germans attacked along the whole forest front, and +took more than 1800 prisoners. We alone had captured 700 men of the +French infantry regiment No. 120. The hand to hand fighting lasted till +six o'clock at night. On that day I, together with another sapper, got +into a trench section that was still being defended by eight Frenchmen. +We could not back out, so we had to take up the unequal struggle. +Fortunately we were well provided with hand grenades. We cut the fuses +so short that they exploded at the earliest moment. I threw one in the +midst of the eight Frenchmen. They had scarcely escaped the first one, +when the second arrived into which they ran. We utilized their momentary +confusion by throwing five more in quick succession. We had reduced our +opponents to four. Then we opened a rifle fire, creeping closer and +closer up to them. Their bullets kept whistling above our heads. One of +the Frenchmen was shot in the mouth; three more were left. These turned +to flee. In such moments one is seized with an indescribable rage and +forgets all about the danger that surrounds one. We had come quite near +to them, when the last one stumbled and fell forward on his face. In a +trice I was on him; he fought desperately with his fists; my mate was +following the other two. I kept on wrestling with my opponent. He was +bleeding from his mouth; I had knocked out some of his teeth. Then he +surrendered and raised his hands. I let go and then had a good look at +him. He was some 35 years old, about ten years older than myself. I now +felt sorry for him. He pointed to his wedding ring, talking to me all +the while. I understood what he wanted--he wanted to be kept alive. He +handed me his bottle, inviting me to drink wine. He cried; maybe he +thought of his wife and children. I pressed his hand, and he showed me +his bleeding teeth. "You are a silly fellow," I told him; "you have been +lucky. The few missing teeth don't matter. For you the slaughtering is +finished; come along!" I was glad I had not killed him, and took him +along myself so as to protect him from being ill-treated. When I handed +him over he pressed my hand thankfully and laughed; he was happy to be +safe. However bad the time he might have as prisoner he would be better +off at any rate than in the trenches. At least he had a chance of +getting home again. + +In the evening we took some of the forbidden blankets, hundreds of which +we had captured that day. Ten of us were lying in a shelter, all +provided with blankets. Everybody wanted to get the "itch," however +strange that may sound. We undressed and rolled ourselves in those +blankets. Twenty-four hours later little red pimples showed themselves +all over the body, and twelve men reported sick. The blankets were used +in the whole company, but all of them had not the desired effect. The +doctor sent nine of us to the hospital at Montmédy, and that very +evening we left the camp in high glee. The railroad depot at Apremont +had been badly shelled; the next station was Chatel. Both places are a +little more than three miles behind the front. At Apremont the prisoners +were divided into sections. Some of the prisoners had their homes at +Apremont. Their families were still occupying their houses, and the +prisoners asked to be allowed to pay them a visit. I chanced to observe +one of those meetings at Apremont. Two men of the landstrum led one of +the prisoners to the house which he pointed out to them as his own. The +young wife of the prisoner was sitting in the kitchen with her three +children. We followed the men into the house. The woman became as white +as a sheet when she beheld her husband suddenly. They rushed to meet +each other and fell into each other's arms. We went out, for we felt +that we were not wanted. The wife had not been able to get the slightest +signs from her husband for the last five months, for the German forces +had been between her and him. He, on the other hand, had been in the +trench for months knowing that his wife and children must be there, on +the other side, very near, yet not to be reached. He did not know +whether they were alive or dead. He heard the French shells scream above +his head. Would they hit Apremont? He wondered whether it was his own +house that had been set alight by a shell and was reddening the sky at +night. He did not know. The uncertainty tortured him, and life became +hell. Now he was at home, though only for a few hours. He had to leave +again a prisoner; but now he could send a letter to his wife by the +field post. He had to take leave. She had nothing she could give him--no +underwear, no food, absolutely nothing. She had lost all and had to rely +on the charity of the soldiers. She handed him her last money, but he +returned it. We could not understand what they told each other. She took +the money back; it was German money, five and ten pfennig pieces and +some coppers--her whole belongings. We could no longer contain +ourselves and made a collection among ourselves. We got more than ten +marks together which we gave to the young woman. At first she refused to +take it and looked at her husband. Then she took it and wanted to kiss +our hands. We warded her off, and she ran to the nearest canteen and +bought things. Returning with cigars, tobacco, matches, and sausage, she +handed all over to her husband with a radiant face. She laughed, once +again perhaps in a long time, and sent us grateful looks. The children +clung round their father and kissed him again and again. She accompanied +her husband, who carried two of the kiddies, one on each arm, while his +wife carried the third child. Beaming with happiness the family marched +along between the two landsturm men who had their bayonets fixed. When +they had to take leave, all of them, parents and children began to weep. +She knew that her husband was no longer in constant danger, and she was +happy, for though she had lost much, she still had her most precious +possessions. + +Thousands of poor men and women have met such a fate near their homes. + +Regular trains left Chatel. We quitted the place at 11 o'clock at night, +heartily glad to leave the Argonnes behind us. We had to change trains +at Vouzières, and took the train to Diedenhofen. There we saw twelve +soldiers with fixed bayonets take along three Frenchmen. They were +elderly men in civilian dress. We had no idea what it signified, so we +entered into a conversation with one of our fellow travelers. He was a +merchant, a Frenchman living at Vouzières, and spoke German fluently. +The merchant was on a business trip to Sédan, and told us that the three +civilian prisoners were citizens of his town. He said: "We obtain our +means of life from the German military authorities, but mostly we do not +receive enough to live, and the people have nothing left of their own; +all the cattle and food have been commandeered. Those three men refused +to keep on working for the military authorities, because they could not +live on the things they were given. They were arrested and are now being +transported to Germany. Of course, we don't know what will happen to +them." + +The man also told us that all the young men had been taken away by the +Germans; all of them had been interned in Germany. + +At Sédan we had to wait for five hours; for hospital trains were +constantly arriving. It was 2 o'clock in the afternoon of the following +day when we reached Montmédy, where we went to the hospital. There all +our clothes were disinfected in the "unlousing establishment," and we +could take a proper bath. We were lodged in the large barracks. There +one met people from all parts of the front, and all of them had only +known the same misery; there was not one among them who did not curse +this war. All of them were glad to be in safety, and all of them tried +their best to be "sick" as long as possible. Each day we were twice +treated with ointment; otherwise we were at liberty to walk about the +place. + +One day we paid a visit to the fortress of Montmédy high up on a hill. +Several hundreds of prisoners were just being fed there. They were +standing about in the yard of the fortress and were eating their soup. +One of the prisoners came straight up to me. I had not noticed him +particularly, and recognized him only when he stood before me. He was +the man I had struggled with on January 5th, and we greeted each other +cordially. He had brought along a prisoner who spoke German well and who +interpreted for us all we had to say to each other. He had seen me +standing about and had recognized me at once. Again and again he told me +how glad he was to be a prisoner. Like myself he was a soldier because +he had to be, and not from choice. At that time we had fought with each +other in blind rage; for a moment we had been deadly enemies. I felt +happy at having stayed my fury at that time, and again I became aware of +the utter idiocy of that barbarous slaughter. We separated with a firm +handshake. + +A fortnight I remained at the hospital; then I had to return to the +front. We had been treated well at the hospital, so we started on our +return journey with mixed feelings. As soon as we arrived at Chatel, the +terminus, we heard the incessant gun fire. It was no use kicking, we had +to go into the forest again. When we reached our old camp, we found that +different troops were occupying it. Our company had left, nobody knew +for what destination. Wherever we asked, nobody could give us any +information. So we had to go back to the command of our corps, the +headquarters of which were at Corney at that time. We left Chatel again +by a hospital train, and reached Corney after half an hour's journey. +Corney harbored the General Staff of the 16th Army Corps, and we thought +they surely ought to know where our company was. General von Mudra and +his officers had taken up their quarters in a large villa. The house was +guarded by three double sentries. We showed our pay books and hospital +certificates, and an orderly led us to a spacious room. It was the +telephone room. There the wires from all the divisional fronts ran +together, and the apparatus were in constant use. A sergeant-major +looked into the lists and upon the maps. In two minutes he had found our +company. He showed us on the map where it was fighting and where its +camp was. "The camp is at the northern end of Verennes," he said, "and +the company belongs to the 34th division; formerly it was part of the +33rd. The position it is in is in the villages of Vauquois and +Boureuilles." Then he explained to us on the map the direction we were +to take, and we could trot off. We returned by rail to Chatel, and went +on foot from there to Apremont. We spent the night in the half destroyed +depot of Apremont. In order to get to Varennes we had to march to the +south. On our way we saw French prisoners mending the roads. Most of +them were black colonial troops in picturesque uniforms. On that road +Austrian motor batteries were posted. Three of those 30.5-cm. howitzers +were standing behind a rocky slope, but did not fire. When at noon we +reached the height of Varennes we saw the whole wide plan in front of +us. Varennes itself was immediately in front of us in the valley. A +little farther up on the heights was Vauquois. No houses were to be +seen; one could only notice a heap of rubbish through the field glasses. +Shells kept exploding in that rubbish heap continually, and we felt a +cold sweat run down our backs at the thought that the place up there was +our destination. We had scarcely passed the ridge when some shells +exploded behind us. At that place the French were shooting with +artillery at individuals. As long as Vauquois had been in their power +they had been able to survey the whole country, and we comprehended why +that heap of rubbish was so bitterly fought for. We ran down the slope +and found ourselves in Varennes. The southern portion of the village had +been shelled to pieces and gutted. Only most of the chimneys which were +built apart from the bottom upward, had remained standing, thin +blackened forms rising out of the ruins into the air. Everywhere we saw +groups of soldiers collecting the remaining more expensive metals which +were sent to Germany. Among other things church-bells melted into +shapeless lumps were also loaded on wagons and taken away. All the +copper, brass, tin, and lead that could be got was collected. + + + + +XXI + +IN THE HELL OF VAUQUOIS + + +We soon found our company, and our comrades told us what hell they had +gotten into. The next morning our turn came, too. We had to reach the +position before day-break, for as soon as it got light the French kept +all approaches under constant fire. There was no trace of trenches at +Vauquois. All that could be seen were pieces of stones. Not a stone had +literally remained on the other at Vauquois. That heap of ruins, once a +village, had changed hands no less than fifteen times. When we arrived +half of the place was in the possession of the Germans. But the French +dominated the highest point, whence they could survey the whole country +for many miles around. In the absence of a trench we sought cover behind +stones, for it was absolutely impossible to construct trenches; the +artillery was shooting everything to pieces. + +Thus the soldiers squatted behind piles of stones and fired as fast as +their rifles would allow. Guns of all sizes were bombarding the village +incessantly. There was an army of corpses, Frenchmen and Germans, all +lying about pell-mell. At first we thought that that terrible state of +things was only temporary, but after a few days we recognized that a +slaughter worse than madness was a continuous state of things at that +place. Day and night, ever the same. With Verdun as a base of operations +the French continually brought up fresh masses of troops. They had +carried along a field railroad the heavy pieces of the neighboring forts +of Verdun, and in the spring of 1915 an offensive of a local, but +murderous kind was begun. The artillery of both sides bombarded the +place to such an extent that not a foot of ground could be found that +was not torn up by shells. Thousands upon thousands of shells of all +sizes were employed. The bombardment from both sides lasted three days +and three nights, until at last not a soldier, neither French nor +German, was left in the village. Both sides had been obliged to retreat +before the infernal fire of the opponent, for not a man would have +escaped alive out of that inferno. The whole slope and height were +veiled in an impenetrable smoke. In the evening of the third day the +enemy's bombardment died down a little, and we were ordered to go +forward again into the shell torn ruins. It was not yet quite dark when +the French advanced in close order. + +We were in possession of almost the whole of the village, and had placed +one machine-gun next to the other. We could see the projectiles of the +artillery burst in great numbers among the reserves of the attackers. +Our machine-guns literally mowed down the first ranks. Five times the +French renewed their attack during that night, their artillery meanwhile +making great gaps in our ranks. We soldiers calculated that the two +sides had together some three or four thousand men killed in that one +night. Next morning the French eased their attacks, and their guns +treated us again to the accustomed drum fire. We stood it until 10 +o'clock in the morning; then we retreated again without awaiting orders, +leaving innumerable dead men behind. Again the French advanced in the +face of a violent German artillery fire, and effected a lodgment at the +northern edge of the village of Vauquois that used to be. A few piles of +stones was all that still belonged to us. We managed to put a few stones +before us as a protection. The guns of neither side could hurt us or +them, for they, the enemy, were but ten paces away. But the country +behind us was plowed by projectiles. In face of the machine gun fire it +was found impossible to bring up ammunition. + +The sappers undid the coils of rope worn round their bodies, and three +men or more crept back with them. One of them was killed; the others +arrived safely and attached the packets of cartridges to the rope. Thus +we brought up the ammunition by means of a rope running in a circle, +until we had enough or till the rope was shot through. At three o'clock +in the afternoon we attacked again, but found it impossible to rise from +the ground on account of the hail of bullets. Everybody was shouting, +"Sappers to the front with hand grenades!" Not a sapper stirred. We are +only human, after all. + +A sergeant-major of the infantry came creeping up. He looked as if +demented, his eyes were bloodshot. "You're a sapper?" "Yes," "Advance!" +"Alone?" "We're coming along!" We had to roar at each other in order to +make ourselves understood in the deafening, confounded row. Another +sapper lay beside me. When the sergeant-major saw that he could do +nothing with me he turned to the other fellow. That man motioned to him +to desist, but the sergeant-major got ever more insistent, until the +sapper showed him his dagger, and then our superior slung his hook. Some +twenty hand grenades were lying in front of us. Ten of them I had +attached to my belt for all emergencies. I said to myself that if all +of them exploded there would not be much left of me. I had a lighted +cigar in my mouth. I lit one bomb after the other and threw them over to +some Frenchmen who were working a machine-gun in front of me, behind a +heap of stones. All around me the bullets of the machine-guns were +splitting the stones. I had already thrown four grenades, but all of +them had overshot the mark. I took some stones and threw them to find +out how far I would have to throw in order to hit the fire spitting +machine in front. My aim got more accurate each time until I hit the +barrel of the gun. "If it had only been a hand grenade," I thought. An +infantryman close to me was shot through the shell of one ear, half of +which was cut in pieces; the blood was streaming down his neck. I had no +more material for bandaging except some wadding, which I attached to his +wound. In my pocket I had a roll of insulating ribbon, rubber used to +insulate wires; with that I bandaged him. He pointed to the machine-gun. +Thereupon I gave him my cigar, telling him to keep it well alight so as +to make the fuse which I desired to light by it burn well. In quick +succession I threw six hand grenades. I don't know how many of them took +effect, but the rags of uniforms flying about and a demolished +machine-gun said enough. When we advanced later on I observed three dead +men lying round the machine-gun. + +That was only one example of the usual, daily occurrences that happen +day and night, again and again and everywhere, and the immense number of +such actions of individual soldiers makes the enormous loss of human +life comprehensible. + +We were still lying there without proceeding to the attack. Again +ammunition was brought up by ropes from the rear. A hand grenade duel +ensued; hundreds of hand grenades were thrown by both sides. Things +could not go on long like that; we felt that something was bound to +happen. Without receiving an order and yet as if by command we all +jumped up and advanced with the dagger in our hands right through the +murderous fire, and engaged in the maddest hand to hand fighting. The +daggers, sharp as razors, were plunged into head after head, chest after +chest. One stood on corpses in order to make other men corpses. New +enemies came running up. One had scarcely finished with one when three +more appeared on the scene. + +We, too, got reinforcements. One continued to murder and expected to be +struck down oneself the next moment. One did not care a cent for one's +life, but fought like an animal. I stumbled and fell on the stones. At +that very moment I caught sight of a gigantic Frenchman before me who +was on the point of bringing his sapper's spade down on me. I moved +aside with lightning speed, and the blow fell upon the stone. In a +moment my dagger was in his stomach more than up to the hilt. He went +down with a horrible cry, rolling in his blood in maddening pain. I put +the bloody dagger back in my boot and took hold of the spade. All around +me I beheld new enemies. The spade I found to be a handy weapon. I hit +one opponent between head and shoulder. The sharp spade half went +through the body; I heard the cracking of the bones that were struck. +Another enemy was close to me. I dropped the spade and took hold of my +dagger again. All happened as in a flash. My opponent struck me in the +face, and the blood came pouring out of my mouth and nose. We began to +wrestle with each other. I had the dagger in my right hand. We had +taken hold of each other round the chest. He was no stronger than +myself, but he held me as firmly as I held him. We tried to fight each +other with our teeth. I had the dagger in my hand, but could not strike. +Who was it to be? He or I? One of us two was sure to go down. I got the +dagger in such a position that its point rested on his back. Then I +pressed his trembling body still more firmly to myself. He fastened his +teeth in my shaggy beard, and I felt a terrible pain. I pressed him +still more firmly so that his ribs almost began to crack and, summoning +all my strength, I pushed the dagger into the right side of his back, +just below the shoulderblade. In frightful pain he turned himself round +several times, fell on his face, and lay groaning on the ground. I +withdrew my dagger; he bled to death like many thousands. + +We had pushed back the French for some yards when we received strong +assistance. After a short fight the enemy turned and fled, and we +followed him as far as the southern edge of the village. There the +French made a counterattack with fresh bodies of men and threw us back +again for some 50 yards. Then the attack was halted, and we found +ourselves again where we had been at the beginning of that four days' +slaughter. Thousands of corpses were covering the ruins of Vauquois, all +sacrificed in vain. + + + + +XXII + +SENT ON FURLOUGH + + +For four days and nights, without food and sleep, we had been raging +like barbarians, and had spent all our strength. We were soon relieved. +To our astonishment we were relieved by cavalry. They were Saxon +chasseurs on horseback who were to do duty as infantrymen. It had been +found impossible to make good the enormous losses of the preceding days +by sending up men of the depot. So they had called upon the cavalry who, +by the way, were frequently employed during that time. The soldiers who +had been in a life and death struggle for four days were demoralized to +such an extent that they had no longer any fighting value. We were +relieved very quietly, and could then return to our camp. We did not +hear before the next day that during the period described our company +had suffered a total loss of 49 men. The fate of most of them was +unknown; one did not know whether they were dead or prisoners or whether +they lay wounded in some ambulance station. + +The village of Varennes was continually bombarded by French guns of +large size. Several French families were still living in a part of the +village that had not been so badly damaged. Every day several of the +enemy's 28-cm. shells came down in that quarter. Though many inhabitants +had been wounded by the shells the people could not be induced to leave +their houses. + +Our quarters were situated near a very steep slope and were thus +protected against artillery fire. They consisted of wooden shanties +built by ourselves. We had brought up furniture from everywhere and had +made ourselves at home; for Varennes was, after all, nearly two miles +behind the front. But all the shanties were not occupied, for the number +of our men diminished from day to day. At last the longed-for men from +the depot arrived. Many new sapper formations had to be got together for +all parts of the front, and it was therefore impossible to supply the +existing sapper detachments with their regular reserves. Joyfully we +greeted the new arrivals. They were, as was always the case, men of very +different ages; a young boyish volunteer of 17 years would march next to +an old man of the landsturm who had likewise volunteered. All of them, +without any exception, have bitterly repented of their "free choice" and +made no secret of it. "It's a shame," a comrade told me, "that those +seventeen-year-old children should be led to the slaughter, and that +their young life is being poisoned, as it needs must be in these +surroundings; scarcely out of boyhood, they are being shot down like mad +dogs." + +It took but a few days for the volunteers--all of them without an +exception--to repent bitterly of their resolve, and every soldier who +had been in the war for any length of time would reproach them when they +gave expression to their great disappointment. "But you have come +voluntarily," they were told; "we had to go, else we should have been +off long ago." Yet we knew that all those young people had been under +some influence and had been given a wrong picture of the war. + +Those soldiers who had been in the war from the start who had not been +wounded, but had gone through all the fighting, were gradually all sent +home on furlough for ten days. Though our company contained but 14 +unwounded soldiers it was very hard to obtain the furlough. We had lost +several times the number of men on our muster-roll, but all our officers +were still in good physical condition. + +It was not until September that I managed to obtain furlough at the +request of my relations, and I left for home with a resolve that at +times seemed to me impossible to execute. All went well until I got to +Diedenhofen. + +As far as that station the railroads are operated by the army +authorities. At Diedenhofen they are taken over by the Imperial +Railroads of Alsace-Lorraine and the Prusso-Hessian State Railroads. So +I had to change, and got on a train that went to Saarbruecken. I had +scarcely taken a seat in a compartment in my dirty and ragged uniform +when a conductor came along to inspect the tickets. Of course, I had no +ticket; I had only a furlough certificate and a pass which had been +handed to me at the field railroad depot of Chatel. The conductor looked +at the papers and asked me again for my ticket. I drew his attention to +my pass. "That is only good for the territory of the war operations," he +said; "you are now traveling on a state railroad and have to buy a +ticket." + +I told him that I should not buy a ticket, and asked him to inform the +station manager. "You," I told him, "only act according to instructions. +I am not angry with you for asking of me what I shall do under no +circumstances." He went off and came back with the manager. The latter +also inspected my papers and told me I had to pay for the journey. "I +have no means for that purpose," I told him. "For these last three +years I have been in these clothes" (I pointed to my uniform), "and for +three years I have therefore been without any income. Whence am I to get +the money to pay for this journey?" "If you have no money for traveling +you can't take furlough." I thought to myself that if they took me deep +into France they were in conscience bound to take me back to where they +had fetched me. Was I to be a soldier for three years and fight for the +Fatherland for more than a year only to find that now they refused the +free use of their railroads to a ragged soldier? I explained that I was +not going to pay, that I could not save the fare from the few pfennigs' +pay. I refused explicitly to pay a soldier's journey with my private +money, even if--as was the case here--that soldier was myself. Finally I +told him, "I must request you to inform the military railroad commander; +the depot command attends to soldiers, not you." He sent me a furious +look through his horn spectacles and disappeared. Two civilians were +sitting in the same compartment with me; they thought it an unheard-of +thing that a soldier coming from the front should be asked for his fare. +Presently the depot commander came up with a sergeant. He demanded to +see my furlough certificate, pay books, and all my other papers. + +"Have you any money?" + +"No." + +"Where do you come from?" + +"From Chatel in the Argonnes." + +"How long were you at the front?" + +"In the fourteenth month." + +"Been wounded?" + +"No." + +"Have you no money at all?" + +"No; you don't want money at the front." + +"The fare must be paid. If you can't, the company must pay. Please sign +this paper." + +I signed it without looking at it. It was all one to me what I signed, +as long as they left me alone. Then the sergeant came back. + +"You can not travel in that compartment; you must also not converse with +travelers. You have to take the first carriage marked 'Only for the +military.' Get into that." + +"I see," I observed; "in the dogs' compartment." + +He turned round again and said, "Cut out those remarks." + +The train started, and I arrived safely home. After the first hours of +meeting all at home again had passed I found myself provided with +faultless underwear and had taken the urgently needed bath. Once more I +could put on the civilian dress I had missed for so long a time. All of +it appeared strange to me. I began to think. Under no conditions was I +going to return to the front. But I did not know how I should succeed in +getting across the frontier. I could choose between two countries +only--Switzerland and Holland. It was no use going to Switzerland, for +that country was surrounded by belligerent states, and it needed only a +little spark to bring Switzerland into the war, and then there would be +no loophole for me. There was only the nearest country left for me to +choose--Holland. But how was I to get there? There was the rub. I +concocted a thousand plans and discarded them again. Nobody, not even my +relatives, must know about it. + + + + +XXIII + +THE FLIGHT TO HOLLAND + + +My furlough soon neared its end; there were only four days left. I +remembered a good old friend in a Rhenish town. My plan was made. +Without my family noticing it I packed a suit, boots, and all +necessities, and told them at home that I was going to visit my friend. +To him I revealed my intentions, and he was ready to help me in every +possible manner. + +My furlough was over. I put on my uniform, and my relations were left in +the belief that I was returning to the front. I went, however, to my +friend and changed into civilian clothes. I destroyed my uniform and +arms, throwing the lot into the river near by. Thus having destroyed all +traces, I left and arrived at Cologne after some criss-cross traveling. +Thence I journeyed to Duesseldorf and stayed at night at an hotel. I had +already overstayed my leave several days. Thousands of thoughts went +through my brain. I was fully aware that I would lose my life if +everything did not come to pass according to the program. I intended to +cross the frontier near Venlo (Holland). I knew, however, that the +frontier was closely guarded. + +The country round Venlo, the course of the frontier in those parts were +unknown to me; in fact, I was a complete stranger. I made another plan. +I returned to my friend and told him that it was absolutely necessary +for me to get to know the frontier district and to procure a map showing +the terrain. I also informed him that I had to get hold of a false +identification paper. He gave me a landsturm certificate which was to +identify me in case of need. In my note-book I drew the exact course of +the frontier from a railway map, and then I departed again. + +Dead tired, I reached Crefeld that night by the last train. I could not +go on. So I went into the first hotel and hired a room. I wrote the name +that was on the false paper into the register and went to sleep. At six +o'clock in the morning there was a knock at my door. + +"Who is there?" + +"The police." + +"The police?" + +"Yes; the political police." + +I opened the door. + +"Here lives ...? (he mentioned the name in which I had registered). + +"Yes." + +"Have you any identification papers?" + +"If you please," I said, handing him the landsturm certificate. + +"Everything in order; pardon me for having disturbed you." + +"You're welcome; you're welcome," I hastened to reply, and thought how +polite the police was. + +That well-known leaden weight fell from my chest, but I had no mind to +go to sleep again. Whilst I was dressing I heard him visit all the +guests of the hotel. I had not thought of the customary inspection of +strangers in frontier towns. It was a good thing I had been armed for +that event. + +Without taking breakfast (my appetite had vanished) I went to the depot +and risked traveling to Kempten in spite of the great number of +policemen that were about. I calculated by the map that the frontier was +still some fifteen miles away. I had not much baggage with me, only a +small bag, a raincoat and an umbrella. I marched along the country road +and in five hours I reached the village of Herongen. To the left of that +place was the village of Niederhofen. Everywhere I saw farmers working +in the fields. They would have to inform me of how the line of the +frontier ran and how it was being watched. In order to procure that +information I selected only those people who, to judge by their +appearance, were no "great lights of the church." + +Without arousing suspicion I got to know that the names of the two +places were "Herongen" and "Niederhofen," and that a troop of +cuirassiers were quartered at Herongen. The man told me that the +soldiers were lodged in the dancing hall of the Schwarz Inn. Presently I +met a man who was cutting a hedge. He was a Hollander who went home +across the frontier every night; he had a passport. "You are the man for +me," I thought to myself, and said aloud that I had met several +Hollanders in that part of the country (he was the first one), and gave +him a cigar. I mentioned to him that I had visited an acquaintance in +the Schwarz Inn at Herongen. + +"Yes," he said; "they are there." + +"But my friend had to go on duty, so I am having a look round." + +"They have got plenty to do near the frontier." + +"Indeed?" + +"Every thirty minutes and oftener a cavalry patrol, and every quarter of +an hour an infantry patrol go scouting along the frontier." + +"And how does the frontier run?" I queried, offering him a light for +his cigar. + +He showed me with his hand. + +"Here in front of you, then right through the woods, then up there; +those high steeples towering over the woods belong to the factories of +Venlo." + +I knew enough. After a few remarks I left him. All goes according to my +program, I thought. But there was a new undertaking before me. I had to +venture close enough to the frontier to be able to watch the patrols +without being seen by them. That I succeeded in doing during the +following night. + +I hid in the thick underwood; open country was in front of me. I +remained at that spot for three days and nights. It rained and at night +it was very chilly. On the evening of the third day I resolved to +execute my plan that night. + +Regularly every fifteen minutes a patrol of from three to six soldiers +arrived. When it had got dark I changed my place for one more to the +right, some five hundred yards from the frontier. I said to myself that +I would have to venture out as soon as it got a little lighter. In the +darkness I could not see anything. It would have to be done in twilight. +I had rolled my overcoat into a bundle to avoid making a noise against +the trees. I advanced just after a patrol had passed. I went forward +slowly and stepped out cautiously without making a noise. Then I walked +with ever increasing rapidity. Suddenly a patrol appeared on my right. +The frontier was about three hundred yards away from me. The patrol had +about two hundred yards to the point of the frontier nearest to me. +Victory would fall to the best and swiftest runner. The patrol consisted +of five men; they fired several times. That did not bother me. I threw +everything away and, summoning all my strength, I made in huge leaps for +the frontier which I passed like a whirlwind. I ran past the pointed +frontier stone and stopped fifty yards away from it. I was quite out of +breath, and an indescribable happy feeling took hold of me. I felt like +crying into the world that at last I was free. + +I seated myself on the stump of a tree and lit a cigar, quite steadily +and slowly; for now I had time. Scarcely fifty yards away, near the +frontier stone, was the disappointed patrol. I read on the side of the +frontier stone facing me, "Koningrjk der Nederlanden" (Kingdom of the +Netherlands). I had to laugh with joy. "Who are you?" one of the German +patrol called to me. "The Hollanders have now the right to ask that +question; you've got that right no longer, old fellow," I replied. They +called me all manner of names, but that did not excite me. I asked them: +"Why don't you throw me over my bag which I threw away in the hurry? It +contains some washing I took along with me so as to get into a decent +country like a decent man." + +Attracted by that conversation, a Dutch patrol, a sergeant and three +men, came up. The sergeant questioned me, and I told him all. He put his +hand on my shoulder and said, "Be glad that you are here--wij Hollanders +weuschen de vrede (we Hollanders wish for peace), and you are welcome +here in hospitable Holland." + +I had to go with the soldiers to their guard-room and take breakfast +with them. Thereupon they showed me the nearest road to Venlo, where I +arrived at seven o'clock in the morning. From Venlo I traveled to +Rotterdam. I soon obtained a well-paid position and became a man again, +a man who could live and not merely exist. Thousands upon thousands of +Belgian refugees are living in Holland and are treated as the guests of +the people. There are also great numbers of German deserters in Holland, +where their number is estimated to be between fifteen and twenty +thousand. Those deserters enjoy the full protection of the Dutch +authorities. + +I would have never thought of leaving that hospitable country with its +fairly liberal constitution if the political sky had not been so +overclouded in the month of March, 1916. + + + + +XXIV + +AMERICA AND SAFETY + + +What I have still to relate does not concern actual war experiences. But +the reader might want to know how I came to America. That must be done +in a few short sentences. + +In Holland war was believed to be unavoidable. Again I had to choose +another domicile. After much reflection and making of plans I decided to +go to America. + +After having left my place I executed that plan. Some days after I was +informed that the steamer _Zyldyk_ of the Holland-American line was +leaving for New York in the night from the 17th to the 18th of March. +According to my plan I packed my things in a sailor's bundle and began +the risky game. + +I had never been on a sea-going steamer before. The boat was a small +trader. I had found out that the crew had to be on board by midnight. I +had an idea that the men would not turn up earlier than was necessary. +With my sailor's bundle I stood ready on the pier as early as ten +o'clock. All I had packed together in the excitement consisted of about +seven pounds of bread and a tin containing some ten quarts of water. At +midnight the sailors and stokers of the boat arrived. Most of them were +drunk and came tumbling along with their bundles on their backs. I mixed +with the crowd and tumbled along with them. I reached the deck without +being discovered. I observed next to me a deep black hole with an iron +ladder leading downwards. I threw my bundle down that hole and climbed +after it. All was dark. I groped my way to the coal bunker. I would have +struck a match, but I dared not make a light. So I crawled onto the coal +which filled the space right up to the ceiling. Pushing my bundle in +front of me I made my way through the coal, filling again the opening +behind me with coal. Having in that manner traversed some thirty yards I +came upon a wall. There I pushed the coal aside so as to have room to +lie down. I turned my back against the outer wall of the boat. + +Nobody suspected in the slightest degree that I was on board. Now the +journey can start, I thought to myself. At last the engines began to +work; we were off. After many long hours the engines stopped. Now we are +in England I guessed. Perhaps we were off Dover or somewhere else; I did +not know. Everything was darkness down there. While the boat was +stopping I heard the thunder of guns close to us. I had no idea what +that might mean. I said to myself, "If the English find me my voyage is +ended." But they did not turn up. + +At last we proceeded; I did not know how long we had stopped. All went +well; I scarcely felt the boat move. However, it was bitterly cold, and +I noticed that the cold increased steadily. Then the weather became +rougher and rougher. Days must have passed. I never knew whether it was +day or night. Down in my place it was always night. I ate bread and +drank water. But I had scarcely eaten when all came up again. Thus my +stomach was always empty. + +Through the rolling of the boat I was nearly buried by the coal. It got +worse and worse, and I had to use all my strength to keep the coal away +from me. The big lumps wounded me all about the head; I felt the blood +run over my face. My store of bread was nearly finished, and the water +tasted stale. I lit a match and saw that the bread was quite black. + +I wondered whether we were nearly there. No more bread. I felt my +strength leave me more and more. The boat went up and down, and I was +thrown hither and thither for hours, for days. I felt I could not stand +it much longer. I wondered how long we had been on the water. I had no +idea. I was awfully hungry. Days passed again. I noticed that I had +become quite thin. + +At last the engines stopped again. But soon we were off once more. After +long, long hours the boat stopped. I listened. All was quiet. Then I +heard them unloading with cranes. + +New York!--After a while I crept forth. I found that half of the coal +had been taken away. Not a soul was there. Then I climbed down a ladder +into the stokehole; nobody was there either. I noticed a pail and filled +it with warm water. With it I hastened into a dark corner and washed +myself. I was terribly tired and had to hold on to something so as not +to collapse. When I had washed I took my pocket mirror and gazed at my +face. My own face frightened me; for I looked pale as a sheet and like a +bundle of skin and bones. I wondered how long the voyage had lasted. I +had to laugh in spite of my misery--I had crossed the ocean and had +never seen it! + +The problem was now to get on land. What should I say if they caught me? +I thought that if I were caught now I should simply say I wanted to get +to Holland as a stowaway in order to reach Germany. In that case, I +thought, they would quickly enough put me back on land. With firm +resolve I climbed on deck which was full of workmen. + +I noticed a stair-way leading to the warehouse. Gathering all my +strength I loitered up to it in a careless way and--two minutes later I +had landed. I found myself in the street outside the warehouse. + +Up to that time I had kept on my legs. But now my strength left me, and +I dropped on the nearest steps. + +It was only then that I became aware of the fact that I was not in New +York, but in Philadelphia. It was 5 o'clock in the afternoon of April +5th, 1916. I had reckoned on twelve days and the voyage had taken +eighteen. + +Physically a wreck, I became acquainted with native Americans in the +evening. They afforded me every assistance that one human being can give +to another. One of those most noble-minded humanitarians took me to New +York. I could not leave my room for a week on account of the hardships I +had undergone; I recovered only slowly. + +But to-day I have recovered sufficiently to take up again in the ranks +of the American Socialists the fight against capitalism the extirpation +of which must be the aim of every class-conscious worker. A relentless +struggle to the bitter end is necessary to show the ruling war provoking +capitalist caste who is the stronger, so that it no longer may be in the +power of that class to provoke such a murderous war as that in which the +working-class of Europe is now bleeding to death. + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's A German deserter's war experience, by Anonymous + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 42721 *** |