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diff --git a/old/53151-0.txt b/old/53151-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 3cb0991..0000000 --- a/old/53151-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4635 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of In The Firing Line, by A. St. John Adcock - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: In The Firing Line - Stories of the War By Land and Sea - -Author: A. St. John Adcock - -Release Date: September 27, 2016 [EBook #53151] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE FIRING LINE *** - - - - -Produced by Brian Coe, Charlie Howard, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -Transcriber’s Note - - -The reasons for using extra spacing between some paragraphs were -unclear to the Transcriber, so they were just replicated the same way -in this eBook, and do not necessarily mean what they do in other eBooks. - -Other Notes will be found at the end of this eBook. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - - The Daily Telegraph - - WAR BOOKS - - -IN THE FIRING LINE - - - - - The Daily Telegraph - WAR BOOKS - - Cloth 1/- net each - - Post free 1/3 each - - - HOW THE WAR BEGAN - By W. L. COURTNEY, LL.D., and J. M. KENNEDY - - THE FLEETS AT WAR - By ARCHIBALD HURD - - THE CAMPAIGN OF SEDAN - By GEORGE HOOPER - - THE CAMPAIGN ROUND LIEGE - By J. M. KENNEDY - - IN THE FIRING LINE - By A. ST. JOHN ADCOCK - - GREAT BATTLES OF THE WORLD - By STEPHEN CRANE - Author of “The Red Badge of Courage.” - - BRITISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT - The story of their Battle Honours. - - THE RED CROSS IN WAR - By Miss MARY FRANCES BILLINGTON - - FORTY YEARS AFTER - The Story of the Franco-German War. By H. C. BAILEY. - With an Introduction by W. L. COURTNEY. LL.D. - - A SCRAP OF PAPER - The Inner History of German Diplomacy. - By E. J. DILLON - - HOW THE NATIONS WAGED WAR - A companion volume to “How the War Began,” telling how the world - faced Armageddon and how the British Army answered the call to arms. - By J. M. KENNEDY - - AIR-CRAFT IN WAR - By S. ERIC BRUCE - - FAMOUS FIGHTS OF INDIAN NATIVE REGIMENTS - - THE TRIUMPHANT RETREAT TO PARIS - - THE RUSSIAN ADVANCE - - _OTHER VOLUMES IN PREPARATION_ - - - PUBLISHED FOR THE DAILY TELEGRAPH - BY HODDER & STOUGHTON, WARWICK SQUARE - LONDON, E.C. - -[Illustration: - - _Drawn by Philip Daddd._ _Copyright of The Sphere._ - - CHARGE OF BRITISH HUSSARS AGAINST GERMAN CUIRASSIERS IN A VILLAGE - OF NORTHERN FRANCE. -] - - - - - IN THE FIRING LINE - - STORIES OF THE WAR BY LAND AND SEA - - BY - A. ST. JOHN ADCOCK - - HODDER AND STOUGHTON - LONDON NEW YORK TORONTO - MCMXIV - - - - -CONTENTS - - - I. THE BAPTISM OF FIRE 7 - - II. THE FOUR DAYS’ BATTLE NEAR MONS 16 - - III. THE DESTRUCTION OF LOUVAIN 73 - - IV. THE FIGHT IN THE NORTH SEA 90 - - V. FROM MONS TO THE WALLS OF PARIS 111 - - VI. THE SPIRIT OF VICTORY 185 - - - - -IN THE FIRING LINE - - - - -I - -THE BAPTISM OF FIRE - - “_E’en now their vanguard gathers, - E’en now we face the fray._” - - KIPLING.--_Hymn before Action._ - - -The War Correspondent has become old-fashioned before he has had time -to grow old; he was made by telegraphy, and wireless has unmade him. -The swift transmission of news from the front might gratify us who -are waiting anxiously at home, but such news can be caught in the air -now, or secretly and as swiftly retransmitted so as to gratify our -enemies even more by keeping them well-informed of our strength and -intentions and putting them on their guard. Therefore our armies have -rightly gone forth on this the greatest war the world has ever seen -as they went to the Crusades, with no Press reporter in their ranks, -and when the historian sits down, some peaceful day in the future, to -write his prose epic of the Titanic struggle that is now raging over -Europe he will have no records of the actual fighting except such as he -can gather from the necessarily terse official reports, the published -stories of refugees and wounded soldiers that have been picked up by -enterprising newspaper men hovering alertly in the rear of the forces, -and from the private letters written to their friends by the fighting -men themselves. - -These letters compensate largely for the ampler, more expert accounts -the war correspondent is not allowed to send us. They may tell -little of strategic movements or of the full tide and progress of an -engagement till you read them in conjunction with the official reports, -but in their vivid, spontaneous revelations of what the man in battle -has seen and felt, in the intensity of their human interest they -have a unique value beyond anything to be found in more professional -military or journalistic documents. They so unconsciously express -the personality and spirit of their writers; the very homeliness -of their language adds wonderfully and unintentionally to their -effectiveness; there is rarely any note of boastfulness even in a -moment of triumph; they record the most splendid heroisms casually, -sometimes even flippantly, as if it were merely natural to see such -things happening about them, or to be doing such things themselves. If -they tell of hardships it is to laugh at them; again and again there -are little bursts of affection and admiration for their officers and -comrades--they are the most potent of recruiting literature, these -letters, for a mere reading of them thrills the stay-at-home with pride -that these good fellows are his countrymen and with a sort of angry -shame that his age or his safe civilian responsibilities keep him from -being out there taking his stand beside them. - -The courage, the cheerfulness, the dauntless spirit of them is the more -striking when you remember that the vast majority of our soldiers have -never been in battle until now. Russia has many veterans from her war -with Japan; France has a few who fought the Prussian enemy in 1870; we -have some from the Boer war; but fully three parts of our troops, like -all the heroic Belgians, have had their baptism of fire in the present -gigantic conflict. And it is curiously interesting to read in several -of the letters the frank confession of their writers’ feelings when -they came face to face for the first time with the menace of death in -action. One such note, published in various papers, was from Alfred -Bishop, a sailor who took part in the famous North Sea engagement of -August last. His ship’s mascot is a black cat, and: - - -“Our dear little black kitten sat under our foremost gun,” he writes, -“during the whole battle, and was not frightened at all, only when we -first started firing. But afterwards she sat and licked herself.... -Before we started fighting we were all very nervous, but after we -joined in we were all happy and most of us laughing till it was -finished. Then we all sobbed and cried. Even if I never come back -don’t think I died a painful death. Everything yesterday was quick as -lightning.” - - -A wounded English gunner telling of how he went into action near Mons -owns to the same touch of nervousness in the first few minutes: - - -“What does it feel like to be under fire? Well, the first shot makes -you a bit shaky. It’s a surprise packet. You have to wait and keep on -moving till you get a chance.” But as soon as the chance came, his -shakiness went, and his one desire in hospital was “to get back to the -front as soon as the doctor says I’m fit to man a gun. I don’t want to -stop here.” - - -“I have received my baptism of fire,” writes a young Frenchman at the -front to his parents in Paris. “I heard the bullets whistling at my -ears, and saw my poor comrades fall around me. The first minutes are -dreadful. They are the worst. You feel wild. You hesitate; you don’t -know what to do. Then, after a time, you feel quite at your ease in -this atmosphere of lead.” - - -“I am in the field hospital now, with a nice little hole in my left -shoulder, through which a bullet of one of the War Lord’s military -subjects has passed,” writes a wounded Frenchman to a friend in -London. “My shoulder feels much as if some playful joker has touched -it with a lighted cigar.... It is strange, but in the face of death -and destruction I catch myself trying to make out where the shell has -fallen, as if I were an interested spectator at a rifle competition. -And I was not the only one. I saw many curious faces around me, bearing -expressions full of interest, just as if the owners of the respective -faces formed the auditorium of a highly fascinating theatrical -performance, without having anything to do with the play itself. The -impression crossed my mind in one-thousandth part of a second, and was -followed by numerous others, altogether alien from the most serious -things which were happening and going to happen. The human mind is -a curious and complicated thing. Now that we were shooting at the -enemy, and often afterwards in the midst of a fierce battle, I heard -some remark made or some funny expression used which proved that the -speaker’s thoughts were far from realising the terrible facts around -him. It has nothing to do with heartlessness or anything like that. -I don’t know yet what it is. Perhaps I shall have an opportunity to -philosophise on it later on.” - - -There is a curious comment in a letter from Sergeant Major MacDermott, -who writes during the great retreat from Mons, when everybody had -become inured to the atmosphere of the battlefield. - - -“We’re wonderfully cheerful, and happy as bare-legged urchins -scampering over the fields,” he says, and adds, “It is the quantity -not the quality of the German shells that are having effect on us, and -it’s not so much the actual damage to life as the hellish nerve-racking -noise that counts for so much. Townsmen who are used to the noise of -the streets can stand it a lot better than the countrymen, and I think -you will find that by far the fittest are those regiments recruited in -the big cities. A London lad near me says it is no worse than the roar -of motor-buses in the City on a busy day.” - - -But the most graphic and minutely detailed picture of the psychic -experiences of a soldier plunged for the first time into the -pandemonium of a modern battle is given in the _Retch_ by a wounded -Russian artillery officer writing from a St. Petersburg hospital. - - -“I cannot say where we fought, for we are forbidden to divulge that, -but I will tell you my own experiences,” he says. “In times of peace -one has no conception of what a battle really means. When war was -declared our brigade was despatched to the theatre of operations. -I went with delight, and so did the others. When we reached our -destination we were told that the battle would begin in the morning. - -“At daybreak positions were assigned to us, and the commander of the -brigade handed us a plan of the action of our artillery. From that -moment horror possessed our souls. It was not anxiety for ourselves -or fear of the enemy, but a feeling of awe in the face of something -unknown. At six o’clock we opened fire at a mark which we could not -distinguish, but which we understood to be the enemy. - -“Towards midday we were informed that the German cavalry was attempting -to envelop our right wing, and were ordered in that direction. Having -occupied our new position we waited. Suddenly we see the enemy coming, -and at the same time he opens fire on us. We turn our guns upon him, -and I give the order to fire. I myself feel that I am in a kind of -nightmare. Our battery officers begin to melt away. I see that the -Germans are developing their attack. First one regiment appears, and -then another. I direct the guns and pour a volley of projectiles right -into the thick of the first regiment. Then a second volley, and a -third. I see how they fall among the men, and can even discern the -severed limbs of the dead flying into the air after the explosion. - -“One of the enemy’s regiments is annihilated. Then a second one. All -this time I am pouring missiles in among them. But now the nervous -feeling has left me. My soul is filled with hate, and I continue to -shoot at the enemy without the least feeling of pity. - -“Yet still the enemy is advancing, rushing forward and lying down in -turns. I do not understand his tactics, but what are they to me? It is -enough for me that I am occupying a favourable position and mowing him -down like a strong man with a scythe in a clover field. - -“During the first night after the battle I could not sleep a wink. All -the time my mind was filled with pictures of the battlefield. I saw -German regiments approaching, and myself firing right into the thick of -them. Heads, arms, legs, and whole bodies of men were being flung high -into the air. It was a dreadful vision. - -“I was in four battles. When the second began I went into it like an -automaton. Only your muscles are taxed. All the rest of your being -seems paralyzed. So complete is the suspension of the sensory processes -that I never felt my wound. All I remember is that a feeling of -giddiness came over me, and my head began to swim. Then I swooned to -the ground, and was picked up by the Medical Corps and carried to the -rear.” - - - - -II - -THE FOUR DAYS’ BATTLE NEAR MONS - - “_And turning to his men, - Quoth our brave Henry then, - ‘Though they be one to ten, - Be not amazed.’_” - - MICHAEL DRAYTON. - - -Most of us are old enough to remember how, when we entered upon the -South African Campaign (as when we started the Crimean and other of -our wars) the nation was divided against itself; passionate, bitter -controversies were waged between anti-Boer and pro-Boer--between -those who considered the war an unjust and those who considered it a -just one. This time there has been nothing of that. Sir Edward Grey’s -resolute efforts for peace proving futile, as soon as Germany tore up -her obligations of honour, that “scrap of paper,” and began to pour -her huge, boastedly irresistible armies into Belgium, we took up the -gauge she so insolently flung to us, and the one feeling from end to -end of the Empire was of devout thankfulness that our Government had -so instantly done the only right and honourable thing; all political -parties, all classes flung their differences behind them unhesitatingly -and stood four-square at once against the common enemy. They were -heartened by a sense of relief, even, that the swaggering German peril -which had been darkly menacing us for years had materialised and was -upon us at last, that we were coming to grips with it and should have -the chance of ending it once and for ever. - -But immediately after our declaration of war on August 4th, a strange -secrecy and silence fell like an impenetrable mask over all our -military movements. In our cities and towns we were troubled with -business disorganisations, but that mystery, that waiting in suspense, -troubled us far more. News came that the fighting continued furiously -on the Belgian frontier; that it was beginning on the fringes of -Alsace; that the Russians were advancing victoriously on East Prussia; -and still though our own army was mobilised and we were eagerly -starting to raise a new and a larger one, we rightly learned no more, -perhaps less, than the enemy could of what our Expeditionary Force was -doing or where it was. Last time we were at war we had seen regiment -after regiment go off with bands playing and with cheering multitudes -lining the roads as they passed; this time we had no glimpse of their -going; did not know when they went, or so much as whether they were -gone. One day rumour landed them safely in France or Belgium; the next -it assured us that they were not yet ready to embark; and the next -it had rushed them, as by magic, right across Belgium and credited -them with standing shoulder to shoulder in the fighting line with the -magnificent defenders of Liège. But the glory of that defence, as we -were soon to find out, belongs to Belgium alone; the Germans had hacked -their way through and were nearing Mons before our men were able to -get far enough north to come in touch with them. Not that they had -lost any time on the road. It took a fortnight to mobilise and equip -them; they sailed from Southampton on August 17th, and four days later -were at Mons and under fire. This much and more you may gather from a -diary-letter that was published in the _Western Daily Press_: - - - _Letter 1.--From Sapper George Bryant, Royal Engineers, to his - father, Mr. J. J. Bryant, of Fishponds:_ - - Aug. 17.--Sailed from Southampton, on _Manchester Engineer_, 4.45 - a.m. - - Aug. 18.--Landed Rouen, 6.20 a.m. Proceeded to rest camp at the - Racecourse, Rouen. - - Aug. 19.--Left camp 9 p.m., and entrained to Aulnoye. - - Aug. 20.--Marched to Fiezines. - - Aug. 21.--Marched to Mons, and proceeded to the canal, to obstacle - the bridges and prepare for blowing up. Barricaded the main - streets. Saw German cavalry, and was under fire. - - Aug. 22.--Severe fighting and terrible. Went to blow up bridges - with Lieut. Day, who was shot at my side through the nose. Unable - to destroy bridges owing to such heavy firing of the Germans. - Sight heart-breaking. Women and children driven from their - homes by point of bayonet, and marched through streets in front - of Germans, who fired behind them and through their armpits. - Therefore, our fellows were unable to fire back. They rolled - up in thousands, about 100 to our one. Went from here to dig - trenches for infantry retreating. Was soon under fire, and had - to retreat, and infantry took our position, and were completely - wiped out (Middlesex). - - Aug. 23.--Severe fighting and bombarding of a town, shells bursting - around us. Retreated, and dug trenches for infantry, but soon - had fire about us, and retreated again and marched to take up - position for next day, which was to be a rest, us having had but - very little. - - Aug. 24.--Were unable to rest. Germans pressed us hotly, and fired - continually. One of their aeroplanes followed our route, and - was fired at. One of our lieutenants chased it, and eventually - succeeded in shooting the aviator through the head, and he came - to earth. Three aeroplanes were captured this day. We had no - close fighting, and marched away to take up a position for next - day’s fighting, which was a hard day’s work. - - Aug. 25.--We tried to destroy an orchard, but drew the Germans’ - artillery fire, which was hot and bursting around us. We - continued our work until almost too late, and had to retire to - infantry lines, and had it hot in doing so. I was stood next - to General Shaw’s aide-camp who was badly wounded, but was not - touched myself. We dug trenches for infantry, and then marched to - join the 2nd Division, but fire was too hot to enable us to do - our work. Germans were surrounded by us to the letter “C,” and - we were waiting for the French to come up on our right flank, - but they did not arrive. On returning from the 2nd Division - two shells, one after another, burst in front of us, first - destroying a house; the second, I received my wound in left leg, - being the only fellow hit out of 180. Was placed on tool cart, - and taken to Field Hospital, but rest there was short, owing - to Germans firing on hospital. Orderlies ran off and left us - three to take our chance. Germans blew up church and hospital - in same village, and were firing on ours when I was helped out - by the other two fellows, and on to a cart, which overtook the - ambulance, which I was put on, and travelled all night to St. - Quentin and was entrained there at 9.30 a.m. Aug. 26. - - Aug. 26.--Travelled all day, reaching Rouen, Aug. 27, and was taken - to Field Hospital on Racecourse. - - -We shall have to wait some time yet for full and coherent accounts of -the fierce fighting at Mons, but from the soldiers’ letters and the -stories of the wounded one gets illuminating glimpses of that terrific -four-days’ battle. - - - _Letter 2.--From Driver W. Moore, Royal Field Artillery, to the - superintendent of the “Cornwall” training ship, of which Driver - Moore is an “old boy” still under twenty:_ - -It was Sunday night when we saw the enemy. We were ready for action, -but were lying down to have a rest, when orders came to stand at our -posts. It was about four a.m. on Monday when we started to fire; we -were at it all day till six p.m., when we started to advance. Then the -bugle sounded the charge, and the cavalry and infantry charged like -madmen at the enemy; then the enemy fell back about forty miles, so we -held them at bay till Wednesday, when the enemy was reinforced. Then -they came on to Mons, and by that time we had every man, woman, and -child out of the town. - -We were situated on a hill in a cornfield and could see all over the -country. It was about three p.m., and we started to let them have a -welcome by blowing up two of their batteries in about five minutes; -then the infantry let go, and then the battle was in full swing. - -In the middle of the battle a driver got wounded and asked to see the -colours before he died, and he was told by an officer that the guns -were his colours. He replied, “Tell the drivers to keep their eyes on -their guns, because if we lose our guns we lose our colours.” - -Just then the infantry had to retire, and the gunners had to leave -their guns, but the drivers were so proud of their guns that they went -and got them out, and we retired to St. Quentin. We had a roll-call, -and only ten were left out of my battery. This was the battle in which -poor Winchester (another old _Cornwall_ boy) lost his life in trying -to get the guns away. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 3.--From Private G. Moody, to his parents at Beckenham:_ - -I was at Mons in the trenches in the firing line for twenty-four hours, -and my regiment was ordered to help the French on the right. Poor old -A Company was left to occupy the trenches and to hold them: whatever -might happen, they were not to leave them. There were about 250 of us, -and the Germans came on, and as fast as we knocked them over more took -their places. - -Well, out of 250 men only eighty were left, and we had to surrender. -They took away everything, and we were lined up to be shot, so as to -be no trouble to them. Then the cavalry of the French made a charge, -and the Germans were cut down like grass. We got away, and wandered -about all night, never knowing if we were walking into our chaps or -the Germans. After walking about some time we commenced falling down -through drinking water that had been poisoned, and then we were put -into some motor-wagons and taken to Amiens. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 4.--From a Lincolnshire Sergeant to his brother:_ - -It came unexpectedly. The first inkling we had was just after reveille, -when our cavalry pickets fell back and reported the presence of the -enemy in strength on our front and slightly to the left. In a few -minutes we were all at our posts without the slightest confusion, and -as we lay down in the trenches our artillery opened fire. It was a fine -sight to see the shells speeding through the air to pay our respects -to Kaiser Bill and his men. Soon the Germans returned the compliment; -but they were a long time in finding anything approaching the range, -and they didn’t know of shelters--a trick we learned from the Boers, -I believe. After about half an hour of this work their infantry came -into view along our front. They were in solid square blocks standing -out sharply against the skyline, and we couldn’t help hitting them. -We lay in our trenches with not a sound or sign to tell them of what -was before them. They crept nearer and nearer, and then our officers -gave the word. Under the storm of bullets they seemed to stagger -like drunken men, after which they made a run for us shouting some -outlandish cry that we could not make out. Half way across the open -another volley tore through their ranks, and by this time our artillery -began dropping shells around them. Then an officer gave an order, and -they broke into open formation, rushing like mad things towards the -trenches on our left. Some of our men continued the volley firing, but -a few of the crack shots were told off to indulge in independent firing -for the benefit of the Germans. That is another trick taught us by -Brother Boer, and our Germans did not like it at all. They fell back in -confusion and then lay down wherever cover was available. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 5.--From Private Levy, Royal Munster Fusiliers:_ - -We were sent up to the firing line to try and save a battery. When we -got there we found that they were nearly all killed or wounded. Our -Irish lads opened fire on the dirty Germans, and you should have seen -them fall. It was like a game of skittles. But as soon as you knocked -them down up came another thousand or so. We could not make out where -they came from. So, all of a sudden, our officers gave us the order to -charge. We fixed bayonets and went like fire through them. You should -have seen them run! - -We had two companies of ours there against about 3,000 of theirs, and I -tell you it was warm. I was not sorry when night-time came, but that -was not all. You see, we had no horses to get those guns away, and our -chaps would not leave them. - -We dragged them ourselves to a place of safety. As the firing line was -at full swing we had with us an officer of the Hussars. I think he was -next to me, and he had his hand nearly blown off by one of the German -shells. So I and two more fellows picked him up and took him to a place -of safety, where he got his wound cared for. I heard afterwards that he -had been sent home, poor fellow. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 6.--From Sergeant A. J. Smith, 1st Lincolnshire Regiment:_ - -We smashed up the Kaiser’s famous regiment--the Imperial Guards--and -incidentally they gave us a shaking. They caught me napping. I got -wounded on Sunday night, but I stuck it until Thursday. I could then go -no further, so they put me in the ambulance and sent me home. It was -just as safe in the firing line as in the improvised hospital, as when -our force moved the Germans closed up and shelled the hospitals and -burned the villages to the ground. - -We started on Sunday, and were fighting and marching until Thursday. -Troops were falling asleep on the roadside until the shells started -dropping, then we were very much awake. - -I feel proud to belong to the British Army for the way in which they -bore themselves in front of the other nations. No greater tribute could -be paid us than what a German officer, who was captured, said. He said -it was inferno to stand up against the British Army. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 7.--From Private J. R. Tait, of the 2nd Essex Regiment:_ - -We were near Mons when we had the order to entrench. It was just dawn -when we were half-way down our trenches, and we were on our knees when -the Germans opened a murderous fire with their guns and machine guns. -We opened a rapid fire with our Maxims and rifles; we let them have it -properly, but no sooner did we have one lot down than up came another -lot, and they sent their cavalry to charge us, but we were there with -our bayonets, and we emptied our magazines on them. Their men and -horses were in a confused heap. There were a lot of wounded horses we -had to shoot to end their misery. We had several charges with their -infantry, too. We find they don’t like the bayonets. Their rifle -shooting is rotten; I don’t believe they could hit a haystack at 100 -yards. We find their Field Artillery very good; we don’t like their -shrapnel; but I noticed that some did not burst; if one shell that came -over me had burst I should have been blown to atoms; I thanked the Lord -it did not. I also heard our men singing that famous song: “Get out and -get under.” I know that for an hour in our trench it would make anyone -keep under, what with their shells and machine guns. Many poor fellows -went to their death like heroes. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 8.--From an Oldham Private to his wife at Waterhead:_ - -We have had a terrible time, and were in action for three days and -nights. On Wednesday the officers said that Spion Kop was heaven to the -fighting we had on that day. It is God help our poor fellows who get -wounded in the legs or body and could not get off the battlefield, as -when we retired the curs advanced and shot and bayonetted them as they -tried to crawl away. They are rotten shots with the rifles. If they -stood on Blackpool sands I don’t believe they could hit the sea, but -they are very good with the shrapnel guns, and nearly all our wounded -have been hit with shrapnel bullets. Each shrapnel shell contains about -200 bullets which scatter all around, so just think what damage one -shell can do when it drops among a troop of soldiers. - -On the Tuesday our regiment went to the top of a hill which had a -big flat top. An outpost of a Scotch regiment reported to us on our -way up that all was clear, and we thought the enemy were about five -miles away. We formed up in close formation--about 1,200 strong. -Our commanding officer told us to pull our packs off, and start -entrenching, but this was the last order he will ever give, for the -enemy opened fire at us with five Maxim guns from a wood only 400 yards -in front of us. They mowed us down like straw, and we could get no -cover at all. Those who were left had to roll off the hill into the -roadway--a long straight road--but we got it worse there. They had two -shrapnel guns at the top of the road, and they did fearful execution to -us and the Lancashire Fusiliers, who were also in the roadway. Any man -who got out of that hell-hole should shake hands with himself. - -This all happened before six o’clock in the morning. I have only seen -about sixty of our regiment since. Our Maxim gun officer tried to fix -his gun up during their murderous fire, but he got half his face blown -away. We retired in splendid order about 300 yards, and then lined a -ridge. Up to then we hardly fired a shot. They had nearly wiped three -regiments out up to then, but our turn came. We gave them lead as fast -as we could pull the triggers, and I think we put three Germans out -to every one of our men accounted for. Bear in mind, they were about -250,000 strong to our 50,000. We got three Germans, and they said their -officers told them that we were Russians and that England had not sent -any men to fight. - -They made us retire about five miles, and then we got the master -of them, because our guns came up and covered the ground with dead -Germans. The German gunners are good shots, but ours are a lot better. -After we had shelled them a bit we got them on the run, and we drove -them back to three miles behind where the battle started. We did give -it them. I will say this, none of our soldiers touched any wounded -Germans, though it took us all our time to keep our bayonets out of -their ribs after seeing what they did with our wounded. But, thank God, -we governed our tempers and left them alone. - -I said we got the Germans on the run. And they can run! I picked up a -few trophies and put them in my pack, but I got it blown off my back -almost, so I had to discard it. I got one in the ribs, and then a horse -got shot and fell on top of me, putting my shoulder out again and -crushing my ribs. Otherwise I am fit to tackle a few more Germans, and -I hope I shall soon be back again at the front to get a bit of my own -back. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 9.--From a private of the 1st Lincolns to friends at - Barton-on-Humber:_ - -Just a line to tell you I have returned from the front, and I can tell -you we have had a very trying time of it. I must also say I am very -lucky to be here. We were fighting from Sunday, 23rd, to Wednesday -evening, on nothing to eat or drink--only the drop of water in our -bottles which we carried. No one knows--only those that have seen us -could credit such a sight, and if I live for years may I never see such -a sight again. I can tell you it is not very nice to see your chum next -to you with half his head blown off. The horrible sights I shall never -forget. There seemed nothing else only certain death staring us in the -face all the time. I cannot tell you all on paper. We must, however, -look on the bright side, for it is no good doing any other. There are -thousands of these Germans and they simply throw themselves at us. -It is no joke fighting seven or eight to one. I can tell you we have -lessened them a little, but there are millions more yet to finish. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 10.--From one of the 9th Lancers to friends at Alfreton:_ - -I was at the great battle of Mons, and got a few shots in me. Once -I was holding my officer’s horse and my own, when, all of a sudden, -a German shell came over and burst. Both horses were killed. I got -away with my left hand split and three fingers blown in pieces. I am -recovering rather quickly. I shall probably have to lose one or two -of my fingers. I had two bullets taken from my body on Tuesday, and -I can tell you I am in pain. I think I am one of the luckiest men in -the world to escape as I did. War is a terrible thing. It is a lot -different to what most of us expected. Women and children leaving their -homes with their belongings--then all of a sudden their houses would -be in ashes, blown to the ground. I shall be glad to get well again. -Then I can go and help again to fight the brutal Germans. The people -in France and Belgium were so kind and good to our soldiers. They gave -everything they possibly could do. - -I have not heard from Jack (his brother, also at the front). I do so -hope he will come back. - - * * * * * - -[Illustration: - - _Drawn by F. Matania._ _Copyright of The Sphere._ - -THE BRITISH EXPEDITIONARY FORCE LANDS IN FRANCE, AUGUST, 1914.] - - _Letter 11.--From a wounded Gordon Highlander to his father, Mr. - Alexander Buchan, of Monymusk:_ - -We had a pretty stiff day of it last Sunday. The battalion went into -small trenches in front of a wood a few miles to the right of Mons, and -the Germans had the range to a yard. I was on the right edge of the -wood with the machine guns, and there wasn’t half some joy. - -The shells were bursting all over the place. It was a bit of a funny -sensation for a start, but you soon got used to it. You would hear it -coming singing through the air over your head; then it would give a -mighty big bang and you would see a great flash, and there would be a -shower of lumps of iron and rusty nails all around your ears. They kept -on doing that all Sunday; sometimes three or four at the same time, but -none of them hit me. I was too fly for them. - -Their artillery is pretty good, but the infantry are no good at all. -They advance in close column, and you simply can’t help hitting them. I -opened fire on them with the machine gun and you could see them go over -in heaps, but it didn’t make any difference. For every man that fell -ten took his place. That is their strong point. They have an unlimited -supply of men. - -They think they can beat any army in the world simply by hurling great -masses of troops against them, but they are finding out their mistake -now that they are put up against British troops. The reason for the -British retreat is this--all up through France are great lines of -entrenchments and fortresses, and as they have not enough men to defeat -the Germans in open battle, they are simply retiring from position to -position--holding the Germans for a few days and then retiring to the -next one. All this is just to gain time. Our losses are pretty severe, -but they are nothing to the Germans, whose losses are ten to every one -of ours. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 12.--From Private J. Willis, of the Gordon Highlanders:_ - -You mustn’t run away with the notion that we stand shivering or -cowering under shell fire, for we don’t. We just go about our business -in the usual way. If it’s potting at the Germans that is to the fore we -keep at it as though nothing were happening, and if we’re just having a -wee bit chat among ourselves we keep at it all the same. - -Last week when I got this wound in my leg it was because I got excited -in an argument with wee Georgie Ferriss, of our company, about Queen’s -Park Rangers and their chances this season. One of my chums was hit -when he stood up to light a cigarette while the Germans were blazing -away at us. - -Keep your eyes wide open and you will have a big surprise sooner than -you think. We’re all right, and the Germans will find that out sooner -than you at home. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 13.--From Private G. Kay, of the 2nd Royal Scots, to his - employer, a milkman, at Richmond:_ - -You will be surprised to hear I am home from Belgium in hospital with -a slight wound in my heel from shrapnel. I had a narrow escape in -Wednesday’s battle at or near Mons, as I was with the transport, and it -was surrounded twice. - -The last time I made holes in the stable wall, and had a good position -for popping them off--and I did, too; but somehow they got to know -where we were, and shelled us for three hours. Off went the roof, -and off went the roof of other buildings around us. At last a shell -exploded and set fire to our cooking apparatus and our stables. We -had twenty-two fine horses, and all the transport in this stable -yard. We hung on for orders to remove the horses. None came. At last -a shell like a thunderbolt struck the wall, and down came half the -stables, and as luck would have it, as we retired--only about six of -us--my brother-in-law, the chap you were going to start when we were -called up, went to the right and I went to the left. Just then a shell -burst high and struck several down in the yard--it was then I got -hit--smashed the butt of my rifle, and sent me silly for five minutes. -Then I heard a major say, “For yourselves, boys.” I looked for my -brother-in-law, but he was not to be seen, and I have not heard of him -since. During all this time the fire was spreading rapidly. I was told -to go back and cut the horses loose. I did so, and some of them got -out, but others were burnt to death. - -Then God answered my prayer, and I had strength to run through a line -of rifle fire over barbed wire covered by a hedge, and managed to get -out of rifle range, three hundred yards or four hundred yards away, -and then I fell for want of water. I just had about two teaspoonfuls -in my bottle, and then I went on struggling my way through hedges to a -railway line. - -When I got through I saw an awful sight--a man of the Royal Irish with -six wounds from shrapnel. He asked me for water, but I had none. I -managed to carry him about half a mile, and then found water. I stuck -to him though he was heavy and I was feeling weak and tired. I had to -carry him through a field of turnips, and half way I slipped and both -fell. I then had a look back and could see the fire mountains high. - -I then saw one of my own regiment, and called to him to stay with -this man while I went for a shutter or a door, which I got, and with -the help of two Frenchmen soon got him to a house and dressed him. -We were being shelled again from the other end of the village then. -We were about fifteen strong, as some slightly wounded came up and -some not wounded. We got him away, and then met a company of Cameron -Highlanders, and handed him over to them. - -I think I marched nearly sixty-three miles, nearly all on one foot, and -at last I got a horse and made my way to Mons, where I was put in the -train for Havre. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 14.--From Sergeant Taylor, of the R.H.A.:_ - -Our first brush with the enemy was on August 21st, about thirty miles -from Mons, but Mons, my goodness, it was just like Brock’s benefit at -Belle Vue, and you would have thought it was hailing. Of course, we -were returning the compliment. The Germans always found the range, -which proved they had good maps, yet in their anxiety they tried to -fire too many shells, the consequence being that a lot of them were -harmless, and they did not give themselves time to properly fuse them. -Only on one day--from the 21st to my leaving--did we miss an action. In -General French’s report you will, no doubt, see where the 5th Brigade -accounted for two of the German cavalry regiments, of which only six -troopers were taken prisoners; the rest bit the dust. One of these -regiments was the Lancers, of which the late Queen was honorary colonel. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 15.--From Private J. Atkinson, of the Duke of Wellington’s - West Riding Regiment, to his wife at Leeds:_ - -Talk about a time! I would not like to go through the same again for -love or money. - -It is not war. It is murder. The Germans are murdering our wounded -as fast as they come across them. I gave myself up for done a week -last Sunday night, as we were in the thick of the fight at Mons. Our -regiment started fighting with 1,009 and finished with 106 and three -officers. That made 109, as we just lost 900. It was cruel. At one -place we were at there were six streets of the town where all the -women were left widows, and were all wearing the widows’ weeds. The -French regiment that fought there was made up in the town and they got -wiped out. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 16.--From Private Robert Robertson, of the Argylls, to his - parents at Musselburgh:_ - -The poor Argylls got pretty well hit, but never wavered a yard for all -their losses. The Scots Greys are doing great work at the front--in -fact they were the means of putting ten thousand Germans to their fate -on Sunday morning. I will never forget that day, as our regiment left -a town on the French frontier on Saturday morning at 3 o’clock and -marched till 3 a.m. on Sunday into a Belgian town. I was about to have -an hour in bed, at least a lie down in a shop, when I was wakened to -go on guard at the General’s headquarters, and while I was on guard a -Captain of the crack French cavalry came in with the official report of -the ten thousand Germans killed. The Scots Greys, early that morning, -had decoyed the Germans right in front of the machine guns of the -French, and they just mowed them down. There was no escape for them, -poor devils, but they deserve it the way they go on. You would be sorry -for the poor Belgian women having to leave their homes with young -children clinging to them. One sad case we came across on the roadside -was a woman just out of bed two days after giving birth to a child. The -child was torn from her breast, and her breast cut off that the infant -was sucking. Then the Germans bayoneted the child before the mother’s -eyes. We did the best we could for her, but she died about six hours -after telling us her hardships. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 17.--From Private Whitaker, of the Coldstream Guards:_ - -You thought it was a big crowd that streamed out of the Crystal Palace -when we went to see the Cup Final. Well, outside Compiègne it was -just as if that crowd came at us. You couldn’t miss them. Our bullets -ploughed into them, but still they came for us. I was well entrenched, -and my rifle got so hot I could hardly hold it. I was wondering if I -should have enough bullets, when a pal shouted, “Up, Guards, and at -’em!” The next second he was rolled over with a nasty knock on the -shoulder. He jumped up and hissed, “Let me get at them!” His language -was a bit stronger than that. - -When we really did get the order to get at them we made no mistake, I -can tell you. They cringed at the bayonet, but those on our left wing -tried to get round us, and after racing as hard as we could for quite -five hundred yards we cut up nearly every man who did not run away. - -You have read of the charge of the Light Brigade. It was nowt to our -cavalry chaps. I saw two of our fellows who were unhorsed stand back to -back and slash away with their swords, bringing down nine or ten of the -panic-stricken devils. Then they got hold of the stirrup-straps of a -horse without a rider, and got out of the melée. This kind of thing was -going on all day. - -In the afternoon I thought we should all get bowled over, as they came -for us again in their big numbers. Where they came from, goodness -knows; but as we could not stop them with bullets they had another -taste of the bayonet. My captain, a fine fellow, was near to me, and as -he fetched them down he shouted, “Give them socks, my lads!” How many -were killed and wounded I don’t know; but the field was covered with -them. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 18.--From a private in the Coldstream Guards to his mother:_ - -First of all I sailed from Southampton on August 12th on a cattle boat -called the _Cawdor Castle_. We sailed at 9.30 at night, and after a -passage of 14½ hours landed at Le Havre, on the coast of France. We -went into camp there, and then left on August 14th, getting into a -train, not third class carriages, but cattle trucks. We were on the -train eighteen and a half hours, and I was a bit stiff when I got out -at a place called Wassigny. Then we marched through pouring rain to -a village, where we slept in some barns. The next day being Sunday, -August 16th, we got on the march to a place called Grooges, a distance -of about nine miles. We stayed there till Thursday. - -Then we started to march to get into Belgium. We got there on Sunday, -the 23rd, just outside Mons. We dug trenches, from which we had to -retire, and then we got into a position, and there I saw the big -battle, but could not do anything, because we were with the artillery. -We retreated into France, being shelled all the way, and on the -Tuesday, the 25th, we marched into Landrecies. We arrived there about -one o’clock and were thinking ourselves lucky. We considered we were -going to have two days’ rest, but about five o’clock the alarm was -raised. The Germans got to the front of us and were trying to get in -the town. So we fixed our bayonets, doubled up the road, and the fight -started. The German artillery shelled us, and some poor chaps got hit -badly. The chap next to me got shot, and I tried to pull him out of -the road, so that I could get down in his place, as there was not room -for us all in the firing line. We had to lay down behind and wait our -chance. I had got on my knees, and just got hold of his leg, when -something hit my rifle and knocked it out of my hand, and almost at the -same time a bullet went right through my arm. It knocked me over, and -I must have bumped my head, for I do not remember any more till I felt -someone shaking me. It was the doctor--a brave man, for he came right -up amongst the firing to tend the wounded. He bandaged my arm up, and I -had to get to hospital, a mile and a half away, as best I could. - -The beasts of Germans shelled the building all night long without -hitting it. We moved next morning, and by easy stages left for England. -I am going on fine; shall soon be back and at it again I expect. Keep -up your spirits, won’t you? I believe it was only your prayers at home -that guarded me that Tuesday night, simply awful it was. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 19.--From a wounded English Officer, in a Belgian hospital, - to his mother:_ - -I do not know if this letter will ever get to you or not, but I am -writing on the chance that it will. A lot has happened since I last -wrote to you. We marched straight up to Belgium from France, and the -first day we arrived my company was put on outposts for the night. -During the night we dug a few trenches, etc., so did not get much -sleep. The next day the Germans arrived, and I will try and describe -the fight. We were only advanced troops of a few hundred holding the -line of a canal. The enemy arrived about 50,000 strong. We held them -in check all day and killed hundreds of them, and still they came. -Finally, of course, we retired on our main body. I will now explain -the part I played. We were guarding a railway bridge over a canal. My -company held a semicircle from the railway to the canal. I was nearest -the railway. A Scottish regiment completed the semicircle on the right -of the railway to the canal. The railway was on a high embankment -running up to the bridge, so that the Scottish regiment was out of -sight of us. We held the Germans all day, killing hundreds, when about -five p.m. the order to retire was eventually given. It never reached -us, and we were left all alone. The Germans therefore got right up to -the canal on our right, hidden by the railway embankment, and crossed -the railway. Our people had blown up the bridge before their departure. -We found ourselves between two fires, and I realized we had about -2,000 Germans and a canal between myself and my friends. - -We decided to sell our lives dearly. I ordered my men to fix bayonets -and charge, which the gallant fellows did splendidly, but we got -shot down like nine-pins. As I was loading my revolver after giving -the order to fix bayonets I was hit in the right wrist. I dropped -my revolver, my hand was too weak to draw my sword. This afterwards -saved my life. I had not got far when I got a bullet through the calf -of my right leg and another in my right knee, which brought me down. -The rest of my men got driven round into the trench on our left. The -officer there charged the Germans and was killed himself, and nearly -all the men were either killed or wounded. I did not see this part -of the business, but from all accounts the gallant men charged with -the greatest bravery. Those who could walk the Germans took away as -prisoners. I have since discovered from civilians that around the -bridge 5,000 Germans were found dead and about 60 English. These 60 -must have been nearly all my company, who were so unfortunately left -behind. - -As regards myself, when I lay upon the ground I found my coat sleeve -full of blood, and my wrist spurting blood, so I knew an artery of some -sort must have been cut. The Germans had a shot at me when I was on -the ground to finish me off; that shot hit my sword, which I wore on my -side, and broke in half just below the hilt; this turned the bullet off -and saved my life. I afterwards found that two shots had gone through -my field glasses, which I wore on my belt, and another had gone through -my coat pocket, breaking my pipe and putting a hole through a small -collapsible tin cup, which must have turned the bullet off me. We lay -out there all night for twenty-four hours. I had fainted away from -loss of blood, and when I lost my senses I thought I should never see -anything again. Luckily I had fallen on my wounded arm, and the arm -being slightly twisted I think the weight of my body stopped the flow -of blood and saved me. At any rate, the next day civilians picked up -ten of us who were still alive, and took us to a Franciscan convent, -where we have been splendidly looked after. All this happened on August -23rd, it is now September 3rd. I am ever so much better, and can walk -about a bit now, and in a few days will be quite healed up. It is quite -a small hole in my wrist, and it is nearly healed, and my leg is much -better; the bullets escaped the bones, so that in a week I shall be -quite all right. Unfortunately the Germans are at present in possession -of this district, so that I am more or less a prisoner here. But I hope -the English will be here in a week, when I shall be ready to rejoin -them. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 20.--From W. Hawkins, of the 3rd Coldstream Guards:_ - -I have a nasty little hole through my right arm, but I am one of the -lucky ones. My word, it was hot for us. On the Tuesday night when I -got my little lot, what I saw put me in mind of a farmer’s machine -cutting grass, as the Germans fell just like it. We only lost nine poor -fellows, and the German losses amounted to 1,500 and 2,000. So you can -guess what it was like. As they were shot down others took their place, -as there were thousands of them. The best friend is your rifle with -the bayonet. But I soon had mine blown to pieces. How it happened I -don’t know.... I got a bullet through the top of my hat. I will bring -my hat home and show you. I felt it go through, but it never as much -as bruised my head. I had then no rifle, so I was obliged to keep down -my head. The bullets were whirling over me by the hundred. I stopped -until they got a bit slower, and then I got up and was trying to pull -a fellow away that had been shot through the head when I managed to -receive a bullet through my arm. When I looked in the direction of the -enemy I could see them coming by the thousand. Off I went. I bet I -should easily have won the mile that night. I got into the hospital -at Landricca amid shot and shell, which were flying by as fast as -you like. I got my arm done, and was put to bed. All that night the -enemy were trying to blow up the hospital, where they had to turn out -the lights so that the Germans could not get the correct range. Then -we were taken away in R.A.M.C. vans to Guise, where we slept on the -station platform after a nice supper which the French provided. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 21.--From Sergeant Griffiths, of the Welsh Regiment, to his - parents at Swansea:_ - -The fighting at Mons was terrible, and it was here that our 4th and -5th Divisions got badly knocked, but fought well. Our artillery played -havoc with them. About 10 o’clock on Monday we were suddenly ordered to -quit, and quick, too, and no wonder. They were ten to one. Then began -that retreat which will go down in history as one of the greatest and -most glorious retirements over done. Our boys were cursing because our -backs were towards them; but when the British did turn, my word, what -a game! The 3rd Coldstreams should be named “3rd Cold Steels,” and no -error. Their bayonet charge was a beauty. - - -Among numerous other such letters that have been published up and -down the country is this in which a corporal of the North Lancashire -Regiment gives a graphic little picture of his experiences to the -_Manchester City News_: - - -When we got near Mons the Germans were nearer than we expected. -They must have been waiting for us. We had little time to make -entrenchments, and had to do the digging lying on our stomachs. Only -about 300 of the 1,000 I was with got properly entrenched. The Germans -shelled us heavily, and I got a splinter in the leg. It is nearly right -now, and I hope soon to go back again. We lost fairly heavily, nearly -all from artillery fire. Altogether I was fighting for seventy-two -hours before I was hit. The German forces appeared to be never-ending. -They were round about us like a swarm of bees, and as fast as one man -fell, it seemed, there were dozens to take his place. - - -There is one in which James Scott, reservist, tells his relatives at -Jarrow that British soldiers at Mons dropped like logs. The enemy were -shot down as they came up, but it was like knocking over beehives--a -hundred came up for every one knocked down. He thought the Germans -were the worst set of men he had ever seen. Their cavalry drove women -and children in front of them in the streets of Mons so that the -British could not fire. - - -A wounded non-commissioned officer of the Pompadours, whose regiment -left Wembley Park a week before the fighting began, says that in the -four days’ battle commencing at Mons on the Sunday, August 23rd, and -lasting until August 26th, they were continually under fire: - - -We had to beat off several cavalry attacks as well as infantry, and -when the trouble seemed to be over the Germans played on us with -shrapnel just like turning on a fire hose. Several of our officers were -hit on Wednesday. Heavy German cavalry charged us with drawn sabres, -and we only had a minute’s warning “to prepare to receive cavalry.” We -left our entrenchments, and rallying in groups, emptied our magazines -into them as they drew near. Men and horses fell in confused heaps. It -was a terrible sight. Still, on they came. They brought their naked -sabres to the engage, and we could distinctly hear their words of -command made in that piercing, high tone of voice which the Germans -affect. - -The enemy had a terrible death roll before their fruitless charge was -completed, a thick line of dead and wounded marking the ground over -which they had charged. We shot the wounded horses, to put them out of -their misery, whilst our ambulances set to work to render aid to the -wounded. Our Red Cross men make no distinction. Friend and foe get the -same medical treatment, that’s where we score over the Germans. - -If they had been Uhlans we should not have spared them, as we owe them -a grudge for rounding up some Tommies who were bathing. They took their -clothes away, and tied the men to trees. We swore to give them a warm -time wherever we met them. - - -A wounded corporal writes: - -It looked as if we were going to be snowed under. The mass of men that -came at us was an avalanche, and every one of us must have been simply -trodden to death and not killed by bullets or shells when our cavalry -charged into them on the left wing, not 500 yards from the trench I was -in, and cut them up. Our lads did the rest, but the shells afterwards -laid low a lot of them. - - -The following is an extract from a letter received by a gardener from -his son: - -You complained last year of the swarms of wasps that destroyed your -fruit. Well, dad, they were certainly not larger in number than the -Germans who came for us. The Germans are cowards when they get the -bayonets at them. A young lieutenant, I don’t know his name, was -one of the coolest men I have ever seen, and didn’t he encourage our -chaps! I saw him bring down a couple of Germans who were leading half a -company. - - -A fact that stands out continually in these tales of eye-witnesses is -the overwhelming numbers in which the Germans were hurled upon them. -One says they seemed to be rising up endlessly out of the very ground, -and as fast as one mass was shot down another surged into its place; -the innumerable horde is compared by various correspondents to “a great -big battering-ram,” to a gigantic swarm of wasps, to a swarm of bees, -to a flock of countless thousands of sheep trying to rush out of a -field; to the unceasing pouring of peas out of a sack. It was the sheer -mass and weight of this onrush that forced the small British army back -on its systematic, triumphant retreat, and probably the most striking -little sketch of this phase of the conflict is that supplied by an -Irish soldier invalided to Belfast, which I include in the following -selection of hospital stories. - - -The last few weeks have been like a dream to me, says a wounded -private of the Middlesex Regiment. After we landed at Boulogne we were -magnificently treated, and everyone was in the highest spirits. Then -we set off on our marching. We were all anxious to have a slap at the -Germans. My word! If they only knew in our country how the Germans are -treating our wounded there would be the devil to pay. - -It was somewhere in the neighbourhood of Mons, I believe, that we -got our first chance. We had been marching for days with hardly any -sleep. When we took up our position the Germans were nearer than we -thought, because we had only just settled down to get some rest when -there came the blinding glare of the searchlight. This went away almost -as suddenly as it appeared, and it was followed by a perfect hail of -bullets. We lost a good many in the fight, but we were all bitterly -disappointed when we got the order to retire. I got a couple of bullets -through my leg, but I hope it won’t be long before I get back again. -We never got near enough to use our bayonets. I only wish we had done. -Talk about civilized warfare! Don’t you believe it. The Germans are -perfect fiends. - - -IN HOSPITAL. - -(1) _At Southampton._ - -The first batch of wounded soldiers arrived at Netley on the 28th -August, coming from Southampton Docks by the hospital train. A _Daily -Telegraph_ correspondent was one of a quiet band of people who had -waited silently for many long hours on the platform that runs -alongside the hospital for the arrival of the disabled soldiers who had -fought so heroically at Mons; and this is his account of what he saw: - - -Colonel Lucas and staff were all in readiness. Here were wheeling -chairs, there stretchers. The preparations for the reception of the -broken Tommies could not have been better, more elaborate, or more -humane. It was the humanity of it all--the quiet consideration that -told of complete preparedness--that made not the least moving chapter -of the story that I have to tell. And out of the train stern-faced men -began to hobble, many with their arms in a sling. - -Here was a hairless-faced, boyish-looking fellow, with his head -enveloped in snowy-white bandages; his cheeks were red and healthy, -his eyes bright and twinkling. There was pain written across his young -face, but he walked erect and puffed away at a cigarette. One man, with -arms half clinging round the neck of two injured comrades, went limping -to the reception-room, his foot the size of three, and as he went by he -smiled and joked because he could only just manage to get along. - -When the last of the soldiers able to walk found his way into the -hospital, there to be refreshed with tea or coffee or soup, before he -was sent to this or that ward, the more seriously wounded were carried -from the train. How patient, how uncomplaining were these fellows! One, -stretched out on a mattress, with his foot smashed, chatted and smoked -until his turn came to be wheeled away. And when the last of these -wounded heroes had been lifted out of the train I took myself to the -reception-room, and there heard many stories that, though related with -the simplicity of the true soldier, were wonderful. - -The wounded men were of all regiments and spoke all dialects. They were -travel-stained and immensely tired. Pain had eaten deep lines into many -of their faces, but there were no really doleful looks. They were faces -that seemed to say: “Here we are; what does it all matter; it is good -to be alive; it might have been worse.” - -I sat beside a private, named Cox. An old warrior he looked. His fine -square jaw was black with wire-like whiskers. His eyes shone with the -fire of the man who had suffered, so it seemed, some dreadful nightmare. - -“And you want me to tell you all about it. Well, believe me, it was -just hell. I have been through the Boxer campaign; I went through the -Boer War, but I have never seen anything so terrible as that which -happened last Sunday. It all happened so sudden. We believed that the -Germans were some fifteen miles away, and all at once they opened fire -upon us with their big guns. - -“Let me tell you what happened to my own regiment. When a roll-call of -my company was taken there were only three of us answered, me and two -others.” When he had stilled his emotion, he went on. “So unexpected -and so terrible was the attack of the enemy, and so overwhelming were -their numbers, that there was no withstanding it.” - -Before fire was opened a German aeroplane flew over our troops, and the -deduction made by Private Cox and several of his comrades, with whom -I chatted, was that the aeroplane was used as a sort of index to the -precise locality of our soldiers, and, further, that the Germans, so -accurate was their gunnery, had been over this particular battlefield -before they struck a blow, and so had acquired an intimate knowledge -of the country. Trenches that were dug by our men served as little -protection from the fire. - -Said Cox: “No man could have lived against such a murderous attack. -There was a rain of lead, a deluge of lead, and, talk about being -surprised, well, I can hardly realise that, and still less believe what -happened.” - -By the side of Cox sat a lean, fair-haired, freckle-faced private. -“That’s right,” he said, by way of corroborating Cox. “They were fair -devils,” chimed in an Irishman, who later told me that he came from -Connemara. “You could do nothing with them, but I say they are no d---- -good as riflemen.” - -“No, they’re not, Mike,” ventured a youth. “We got within 400 yards of -them, and they couldn’t hit us.” - -“But,” broke in the man of Connemara, “they are devils with the big -guns, and their aim was mighty good, too. If it had not been they -wouldn’t have damaged us as they have done.” - -A few yards away was another soldier, also seated in a wheeling chair, -with a crippled leg--a big fine fellow he was. He told me his corps had -been ambushed, and that out of 120 only something like twenty survived. - -On all hands I heard all too much to show that the battle of Mons was a -desperate affair. Two regiments suffered badly, but there was no marked -disposition on the part of any of the soldiers with whom I chatted to -enlarge upon the happenings of last week-end. Rather would they talk -more freely of the awful atrocities perpetrated by the Germans. - -“Too awful for words,” one said. “Their treatment of women will remain -as a scandal as long as the world lasts. We shall never forget; we -shall never forgive. I wish I was back again at the front. Englishmen -have only got to realise what devilish crimes are being committed by -these Germans to want to go and take a hand in the fight. Women were -shot, and so were young girls. In fact, it did not seem to matter to -the Germans who they killed, and they seemed to take a delight in -burning houses and spreading terror everywhere. - -“I have got one consolation, I helped to catch four German spies.” - - -IN HOSPITAL. - -(2) _At Belfast._ - -About 120 officers and men arrived in Belfast on August 31st, direct -from the Continent. They were brought here, says the _Daily Telegraph_ -local correspondent, to be near their friends, for the men had been in -Ulster for a long time before leaving for the front, being stationed in -Belfast and later in Londonderry. They sailed from this city for the -theatre of war on August 14th, to the number of 900. It was remarkable -to note how many of them were injured in the legs and feet. All were -conveyed to the hospital at the Victoria Military Barracks. The men -were glad to see Belfast again, but those to whom I spoke will be -bitterly disappointed if they do not get another opportunity for paying -off their score against the Germans. - -One soldier told me a plain straightforward story, without any -embellishments. What made his tale doubly interesting was the fact -that he spoke with the experience of a veteran, having gone through the -South African War. - -Where the Germans had the advantage, he said, was in the apparently -endless number of reserves. No sooner did we dispose of one regiment -than another regiment took its place. It just put me in mind of the -Niagara Falls--the terrible rush threatening to carry everything before -it. - -No force on earth could have withstood that cataract, and the fact that -our men only fell back a little was the best proof of their strength. -At one stage there were, I am sure, six Germans to every one of us. Yet -we held our ground, and would still have held it but for the fact that -after we had dealt with the men before us another force came on, using -the bodies of their dead comrades as a carpet. - -The South African War was a picnic compared with this, and on the way -home I now and again recoiled with horror as I thought of the awful -spectacle which was witnessed before we left the front of piled-up -bodies of the German dead. We lost heavily, but the German casualties -must have been appalling. - -You must remember that for almost twenty-four hours we bore the brunt -of the attack, and the desperate fury with which the Germans fought -showed that they believed if they were only once past the British -forces the rest would be easy. Not only so, but I am sure we had the -finest troops in the German army against us. - -On the way out I heard some slighting comments passed on the German -troops, and no doubt some of them are not worth much, but those thrown -at us were very fine specimens indeed. I do not think they could have -been beaten in that respect. - - -IN HOSPITAL. - -(3) _At Birmingham._ - -About 120 English soldiers who had been wounded in and around Mons -arrived in Birmingham on September 1st, and were removed to the new -university buildings at Bournbrook, where facilities have been provided -for dealing with over 1,000 patients. The contingent was the first -batch to arrive. Though terribly maimed, and looking broken and tired, -the men were cheerful. About twenty had to be carried, but the majority -of them were able to walk with assistance. - -In the course of conversation with a _Daily Telegraph_ reporter a -number of the men spoke of the terrible character of the fighting. The -Germans, one man said, outnumbered us by 100 to one. As we knocked -them down, they simply filled up their gaps and came on as before. - -One of the Suffolk men stated that very few were injured by shot -wounds. Nearly all the mischief was done by shells. The Germans, he -said, fired six at a time, and if you missed one you got the others. - -One poor fellow, whose head was so smothered in bandages that his -features could not be seen, remarked, “We could beat them with -bladder-sticks if it were not for the shells, which were appalling. The -effect could not be described.” - -A private of the West Kent Regiment, who was through the Boer War, said -there was never anything like the fighting at Mons in South Africa. -That was a game of skittles by comparison. - - -They came at us, he said, in great masses. It was like shooting -rabbits, only as fast as you shot one lot down another lot took their -place. You couldn’t help hitting them. We had plenty of time to take -aim, and if we weren’t reaching the Bisley standard all the time, we -must have done a mighty lot of execution. As to their rifle fire, they -couldn’t hit a haystack. - - -A sergeant gunner of the Royal Field Artillery, who was wounded at -Tournai, owing to an injury to his jaw was unable to speak, but he -wrote on a pad: - -I was on a flank with my gun and fired about sixty rounds in forty -minutes. We wanted support and could not get it. It was about 500 -English trying to save a flank attack, against, honestly, I should -say, 10,000. As fast as you shot them down more came. But for their -aeroplanes they would be useless. I was firing for one hour at from -1,500 yards down to 700 yards, so you can tell what it was like. - - -IN HOSPITAL. - -(4) _At London._ - -All the heroism that has been displayed by British troops in the -present war will never be known. A few individual cases may chance to -be heard of. Others will be known only to the Recording Angel. Two -instances of extraordinary bravery are mentioned by a couple of wounded -soldiers lying in the London Hospital in the course of a narrative of -their own adventures. - -One of them, a splendid fellow of the Royal West Kent Regiment, told a -_Daily Telegraph_ reporter: - -We were in a scrubby position just outside Mons from Saturday afternoon -till Monday morning. After four hours each of our six big guns was put -out of action. Either the gunners were killed or wounded, or the guns -themselves damaged. For the rest of the time--that is, until Monday -morning, when we retired--we had to stick the German fire without being -able to retaliate. It was bad enough to stand this incessant banging -away, but it made it worse not to be able to reply. - -All day Sunday and all Sunday night the Germans continued to -shrapnel us. At night it was just hellish. We had constructed some -entrenchments, but it didn’t afford much cover and our losses were very -heavy. On Monday we received the order to retire to the south of the -town, and some hours later, when the roll-call was called, it was found -that we had 300 dead alone, including four officers. - -Then an extraordinary thing happened. Me and some of my pals began to -dance. We were just dancing for joy at having escaped with our skins, -and to forget the things we’d seen a bit, when bang! and there came a -shell from the blue, which burst and got, I should think, quite twenty -of us. - -That’s how some of us got wounded, as we thought we had escaped. Then -another half-dozen of us got wounded this way. Some of our boys went -down a street near by, and found a basin and some water, and were -washing their hands and faces when another shell burst above them and -laid most of them out. - -What happened to us happened to the Gloucesters. Their guns, too, were -put out of action, and, like us, they had to stand the shell-fire for -hours and hours before they were told to retire. What we would have -done without our second in command I don’t know. - -During the Sunday firing he got hit in the head. He had two wounds -through the cap in the front and one or two behind, and lost a lot of -blood. Two of our fellows helped to bind up his head, and offered to -carry him back, but he said, “It isn’t so bad. I’ll be all right soon.” -Despite his wounds and loss of blood, he carried on until we retired on -Monday. Then, I think, they took him off to hospital. - - -A stalwart chap of the Cheshires here broke in. - - -Our Cheshire chaps were also badly cut up. Apart from the wounded, -several men got concussion of the brain by the mere explosions. It -was awful! Under cover of their murderous artillery fire, the German -infantry advanced to within three and five hundred yards of our -position. With that we were given the order to fix bayonets, and stood -up for the charge. That did it for the German infantry! They turned -tail and ran for their lives. - -Our captain cried out, “Now you’ve got ’em, men!” But we hadn’t. Their -artillery begins with that to fire more hellish than ever, and before -you could almost think what to do a fresh lots of the “sausages” came -along, and we had to beat a retreat. - -During the retreat one of our sergeants was wounded and fell. With that -our captain runs back and tries to lift him. As he was doing so he was -struck in the foot, and fell over. We thought he was done for, but he -scrambles up and drags the sergeant along until a couple of us chaps -goes out to help ’em in. You should have seen his foot when he took his -boot off--I mean the captain. It wasn’t half smashed. - - -How a number of British troops made a dash in the night to save some -women and children from the Germans was told by Lance-corporal Tanner, -of the 2nd Oxfordshire and Bucks Light Infantry. On the Sunday the -regiment arrived at Mons. - - -We took up our position in the trenches, he said, and fought for some -time. In the evening the order came to retire, and we marched back to -Conde, with the intention of billeting for the night and having a rest. -Suddenly, about midnight, we were ordered out, and set off to march to -the village of Douai, some miles away, as news had reached us that the -Germans were slaughtering the natives there. - -It was a thrilling march in the darkness, across the unfamiliar -country. We were liable to be attacked at any moment, of course, but -everyone was keen on saving the women and children, and hurried on. We -kept the sharpest lookout on all sides, but saw nothing of the enemy. - -When we reached Douai a number of the inhabitants rushed out to meet -us. They were overjoyed to see us, and speedily told what the Germans -had done. They had killed a number of women and children. With fixed -bayonets we advanced into the village, and we saw signs all around us -of the cruelty of the enemy. - - -Private R. Wills, of the Highland Light Infantry, who also took part in -the march to the village, here continued the story. - - -We found that most of the Germans had not waited for our arrival, and -there were only a few left in the place. However, we made sure that -none remained there. - -We started a house-to-house search. Our men went into all the houses, -and every now and then they found one or two of the enemy hiding in a -corner or upstairs. Many of them surrendered at once, others did not. - -When we had cleared the village, some of us lay down on the pavements, -and snatched an hour’s sleep. At 3.30 we marched away again, having rid -the place of the enemy, and, getting back to camp, were glad to turn in. - -A sergeant of the Royal Field Artillery, who was wounded by shrapnel -just outside Mons village, said that the German artillery fire was -good; once the enemy’s gunners got the range they did well. - -Their shooting was every bit as good as ours, and although our battery -made excellent practice, three of our men were killed, and twenty out -of thirty-six were wounded. I lay on the field all night, and was -rescued the next morning. Fortunately, the Germans did not come and -find me during those long hours of loneliness. - - -In such tales of these men in hospital, and in the letters they have -written home, there is a common agreement that the German rifle -shooting is beneath contempt--“they shoot from the hip and don’t seem -to aim at anything in particular;” but their artillery practice is -spoken of with respect and admiration. The German artillery is very -good, writes Private Geradine, of the 1st Northumberland Fusiliers, -but their aeroplanes help them a lot. It is a pretty sight to see the -shells burst in the night, he adds--it’s like Guy Fawkes Day! - - -I like too, such robust cheerfulness and gay good-humour in face of the -horrors of death as sounds through the letter of Sapper Bradley: - - -I have never seen our lads so cheery as they are under great trials. -You couldn’t help being proud of them if you saw them lying in the -trenches cracking jokes or smoking while they take pot shots at the -Germans.... We have very little spare time now, but what we have we -pass by smoking concerts, sing-songs, and story-telling. Sometimes we -have football for a change, with a German helmet for a ball, and to -pass the time in the trenches have invented the game of guessing where -the next German shell will drop. Sometimes we have bets on it, and the -man who guesses correctly the greatest number of times takes the stakes. - -And surely no less do I like the equally courageous but more sombre -outlook of the Scottish Private who complained of the famous retreat -from Mons, It was “Retire! retire! retire!” when our chaps were longing -to be at them. But they didn’t swear about it, because being out there -and seeing what we saw makes you feel religious. - -I like that wonderful diary kept by a driver of the 4th Ammunition -Column, 3rd section, R.F.A. It was sent over from Paris by Mr. Harold -Ashton, _The Daily News_ correspondent, and is as naïvely and minutely -realistic as if it were a page out of Defoe. The driver’s interests -are naturally centred in his horses, they hold the first place in his -regard, the excitements of the war coming second. He records how he -went from Hendon to Southampton on the 21st August: - - -Got horses on board all right, though the friskiest of them kicked a -lot. Got to Havre safe. Food good--rabbit and potatoes and plenty of -beer, not our English sort, but the colour of cyder. Us four enjoyed -ourselves with the family, had a good time, and left ten o’clock next -day well filled up. Our objective was Compiègne. We got through all -right, watering our horses on the way from pumps and taps at private -houses. The people were awful kind, giving us quantities of pears, and -filling our water-bottles with beer. That was all right. Our welcome -was splendid everywhere. At Compiègne we got into touch with the -Germans. Very hot work. We marched from Compiègne about eleven o’clock -on the 31st, which was Sunday. The way was hard. Terrible steep hills -which knocked out our older and weaker horses. Collick broke out among -them, too, and that was bad. We lost a good many.... Slept until 5 -a.m. and then marched on again, still retreating. Hot as ----. Nothing -to eat or drink. Plenty of tea, but nothing to boil it with. At last -we got some dry biscuits and some tins of marmalade. Bill ----, whose -teeth were bad, went near mad with toothache after the jam.... No dead -horses, thank God, to-day. I hope we have checked that ---- collick, -but my horse fell into a ditch going through the wood and could not get -out for over an hour. I couldn’t go for help, because the Germans had -got the range of the place and their shells were ripping overhead like -blazes. Poor old Dick (the horse), he was that fagged out by the long -march. At last I got him out and went on, and by luck managed to pick -up my pals.... The Germans were lambing in at us with their artillery, -and poor old Dick got blowed up. I thank God I wasn’t on him just -then. Sept. 2.--More fighting and worser than ever. I don’t believe we -shall ever get to Paris.... Now we come to Montagny, and fighting all -the time. Rabbits and apples to eat gallore, but still no money, and -no good if we had because we carnt spend it. Sept. 3.--We progressed -this day four miles in twelve hours. Took the wrong road, and had to -crawl about the woods on our stummoks like snakes to dodge the German -snipers. We had one rifle between four of us, and took it in turns to -have goes. We shot one blighter and took another prisoner. They was -both half starved and covered with soars. Then the rifle jammed, and we -had nothing to defend ourselves with. At last we found the main body -again. They wanted more horses, and we were just bringing them up and -putting them to the guns when a German areyplane came over us and flue -round pretty low. The troops tried to fetch him down, and some bullets -went through the wings, but then he got too high. He dropped a bomb in -the middle of us, but it exploded very weak and nobody was hurt. Next -day we started on a night march, and got to Lagny Thorigny, and camped -outside the town, where the people fed us on rabbits again. I said I -was sick of rabbits, and me and Bill walked acrost to a farmhouse and -borrowed three chickens, which we cooked. It was fine.... Outside Lagny -there was more fierce fighting--20 miles of it--and the Germans were -shot down like birds. Sept. 3 (continued).--Firing is still going on, -but it is not so fierce, though scouts have come in and told us there -are 10,000 Germans round us this day. To-night I got two ounces of -Navy Cut. It was prime. Sept. 8.--We are marching on further away from -Paris. We shall never get there, I guess. Sept. 12.--In the village of -Crecy. Plenty of food and houses to sleep into. Here we have got to -stay until further orders. Collick still very bad. - -The calm matter-of-fact air with which he encounters whatever comes -to him, the keen joy he takes in small pleasures by the way; his -philosophic acceptance of the fate of “poor old Dick”--the whole thing -is so unruffled, so self-possessed, so Pepysian in its egoism and so -artlessly humorous that one hopes this phlegmatic driver will keep a -full diary of his campaignings, and that Mr. Ashton will secure and -publish it. - - - - -III - -THE DESTRUCTION OF LOUVAIN - - “_Such food a tyrant’s appetite demands._” - - WORDSWORTH. - - -The stupid arrogance of the German military caste has always made them -ridiculous in the eyes of decent human creatures; it was surprising, -amusing, and yet saddening, too, to see an intelligent people strutting -and playing such war-paint-and-feathers tricks before high heaven, but -it appears that the primitive impulses that survive in their character -are stronger and go deeper than we had suspected. There are brave -and chivalrous spirits among Germany’s officers and men; that goes -without saying; but the savage and senseless barbarities that have -marked her conduct of the present war will make her name a byword for -infamy as long as it is remembered. There seems no doubt--the charges -are too many and too widely spread--that her troops have murdered -the wounded, have shot down women and children, have even used them -as shields, driving them in front of their firing line; they have -ruthlessly murdered unarmed civilians, and have blasted farmsteads -and villages into ashes on the flimsiest provocation; sometimes, so -far as one can learn, without waiting for any provocation whatever. -Even if their hands were clean of that innocent blood, the wanton, -insensate destruction of such a city as Louvain is sufficient of -itself to put them outside the pale of civilised societies. No doubt -they were smarting with humiliation that they had been so long delayed -breaking through the stubborn opposition of the Belgians at Liège; but -Louvain was an unfortified city and they were allowed to take peaceable -possession of it. Nevertheless, on August 25th whilst the fighting -round Mons was at its hottest and Russia was sweeping farther and -farther over the frontiers of East Prussia, in some sort of burst of -vengeful frenzy they laid one of the loveliest old cities of the world -in ruins, burnt or shattered most of its priceless art treasures, and -left its citizens homeless. Of course they have been busy ever since -trying to cover up their shame with excuses, but such a wanton crime is -too great and too glaringly obvious to be hidden or excused. - -Four impressively realistic descriptions of what happened when the -Germans thus went mad in Louvain have been published in the _Daily -Telegraph_: - - -1. From a _Daily Telegraph_ Folkestone Correspondent, Saturday, August -29th: - - -Among the refugees arriving here to-day were women and children from -Louvain and soldiers from Liège, all narrating thrilling adventures. -Some of the refugees had obviously hurriedly deserted their homes, -wrapping a few of their belongings in sheets of newspaper. - -One woman from Louvain tore down the curtains from her windows, wrapped -them round some wearing apparel, and ran from her house with her two -children. In the street she became involved in a stampede of men, -women, and children tearing away from the burning town, whither she -knew not. This woman’s story was so disjointed, so interspersed with -hysterical sobs and exclamations, that it is impossible to make a full -and coherent narrative of it. Periodically she clasped her children, -gazed round upon the English faces, and thanked God and bemoaned her -fate alternately. - -Although suffering from extreme nervous excitement, another woman -had intervals of comparative calmness during which she described her -experiences as follows: - -“Ah! m’sieu,” she exclaimed, “I will tell you, yes, of the burning of -Louvain. We had pulled down some of the buildings so that the Germans -should not mount guns on them when they came. I believe that was the -reason. We were in a state of terror because we had heard of the -cruelties of the Germans.” - -Every time the poor woman referred to the Germans she paused to utter -maledictions upon them. - -“Well,” she proceeded, “they came, and all we had heard about them -was not so bad as we experienced. In the streets people were cruelly -butchered, and then on all sides flames began to rise. We were prepared -for what we had regarded as the worst, but never had we anticipated -that they would burn us in our homes. - -“People rushed about frantic to save their property. Pictures of -relatives were snatched from the walls, clothing was seized, and the -people were demented. - -“What was the excuse given? Well, they said our people had shot at -them, but that was absolutely untrue. The real reason was the pulling -down of the buildings. My house was burning when I left it with my -three children, and here I am with them safe in England, beautiful -England. But what we have suffered! We were part of a crowd which -left the burning town, and kept walking without knowing where we were -going. Miles and miles we trudged, I am told we walked over seventy -miles before we came to a railway. I never regarded a railway as I did -then. I wanted to bow down and kiss the rails. I fell exhausted, having -carried my children in turn. Footsore, broken-hearted, after the first -joy of sighting the railway, I felt my head whirling, and I wondered -whether it was all worth while. Then I thought of my deliverance, and -thanked God. - -“What did Louvain look like? Like what it was, a mass of flame -devouring our homes, our property--to some, perhaps, our relatives. It -was pitiful to behold. Most of us women were deprived of our husbands. -They had either fallen or were fighting for their country. In the town -everybody who offered any opposition was killed, and everyone found -to be armed in any way was shot. Wives saw their husbands shot in the -streets. - -“I saw the burgomaster shot, and I saw another man dragged roughly away -from his weeping wife and children and shot through the head. Well, we -got a train and reached Boulogne, and now for the first time we feel -really safe.” - - * * * * * - -2. From a _Daily Telegraph_ Rotterdam correspondent, Sunday, August -30th. - -The following account of the appalling and ruthless sacking of -Louvain by the Germans is given by a representative of the _Nieuwe -Rotterdamsche Courant_, who himself witnessed the outrages: - - -I arrived at Louvain on Tuesday afternoon, and, accompanied by a German -officer, made my way through the town. Near the station were the -Commander and Staff and many of the military, for a food and ammunition -train had just arrived. Suddenly shots rang out from houses in the -neighbourhood of the station. In a moment the shooting was taken up -from houses all over the town. - -From the window of the third floor of an hotel opposite the station -a machine gun opened fire. It was impossible to know which of the -civilians had taken part in the shooting, and from which houses they -had fired. Therefore the soldiers went into all the houses, and -immediately there followed the most terrible scenes of street fighting. -Every single civilian found with weapons, or suspected of firing, was -put to death on the spot. The innocent suffered with the guilty. - -There was no time for exhaustive inquiry. Old men, sick people, women -were shot. In the meanwhile, part of the town was shelled by artillery. -Many buildings were set on fire by the shells. On others petrol was -poured and a match applied. The German officer advised me to go away, -as several houses being still intact more firing was expected. - -Under a strong escort two groups of men and women arrived, each a -hundred strong. They were hostages. They were stood in rows by the -station, and every time a soldier was shot in the town ten of these -pitiful civilians were slaughtered. There was no mercy. Tears and -pleadings were in vain. The good suffered with the bad. At night the -scene was terrible, burning buildings shedding a lurid glow over this -town, which was running with tears of blood. - -This was no time for sleep. The sight of this terrible awfulness drove -away all thoughts and desire for rest. Towards dawn the soldiers took -possession of all buildings which had not been destroyed. - -With the rising of the sun I walked on the boulevards, and saw them -strewn with bodies, many of them being of old people and priests. -Leaving Louvain for Tirlemont one passed continuously through utterly -devastated country. - - * * * * * - -A Dutchman who escaped from Louvain says that when the German artillery -began to demolish the houses and the German soldiers began looting -everything he and his little son hid in a cellar beneath a pile of -pneumatic tyres. One woman took refuge in a pit, in which water was up -to her waist. Such was the terrible plight of the civilians in Louvain. -Peeping out they saw that neighbours had been driven to the roof of a -burning building, where they perished. - -While still concealed in the cellar the Dutchman and his son discovered -to their horror that the house above them was in flames. The situation -was terrible, as the people who dared to leave their houses were shot -like rabbits leaving burrows. They heard floor by floor, and then -the roof, crash down above them. The situation was desperate. It was -impossible to remain in the cellar. Driven out by dire necessity, they -fled. They were immediately stopped by military rifles at the “present.” - -“Do not fire, I am German,” said the Dutchman in German, seized with -a sudden inspiration. This secured his safe conduct to the railway -station. The journey through the town was, said this refugee, “like -walking through hell.” From burning houses he heard agonised cries of -those perishing in the conflagrations. While he was waiting at the -station fifty people arrived there, driven by troops, who asserted -that they found them hiding in houses from which shots had been -fired. These people swore by all they held sacred they were innocent, -but notwithstanding all were shot. The Dutchman is of opinion that the -first firing was not by civilians, but by the German outpost on German -soldiers retreating to Louvain from Malines. - -_Note:_--There is no confirmation whatever of the Dutch correspondent’s -assertion with regard to the firing on the German troops. On the -contrary it has been expressly said by the Belgian Government that the -Germans fired on their own men by mistake. - -[Illustration: - - _Drawn by E. Matania._ _Copyright of The Sphere._ - -GERMAN SOLDIERS DRIVING THE INHABITANTS OF LOUVAIN BEFORE THEM DURING -THE SACKING OF THE TOWN.] - - -3. From a _Daily Telegraph_ Rotterdam Correspondent, Monday, August -31st: - - -“With a crowd of other men, I was marched out of Louvain, and at -nightfall ordered into a church,” said an escaped Dutchman to a _Nieuwe -Rotterdamsche Courant_ representative. “All was dark, till suddenly, -through the windows, I saw the lurid glow of the neighbouring burning -houses. I heard the agonised cries of people tortured by the flames. -Six priests moved among us, giving absolution. Next morning the priests -were shot--why, I know not. We were released, and allowed to go to -Malines. We were compelled to walk with our hands in the air for fear -of arms being concealed.” - - * * * * * - -A Dutchman who has arrived at Breda from Louvain gives the _Nieuwe -Rotterdamsche Courant_ the following account of the massacre: - - -Several German soldiers were billeted on us, and just as we were -sitting down to the midday meal on August 25th the alarm was sounded -and the soldiers rushed out. Immediately firing started, and, knowing -the terrible consequences of civilians appearing in the streets at such -times, we sought refuge in the cellar. Next morning we attempted to -reach the railway station. We were arrested. - -My wife was taken away from me, and the Mayor, the Principal of the -University, and I, with other men, were taken to a goods shed and -our hands bound. I saw 300 men and boys marched to the corner of the -Boulevarde van Tienen, and every one was massacred. The heads of police -were shot. We were then marched towards Herent, and on the way the -soldiers thought the enemy was approaching, and ordered us to kneel -down. Then they took cover behind us. Only after many such hardships -were we permitted to return to Louvain and escape by train. - - -4. From a _Daily Telegraph_ Rotterdam correspondent, Wednesday, -September 2nd: - -A Dutchman who has just arrived at Breda from Louvain gives the -following vivid description of his terrible experiences in Louvain, -where he was present at the burning of the city: - -We Dutchmen in Louvain at first had nothing to fear from the German -soldiers, but all the houses abandoned by their owners were ransacked, -notwithstanding the warnings from the military authorities forbidding -the troops to pillage. In Louvain, as in all other towns they have -occupied, the Germans imprisoned as hostages of war the Burgomaster, -two magistrates, and a number of influential citizens. - -Before the Germans entered the town the Civic Guard had been disarmed, -and all weapons in the possession of the population had to be given up. -Even toy guns and toy pistols and precious collections of old weapons, -bows and arrows, and other antique arms useless for any kind of modern -warfare had to be surrendered, and all these things--sometimes of great -personal value to the owner--have since been destroyed by the Germans. -The value of one single private collection has been estimated at about -£1,000. From the pulpits the priests urged the people to keep calm, as -that was the only way to prevent harm being done to them. - -A few days after the entry of the German troops, the military -authorities agreed to cease quartering their men in private houses, in -return for a payment of 100,000 francs (£4,000) per day. On some houses -between forty and fifty men had been billeted. After the first payment -of the voluntary contribution the soldiers camped in the open or in the -public buildings. The beautiful rooms in the Town Hall, where the civil -marriages take place, were used as a stable for cavalry horses. - - -At first everything the soldiers bought was paid for in cash or -promissory notes, but later this was altered. Soldiers came and asked -for change, and when this was handed to them they tendered in return -for the hard cash a piece of paper--a kind of receipt. - - -On Sunday, the 23rd, I and some other influential people in the town -were roused from our beds. We were informed that an order had been -given that 250 mattresses, 200 lbs. of coffee, 250 loaves of bread, -and 500 eggs, must be on the market-place within an hour. On turning -out we found the Burgomaster standing on the market-place, and crowds -of citizens, half naked, or in their night attire, carrying everything -they could lay hands on to the market, that no harm might befall their -Burgomaster. After this had been done the German officer in command -told us that his orders had been misinterpreted, and that he only -wanted the mattresses. - -On Tuesday, the 25th, many troops left the town. We had a few soldiers -in our house. At six o’clock, when everything was ready for dinner, -alarm signals sounded, and the soldiers rushed through the streets, -shots whistled through the air, cries and groans arose on all sides; -but we did not dare leave our house, and took refuge in the cellar, -where we stayed through long and fearful hours. Our shelter was lighted -up by the reflection from the burning houses. The firing continued -unceasingly, and we feared that at any moment our houses would be burnt -over our heads. At break of day I crawled from the cellar to the street -door, and saw nothing but a raging sea of fire. - -At nine o’clock the shooting diminished, and we resolved to make a dash -to the station. Abandoning our home and all our goods except what we -could carry, and taking all the money we had, we rushed out. What we -saw on our way to the station is hardly describable, everything was -burning, the streets were covered with bodies shot dead and half-burnt. -Everywhere proclamations had been posted, summoning every man to assist -in quenching the flames, and the women and children to stay inside the -houses. The station was crowded with fugitives, and I was just trying -to show an officer my legitimation papers when the soldiers separated -me from my wife and children. - -All protests were useless, and a lot of us were marched off to a big -shed in the goods yard, from where we could see the finest buildings of -the city, the most beautiful historical monuments, being burned down. - -Shortly afterwards German soldiers drove before them 300 men and lads -to the corner of the Boulevard van Tienen and the Maria Theresia -Street, opposite the Café Vermalen. There they were shot. The sight -filled us with horror. The Burgomaster, two magistrates, the Rector of -the University, and all police officials had been shot already. - -With our hands bound behind our backs we were then marched off by the -soldiers, still without having seen our wives or children. We went -through the Juste de Litsh Street, along the Diester Boulevard, across -the Vaart and up the hill. - -From the Mont Cesar we had a full view of the burning town, St. Peter -in flames, while the troops incessantly sent shot after shot into the -unfortunate town. We came through the village of Herent--one single -heap of ruins--where another troop of prisoners, including half-a-dozen -priests, joined us. Suddenly, about ten o’clock, evidently as the -result of some false alarm, we were ordered to kneel down, and the -soldiers stood behind us with their rifles ready to fire, using us as -a shield. But fortunately for us nothing happened. - -After a delay of half-an-hour, our march was continued. No conversation -was allowed, and the soldiers continually maltreated us. One soldier -struck me with all his might with the heavy butt-end of his rifle. -I could hardly walk any further, but I had to. We were choked with -thirst, but the Germans wasted their drinking water without offering us -a drop. - -At seven o’clock we arrived at Camperhout, en route for Malines. We -saw many half-burnt dead bodies--men, women, and children. Frightened -to death and half-starved, we were locked up in the church, and there -later joined by another troop of prisoners from the surrounding -villages. - -At ten o’clock the church was lighted up by burning houses. Again shots -whistled through the air, followed by cries and groans. - -At five o’clock next morning, all the priests were taken out by the -soldiers and shot, together with eight Belgian soldiers, six cyclists, -and two gamekeepers. Then the officer told us that we could go back to -Louvain. This we did, but only to be recaptured by other soldiers, who -brought us back to Camperhout. From there we were marched to Malines, -not by the high road, but along the river. Some of the party fell into -the water, but all were rescued. After thirty-six hours of ceaseless -excitement and danger we arrived at Malines, where we were able to buy -some food, and from there I escaped to Holland. I still do not know -where my wife and children are.--_Reuter’s Special Service._ - - -So far as available evidence goes, it seems clear enough that by -some misunderstanding the German soldiers fired upon each other in -the town, and then made the unhappy townsfolk pay the price of their -tragic blundering. There are hopes that the beautiful old Hotel de -Ville escaped the general holocaust; otherwise Louvain and its ancient -glories of art and architecture are things of the past. - - -“Louvain is no longer anything but a heap of cinders.... In the name -of Europe, of which you have till now been one of the most illustrious -champions,” writes the well-known French novelist, Romain Roland, in -an open letter addressed to the German dramatist, Gerhart Hauptmann, -“in the name of civilisation, for which the greatest of men have been -fighting for centuries--in the name of the very honor of the Germanic -race, I adjure you, Gerhart Hauptmann, and the German intellectual -élite, among whom I count so many friends, to protest against this -crime. If you do not, it can only mean one of two things, either that -you approve, or that you are impotent to raise your voice against the -Huns who rule you. In the latter case, how can you still pretend that -you are fighting for the cause of human liberty and progress?... Are -you the descendants of Goethe, or of Attila?” - - - - -IV - -THE FIGHT IN THE NORTH SEA - - “_Strong Mother of a Lion line,_ - _Be proud of these strong sons of thine._” - - TENNYSON. - - -In the three weeks that followed on the declaration of war, tidings -came to us from time to time of how our ships were chasing and sinking -the enemy’s cruisers, capturing his merchantmen and keeping the -ocean-highways clear for our own and neutral commerce; but no word -reached us from the great British fleet that was keeping watch and ward -in the North Sea, waiting sleeplessly for the German Navy that was -sheltered behind the impregnable fort of Heligoland to dash out and -make its loudly threatened raid upon our coasts. We heard no word of -those guardian sailormen, but we slept peacefully in our beds at night, -confident in their strength, their courage, their alertness. Then -suddenly, on the 28th August, whilst the British and French armies were -in the heat of their strategic retreat from Mons, news of our seamen’s -dashing fight and victory in the North Sea flashed through the land. -They had grown weary of waiting, and as the German was too discreet to -venture forth to the attack they had slipped into his fastness under -cover of the dark and hunted him out. Until it is possible to compile a -connected, orderly narrative, the tale of that brilliant engagement is -best told in the letters of the men who had part in it: - - - _Letter 22.--From Albert Roper, first-class petty officer of H.M. - cruiser “Talbot,” to his brother at Leeds:_ - -I cannot give you any news about our movements. It is against the rules -to do so, and it’s a jolly good job, too, for if it was not so, things -would leak out, and that is just what we do not want. We are waiting -patiently for Willie’s fleet to come out to enable our chaps to have -a little practice. We try to make ourselves as happy as we can in the -shape of a sing-song occasionally. These evenings are well appreciated. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 23.--From Seaman Wilson, of the “Bacchante,” to his wife at - Hunslet:_ - -You will have read of our victory in the North Sea. It was fine. Our -ship brought the dead and wounded and the prisoners back. A grim job it -was, too. I only wish the whole German fleet would come out. We may get -a chance of coming home soon. Their firing is rotten, whilst our men -behind the guns are perfect. They get a hit every time. - -The bounders won’t come out. That was the reason our ships had to try -and drive them out. You see the place is all mined, and if a ship runs -into one of these mines it means destruction. - -The commander of the _Liberty_, a torpedo boat destroyer, asked his -ship’s company if they would volunteer to go up Kiel Harbour with him, -and every man said “Yes,” although it looked certain death. Up they -went, and got under the forts of Heligoland and let rip at the German -cruisers in the harbour. One of the wounded sailors of the _Liberty_ -told me that the shells fired at them were enough to sink a fleet. Our -ship had only one torpedo and one round of ammunition left. So they -turned round to come out, when a shrapnel shell struck the _Liberty’s_ -mast, killing the gallant commander and three others. The coxswain, -although wounded, brought the ship safely to our fleet that was waiting -outside. We pray to God that we may come off victorious, and I am -confident we shall, as every man jack in the fleet has the heart of a -lion. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 24.--From a Welsh gunner on the “Arethusa”:_ - -Just a few lines to let you know how the war is going on. I cannot say -much, as correspondence is strictly secret and letters are likely to be -opened. The Commodore turned over to this ship last Wednesday, and we -were in action on Friday at 7.45 a.m. and finished a stiff eight-hours’ -engagement, our loss being eleven killed and fifteen injured in this -ship alone. - -We were done after the fight, engines disabled, and had to be towed to -Chatham. One man was all that was left at my gun. But still, after all, -we saw them off. We blew them to ----. Three fights we had. As soon as -we are patched up we shall be off again. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 25.--From Gunner John Meekly, of Leeds:_ - -Been in battle, and, wonder of wonders, haven’t scored a scratch. My -ship, as you know, is the _Arethusa_--“Saucy Arethusa” as history knows -her. She was the first there, and the first that shot home. It was her -that made them come out, and her that took the most prominent part, as -all the ship’s company know only too well. Now we are in dry dock. - -We had to sacrifice ourselves almost to do what we did do--to get them -out of their shells. Not only were submarines and mines a menace, but -also the fire from the forts. We got within their range, and our ship -suffered the most. We have got a fearless admiral, and at the same time -a decent fellow. - -I saw an account in the papers when we got in dock, and I was very -pleased with it, because another ship had been mistaken for us. The -name of our commodore is Tyrwhitt. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 26.--From Midshipman Hartley, of H.M. battle-cruiser “Lion,” - to his parents at Burton-on-Trent:_ - -At last we have had a taste of gunfire, but it was only a taste. We -ran into three light German cruisers. Two of them were sunk, and one -managed to make off in a sinking condition and badly on fire forward -and aft. Of course, their guns had about the same effect on us as a -daisy air-rifle. The funny thing, which you should have seen, was all -the stokers grubbing about after the action looking for bits of shell. - -The Germans fought awfully well and bravely, but the poor beggars -hadn’t a dog’s chance of living through it. The _Mainz_ was the name -of one of those sunk. Two of their destroyers were also sunk. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 27.--From a Scottish seaman (Published in “The Scotsman”):_ - -It was a sight worth seeing. We chased two German destroyers of the -“S” class, one of which went on fire, and the other was sunk by eight -British destroyers, including the _Defender_. We chased them for about -four hours, and one showed great pluck as the crew refused to haul down -the flag, and she sank with the German flag flying. When she sank, and -even before it, the sailors were swimming towards the British ships, -shouting in broken English that they had surrendered, and appealing for -help. It was a terrible sight to see the wounded in the water, and we -assisted in throwing out lifebelts and ropes to them, while the whaler -and a skiff were also lowered, together with small boats from the other -British vessels. While engaged in picking up the wounded and other -survivors, we were fired on by a big four-funnelled German cruiser, so -that we had to leave our two boats. We watched the cruiser firing seven -or eight 11-inch guns, which made us keep going well ahead to keep out -of the way. - -A piece of shell struck one of the gun’s crew on the head, and dropped -at my feet, and we had to keep dodging the shells round the bridge. -A light cruiser at last came to the rescue, for the destroyer’s guns -were no use against those of the Germans’. Our cruiser sank the German -cruiser, and a good many of the enemy’s boats escaped. About 12 o’clock -on Saturday one of the latest submarines signalled that she had saved -the boat’s crew (9 men and 1 officer) while following the big cruiser -to torpedo her. It was believed these fellows had been lost, and their -mates on board never dreamt of seeing them again. Some German survivors -were put aboard a destroyer, and they were cheered by the British tars -who were anxious to hear the news from them. A German stoker said they -did not want to fight England, and it was too much Germany fighting so -many countries. It was terrible to hear the cries of the wounded in -the water, and we did not get a chance to pick them up. The men on the -sinking destroyer stuck to their guns to the last, and they were firing -at their own men who dived for our ships. Some had lifebelts on, and -the officers tried to frighten them by saying the British would put -them in front of their guns. We had only two hurt. - - * * * * * - -[Illustration: - - _Drawn by Philip Dadd, from a sketch - by G. H. Davis._ - - _Copyright of The Sphere._ - -RESCUED BY SUBMARINE. A STRANGE INCIDENT DURING THE NAVAL ACTION OFF -HELIGOLAND.] - - _Letter 28.--From a gun-room officer on H.M. battle-cruiser - “Invincible,” to his parents at Hove:_ - -The particular ship we were engaged with was in a pitiful plight when -we had finished with her. Her funnels shot away, masts tottering, -great gaps of daylight in her sides, smoke and flame belching from -her everywhere. She speedily heeled over and sank like a stone, stern -first. So far as is known none of her crew was saved. She was game -to the last, let it be said, her flag flying till she sank, her guns -barking till they could bark no more. Although we suffered no loss -we had some very narrow escapes. Three torpedoes were observed to -pass us, one, it is said, within a few feet. Four-inch shells, too, -fell short, or were ahead of us. The sea was alive with the enemy’s -submarines, which, however, luckily did no damage. They should not be -under-rated, these Germans. They’ve got “guts.” That cruiser did not -think apparently of surrender. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 29.--From a Bluejacket in the North Sea, to his friends at - Jarrow:_ - -On August 24th we made a dash for the German coast and were lucky -enough to come across two German cruisers. Then the fun started. We -pursued one, and when I tell you we can do thirty knots, you can -imagine what chance she had of getting away. She was a heavier boat -than us, and the engagement lasted four hours. At the end of that time -she was a terrible sight. She was on fire from stem to stern; the -Germans were jumping overboard, and at the finish only seventeen out -of 400 were saved. It is a fact that the Germans only stayed at their -guns under the orders of their officers, who stood over them with -revolvers. Three dozen of their bodies, which were picked up, bore -marks of revolver shots. Five days every week for the last four weeks -we have swept the North Sea, and all we discovered were the aforesaid -two cruisers and about a dozen trawlers, which we sank. There is no -sign of the big German Navy. They are in Kiel Harbour, and if they come -out--well, there will be no German Navy left. The only things they are -using are mines and submarines. In fact, the so-called German Navy is a -“wash-out.” We have been within ten miles of their base and they will -not come out. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 30.--From Seaman-Gunner Brown, to his parents at Newport, - Isle of Wight:_ - -We and another ship in our squadron came across two German cruisers. We -outed one and started on the second, but battle-cruisers soon finished -her off. Another then appeared, and after we had plunked two broadsides -into her she slid off in flames. Every man did his bit, and there was a -continuous stream of jokes. We pencilled on the projectiles. “Love from -England,” “One for the Kaiser,” and other such messages. - -The sight of sinking German ships was gloriously terrible; funnels and -masts lying about in all directions, and amidships a huge furnace, the -burning steel looking like a big ball of sulphur. There was not the -slightest sign of fear, from the youngest to the oldest man aboard. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 31.--From a man in a warship’s engine-room:_ - -We stayed down there keeping the engines going at their top speed in -order to cut off the Germans from their fleet. We could hear the awful -din and the scampering of the tars on the deck as they rushed about -from point to point. We could hear the shells crashing against the side -of the ship or shrieking overhead as they passed harmlessly into the -water, and we knew that at any moment one might strike us in a vital -part, and send us below never to come up again. It is ten times harder -on the men whose duty is in the engine-room than for those on deck -taking part in the fighting, for they at least have the excitement of -the fight, and if the ship is struck they have more than a sporting -chance of escape. We have none, and the medals and pats on the back -when the fight is won are not for us, who are only common mechanics. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 32.--From Seaman Jack Diggett, of West Bromwich, to his - brother:_ - -You will have heard of our little job in the North Sea. We sank five -ships and ran a few off. Of course it was only a trial spin. We kicked -off last Friday about six in the morning, and we won 5--nil. Not bad, -considering we are playing “away.” Their goalkeepers could not hold -us, we were so hot. Our forwards shot beautifully, and our defence was -sound. We agreed to play extra time if we had not finished, but we had -done in time. It must not be thought that we had it all our own way, -for they were very brave, and fought until one of our boys fired a shot -at the last gun in the _Mainz_ and blew the whole gun and crew as well -into the sea. One of our officers had both his legs blown off, and -still shouted out to give the Germans another. We are all getting ready -for the big match of the season now when their battle fleet chooses to -come out. One German officer we got out of the water asked, “Are you -British?” When our officer replied, “Yes,” he said, “God help us!” They -thought we were the French fleet. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 33.--From a seaman on H.M.S. “Hearty”:_ - -The destroyer _Laurel_ seems to have suffered the most. She had one -funnel carried right away and the others riddled like a pepper-box. -One shell struck her right forward, went through her bulkhead, through -one galley door, and out through the other. The cookie was in there at -the time, but it missed him and cut through the other side of the ship. -That cook was born under a lucky star. It’s on the bridge and around -the guns where they suffered most. On the _Liberty’s_ bridge, everybody -except one was killed; in fact they say they were never seen since. -Poor devils, they must have been carried right overboard. The skipper -of the _Laurel_ had both his legs shot away. - -The scout _Arethusa_ came in last. She brought 100 Germans picked up -off the cruiser _Mainz_. We didn’t see them; they were landed down at -Sheerness. They’ve got one keepsake off her. They picked up a German -officer, but he died, and they buried him at sea. They’ve got his -uniform hanging up. The cooks on the _Arethusa_ were not so lucky. Two -cooks were in the galley, just having their rum, when a shell killed -one and blew the other’s arm off. A funny thing, they’ve got a clock -hanging up; it smashed the glass and one hand, but the blooming thing’s -still going. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 34.--From a seaman on H.M. destroyer “Lurcher,” to a friend - at Bradford:_ - -We had orders to pick up prisoners. As we steamed up dead bodies were -floating past the ship. We went up alongside the German cruiser _Mainz_ -just before she sank, and it was an awful sight. We got 224 prisoners -in a most terrible state, and most of them died. It is impossible to -describe it all on paper. Our decks were red with blood, and you see we -are only a destroyer, so you may tell what a mess we were in. - -All the Germans seemed quite happy when we got them on board. The worst -job of all was getting them out of the sea. Some of them had legs and -arms shot away, battered to pieces. I was in our boat just below when -their vessel sank, and there seemed to be many who were helpless on -board her. The captain remained behind, having had both legs shot away. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 35.--From a Naval Lieutenant to a friend:_ - -That was all. Remains only little details, only one of which I will -tell you. The most romantic, dramatic, and piquant episode that modern -war can ever show. The _Defender_, having sunk an enemy, lowered a -whaler to pick up her swimming survivors; before the whaler got back -an enemy’s cruiser came up and chased the _Defender_, and thus she -abandoned her whaler. Imagine their feelings--alone in an open boat -without food, 25 miles from the nearest land, and that land the enemy’s -fortress, with nothing but fog and foes around them. Suddenly a swirl -alongside and up, if you please, pops his Britannic Majesty’s submarine -E 4, opens his conning tower, takes them all on board, shuts up again, -dives, and brings them home 250 miles! Is not that magnificent? No -novel would dare face the critics with an episode like that in it, -except, perhaps, Jules Verne; and all true! - - * * * * * - - _Letter 36.--From a seaman on one of the British destroyers:_ - -We have at last had an innings at the Germans. It was a go. Fully -seven hours we fought shot for shot. I had the pleasure of seeing four -German ships go down. We never knew but it might be our turn next, as -great shells were falling all around us. Several shells went just over -our heads, whistling just like a needle on a broken record. Would you -believe it, one of our boats had actually stopped to pick up German -wounded when the Germans fired on her? - -I think all our men took it just as though we were having our annual -battle practice--cool, laughing, and cracking jokes, with shell all -around them. All the thought was just of shooting it into them--and -they got it! I was told they lost 1,500 men. I shall never understand -how it was our ship was not hit, for we were within range of their -cruisers and the Heligoland forts. We are ready for another smack at -them. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 37.--From a seaman on H.M.S. “New Zealand” to his uncle in - Halifax:_ - -The torpedo craft had rather a hot time with the enemy in the early -morning, but suddenly we appeared out of the mist. To say that they -were surprised is to put it mildly, because before they knew where they -were we were playing our light cruisers, and the destroyers worried -them like terriers. Then for us to come along and give them the _coup -de grace_ was absolutely _It_. - -Two of their ships, I am convinced, would have been floating to-day, -but as our small ships gathered round them to take off their -survivors--all their flags were struck--they opened fire, only to be -sent to Davy Jones’s locker a little quicker than they could shoot. -Well, we succeeded in sending some good ships and some unfortunate men -to the bottom in something like fourteen minutes. Not a bad score for -the cricket season, is it? - - * * * * * - - _Letter 38.--From a seaman on board the flagship of the first - destroyer squadron, to his friends at Wimbledon:_ - -We had a very decent splash last week off Heligoland, as doubtless you -have read. Our ship was not hit at all, though some shots were pretty -near. It was a fine sight to see the _Lion_ demolish one cruiser. -We could see her (the cruiser’s) shots falling short, but still the -_Lion_ did not fire. For fully ten minutes the cruiser belted away -without getting a hit. Then the _Lion_, who was leading the line, -hoisted “open fire,” turned slowly and majestically round and fired -her broadside--once. It was quite sufficient. Up went a cloud of smoke -and steam from the target, and when it cleared her aft funnel was at a -rakish angle, and a huge rent appeared the length of her side. - -After a few more “salvoes” she was rapidly sinking by the stern. -Shortly afterwards she half-hauled down her ensign, and as we were -steaming up to stand by and rescue her survivors, she hoisted it again -and opened fire. It was a dirty trick, but they got their deserts. -Once again the _Lion_ turned, and this time fired but five shots from -her huge turrets. Amidst a shower of splinters, smoke, and fire she -disappeared. We steamed over the spot, but although there was plenty of -wreckage, not a single living thing was to be seen. This incident only -lasted about forty-five minutes, although the whole battle was raging -for eight hours. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 39.--Front leading telegraphist H. Francis, of Croydon:_ - -We had the first taste of blood on Friday, and I can tell you it was -O.T. The battle lasted from 6.30 a.m. till one p.m., going at it hammer -and tongs all the time. - -We came back with sixty prisoners, one of them being Admiral von -Tirpitz’s son, who was second-lieutenant in the _Mainz_. We were within -twenty yards of her when she went down, and I can tell you it was a -grand sight. - -Their officers were shooting the men as they jumped overboard, and one -chap on the bridge was beckoned to by our commander to come off. But -there was “nothing doing.” He simply folded his arms, shook his head, -and as the ship rolled over he never moved. The captain also went down -in her. He had both his legs blown off. - -For a quarter of an hour the sea was simply alive with Germans, all -singing out most piteously, and, as we pulled them on board, we -marvelled how they managed to swim with the wounds they had, some with -feet off, some with one or two legs off, some with their arms gone. - -The Kaiser has been stuffing his men up that the English cannot shoot. -They know differently now. They were greatly surprised when we picked -them up and looked after them. - -Pleased to say I am enjoying myself, and longing for more. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 40.--From Gunner T. White:_ - -We didn’t waste more shots than was necessary on the Germans off -Heligoland. One of their destroyers was knocked over first shot. It was -one of the cleanest shots you ever saw, and the man who fired it is the -proudest man in our ship to-day. - -Next time I fancy the Germans will want to make it a rule of the fight -that a German ship must be allowed at least ten shots to one of ours -before the knock-out is fired. Of course, it’s very hard on the rest of -us, because it simply means that the gunner who gets first shot does -the trick, and we may be in a dozen fights and never get a shot at the -enemy once, because there’s nothing left to hit. - - -Since that first engagement, the British Fleet has been waiting alert -for the enemy to come out of hiding and give them a second chance; -and has incidentally been busy sweeping the sea of floating mines and -prowling after mine-layers that, disguised as Grimsby trawlers, have -succeeded in putting in some deadly work. - - -An interesting account of the efficiency of this policing of the North -Sea was related by two trawler skippers, a week after the fight, to a -_Daily Telegraph_ Correspondent who remarks that the _modus operandi_ -necessitates a continuous vigilance, mostly under cover of the -darkness, and entails a strain upon the naval officers and men that can -only be appreciated by those who witness it. - -The first skipper stated that he had just come from Iceland: - - -At one point up north there was, he said, a solid wall of warships, -which made it impossible for any foe to break through undetected. The -scrutiny did not end with a mere examination at the point mentioned. -After being released our boat was followed by a couple of torpedo -destroyers until we reached our destination. In this way we were not -only convoyed, but the warships made absolutely certain that we were -British trawlers. The experience, being novel to us, was very inspiring. - - -The other skipper’s story was even more interesting. He is in charge of -a North Sea boat, and anchored each night near the shore. - - -We were laid under the land, he said, when about two in the morning -a cruiser suddenly appeared alongside of us. All his lights were -extinguished, and the quiet way in which he came up and the clever -tactics he showed in getting alongside without doing any damage was -astonishing. - -Talk about cats seeing in the dark, these naval officers are wonderful. -When the cruiser reached us all we could see was a huge black object -hemming us in. A voice shouted out, “Who are you?” and I answered back, -“A British trawler.” “What is your name?” he asked, and I replied. -“When did you leave?” he next asked. I told him. “What were your orders -when you left?” he next asked. I told him and in a flash the commander -of the cruiser shouted back, “All right.” - -It was a fine piece of work, believe me, but there was something even -more astonishing. Directly the commander had finished talking to me -another voice from the stern of our vessel sung out, “The name is quite -correct, sir.” A submarine had crept up behind to verify our name and -number, and although all the crew had come on deck to see what was -happening, not one of the men aft had seen the submarine appear. The -whole episode only occupied a few minutes, and the cruiser, after -wishing us good morning and plenty of fishing, disappeared in the -darkness. I have seen the British Navy in times of peace, but to see -it in war time makes you feel proud of it. No swank, simply good old -Nelson’s motto all the time. - - - - -V - -FROM MONS TO THE WALLS OF PARIS - - “_The Lilies of France and our own Red Rose - Are twined in a coronal now: - At War’s bloody bridal it glitters and glows - On Liberty’s beautiful brow._” - - GERALD MASSEY. - - -In his despatch to Lord Kitchener, dated September 7th, Sir John French -tells of the four-days’ battle at Mons, and traces his masterly, -triumphant retreat, in the face of irresistible odds, to Maubeuge, to -Cambrai, to Le Cateau, to Landrecies, and so almost to within sight -of the walls of Paris. He pays a glowing tribute to the magnificent -fighting spirit of the officers and men who carried out these -stupendous movements with such complete success, but at present it is -to the men themselves you must turn again for detailed information of -the horrors and heroisms, the grim and glorious hours that darkened -and lightened through those tumultuous days. “What we did in that -three weeks English people at home will never know,” writes Private J. -Harris, of the Worcestershire Regiment: “We were marching and fighting -day and night for three weeks without a break.” - - - _Letter 41.--From Private Smiley, of the Gordon Highlanders, to his - brother, Mr. G. A. Smiley, of Chepstow:_ - -On Sunday, 23rd, at Mons, we rose at four a.m. and marched out 1,100 -strong. We took up ground on the extreme flank of the British force. -Immediately we started to entrench ourselves, and to the good trench -work we did we put down our freedom from casualty. Later in the day a -hellish tornado of shell swept over us, and with this introduction to -war we received our baptism of fire. We were lining the Mons road, and -immediately in our front and to our rear were woods. In the rear wood -was stationed a battery of R.F.A. The German artillery is wonderful. -The first shot generally found us, and to me it looked as if the ranges -had been carefully taken beforehand. However, our own gunners were -better, and they hammered and battered the Germans all the day long. - -They were at least three to our one, and our artillery could not be in -fifty places at once, so we just had to stick it. The German infantry -are bad skirmishers and rotten shots, and they were simply mowed down -in batches by our chaps. They came in companies of, I should say, -150 men in file five deep, and we simply rained bullets at them the -live-long day. At about five p.m. the Germans in the left front of us -retired, and we saw no more of them. - -The Royal Irish Regiment had had an awful smashing earlier on, as also -had the Middlesex, and our company were ordered to go along the road as -reinforcements. The one and a half mile seemed a thousand. Stormed at -all the way, we kept on, and no one was hit until we came to a white -house which stood in a clearing. Immediately the officer passed the gap -hell was let loose on us, but we got across safely, and I was the only -one wounded, and that was with a ricochet shrapnel bullet in the right -knee. - -I knew nothing about it until an hour after, when I had it pointed out -to me. I dug it out with a knife. We passed dead civilians, some women, -and a little boy with his thigh shattered by a bullet. Poor wee fellow. -He lay all the time on his face, and some man of the Irish was looking -after him, and trying to make him comfortable. The devils shelled the -hospital and killed the wounded, despite a huge Red Cross flag flying -over it. - -When we got to the Royal Irish Regiment’s trenches the scene was -terrible. They were having dinner when the Germans opened on them, -and their dead and wounded were lying all around. Beyond a go at some -German cavalry, the day drew in, and darkness saw us on the retreat. -The regiment lost one officer and one man dead, one officer and some -men severely wounded. - -We kept up this sort of game (fighting by day and retiring by night) -until we got to Cambrai, on Tuesday night. I dare not mention that -place and close my eyes. God, it was awful. Avalanche followed -avalanche of fresh German troops, but the boys stuck to it, and we -managed to retire to Ham without any molestation. Cambrai was the -biggest battle fought. Out of all the glorious regiment of 1,100 men -only five officers and 170 of the men answered the roll-call next day. -Thank God, I was one of them. - -Of course, there may be a number who got separated from the battalion -through various causes, and some wounded who escaped. I hope so -because of the heavy hearts at home. I saw the South Lancs, and they -were terribly cut up, only a remnant left of the regiment. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 42.--From Corporal W. Leonard, of the Army Service Corps (a - South African War reservist) to his mother at Huddersfield:_ - -I know that you will all excuse me for not receiving a letter from me -this long time, but I hope that you will excuse me. Don’t, whatever -you do at home, don’t worry about me. If I just thought that you won’t -worry at home I shall be all right. You know, mother, I know more about -war this time than I did last, and the conditions also. It’s all right -when you know the ropes, and my African experiences are serving me in -good stead here, so I hope and trust that you at home are not worrying -about me; time enough to worry when there is cause. Well, I hope and -trust all are well at home, as it is hell out here. Up to this affair -I thought that the Germans were a civilised race of people, but they -are nothing but savages; niggers would not do what they do. Just fancy -mounting maxim guns on ambulance wagons bearing the Red Cross, cutting -the right hand off prisoners and turning them loose afterwards minus a -hand. By jingo, mother, the boys (our boys) are absolutely all in. We -did give the Boers a chance now and again, but these devils we don’t -give them a cat in hell chance; we’re playing the game to the finish. I -would not care to write so much, as I had better tell you when I come -home. The Boer War was a tame affair. We are moving off again to-night. -I don’t know where, and we don’t care either; it’s a do to a finish -this time. I hope you got my postcards from Rouen in France, as there -was some doubt as to whether they would let them through or not. I will -write home as opportunity occurs, and I hope you won’t worry about me, -because you all know at home that I shall always be where I’m wanted, -and my duty every time, so don’t worry. Tell anyone who enquires I am -O.K., lost a bit of weight perhaps, but not the worse so far, and above -all don’t believe all you see in the papers, as they know practically -nothing, as everything is done under sealed orders, which never leak -out. We are not even allowed to say in our letters where we are, as -they are opened and read by the captain before they leave here, so you -can judge for yourselves how things are. And I might say, mother, that -we are very busy. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 43.--From Corporal Edward Hood, to his father, at Taunton:_ - -The fighting lately has been hot all round, and the French have -had much harder than us in some places, but they’re sticking at it -manfully, and they deserve to win a victory that will wipe the Germans -off the map. The French make a lot of us in camp, and when we pass each -other in the field, no matter how busy the Frenchman may be, they give -us hearty cheers to encourage us on our way. There’s plenty of friendly -rivalry between us when there’s hard fighting to be done, and when we -do get there before the French they don’t grudge us our luck. They’re -good sports right through to the core, and the British soldier asks -nothing better from allies in the field. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 44.--From Private William Burgess, of the Royal Field - Artillery, to his parents at Ilfracombe:_ - -We left our landing place for the front, on the Tuesday, and got there -on Saturday night. The Germans had just reached Liège then, and we got -into action on the Sunday morning. The first thing we did was to blow -up a bridge to stop the Germans from crossing. Then we came into action -behind a lot of houses attached to the main street. We were there about -ten minutes, when the houses started to fall around us. The poor people -were buried alive. I saw poor children getting knocked down by bursting -shells. - -The next move was to advance across where there was a Red Cross -Hospital. They dropped shells from airships and fired on it until the -place was burnt down to the ground. Then they got a big plan on to -retire and let the French get behind them. We retired eight miles, but -we had to fight until we were forced to move again. We got as far as Le -Cateau on Tuesday night. We camped there until two o’clock next morning. - -Then we all heard there was a big fight coming off, so we all got -together and cleared the field for action.... (The letter mentions -the numbers of men engaged, and states that the Germans were in the -proportion of three to one.) ... We cut them down like rats. We could -see them coming on us in heaps, and dropping like hail. The Colonel -passed along the line, and said, “Stick it, boys.” - -I tell you, mother, it was awful to see your own comrades dropping -down--some getting their heads blown off, and others their legs and -arms. I was fighting with my shirt off. A piece of shell went right -through my shirt at the back and never touched me. It stuck into a bag -of earth which we put between the wheels to stop bullets. - -We were there all busy fighting when an airship came right over the -line and dropped a bomb, which caused a terrible lot of smoke. Of -course, that gave the Germans our range. Then the shells were dropping -on us thick. We looked across the line and saw the German guns coming -towards us. We turned our two centre guns on them, and sent them yards -in the air. I reckon I saw one German go quite twenty yards in the air. - -Just after that a shell burst right over our gun. That one got me out -of action. I had to get off the field the best way I could. The bullets -were going all around me on the way off; you see they got completely -around us, I went about two miles, and met a Red Cross cart. I was -taken to St. Quentin’s Hospital. We were shelled out of there about two -in the morning, and then taken in a train, and taken down to a plain -near Rouen. - -Next morning we were put in a ship for dear old England. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 45.--From a Corporal in the King’s Royal Rifles, now at - Woolwich Hospital:_ - -I was in three engagements, Mons, Landrecies, and Cambrai, but the -worst of all was Mons. It was on Sunday, the 23rd of August, and I -shall never forget the date. They were easily twenty-five to one, and -we eventually had to retreat with just over a thousand casualties, but -heavens, they must have had a jolly sight more. At Landrecies, where -we arrived at 7.30, we thought we were going to have a night’s rest, -though we were wet through and no change, but we hadn’t been there long -before they (the Germans) started firing; they seemed to be in every -place we went to. The only thing we heard then was, “turn out at once.” -It was about 10.15 when we turned out, and the Colonel’s orders were -that we had to take a bridge if every man was killed. (I thought that -sounded a wee bit healthy.) I had my last drink out of a dirty glass of -beer. I says, “good health Billy,” and off we went with bayonets fixed. - -On our way to the bridge we met the regiment who had tried and failed, -bringing back its wounded and killed in scores. (I thought more -encouragement for the corps.) I was carrying my pal, the rifle, with my -right hand. Well, we got near the bridge and found out from our scouts -that there were 10,000 German troops on each side of the bridge and -we were 1,300 strong. (More encouragement.) So we lined a long hedge -about two yards apart so as to make a long line and harder for them to -hit. We lay here till daybreak just before 4 a.m., and we could hear -them talking all night about 300 yards away. We could see them quite -clearly by this time; so we started to fire and rolled them over by -dozens. It wasn’t long, though, before the bullets were whizzing past -my ears on each side, and I began to get my head lower and lower till -I think I should have buried it in the mud if it had got much lower. -Their superior numbers began to tell and we had to retire as fast as we -could. I couldn’t go fast enough with my pack on (it weighs 84 lbs.), -so I threw it away as did hundreds more, and I finished bridge-taking -with my old pal only (the rifle). - - * * * * * - - _Letter 46.--From Lieutenant O. P. Edgcumbe, of 1st Battalion - D.C.L.I., to his father, Sir Robert Edgcumbe, Commandant at - Newquay:_ - - 29th August, 1914. - -For the last week or ten days we have been fighting hard and are now -for one day resting. Altogether, during five days and five nights, I -got six hours’ sleep, and so am rather weary. However, bullets and a -real enemy are a wonderful stimulant, and I feel as fit as anything. Do -all of you write as often as possible, and send me some newspapers. It -does not matter whether there is any news--the sight of a letter from -home is very cheering. - -All our men are somewhat fatigued, but are very keen and full of fight. -My regiment has had a bad time, and I am dreadfully afraid that they -have been badly cut up, although I can as yet get no details. They -were caught in a village by Germans in the houses, who had managed -to get there by wearing our uniforms. Never again shall I respect -the Germans, or any of them I may meet. They have no code of honour, -and there have been several cases of their wearing French and British -uniforms, which is, of course, against the Geneva Convention. - -The weather is good, for which we are thankful. - -Everything is so peaceful now, and it is such a perfect day that were -it not for the continuous growl of the guns, which never cease, one -would hardly believe one was in the midst of a huge war. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 47.--From Private D. White:_ - -German airships we seldom see now, though we used to have them every -day over our heads. They are finding the French more than a match for -them, and they most likely prefer to rely on their ordinary spies, of -whom they have thousands. They are found often among the men engaged -for transport work, but they are such clumsy bunglers that they give -themselves away sooner or later. Some of us who haven’t the heart to -drown a cat never turn a hair when we see these scum shot, for they -richly deserve what they get and a soldier’s death is too good for them. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 48.--From Private Spain, of the 4th Guards Brigade (late - police-constable at Newry):_ - -We have had three engagements with the Germans since I arrived, and I -came out quite unhurt. The two first were fought on Sunday and Monday -following. You see I cannot give date or place. Secrecy is our motto -_re_ war and movement of troops for international purposes, etc. Our -third engagement was nearly fatal. We arrived at the town of ----, -very much fatigued, and fully intending to have a good rest. It was -a fine town, about as big as Newry, but more compact, with many fine -buildings. We were just about five minutes billeted in the various -houses, and just stretching our weary legs, when an officer came -running in, shouting “The Germans are upon us; outside everyone.” We -came out, magazine loaded, bayonets fixed, and eager to get a good -bayonet fight with them. It appears they do not like it. But we found -none. They had not yet arrived. It was 10 p.m. before they did so. -In the meantime the poor people were leaving the town in crowds, with -as much goods and chattels as they could carry away, and it was well -for them, too. It was a dark night when we formed up in the streets, -and the lamps but dimly burned. The noises of rifles and field guns -were terrific. We rushed to the heads of the various streets, where -our German foe would advance. Our Field Artillery and the Coldstream -Guards went out to delay their advance whilst we stripped off our coats -and commenced to tear up the square setts, gather carts--in fact, -everything that would build a barricade to keep back our numerous -German foe, and we did so under perfect showers of shrapnel shell that -struck and fell around us, and struck the houses about us, but we were -undaunted, and so succeeded. Firing ceased, and we advanced out towards -the Coldstream Guards’ position. They had given them a good fight, but -many of them lay for ever silent upon the ground. The Germans would not -advance upon us, so we retired. - - * * * * * - - - _Letter 49.--From Corporal Sam Moorhouse, of the King’s Own Yorkshire - Light Infantry, to his wife at Birkby:_ - -Our company were reserves, and came under fire about noon. We were in -a ditch--as we thought safe--when “Ping! ping!” came the bullets, and -off we shot across the open, under a railway embankment. On the way we -passed four artillery horses shot dead with shrapnel. Then we took up -a position on a hillside, when round the corner, 700 yards away, came -a German maxim gun. They were busy getting it ready for firing on us, -and we were firing at them, when our artillery--which was only half a -mile away--sent two shots and blew up the gun and all the men. Then we -cleared off and marched till twelve midnight. Up again at two and off -for what was called a rest camp. Still wet clothes, and filthy; had no -boots off for days. Instead of “rest” camp we marched nearly thirty -miles, arriving at 8 p.m. Here I had a good meal of jam, cheese, and -bread--first bite of bread for days. - -Next day we were up before daylight and taking up position. We dug -trenches, and were fired on before we had finished. We were at the -back--a sort of last firing line. So we lay down in the trench, and -waited. Shrapnel and lyddite were flying round us like hail, and our -gunners were firing too. Such a noise! Just like thunder! Well, we -stuck out as long as we could when we got the order to retire. However -I came safely away goodness knows. - -I picked up my gun and ran up the hill and dropped on one side of the -road to rest. Then I had to get across the road, so got up and was -half-way across when a shell burst and knocked me flat on my face. It -must have fused at the wrong time, as I got only a cut on my thumb from -a fragment. Then I got across and dropped in a trench where a fellow -was lying dead. I stayed there only a minute, and then ran off over the -hill and safe. The bullets were flying in all directions and shells -were bursting four at a time. South Africa was nothing compared to this. - -I had had no sleep for nights, so decided to go back to a little -village we had just passed, where I sat on a doorstep till I fell -asleep, and woke up one hour later wet through and chilled to the bone. -It was still dark when I got back to where I left our regiment, and -they were off. So I trekked away alone, and got on the wrong road. - -About nine in the morning I came across some transport, and rode along -with stragglers of other regiments to a camp. There were about sixty -of us, and we went to a large camp, about 2,000 of us--all lost. There -I came across Guy Jessop of Huddersfield, who was also lost, and was -glad to meet a pal. We had a walk in the town together, and called -in a café. We had some coffee and rum (Guy paid, as I had no money). -I played the piano and sang “Mrs. Hullaby.” Lucky job they could not -understand English, or they would have been shocked. - - * * * * * - -[Illustration: - - _Drawn by Christopher Clark. Copyright of The Sphere._ - -HOW THE ROYAL FIELD ARTILLERY FIGHT.] - - _Letter 50.--From Private E. W. Dyas, of the 11th Hussars, to his - parents at Mountain Ash:_ - -We landed at Havre, and travelled up country. We were under fire for -about twenty minutes on the first day, and the shells were bursting -like rain all around us. We got away with only one horse killed. It -was marvellous. We are continually under fire by day and travelling -by night. It is awful to hear the artillery booming death night and -day. We were fighting day and night for three days. The slaughter was -terrible. I took a dispatch across the battlefield when the Germans -were retiring, and I passed their trenches. The dead were piled up in -the trenches about ten deep, and there were trenches seven miles long. -It was terrible to see. We are collecting the three cavalry brigades -together at the present moment for a massive charge. I am writing this -in the saddle. I may get through this again. One bullet penetrated my -horse’s neck and another one went through the saddle. I have had a -sword-thrust through my sleeve. So I am getting on well. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 51.--From Lieut. Oswald Anne, of the Royal Artillery, to his - father, Major Anne, of Burghwallis Hall:_ - -Dear Dad.--Just got yours of the 13th inst. Battling yesterday and -the day before. I had a pal killed in another battery--five bullets -in him. I have just seen the first Sausage-maker prisoner in hands of -some infantry. They had the greatest difficulty in stopping the French -populace from knifing him. The German shrapnel is very dangerous stuff, -having high explosive in it. It bursts backwards, and so nullifies our -frontal shield. No more time or news. - - - August 29th. - -The boom of French guns is now in full swing, and we are standing easy -for the moment. Did you get my other letter three days back? Just after -I had finished it, we had the alarm, which proved false, but that night -Germans marched into the town, thinking we had left it. So they say! A -gruff German voice answered a challenge, and 15 rounds rapid fire from -rifles and maxims behind the main road barricade, laid out every man. -Eight hundred were picked up next morning in this one street. - -An R.E. told me on the canal bridge a maxim fired 9,000 rounds and laid -out another 1,000. The first Germans arriving in one end of this town -were in French uniforms. Luckily, those in the rear were seen and fired -on, stampeding the ammunition mules, scattering the “Sausages,” who -were almost laid out in a few rounds of fire. Lots of “espions” here, -male and female. I have hardly seen a German, except prisoners. Poor -Soames, of the 20th Hussars, was sparrowed first fight. W. Silvertop -(20th Hussars) is hard at it “biffing” Sausages, and a N.C.O., -yesterday, who had lost the Regiment, told me 48 hours ago he was well. - -“Cigs.” all arrived, and saved my life, also load of chocolate. -Screaming women rush everywhere during conflicts howling “Trahie,” -“Perdue,” “Sauve qui peut.” One of “D” battery, R.H.A., N.C.O., told -us they had mowed “Sausage-makers” down for ten minutes in one action -as hard as they could load and still they came in masses, till at last -the shrieking men ran all ways, not knowing where, leaving heaps of -semi-moving remnants on the ground. - -Our crowd, having so far escaped untouched, are very lucky. Several -Brigades have had the devil’s own hail of shot over them. Please send -me some newspapers sometimes, as we have not seen one since I left, bar -some old French _Petit Parisiens_. - -The Scots Greys from York and the 12th Lancers did great work yesterday -on hostile cavalry, and about wiped out those opposed to them. The -“Guardies” are in great form. Very little sleep nowadays, up at dawn -almost always, very often before that hour. - -A German regiment, dressed in English uniforms, the other day billetted -with an English regiment (at the other end of the town), and when -the latter marched out they were about broken up by maxim fire from -the bedroom windows. A German force arrived elsewhere, the Berkshire -regiment were on guard, and the former, in French uniforms, called out -from the wire entanglements that they waited to interview the C.O. A -major went forward who spoke French, and was shot down immediately. -This sort of thing is of daily occurrence, and only makes matters worse -for the “Sausage-makers” when our infantry get into them. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 52.--From a reservist in the Royal Field Artillery (Published - in the “Glasgow Herald”):_ - -I got a nasty hit with a shell on the thick of the leg. The Germans -caught us napping on Wednesday, and what slaughter! It was horrible to -witness. The Germans came along the village, killing the poor women and -children and burning all the houses. Our division could not hold out. -We were expecting the French troops to meet us, but they were two days -late. Our battery had a lucky escape of being cut up. We entrenched our -guns to come into action next day, but somehow or other we cleared -out, and had only gone ten minutes before the place was blown up. - -The officer in charge of my section had his head blown off. I was -carried off under heavy fire on a fellow’s back, and it is to him I -owe my life. It was a long way to hospital, shells bursting all round -us. We dropped behind some corn stacks, then on we went again. I had -no sooner got bandaged up when a chap came galloping up and said the -Germans were in sight. I was the second last man to leave the hospital, -and ten minutes later it was blown up. You cannot imagine what things -were like. The women and children of England can think themselves -lucky, for the poor women here had to walk from village to village, -young children in their arms. It touched my heart to see the sight. -The Germans did not use rifles, but big guns, against our infantry’s -rifles. They are most brutal, killing all wounded in a most horrible -fashion. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 53.--Front Trooper S. Cargill:_ - -The Germans let all hell loose on us in their mad attempt to crush us -and so win their way to Paris. They didn’t succeed, and they won’t -succeed. I saw one ghastly affair. A German cavalry division was -pursuing our retiring infantry when we were let loose on them. When -they saw us coming they turned and fled, at least all but one, who came -rushing at us with his lance at the charge. I caught hold of his horse, -which was half mad with terror, and my chum was going to run the rider -through when he noticed the awful glaze in his eyes and we saw that the -poor devil was dead. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 54.--Front an Irish soldier, to his sister in County Cork:_ - -I am writing this on a leaf out of a field service pocket-book, as -notepaper and envelopes are very scarce, and we are not allowed to -send picture postcards of places as they give away where we are. Well, -this is a lovely country. The climate suits me very well. Everything -grows like mad here. It is rather like Ireland, only ten times as -rich. All that I have seen yet--and that is a good lot--is far and away -better than the best part of the county Limerick. I think it would be a -pleasure to farm here. - -At the present time I am billeted in a farmhouse. I sleep in their -best bed-room--that is when I can go to bed at all--and they give me -home-made cider, cognac, and coffee, apples, plums, etc., and lovely -home-made cheese for nothing, though they need not supply any food, as -the rations are served out by the regiment every day. - -’Tis great fun trying to talk French to them and I am picking it up -gradually. It is wonderful how words and sentences that I learned at -school come back to me now, and I can generally make myself understood -all right. It is an awful pity to see this beautiful country spoiled -by war, and it is no wonder the people are so eager to fight for it. I -don’t think there is a single house that has not sent out one or more -men to fight with the French Army, and their mothers, sisters, wives, -etc., are very proud of it. There are two gone out of this house. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 55.--From Private Carwardine, to the father of a - comrade-in-arms:_ - -I am very sorry, but I don’t know for sure about your Joe. You see, -although he was in the same company as me, he was not in the same -section. I only wish he had been. The last I saw of him was when we -were in the firing line making trenches for ourselves. He was about 600 -yards behind us, smoking, and I waved to him. Then all of a sudden we -had to get down in our trenches, for bullets started coming over our -heads, and shells dropped around us. - -We were fighting twelve hours when I got one in the back from a shell. -After that I knew no more until I found myself in hospital, and I asked -one of our chaps how our company went on, and he told me there were -only seventeen of us left out of 210. I hope Joe is among them. You -will get to know in the papers in a bit when they call the roll. - -So cheer up and don’t be downhearted, for if Joe is killed he has died -a soldier of honour on the field. Excuse writing, as I am a bit shaky, -and I hope to God Joe is safe, for both your sakes. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 56.--From Private G. Dunton, of the Royal Engineers, to his - family at Coventry:_ - -I am in hospital, having been sent home from France, wounded in my -left hand. I have got one shrapnel bullet right through my hand, and -another through my middle finger against the top joint. I was wounded -at Cambrai last Wednesday. I have been in four hospitals in France, but -had to be removed on account of the Germans firing on the hospitals. I -do not think much of them, for if it was not for their artillery they -would be wiped out in quick time. No doubt our losses are great, but -theirs are far more. The famous cavalry of theirs, the Uhlans, are -getting cut up terribly. All that have been captured have said that -they are short of food. I must say we have had plenty to eat. I was -near Mons a week last Saturday and we were attacked the same day. We -have been on the retire ever since last Wednesday, when I got wounded, -but we shall soon be advancing, for they will never reach Paris. I -am very pleased to see that the Germans are being forced back by the -Russians. I hope they will serve Berlin the same as the Germans have -done to Belgium. The 9th Brigade was cut up badly; in fact, my Division -was, but more are wounded than killed. There are 1,000 wounded in this -hospital alone, without other hospitals. I must say that I am in good -health. My hand is giving me pain, but I do not mind that. I only had -four days’ fighting, but it was hard work while it lasted. The Germans, -although four to one, could not break through our lines, and they must -have lost thousands, as our artillery and infantry mowed them down like -sheep. Their rifle fire took no effect at all. All our wounds were done -by shrapnel. My hand is not healing at all, but I must be patient and -give it time. The French and Belgian people were very kind to us and -gave us anything we wanted. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 57.--From a Manchester soldier, in a French hospital:_ - -There was a young French girl helping to bandage us up. How she -stood it I don’t know. There were some awful sights, but she never -quailed--just a sweet, sad smile for everyone. If ever anyone deserved -a front seat in Heaven, this young angel does. God bless her. She has -the prayers and the love of the remnants of our division. All the -French people are wonderfully generous. They gave us anything and -everything. You simply cannot help loving them, especially the children. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 58.--From Private A. McGillivray, a Highlander, to his - mother:_ - -Of my company only 10 were unhit. I saw a handful of Irishmen throw -themselves in front of a regiment of cavalry who were trying to cut off -a battery of horse artillery. It was one of the finest deeds I ever -saw. Not one of the poor lads got away alive, but they made the German -devils pay in kind, and, anyhow, the artillery got away to account for -many more Germans. Every man of us made a vow to avenge the fallen -Irishmen, and if the German cavalrymen concerned were made the targets -of every British rifleman and gunner they had themselves to thank. -Later they were fully avenged by their own comrades, who lay in wait -for the German cavalrymen. The Irish lads went at them with the bayonet -when they least expected it, and the Germans were a sorry sight. Some -of them howled for mercy, but I don’t think they got it. In war mercy -is only for the merciful. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 59.--From Private W. Bell, of the South Lancashire Regiment, - to his wife:_ - -I shall never forget this lot. Men fell dead just like sheep. Our -regiment was first in the firing line, and we were simply cut up. Very -few escaped, so I think I was very lucky, for I was nearly half-a-mile -creeping over nothing but dead men. In the trenches, bullets and shells -came down on us like rain. We even had to lift dead men up and get -under them for safety. - -When we got the order to retire an officer was just giving the order to -charge when he was struck dead, and it is a good job we didn’t charge, -or we would have all been killed. I passed a lot of my chums dead, but -I didn’t see Fred Atkinson (a friend of the family). - - * * * * * - - _Letter 60.--From Corporal T. Trainor:_ - -Have you ever seen a little man fighting a great, big, hulking giant -who keeps on forcing the little chap about the place until the giant -tires himself out, and then the little one, who has kept his wind, -knocks him over? That’s how the fighting round here strikes me. We are -dancing about round the big German army, but our turn will come. - -Last Sunday we had prayers with shells bursting all around us, but the -service was finished before it was necessary for us to grapple with the -enemy. The only thing objectionable I have seen is the robbing of our -dead and wounded by German ghouls. In such cases no quarter is given, -and, indeed, is never expected. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 61.--From an Artilleryman, to his wife at Sheerness:_ - -I am the only one left out of my battery; we were blown to pieces by -the enemy on Wednesday at Le Cateau. We have been out here twenty-eight -days all told, and have been through the five engagements. I have -nothing; only the jacket I stand up in--no boots or putties, as I was -left for dead. But my horse was shot, and not me. He laid down on me. -They had to cut my boots, etc., off to get me from under my horse. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 62.--From Lance-Corporal J. Preston, of the 2nd Battalion - Inniskilling Fusiliers, to his wife at Banbridge:_ - -I did not get hit at Mons. I got through it all right. We encountered -the Germans on Sunday at Mons, and fought on till Monday night. It -was on the retreat from Mons that I was caught. They had about one -hundred guns playing on us all the time we were retiring. We had a -battery of artillery with us. They were all blown to pieces, men and -guns and all. It was a most sorrowful sight to see the guns wiped out, -and the gunners and men lying around them. The whole plain was strewn -with dead and wounded. I hope my eyes will never look on anything so -horrid again. Our section brought in six prisoners, all wounded, and -they told us we had slain hundreds of them. We captured a German spy; -he was dressed in a Scotsman’s uniform, and was knocking around our -camp, but we were a bit too quick for him. I think the hardest battles -are fought; the German cannot stand it much longer, his food supply is -getting done. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 63.--From a Corporal in the Motor Cycle Section of the Royal - Engineers:_ - -Last night the enemy made an attempt to get through to our base in -armed motors. Myself and two other motor-cyclists were sent out to look -for them. It was a pitch-black night, with a thick fog. One of our men -got in touch with them, and was pursued. He made for a bridge which had -been mined by the engineers, and that was the end of the Germans.... -The German artillery is rotten. Last Saturday three batteries bombarded -an entrenched British battalion for two hours, and only seven men were -killed. The noise was simply deafening, but so little effect had the -fire that the men shouted with laughter, and held their caps up on the -end of their rifles to give the German gunners a bit of encouragement. - -This is really the best summer holiday I have had for a long time. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 64.--From Corporal J. Bailey:_ - -It’s very jolly in camp in spite of all the drawbacks of active -service, and we have lively times when the Germans aren’t hanging -around to pay their respects. It’s a fine sight to see us on the march, -swinging along the roads as happy as schoolboys, and singing all the -old songs we can think of. The tunes are sometimes a bit out, but -nobody minds so long as we’re happy. As we pass through the villages -the French come out to cheer us and bring us food and fruit. Cigarettes -we get more of than we know what to do with. Some of them are rotten, -so we save them for the German prisoners, who would smoke anything -they can lay their hands on. Flowers also we get plenty of, and we are -having the time of our lives. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 65.--From a Sergeant in the Royal Field Artillery:_ - -If the French people were mad about us before we were on trial, they -are absolutely crazy over us now when we have sort of justified our -existence. In the towns we pass through we are received with so much -demonstration that I fancy the French soldiers must be jealous. The -people don’t seem to have eyes for anybody but us, and they do all they -can to make us comfortable. They give us the best they can lay hold of, -but that’s not much after the Germans have been around collaring all -they could. It’s the spirit that means so much to us, and even though -it was only an odd cup of water they brought us we would be grateful. -Most of us are glad to feel that we are fighting for a nation worth -fighting for, and after our experience there can be no question of -trouble between us and France in the future. - -We lost terribly in the retreat from Mons, of which you have heard by -now, but artillery always stands to lose in retreats, because we play -such a big part in getting the other men away and we quite made up our -minds that we would have to pay forfeit then. Without boasting, I can -say that it was the way the guns were handled that made it so easy -for our lads to get out of the German trap. There was once or twice -when it looked as though it were all up with us, and some of our chaps -were fair down in the mouth over it; but I think now they didn’t make -sufficient allowance for the steadiness of all arms of our service; -and, between ourselves, I think they had got the usual notions about -the splendid soldiering qualities of the German army. They know better -now, and though it’s bad to get chesty about that sort of thing, we are -all pretty confident that with a sporting chance we stand to win all -the time. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 66.--From Private J. Toal:_ - -It’s tired we all were when we got through that week of fighting and -marching from Mons; but after we’d had a taste of rest for a day or -two, by the saints, we were ready for the ugly Germans again, and we’ve -been busy ever since drilling holes in them big enough to let out the -bad that’s in them. You wouldn’t believe the way they have burned and -destroyed the holy churches everywhere they went, and there’s many an -Irish lad betwixt here and the frontier has registered a vow that he -will not rest content till he’s paid off that score against the men who -would lay hands on God’s altars. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 67.--From Private W. Green:_ - -We see more Germans than you could count in the day, but they are now -very funky about it, and they will never wait for a personal interview -with one of our men, especially if he has a lance or a bayonet handy, -and naturally you don’t go out German-hunting without something of -the kind with you, if only just for luck. When they must face us they -usually get stuck away somewhere where they are protected by more guns -than you ever set eyes on, and likewise crowds of machine guns of the -Maxim pattern, mounted on motors. These are not now so troublesome, for -they are easy to spot out in the open, and our marksmen quickly pick -off the men serving them, so the Germans are getting a bit shy about -displaying them. Something we heard the other day has put new life into -us; not that we were downhearted before, but what I mean shows that we -are going to have all we wished for very soon, and though we can’t tell -you more you may be sure that we are going on well. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 68.--From Private G. A. Turner, to his father, Mr. J. W. - Turner, of Leeds_ (_Published in the “Leeds Mercury”_): - -I am still living, though a bit knocked about. I got a birthday present -from the Kaiser. I was wounded on the 23rd. So it was a near thing, was -it not? I got your letter at a place called Moroilles, in France, about -five miles from Landrecies, where our troops have retired. - -On Sunday, 23rd, we had rifle inspection at 11 a.m., and were ordered -to fall in for bathing parade at 11.30. While we were waiting for -another company to return from the river the Germans commenced to shell -the town. We fell in about 1.0 p.m., an hour and a half afterwards, to -go to the scene of the attack. Shells were bursting in the streets as -we went. We crossed a bridge over the canal under artillery fire, and -stood doing nothing behind a mill on the bank for some time. - -Then someone cried out that the Germans were advancing along the canal -bank, and our company were ordered to go along. We thought we were -going to check the Germans, but we found out afterwards that a company -of our own regiment were in position further along on the opposite side -of the canal, and we were being sent out to reinforce them. - -There was no means of crossing the canal at that point, so it was an -impossibility. As soon as we started to move we were spotted by the -Germans, who opened fire with their guns at about five hundred yards -with shrapnel, and the scene that followed beggars description. Several -of us were laid full length behind a wooden fence about half an inch -thick. The German shells burst about three yards in front of it. It was -blown to splinters in about ten minutes. None of us expected to get out -alive. - -They kept us there about an hour before they gave us the word to -retire. I had just turned round to go back when I stopped one. It hits -you with an awful thump, and I thought it had caught me at the bottom -of the spine, as it numbed my legs for about half an hour. - -When I found I could not walk I gave it up. Just after, I got my first -view of the Germans. They were coming out of a wood about 400 yards -away all in a heap together, so I thought as I was done for I would get -a bit of my own back, and I started pumping a bit of lead into them. - -I stuck there for about three-quarters of an hour, and fired all my own -ammunition and a lot belonging to two more wounded men who were close -to me--about 300 rounds altogether, and as it was such a good target I -guess I accounted for a good lot of them. - -Then I suddenly discovered I could walk, and so I set off to get back. -I had to walk about 150 yards in the open, with shrapnel bursting -around me all the way, but somehow or other I got back without catching -another. It was more than I expected, I can assure you, and I laughed -when I got in the shelter of the mill again. - -I was very sorry to have to leave the other chaps who were wounded, but -as I could only just limp along I could not help them in any way. They -were brought in later by stretcher bearers. - -A man who was at Paardeburg and Magersfontein, in South Africa, said -they were nothing to what we got that Sunday. Out of 240 men of my -company only about twenty were uninjured. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 69.--From an Infantryman in hospital_ (_Published in the - “Aldershot News”_): - -I found myself mixed up with a French regiment on the right. I wanted -to go forward with them, but the officer in charge shook his head -and smiled, “They will spot you in your khaki and put you out in no -time,” he said in English; “make your way to the left; you’ll find your -fellows on that hill.” I watched the regiment till it disappeared; then -I made my way across a field and up a big avenue of trees. The shells -were whistling overhead, but there was nothing to be afraid of. Halfway -up the avenue there was a German lancer officer lying dead by the side -of the road. How he got there was a mystery, because we had seen no -cavalry. But there he lay, and someone had crossed his hands on his -breast, and put a little celluloid crucifix in his hands. Over his face -was a beautiful little handkerchief--a lady’s--with lace edging. It was -a bit of a mystery, because there wasn’t a lady for miles that I knew -of. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 70.--From Sapper H. Mugridge, R.E., to his mother at - Uckfield:_ - -We met the Germans at Landrecies on Sunday. We had a fifteen-hour -battle. It was terrible. There were 120,000 Germans and only 20,000 of -us, but our men fought well. We blew up six bridges. Laid our charges -in the afternoon, and the whole time we were doing it were not hit. -After we had got everything ready we got back into cover and waited -until 1.30 on Monday morning, until our troops had got back over the -river, and then we blew up the bridges. We retired about thirty miles. -The town where we stopped on Sunday was a beautiful place, but the -Germans destroyed it. Close to where I was a church had been used as a -hospital, and our wounded were coming by the dozens. But, terrible to -say, the Germans blew the place up. They have no pity. They kill our -wounded and drive the people before them. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 71.--From Sapper H. Mugridge, R.E._ (_Second letter, - published in the “Sussex Daily News”_): - -We were laying our gun cotton--ten of us were the last to leave, and -the Germans stopped us. We had to run for it down the main street of -the town of Landrecies, and, being dark, we could not see where we -were going. We got caught in some telegraph wires which had been put -across the street. We had to cut them away with our bayonets. On Monday -morning, when things were quieter, we went nearly into the German -lines. We could hear them giving orders. Our job was to put barbed wire -across the road. I was thankful to get out of it. We could see the -Germans burning their dead. They must have lost a few thousand men, as -our troops simply mowed them down. - -I saw one sergeant kill fourteen Germans, one after the other. They -came up in fifties, all in a cluster, and you couldn’t help hitting -them. They were only 400 yards from us all day on Sunday. They are very -cruel. Our people used a church for a hospital, and it was filled with -our wounded, but the place was shelled and knocked down. They stabbed -a good many of our men while lying on the battlefield. They have no -respect for the Red Cross. To see women and children driven from home -and walking the roads is terrible--old men and women just the same. -At the town where we were we got cut off from our people--eighteen of -us--and the houses were being toppled over by the German artillery. -The people clung around us, asking us to stay with them, but it was no -good. When we left, the town was in flames. But our men did fight well. -You never saw anything so cool in your life. Anyone would have thought -it was a football match, for they were joking and laughing with one -another. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 72.--From John Baker, of the Royal Flying Corps, to his - parents at Boston, Lincolnshire:_ - -While flying over Boulogne at a height of 3,000 feet, something went -wrong with the machine, and the engine stopped. The officer said, -“Baker, our time has come. Be brave, and die like a man. Good-bye,” -and shook hands with me. I shall always remember the ten minutes -that followed. The next I remembered was that I was in a barn. I was -removed to Boulogne, and afterwards to Netheravon, being conveyed from -Southampton by motor ambulance. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 73.--From Private G. Rider:_ - -The Germans are good and bad as fighters, but mostly bad so far as I -have seen. They are nearly all long distance champions in the fighting -line, and won’t come too near unless they are made to. Yesterday we had -a whole day of it in the trenches, with the Germans firing away at us -all the time. It began just after breakfast, and we were without food -of any kind until we had what you might call a dainty afternoon tea -in the trenches under shell fire. The mugs were passed round with the -biscuits and the “bully” as best they could by the mess orderlies, but -it was hard work getting through without getting more than we wanted -of lead rations. My next-door neighbour, so to speak, got a shrapnel -bullet in his tin mug, and another two doors off had his biscuit shot -out of his hand when he was fool enough to hold it up to show it to a -chum in the next trench. - -We are ready for anything that comes our way, and nothing would -please us better than a good big stand-up fight with the Germans on -any ground they please. We are all getting used to the hard work of -active service, and you very seldom hear complaints from anybody. The -grousers, who are to be found in nearly every regiment, seem to be on -holiday for the war. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 74.--From Private Martin O’Keefe, of the Royal Irish Rifles, - to his friends at Belfast:_ - -Our part in the fighting was limited almost entirely to covering the -retreat by a steady rifle fire from hastily-prepared trenches. We were -thrown out along an extended front, and instructed to hold our ground -until the retiring troops were signalled safe in the next position -allotted them. When this was done our turn came, and we retired to a -new position, our place being taken by the light cavalry, who kept -the Germans in check as long as they could and then fell back in -their turn. The Germans made some rather tricky moves in the hope of -cutting us off while we were on this dangerous duty, but our flanks -were protected by cavalry, French and English, and they did not get -very far without having to fight. When they found the slightest show of -resistance they retreated, and tried to find an easier way of getting -in at us. The staff were well pleased with the way we carried out the -duty given to us, and we were told that it had saved our Army from -very serious loss at one critical point. We put in some wonderfully -effective shooting in the trenches, and the men find it is much easier -making good hits on active service than at manœuvres. The Germans -seemed to think at first that we were as poor shots as they are, and -they were awfully sick when they had to face our deadly fire for the -first time. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 75.--From Sergeant W. Holmes:_ - -We are off again, this time with some of the French, and it’s enough -to give you fits to hear the Frenchmen trying to pick up the words of -“Cheer Boys, Cheer,” which we sing with great go on the march. They -haven’t any notion of what the words mean, but they can tell from -our manner that they mean we’re in good heart, and that’s infectious -here. We lost our colonel and four other officers in our fight on -Tuesday. It was the hottest thing we were ever in. The colonel was -struck down when he was giving us the last word of advice before we -threw ourselves on the enemy. We avenged him in fine style. His loss -was a great blow to us, for he was very popular. It’s always the best -officers, somehow, that get hit the first, and there’s not a man in -the regiment who wouldn’t have given his life for him. He was keen on -discipline, but soldiers don’t think any less of officers who are that. -The German officers are a rum lot. They don’t seem in too great a hurry -to expose their precious carcasses, and so they “lead” from the rear -all the time. We see to it that they don’t benefit much by that, you -may be sure, and when it’s at all possible we shoot at the skulking -officers. That probably accounts for the high death rate among German -officers. They seem terribly keen on pushing their men forward into -posts of danger, but they are not so keen in leading the way, except -in retreat, when they are well to the fore. Our cavalry are up to that -little dodge, and so, when they are riding out to intercept retreating -Germans, they always give special attention to the officers. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 76.--From Corporal J. Hammersley:_ - -The Germans in front of us are about done for, and that’s the truth of -it. They have got about as much fighting as humans can stand, and it is -about time they realised it. I don’t agree with those who think this -war is going to last for a long time. The pace we go at on both sides -is too hot, and flesh and blood won’t stand it for long. My impression -is that there will be a sudden collapse of the Germans that will -astonish everybody at home; but we are not leaving much to chance, and -we do all we can to hasten the collapse. The Germans aren’t really cut -out for this sort of work. They are proper bullies, who get on finely -when everybody’s lying bleeding at their feet, but they can’t manage at -all when they have to stand up to men who can give them more than they -bargain for. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 77.--From Lance-Corporal T. Williams:_ - -We are now getting into our stride and beginning to get a little of our -own back out of the Germans. They don’t like it at all now that we are -nearer to them in numbers, and their men all look like so many “Weary -Willies”; they are so tired. You might say they have got “that tired -feeling” bad, and so they have. Some of them just drop into our arms -when we call on them to surrender as though it were the thing they’d -been waiting for all their lives. - -One chap who knows a little English told us he was never more pleased -to see the English uniform in all his life before, for he was about fed -up with marching and fighting in the inhuman way the German officers -expect their men to go on. When we took him to camp he lay down and -slept like a log for hours; he was so done up. - -That’s typical of the Germans now, and it looks as though the Kaiser -were going to have to pay a big price for taxing his men so terribly. -You can’t help being sorry for the poor fellows. They all say they were -told when setting out that it would be child’s play beating us, as our -army was the poorest stuff in the world. Those who had had experience -in England didn’t take that in altogether, but the country yokels and -those who had never been outside their own towns believed it until they -had a taste of our fighting quality, and then they laughed with the -other side of their faces. - -That’s the Germans all over, to “kid” themselves into the belief that -they have got a soft thing, and then when they find it’s too hard, to -run away from it. Our lads have made up their minds to give them no -rest once we get on to them, and they’ll get as much of the British -Army as they can stand, and maybe a little more. The French are greatly -pleased with the show we made in the field, and are in much better -spirits than they were. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 78.--From a Non-commissioned Officer of Dragoons:_ - -All our men--in fact, the whole British Army--are as fit as a fiddle, -and the lads are as keen as mustard. There is no holding them back. At -Mons we were under General Chetwode, and horses and men positively flew -at the Germans, cutting through much heavier mounts and heavier men -than ours. The yelling and the dash of the Lancers and Dragoon Guards -was a thing never to be forgotten. We lost very heavily at Mons, and -it is a marvel how some of our fellows pulled through and positively -frightened the enemy. We did some terrible execution, and our wrists -were feeling the strain of heavy riding before sunset. With our tunics -unbuttoned, we had the full use of our right arm for attack and defence. - -After Mons I went with a small party scouting, and we again engaged -about twenty cavalry, cut off from their main body. We killed nine, -wounded six, and gave chase to the remaining five, who, in rejoining -their unit, nearly were the means of trapping us. However, our men -dispersed and hid in a wood until they fell in with a squadron of the -----, and so reached camp in safety. After that a smart young corporal -accompanied me to reconnoitre, and we went too far ahead, and were -cut off in a part of the country thick with Uhlans. As we rode in the -direction of ---- two wounded men were limping along, both with legs -damaged, one from the Middlesex and the other Lancashire Fusiliers, and -so we took them up. - -Corporal Watherston took one behind his saddle and I took the other. -The men were hungry, and tattered to shreds with fighting, but in fine -spirits. We soon came across a small village, and I found the curé a -grand sportsman and full of pluck and hospitality. He seemed charmed -to find a friend who was English, and told me that the Germans were -dressed in the uniforms of British soldiers, which they took from the -dead and from prisoners in order to deceive French villagers, who in -many places in that district had welcomed these wolves in sheep’s -clothing. We were warned that the enemy would be sure to track us up -to the village. The curé said he could hide the two wounded men in the -crypt of his church and put up beds for them. It has a secret trapdoor, -and was an ancient treasure-house of a feudal lord, whose castle we saw -in ruins at the top of the hill close by. - -Then he hid away our saddlery and uniforms in the roof of a barn, and -insisted upon our making a rest-chamber of the tower of his church, -which was approached by a ladder, which we were to pull up to the -belfry as soon as we got there. He smuggled in wine and meat and bread -and cakes, fruit and cigarettes, with plenty of bedding pulled up by -a rope. We slept soundly, and the owls seemed the only other tenants, -who resented our intrusion. No troops passed through the village that -night. In the morning the curé came round at six o’clock, and we heard -him say Mass. After that we let down the ladder, and he came up with -delicious hot chocolate and a basket of rolls and butter. - -Our horses he had placed in different stables a mile apart, and put -French “fittings” on them, so as to deceive the enemy. He thinks we are -well away from the main body of the German army moving in the direction -of Paris, but will not hear of our leaving here for at least three -days. But I cried, “Curé, we are deserters!” The old man wept and said, -“Deserters, no, no--saviours, saviours; you have rescued France from -the torments of slavery.” - -However, we have now secured complete disguises as French -cultivateurs--baggy corderoy trousers, blue shirts, boots, stockings, -belt, hat, cravat, everything to match--and as we have not shaved for -two weeks, and are bronzed with the sun, I think that the corporal and -myself can pass anywhere as French peasants, if only he will leave all -the talking to me. - -The two wounded soldiers don’t wish us to leave them, because I am -interpreter, and not a soul speaks English in the village. So we have -explained to the curé that we shall stay here until our comrades -are able to walk, and then the party of four will push our way out -somewhere on horseback and get to the coast. The sacristan at once -offered to be our guide, and it is arranged that we take a carrier’s -wagon which travels in this district and drive our own horses in it, -and pick up two additional mounts at a larger village on the way to the -coast. - -We must get back as soon as ever we can. Nothing could be kinder than -the people here, but this is not what we came to France for, and -hanging about in a French village is not exactly what a soldier calls -“cricket.” - -You cannot imagine how complete the Germans are in the matter of rapid -transport. Large automobiles, such as the railway companies have for -towns round Harrogate and Scarborough, built like char-à-bancs, carry -the soldiers in batches of fifty, so that they are as fresh as paint -when they get to the front. But in point of numbers I think one of our -side is a fair match for four of the enemy. I hope that the British -public are beginning to understand what this war means. The German is -not a toy terrier, but a bloodhound absolutely thirsty for blood. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 79.--From Private Tom Savage, to his relatives at Larne:_ - - At Sea. - -Just a line to let you know that we are landing outside ----. They -kept us without any knowledge of how and where we were going till the -last moment. I am quite well and extra specially fit. It is good fun -on a troopship, and we are going to have a nice little holiday on the -Continent. I’ll be able to “swank French” when I come back. I’ll write -a good long letter when I settle down. I’m writing this at tea time -just before we land. I have got two very nice chums, Jack Wright, the -footballer, who has seen service before, and Billy Caughey, both of -Belfast. - - - In France. - -I am writing this note while on outpost duty. I can’t say where we are, -or anything like that, but I am in the best of health and enjoying -the life. I am getting a fine hand at French. There is plenty of food -and the people are all very nice. It’s great fun trying to understand -them. Plenty of fruit here, pears and apples galore, and as for bread -big long rolls and rings of it, and all very cheap. When you happen -to be riding through a town the people give you cigarettes, fruit, -chocolates, and cider. - -If you are all extra good I’ll bring you home a pet German. How is Home -Rule getting on? Send me a paper, but I don’t know when I’ll get it or -you’ll get this. I suppose the papers are full of this ruction. I can -write no more as I’ll soon have to go on guard. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 80.--From Mons. E. Hovelange, of Paris, written on August - 30th, to Sir William Collins_ (_Published in the “Sussex Daily - News”_): - -How serious the situation is here it is hard for you to realize in -London. We may be encircled at any moment by these hordes of savages. -Such murderous cruelty has never been seen in the annals of war. The -Turks and the Bulgarians were no worse. It is the rule to fire on -ambulances and slaughter the wounded. I know it from eye-witnesses. The -Germans are drunk with savagery. It is an orgy of the basest cruelty. -They are rushing Paris at all costs, squandering their men recklessly -in overwhelming numbers. Our troops are submerged and can only retreat, -fighting desperately, but the spirit of our soldiers is splendid. -All the wounded I have seen laugh and joke over their wounds and are -burning to have another go at the barbarians. Victory is certain. But -what disastrous changes shall we know before it comes. I am prepared -for the worst--another month of hopeless struggle perhaps. But we will -light to the last man. The tide will turn, and then--woe to them. I -know you will stand by us in the cause of civilization, common honest -truth till the bitter end. But if you want to help us you must hasten. - - * * * * * - - _Letter 81.--From a young officer who has been through the whole - campaign, from the landing of the British at Boulogne:_ - -I wish you would try to make the people in England understand that -they should be most exceedingly thankful that they are living on an -island and not in the midst of the dreadful things which are happening -on the Continent. Do enforce upon the public that England must fight -this thing out, and must conquer even if it has to spend the blood -of its young men like water. It will be far better that every family -throughout England should have to sorrow for one of its members than -that England should have to go through similar ordeals to those which -Continental countries are suffering. - -The sight of old women and men fleeing from village to village; young -mothers with babies in arms, with their few personal effects on their -backs, or in some more fortunate cases with their goods and chattels -surrounding the aged grandmother stowed away in an old farm cart, drawn -by a nag too venerable to be of service to the State; this is what one -has seen daily. Picture to yourself our night marches with the burning -villages on all sides set fire to by German shells--and the Germans -have been rather careless whether their shells struck fortified and -defended positions, or open ones. In some cases the fires were caused -intentionally by marauding patrols. - -Do not imagine that things are not going well with us. We are all -satisfied and confident of the end; but at the same time the only -possible end can be gained by sacrifice on the part of those at home -only. All is well with me personally; I have a busy time, but it is -most interesting work. - - -IN HOSPITAL. - -(1) _At Salisbury._ - -A non-commissioned officer of the Royal Field Artillery, invalided home -with shrapnel wounds in the thigh, from which he hopes soon to recover, -has given this vivid description of his experiences at the front after -passing north of Amiens, to a _Daily Telegraph_ correspondent: - - -Pushing forward from our rest camp, covering from twenty to thirty -miles a day, with the infantry marching in front and cavalry protecting -us on either flank, we received information that we were within a few -hours’ march of the enemy. Needless to say, this put us on the alert. -There was no funk about us, for we were all anxious to have a go at the -Germans, about whom we had heard such tales of cruelty that it made our -blood run cold. - -Our orders were to load with case shot, for fear of cavalry attack, as -shrapnel is of little use against mounted troops. The order was soon -obeyed, and after passing the day on the road, we moved across country -north of ----, where the infantry took up a strong position. We saw the -French troops on our right as we moved up to gun positions which our -battery commanders had selected in advance. It was Sunday morning when -the attack came, and the sun had already lit up the beautiful country, -and as I looked across at the villages which lay below in the valley -with their silent belfries I thought of my home on the Cotswolds and -of the bells ringing for morning service. I pictured dad and my sister -Nell going to church. - -It was, however, no time for sentiment, for gallopers soon brought the -news that the enemy was advancing, and that a cavalry attack might be -expected at any moment. Infantry had entrenched themselves along our -front, and there was a strong body posted on our flanks and rear. These -became engaged first with a large body of Uhlans, who endeavoured to -take them by surprise, the front rank rushing forward with the lance -and the rear using the sword. - -We were on slightly higher ground, and could see the combat, which -appeared to be going in our favour. Our men stuck to their ground and -shot and bayonetted the Uhlans, who, after ten minutes’ fight, made -off, but, sad to say, a dreadful fusilade of shrapnel and Maxim fire -followed immediately, and our guns also came under fire. To this we -readily replied, and must have done some execution, especially to the -large masses of infantry that were advancing about a mile away. - -We got a favourable “bracket” at once, so our Major said, and we worked -our guns for all we were worth, altering fuses and the ranging of our -guns as the Germans came nearer. Shells fell fast around us, some -ricocheted, and passed overhead without bursting, ploughing the ground -up in our rear, but not a few exploded, and made many casualties. Three -of my gun detachment fell with shrapnel bullets, but still we kept the -guns going, the officers giving a hand. - -At one time we came under the fire of the enemy’s machine guns, but two -of our 18-pounders put them out of action after a few rounds. The order -came at length to retire so as to get a more favourable position, but -our drivers failed to bring back all the gun teams, only sufficient -to horse four of the guns. The remainder of the animals had been -terribly mutilated. These were limbered up, the remainder being for a -time protected by the infantry. The Gordons and Middlesex were in the -shelter trenches on our left, and the latter regiment was said at one -time to be almost overwhelmed, but aid came, and the masses of Prussian -infantry were beaten off. - -Still, there was terrible slaughter on both sides, and the dead lay in -long burrows on the turf. We should have lost our guns to the Uhlans if -the infantry had not persevered with the rifle, picking off the cavalry -at 800 yards. - -It was grand shooting. In the afternoon we slackened fire, as also did -the Germans; in fact, we did but little from our new gun positions, as -we were destined to cover the retreat of the infantry later on. - -As the wounded were brought to the rear we heard of the deeds of -heroism from the men of the Royal Army Medical Corps in the fighting -line--how an officer stood over the body of a private who had -previously saved his life until he had spent his last shot from his -revolver, and then fell seriously wounded, to be avenged the next -moment by a burly sergeant who plunged his bayonet into the Prussian. - -In the ranks of the South Lancashire Regiment, from what has been -heard, many deserve the Distinguished Conduct Medal, if not the V.C., -for the manner in which they charged masses of German infantry through -the village to our front. Uhlans got round behind them, but they did -not flinch, although serious gaps were made in their ranks. - -A non-commissioned officer of the Medicals related how he saw a party -of Fusiliers rush to the aid of their Maxim gun party when Uhlans swept -down on them from behind a wood. They accounted for over twenty and -lost but one man. - -At night we were ordered to move on again, and we marched south-west -in the direction of ----, covering twenty miles in the darkness. Our -unhorsed guns were got through by splitting up our teams, and with the -help of the brawny arms of the infantry. - -The enemy were aware of our retreat, and kept up an incessant fire, -bringing searchlights to the aid of their gunners. The moon slightly -favoured us, and, with the help of local guides, we found our way. I -heard of the brilliant work performed by our battalions, who kept the -enemy at bay whilst we withdrew all our vehicles, and we gunners felt -proud of them. They kept the enemy busy by counter-attack, and made it -impossible to get round us. - -Next morning the enemy were again in the field endeavouring to force -our left flank. Field-Marshal Sir John French, whom we saw early in the -day, was, however, equal to the occasion, and so manœuvred his troops -that we occupied a position from which the Germans could not dislodge -us. The artillery kept up long-range fire, and that is how I received -my wound. Within a few minutes first aid was rendered, and I was put -in an ambulance and taken off with other wounded to a field hospital, -where I met with every attention. - - -IN HOSPITAL. - -(2) _At the London Hospital._ - -By a _Daily Telegraph_ correspondent. - -A description of a thrilling fight in the air, which had a dramatic -climax, was given to Queen Alexandra when her Majesty paid a visit to -the London Hospital. - -Among the wounded soldiers there is a private of the Royal Engineers, -who was himself witness of the incident. - -He said that following a very hard fight on the day before, he was -lying on the ground with his regiment, resting. Suddenly a German -aeroplane hove in sight. It flew right over the British troops, and -commenced to signal their position to the German camp. - -A minute later, amid intense excitement of the troops, two aeroplanes, -with English and French pilots, rose into the air from the British -rear. Ascending with great rapidity, they made for the German -aeroplane, with the intention of attacking it. - -At first some of our men, who were very much on the alert, fired by -mistake at the French aeroplane. Luckily, their shots went wide. - -Then the troops lay still, and with breathless interest watched -the attempts of the French and British aviators to outmanœuvre -their opponent, and to cut off his retreat. After a little time the -Franco-British airmen abandoned this attempt, and then the Englishman -and the German began to fly upwards, in the evident desire to obtain -a more favourable position for shooting down from above. Owing to the -protection afforded by the machine, it would have been of little use -for one aviator to fire at his opponent from below. Once a higher -altitude was attained, the opportunity for effective aim would be much -greater. - -Up and up circled the two airmen, till their machines could barely be -distinguished from the ground. They were almost out of sight when the -soldiers saw that the British aviator was above his opponent. Then -the faint sound of a shot came down from the sky, and instantly the -German aeroplane began to descend, vol-planing in graceful fashion. -Apparently it was under the most perfect control. On reaching the earth -the machine landed with no great shock, ran a short distance along the -ground, and then stopped. - -Rushing to the spot, the British soldiers found, to their amazement, -that the pilot was dead. So fortunate had been the aim of the -Englishman that he had shot the German through the head. In his dying -moments the latter had started to descend, and when he reached the -earth his hands still firmly gripped the controls. - -The aeroplane was absolutely undamaged, and was appropriated by the -British aviators. - - -IN HOSPITAL. - -(3) _From a “Daily Telegraph” correspondent at Rouen_: - -It was known that there were British wounded in Rouen--I had even -spoken to one of them in the streets--but how was one to see them? The -police commissaire sent me to his central colleague, who sent me on to -the état major, who was anxious to send me back to him, but finally -suggested that I should see the military commissary at one of the -stations. He was courteous, but very firm--the authorisation I asked -for could not be, and was not, granted to anyone. At the headquarters -of the British General Staff the same answer in even less ambiguous -terms. - -It was then that Privates X., Y., Z. came to my aid. Private Z. had a -request to make of me. It was that I should see to it that the black -retriever of his regiment now at the front should be photographed, and -that the photograph should appear in _The Daily Telegraph_. Private -Z. had a temperature of 102·5, and looked it, but he was not worrying -about that. He was worrying about the photograph of the regimental -retriever, which I understood him to say, though dates make it almost -incredible, had gone through the Boer campaign, and had not yet had his -photograph in the papers. So I met by appointment Privates X., Y., and -Z. outside the Hospice Général of Rouen, and by them was franked in to -the hospital, where a few dozen of our wounded were sunning themselves. -It was just time, and no more, as orders had been received a few -minutes before that the British wounded were to be transferred from -Rouen to London, for something grave was afoot. - -“Do you want to get back to England?” someone called out to a soldier -whose arm was in a sling, and the whole sleeve of whose jacket had been -ripped by the fragment of a shell. - -“Not I,” he shouted; “I want to go to the front again and get my sleeve -back, and something more.” - -I managed to speak with two or three of the wounded as they were -getting ready for the start. One of them, an artilleryman, had been -injured by his horses falling on him at Ligny, I guessed it was--only -guessed, for Tommy charges a French word as bravely and much less -successfully than he charges the enemy. It was the same story that one -hears from all, of a heroic struggle against overwhelming odds. “They -were ten to one against us, in my opinion,” he said. “They were all -over us. Their artillery found the range by means of aeroplanes. The -shell fire was terrible.” - -He says that it was very accurate, but that fortunately the quality of -the shells is not up to that of the shooting. My informant’s division -held out for twenty-four hours against the overwhelming odds. Then, -when the Germans had managed to get a battery into action behind, they -retired during the night of Wednesday, steadily and in excellent order, -keeping the German pursuit at bay. The next man I spoke to really spoke -to me. He was anxious to tell his story. - -“I have been in the thick of it,” he said; “in the very thick of it. I -was one of the chauffeurs in the service of the British General Staff.” - -He told me that he was not a Regular soldier, but a volunteer from the -Automobile Club, an American who had become a naturalised English -citizen, and had once been a journalist. His own injury, a burnt arm, -was from a back-fire, but his escape from the German bullets had been -almost miraculous. Three staff officers, one after another, had been -hit in the body of the car behind him. This is his story: - -“On Friday, the 25th, the British were just outside Le Cateau. On -Saturday morning the approach of the Germans in force was signalled. On -Sunday morning at daybreak a German aeroplane flew over our lines, and, -although fired at by the aeroplane gun mounted in the car, and received -with volleys from the troops, managed to rejoin its lines. Twenty -minutes later the German artillery opened fire with accuracy. The -aeroplane, as so often, had done its work as range-finder. For twelve -hours the cannonade went on. Then the British forces retreated six -miles. On Monday morning the bombardment began again, and at two that -afternoon the German forces entered Le Cateau from which the English -had retired. Many of the houses were in flames. The Germans, who had -ruthlessly bayonetted our wounded if they moved so much as a finger as -they lay on the ground, were guilty of brutal conduct when they entered -the city. - -“On Tuesday, the British, who had retired to Landrecies, were again -attacked by the Germans. They believed, wrongly, that on their right -was a supporting French force. The range was again found by aeroplane, -and the British were compelled to evacuate. That was on Tuesday. The -British troops had been fighting steadily for four days, but their -morale and their spirits had not suffered.” - -As I write, a detachment of the R.A.M.C. is filing past, and people -have risen from their chairs and are cheering and saluting. Half an -hour ago Engineers passed with their pontoons decorated with flowers -and greenery. The men had flowers in their caps, and even the horses -were flower-decked. Tommy Atkins has the completest faith in his -leaders and in himself. He quite realises the necessity for secrecy of -operations in modern warfare. Of course, he has his own theories. This -is one of them textually: - -“The Germans are simply walking into it. Of course, we have had losses, -but that was part of the plan--the sprat to catch the whale. They are -going to find themselves in a square between four allied armies, and -then,”--so far Private X., but here Private Y. broke in cheerfully: -“And then they will be electrocuted.” - - -And at this moment it begins to look as if--apart from that detail -of the square of four armies--Privates X. and Y. had known what they -were talking about; for some few days ago the great retreat came to an -abrupt end, the British and French forces carrying out General Joffre’s -carefully laid plan of campaign, turned their defensive movement into -a combined attack, the Germans fell back before them and are still -retiring. They marched through Belgium into France with heavy fighting -and appalling losses, only to be held in check at the right place and -time and beaten back by the road they had come, when Paris seemed -almost at their mercy. But that retirement is another story. - - - - -VI - -THE SPIRIT OF VICTORY - - “_He only knows that not through_ HIM - _Shall England come to shame_.” - - SIR F. H. DOYLE. - - -Even through those three weeks when they were retreating before the -enemy, the whole spirit of the British troops was the spirit of men -who are fighting to win. There is no hint of doubt or despondency in -any of their letters home. They talk lightly of their hardest, most -terrible experiences; they greet the unseen with a cheer; you hear of -them cracking jokes, boyishly guying each other, singing songs as they -march and as they lie in the trenches with shells bursting and shots -screaming close over their heads. They carried out their retreats -grudgingly, but without dismay, in the fixed confidence that their -leaders knew what they were after, and that in due time they would find -they had only been stooping to conquer. “They won’t let us have a fair -smack at them,” says “Spratty,” of the Army Service Corps, in a letter -home. “I have never seen such a sight before. God knows whose turn is -next, but we shall win, don’t worry.” This is the watchword of them -all: “Don’t worry--we shall win.” - -“Wine is offered us instead of water by the people,” wrote Private S. -Browne, whilst his regiment was marching through France to the front; -“but officers and men are refusing it. Some of the hardest drinkers in -the regiment have signed the pledge for the war.” - -“Tommy goes into battle,” a French soldier told a reporter at Dieppe, -“singing some song about Tip-Tip-Tip-Tipperary, and when he is hit he -does not cry out. He just says ‘blast,’ and if the wound is a small one -he asks the man next to him to tie a tourniquet round it and settles -down to fighting again.” A corporal of the Black Watch explained to a -hospital visitor, “It was a terrible bit of work. The Germans were as -thick as Hielan’ heather, and by sheer weight forced us back step by -step. But until the order came not a living man flinched. In the thick -of the bursting shells we were singing Harry Lauder’s latest.” - -Trooper George Pritchard wrote to his mother from Netley Hospital the -other day: “I got hit in the arm from a shell. Seven of our officers -got killed last Thursday, but Captain Grenfell was saved at the same -time as me. What do you think of the charge of the 9th? It is worth -getting hit for.” - -“We are all in good heart, and ready for the next round whenever it may -come,” writes Private J. Scott, from his place in the field; and “South -Africa was child’s play to what we have been through,” writes Corporal -Brogan, “but we are beginning to feel our feet now, and are equal to a -lot more gruelling.” - -“We are all beat up after four days of the hardest soldiering you ever -dreamt of,” Private Patrick McGlade says in a letter to his mother. “I -am glad to say we accounted for our share of the Germans. We tried hard -to get at them many a time, but they never would wait for us when they -saw the bright bits of steel at the business end of our rifles. Some -of them squeal like the pigs on killing day when they see the steel -ready. Some of our finest lads are now sleeping their last sleep in -Belgium, but, mother dear, you can take your son’s word for it that -for every son of Ireland who will never come back there are at least -three Germans who will never be heard of again. When we got here we -sang ‘Paddies Evermore,’ and then we were off to chapel to pray for the -souls of the lads that are gone.” - -“Some of us feel very strongly about being sent home for scratches -that will heal,” writes Corporal A. Hands. “Don’t believe half the -stories about our hardships. I haven’t seen or heard of a man who made -complaint of anything. You can’t expect a six-course dinner on active -service, but we get plenty to fight on.” - -Cases of personal pluck were so common that we soon ceased to take -notice of them, a wounded driver in the Royal Artillery told an -interviewer. “There was a man of the Buffs, who carried a wounded chum -for over a mile under German fire, but if you suggested a Victoria -Cross for that man he would punch your head, and as he is a regular -devil when roused the men say as little as they can about it. He thinks -he didn’t do anything out of the common, and doesn’t see why his name -should be dragged into the papers over it. Another case I heard of was -a corporal of the Fusilier Brigade--I don’t know his regiment--who -held a company of Germans at bay for two hours by the old trick of -firing at them from different points, and so making them think they had -a crowd to face. He was getting on very well until a party of cavalry -outflanked him, as you might say, and as they were right on top of him -there was no kidding about his ‘strength,’ so he skedaddled, and the -Germans took the position he had held so long. He got back to his mates -all right, and they were glad to see him, for they had given him up for -dead.” - -“No regiment fought harder than we did, and no regiment has better -officers, who went shoulder to shoulder with their men,” says a -non-commissioned officer of the Buffs, writing from hospital, “but you -can’t expect absolute impossibilities to be accomplished, no matter how -brave the boys are, when you are fighting a force from twenty to thirty -times as strong. If some of you at home who have spoken sneeringly of -British officers could have seen how they handled their men and shirked -nothing you would be ashamed of yourselves. We are all determined when -fit again to return and get our own back.” - -Everywhere you find that the one cry of the soldiers who are invalided -home--they are impatient to be cured quickly and get back “to have -another slap at them.” We know how our women here at home share that -eager enthusiasm in this the most righteous war Britain has ever gone -into; and isn’t there something that stirs you like the sound of a -trumpet in such a passage as this from the letter a Scottish nun living -in Belgium has written to her mother? - - -“I am glad England is aroused, and that the British lion is out with -all his teeth showing. Here these little lions of Belgians are raging -mad and doing glorious things. - -“Tell father I am cheery, and feel sometimes far too warlike for a nun. -That’s my Scottish blood. I hope to goodness the Highlanders, if they -come, will march down another street on their way to the caserne, or I -shall shout and yell and cheer them, and forget I mustn’t look out of -the window.” - - -An extract from Sergeant T. Cahill’s letter to his friends at Bristol -gives you a snap-shot of our women in the firing line, and of the -fearless jollity and light-heartedness with which our Irish comrades -meet the worst that their enemies can do: - -“The Red Cross girleens, with their purty faces and their sweet ways, -are as good men as most of us, and better than some of us. They are not -supposed to venture into the firing line at all, but they get there all -the same, and devil the one of us durst turn them away,” and he goes on -casually, “Mick Clancy is that droll with his larking and bamboozling -the Germans that he makes us nearly split our sides laughing at him -and his ways. Yesterday he got a stick and put a cap on it so that it -peeped above the trenches just like a man, and then the Germans kept -shooting away at it until they must have used up tons of ammunition, -and there was us all the time laughing at them.” - -But I think there is perhaps nothing in these letters that is more -touching or more finely significant than this: - -“The other day I stopped to assist a young lad of the West Kents, who -had been badly hit by a piece of shell,” writes Corporal Sam Haslett. -“He hadn’t long to live, and knew it, but he wasn’t at all put out -about it. I asked him if there was any message I could take to any one -at home, and the poor lad’s eyes filled with tears as he answered: ‘I -ran away from home and ’listed a year ago. Mother and dad don’t know -I’m here, but you tell them that I’m not sorry I did it.’ When I told -our boys afterwards, they cried like babies, but, mind you, that’s the -spirit that’s going to pull England through this war. I got his name -and the address of his people from his regiment, and I am writing to -tell them that they have every reason to be proud of their lad. He may -have run away from home, but he didn’t run away from the Germans.” - -And if you have caught the buoyant, heroic ardour that rings through -those careless, unstudied notes our gallant fellows have written home, -you know that there is not a man in the firing line who will. - - - _Wyman & Sons Ltd., Printers, London and Reading._ - - - - -Transcriber’s Notes - - -Punctuation, hyphenation, and spelling were made consistent when a -predominant preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not -changed. - -Simple typographical errors were corrected; occasional unbalanced -quotation marks retained. - -Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained. - -Page 68: “smoking concerts” probably should be “smoking, concerts”. - -Page 72: “from Mons, It was” was punctuated and capitalized that way. - -Page 150: “1.0 p.m.” was printed that way. - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's In The Firing Line, by A. 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