Show e O OI I JIll T AN i lII J EPI IA N It WHO 11 WENT I off itJi I MACHINE rH fRANCE fRANCE- AA AA 1917 iVY nY CHAPTER II It Blighty to R Rest Billets Tb The The n morning the captain sent tor for Ih ore roe and und Informed me mo Empey as asa asa a recruit recruiting ng sergeant you are a washout wash wash- out cat and ond sent ent nt me to a training depot After arriving at this place I was hustled bustled to lo the quartermaster stores and end received ed an nn awful shock The Quartermaster sergeant spread a wa wa- sheet on the tho ground and anel commenced com com- I a miscellaneous assortment assortment as as- o of straps buckles and other paraphernalia Into it I thought he Would never nc stop but when the pile reached to my knees he paused long enough to say Next No Arras Arris B c company rup I gazed In bewilderment it t the pile of Junk In front of me and then my eyt eyes eves s wandered around looking for tor the wagon which was vas to carry It to barracks I was rudely brought to earth by the quarter exclaiming Ere Er you op it tyke it blind ny eyeS eyes es looking for is batman to dp elp Irn Im carry it lt Struggling under the load toad with frequent frequent fre re quent paus pauses s for res rest I reached our barr barracks large car barns bams and my platoon leader teader came to the rescue It Ite Vat brit a e marvel to me how quickly he assembled the equipment After he had bad completed the task he be showed me how to adjust it on my person Pretty Prett soon soo soon I stood stood before him Mm a proper Tommy Tom Tom- my Atkins In heavy marching order feeling like an overloaded camelOn camel On my feet were soled heavy-soled boots studded with ith hobnails the toes and heels of ot which were re-enforced re by steel half My legs were Incased incased In In- cased in woolen puttees olive drab in color with my trousers overlapping them at the top Then a woolen khaki tunic under which was a bluish gray woolen shirt minus a collar beneath this' this shirt a woolen belly band about six sir Inches filches wide held In place by tie strings of white tape On m my head bend was a heavy woolen trench cap with huge buttoned over the top Then the equipment A canvas belt with ammunition pockets and two wide canvas straps like lake suspenders called culled D straps fastened to the belt in n front r passing over each shoulder shoulders crossing In the middle of my mr back and attached by buckles to o the tear rear of the belt hell On the right side of at the belt bung hung a water bottle covered with felt on th the left side was my bayonet and scabbard and tool handle this handle bandle strapped to the bayonet 1 scabbard bard In the rear was my in in- trenching tool carried in a n canvas case This tool was a a pick and spade A canvas haversack was waa str strapped to the left side of the belt while on on my back was the pack also of canvas held In to place by two canvas straps over the shoulders suspended on the bottom of ot the pack was my n m mess s tin or canteen In a neat little canvas camas case My waterproof sheet looking like Uke a Jelly roll rol was strapped on top of the pack with a wooden stick for tor cl cleaning the breach of ot the rifle projecting pro pro- jetting from each end On a lanyard around my waist hung a huge Jackknife Jack Jack- knife with n a opener can-opener attachment The pack contained my overcoat an un extra pair of socks change of ot underwear under under- we wear r hold all aU containing knife fork tork ep spoon n comb toothbrush lather brush brash I soap and a razor made of ot tin Un I with Made In England stamped on I the blade when trying to shave with I this It made you yon wish that you were at war with Patagonia so that you could have hae a hollow ground stamped Made In Germany then your housewife house house- wife cleaning button outfit consisting of It a brass button stick two stiff brushes and a box of ot Soldiers Friend paste then a shoe brush and anda a box of ot dubbin a writing pad Indeli Indel IDle iDie pencil envelopes and pay book and personal belongings such as a email small eman mirror a n decent razor and q sheaf sheaf of ot unanswered letters and fags In your haversack you carry your Iron rations meaning a tin of ot bully buny beef beet four tour biscuits and a n can containing t tea sugar ugar and cubes a 0 couple ot of pipes and a n pack of shag a n tin of at rI o rOll Oil oil and a pull Tommy generally gen emily carries the oil with his rations It gives the che cheese e a sort of at sardine taste tte Add to this a first-aid first pouch and a 0 long ungainly rifle patterned after the Daniel Boone period and you have an Idea of a n British soldier in Blighty u I Before leaving for tor France this rifle this is taken from irom him and he Is issued with a n Lee Enfield short trench rifle rUle and a ration bag In France he receives two gas helmets bel hel mets a sheepskin coat rubber mackintosh mack intosh steel helmet two blankets tear tear- shell goggles a balaclava helmet gloves and a tin of ot grease which is excellent for greasing the boots Add to this the weight of his rations and can you blame Tommy for growling at a twenty-kilo twenty route march Having sewed served as sergeant major inthe Inthe in intha the tha United States SLates cavalry I tried to 1 I I I tell telf the tha English drill sergeants racer business but it did not work They immediately put me as batman in their mess Many a greasy dish of stew was waa accidentally spilled over them I would sooner fight than be a waiter so when the order came through from headquarters calling for a draft of ot 50 re for France I vol vol- Then we went before the M M. O. O medical officer for another ph physical examination This was very brief He asked our names and numbers and said Fit and mid we went out to fight We were put Into roop trains and sent to Southampton where we detrained detrained detrained de de- de- de trained and had our trench rifles Issued Issued Is Is- sued to us Then In columns of twos we went up the gangplank of ot a little steamer lying alongside the dock At the head of the gangplank there was an old sergeant who directed that we line Une ourselves along both rails ralls of ot the ship Then he ordered us to take life belts from the racks overhead and put them on I have crossed the ocean several times and knew I was vas not seasick seasick seasick sea sea- sick but when I buckled on that life belt I had a sensation of sickness After Atter we got out Into the stream all allI allI allt I t could think of was that there were a million German submarines with a n torpedo torpedo tor tor- on each across the warhead of which was Inscribed my name and ad ad- dress After five hours we came alongside a pier and disembarked I had attained attained attained at at- another one of ot my ambitions I was somewhere in France We V slept in the open that night on the side of ot the road About six sir the next morning morning morn morn- ing Sag we were ordered to entrain I looked around for tor the passenger coaches but all I could see on the sid Ing lag were cattle cars We climbed Into these On the side of each car was wasa a sign reading Hommes 40 8 When we got Inside of ot the cars ve we thought that perhaps the sign painter had bad reversed the order of things After 48 hours in these trucks we ve detrained at Rouen At this place we went through an intensive training training- for ten days dars The training consisted of ot the rudiments rudiments rudiments rudi rudi- ments of ot trench warfare Trenches had been dug with barbed wire entanglements entanglements entanglements en en- bombing saps dugouts observation posts and machine gun em em- I placements We were given a smattering smattering smattering of ot trench cooking sanitation bomb throwing reconnoitering listening listenIng listening listen listen- ing posts constructing and repairing barbed wire carrying In parties r. r Y The Authors Author's Identification Disk methods used in attack and nod defense wiring parties mass formation and the Vr procedure for poison gas attacks On the tenth day we wo again met our friends 40 8 Thirty six hours more of ot misery and nod we arrived at the town of I V F 11 After Atter unloading our rations and equipment we lined up on the road in Ia columns of ot fours waiting for tor the order to march A dull rumbling could be heard The sun was WilS shining I turned to the man manon manon manon on my left and asked the noise Bill BUI BUn He did not know but his face fuce was o of u a pea green color JIm on my right also did not know but suggested that I a the sergeant Coming Coining towards us was an old grizzled griz- griz Kled sergeant properly fed ted up with the war so I awaked him Think Its It's going to rain sergeant He looked at me In contempt and grunted It a ter ruin with the bloomin sun a I looked guilty gumy the guns up the line Une me melad melad lad tad and you'll get enough of em before before be be- fore foro you sets ets back to sty f kne knees kneel J seemed to to wilt and find 1 I II I I squeaked out a R weak Oh 1 I Then we started our march up up-to up to the theline line lino In ten ten kilo treks trek After the first days day's march we arrived at nt our rest billets In France they call caU them rest billets because while In them Tommy works seven da days s 's a week and on the tho eighth day of at the week he Is given twenty-four twenty hours on his own o Our billet was a spacious affair a large barn barll on the left side of the tho road which had bad one hundred entrances ninety nine for tor shells rots rats wind and andraIn andrain andrain rain and the hundredth one for tor Tommy Tommy Tom Tom- my my- I was tired out and using my shrapnel proof helmet shrapnel proof until a piece of shrapnel hits It or ortin ortin tin hat for a pillow lay down In the straw and anti was soon fast asleep I must have o sl slept pt about two hours when I awoke with u a prickling sensation all nil allover allover over oer me As I thought the straw had worked through my mv uniform I woke up the fellow 1 lying on on my crt o been up the line before and asked him Does the straw bother you mate Its It's worked through my uniform and I cant can't sleep In n a sleepy voice he answered That aint straw them's cooties From that time on my mj friends the tootles cooties were constantly with me Cooties or body lice are the bane of ot Tommys Tommy's existence The aristocracy of the trenches very seldom call them cooties they speak of ot th them m as fleas flens To an nn American flea means mean a small Insect armed with a Ii bayonet who Is Ig wont to Jab It Into you and then hop- hop skip and Jump to the next place to be attacked There Is an advantage In having fleas on you Instead of at cooties In that in one of his extended Jumps said flea Is liable to land on the fellow fellow fellow fel fel- fel- fel low next to you he has the typical energy and push of the American while the cootie has the bulldog tenacity of the Englishman he holds holdson on rind and consolidates or digs in until his meal is finished There is no way to get rid of ot them permanently No matter how often you bathe and that Is not very often or how many times you change your underwear your friends the cooties are always In evidence The billets are Infested with them especially so if it there is straw on the floor I have hae taken n a bath and put on new brand-new underwear In fact tact a complete complete com com- change of uniform and then turned In for tor the night The next morning mornIng mornIng morn- morn Ing my shirt would be full of them ItIs It ItIs Itis Is n a common sight to see eight or ten soldiers sitting under a tree with their shirts over their knees es engaging In a n shIrt hunt At night about half an hour before lights out you can see the Tommies grouped around a n candle trying in Its dim light to rid their underwear of ot the vermin A popular and very quick method Is fa to take your shirt and drawers drawers drawers draw draw- ers ers and run the seams back and for for- ward In n the flame from a n candle and burn them out This practice is dangerous dangerous dangerous dan dan- because you are liable Hable to burn holes In the garments if you OU are Bre not careful Recruits generally sent to Blighty for tor a brand of ot Insect powder advertised advertised adver adver- Used as Good for tor body bOlly lice The advertisement advertisement ad mi- is quite right the powder is good for tor cooties they simply thrive on it lt The older men of ot our battalion were wiser and made out of wood These were rubbed smooth with witha a bit of ot stone or sand to prevent tens They were about eighteen Inches long and Tommy guarantees that a of ot this length will reach any noy part of ot the body which may be at at- tacked Some of the fellows were lazy and only made their twelve Inches but many a night when on guard looking over the top from the tho fire step of ot the line front trench they would have given a thousand quid liquid for tor the other six sir Inches Once while we were In rest billets an Irish Hussar regiment camped In an an open field opposite our billet After they had picketed and fed their horses a general shirt hunt took place The troopers Ignored the call can Dinner up and kept on with their search for big game They had a curious method of oC procedure They hung bung their thell shirts over overa a Q hedge and beat them with their entrenching entrenching en en- tren trenching tool handles I asked one of them why they didn't pick them off oft by hand and ho answered answered an nn- We haven't had n a bath for nine weeks or a change of ot clabber If I tried to pick the cooties off of my shirt I would be here for duration of war After Atter taking a close look at nt his shirt I agreed with him film It was alive The greatest shock a recruit gets when he arrives at his battalion In France Is to see the tue men engaging In a u cootie bunt hunt With an air of contempt contempt contempt con con- tempt and disgust he avoids the company company company com com- pany of the older men until a couple of ot days later inter in a n torment of itching he also has to resort to a shirt hunt or spend many a n sleepless night of misery During these hunts there are lots of pertinent remarks bandied back and forth amon among the explorers such as Say Bill Ill I'll swap you two little ones for a n big one or rye urve got ablack n a black one hero here that looks like Kaiser Raiser Bill One sunny day In the line front-line trench I saw three officers sitting outside outside out- out side Bide of their dugout cooties are no respecters of rank I have even eyen noticed a suspicIous uneasiness about a certain well-known well general one o of them was wasa a major two of ot them were exploring their ther th r shirts paying no attention to the occasional shells which passed over oyer- head The major was writing a letter eer every now and then he lie would lay Iny aside his pad writing search his shirt for a afew afew afew few minutes get an nn Inspiration and then resume writing At last he lie finIshed finished fin fin- his letter and gave it to his runner runner run ner I was curious to see whether ho he was writing to an Insect firm finn so when the runner passed gassed me I engaged him in to conversation and ana got a glimpse at atthe atthe atthe the address on the tho envelope It was waR addressed d t to Miss Alice Allee Somebody In London The runner Informed mo me that Miss Somebody was the majors major's sweetheart s and that he wrote to her every day Just Imagine It it writing a alove alove alove love letter during a cootie hunt but such Is tho the creed of ot the trenches CHAPTER III ID i t I Go to Church Upon enlistment we wo had Identity disks Issued to us These were small disks of red fiber worn Orn around the neck by means menns of a string Most of ot the Tommies Torn Torn- mies tales also alBo used n a little metal disk which they w wore |