Show T t t tA I ln 1011 i ju f i l II i t WHO WENT WINT c 5 j fiJi ItI T 11 s j i MACHINE IN fRANCE I b i 1911 DY r GIN MOy I i if f i EMPEY HEARS THE STORY OF THE TOMMY WHO HAD A ABROAD ABROAD l BROAD STREAK OF YELLOW s 's j t i Synopsis Fired Fired by t the e sinking of ot the with the loss of of- American lives Arthur Guy Empey an American living In Jersey City J goes to England and enlists as a private i In the British army After a short experience as a recruiting recruiting- officer In London he Is sent to trainIng train- train I Ing quarters In n France where he first he hears rs the sound of t big guns gun and v I makes the acquaintance of ot cooties After a brief ot of period of training t Empey's comp company ny Is sent Into the line front trenches where he t takes kes K t his first turn on the fire step while the bullets whiz t overhead Empey 7 1 learns as comrade falls that death lurks always In the trenches C Chaplain distinguishes himself s by rescuing wounded men under hot fire With pick and shovel shove Empey has experience as a II trench digger In No tto Mans Man's Land r Exciting experience on listening post detail Exciting Ex Ex- r citing ng work on observation post duty Back In rest billets billets' Empey t writes writes and and stages a successful play Once more In the front trenches fir Empey g goes es over the top In a II successful but costly attack on the v German lines Soon afterwards Empey and his comrades repulse a ii determined gas attack launched by the Germans His next experience IJ I J Is as a member of ot a firing squad which executes a sentence of death 1 Y CHAPTER Continued ed d s 21 21 After standing at attention for what seemed a week though in reality a j sit it could not have been over five min min- minutes Utes we heard a low whispering In our Tear rear and footsteps on the stone flag flag- flagging ging of ot the courtyard i. i Our officer reappeared and In a low but firm voice ordered About Turn About Turn I 1 H We We turned about In n the gray light of dawn a few yards in iq front of ot me I could make mak out a brick wall Against this Is wall was a dark form with a white L l square pinned on Its breast We were supposed upp sed to aim lm at this square To the right of ot the form I noticed a white spot on th the wall This would be my target r fo- fo Ready I dim Aim I Fire I IThe If f The dark form sank Into a huddled heap My bullet sped on Its way and it the whitish spot on the wall I could see the splinters fly Some one t else lse had received Deceived the rifle containing a t 1 the blank cartridge bud my mind was wasat wast wass s 's at Lt ease there was was no no blood of ot a t Tommy on my hands I. I Order Order Arms Arms I About Turn About Turn I Pile Pile Pile- Arms I stand Stand Clear w The stacks were re Quick March March MarchI I 1 Right Wheel Right Wheel lw I l w 1 And we left the scene of ot execution behind be be- f Mind hind us t It was now daylight After marchIng march- march I Ing about five minutes we were disI dis- dis y with the following Instructions from the officer In command Return alon alone to your respective companies s and remember no talking i about bout this affair or else It will go hard C with the guilty ones t cI We We needed no urging to get a away way I Idid Idid did not recognize any of t the men on on the firing squad even the officer l was a stranger to me r. r The victims victim's r relations and friends In Blighty will never know that he was wasi i i executed i they will be under the Impression Im lm- that he died doing his bit for forgoing going and country In the p public casualty lists his name will wUl appear under the the caption Accidentally Acci i r dentally Killed gilled or Diedt Died t The day after the execution I received re- re 5 orders to report back to the theline line and to keep a still tongue In my x x bead ead Executions are a part of the days day's work but the part we hated most of ot all I all 11 I think think certainly Certainly the saddest The 1 h is British war department thought by many people to be composed of ot rigid red regulations all wound around with tape But It has a heart and one of ot the evidences of this Is the the- considerate way In which an execution is s concealed aled and reported reporter to the relative of the unfortunate unfortunate un un- fortunate man They never know the truth He is Is listed in the bulletins as among the accidentally killed r In the last ten years I have several t I. I times read stories In magazines of c cowards wards changing In a ch charge rge to het he- he roes I used to laugh at it It seemed t easy for writers story-writers but I said Men arent aren't made arent made that way But over j j In France I learned once that the streak of ot yellow can turn all white I picked up the story bit by byU bit U it from the captain of the company the s sentries sen sen- n- n I 4 tries who guarded the poor fellow as I r. x r well as from my own observations At AtH fi- fi H first I did not realize the whole of ot his 1 ice story but after a seek ek of Investigation lion tion It stood out as lear In my mind i as the mountains of ot iny native West In Inthe 1 the spring sunshine It impressed me 4 so 80 o much that I wrote It all down In rest billets on scraps of ot odd paper y- y The Incidents are as I say every bit l' l true the feelings of the man are true w r I 1 I know from all I underwent in the 7 fighting over In France 1 We will call him Albert Lloyd That wasn't his name but It will do 4 Albert Lloyd was what the world terms a 0 coward In Lond London n they called him a slacker s j His country had bad b been u at war nearly 7 eighteen months s an and still he was ot 7 In khaki He had nv nil good reason for not enSa en- en Sa lining being alone In the world havIng having hayIng hav hay ing been educated In an orphan asylum r lum Mum and there lei being no one dependent J L upon him for tor support He had no good position to lose and there was no no sweetheart to tell him with her lips lipsto lipsto to go while her eyes pleaded for tor him to stay Every lime time he saw a recruiting sergeant sergeant sergeant ser ser- ser ser- geant hed he'd slink around the corner out of ot sight with a terrible fear gnawing at his heart When passing the bl big recruiting recruIting recruiting re re- posters and on his way to business and back he passed many he would pull down his cap and look and look the theother theother theother other way from that awful finger pointing at him under the caption Your Tour King and Country Need You i or the boring eyes of ot Kitchener wh which ch burn burned d Into his very soul causing him to shudder Then the Zeppelin raids during raids during them he used to crouch In a corner of ot his fils house boarding-house cellar whimpering like a 0 whipped puppy and calling upon the Lord to protect him Even his landlady despised him although although although al al- al- al though she had to ac admit that he was good pay pal He very seldom read the papers but butone butone butone one momentous morning the landlady put the morning paper at his place before before before be be- fore he came down to breakfast Taking Taking Tak Tak- ing lug his seat he read the flaring headline headline headline head head- line Conscription Bill Passed and nearly fainted Excusing himself he stumbled upstairs to his bedroom with the horror of ot It gnawing Into his vitals Having saved up a 0 few pounds he decided not to leave the house and to sham sickness so he stayed In his room and had the landlady serve serve his meals tl there ere Every time there was a knock at the thedoor thedoor thedoor door he trembled all aU over Imagining It was a policeman who had come some ome to take him away to the army One morning his fears were realized Sure enough there stood a policeman with the fatal paper Taking It In his I trembling hand he read that he Albert I ILloyd Lloyd Vas was ordered to report himself I Ito to the nearest recruiting station for tor physical examination He reported Immediately Immediately immediately Im Im- im- im mediately because he was afraid to disobey The doctor looked with approval upon Lloyds Lloyd's six feet of ot physical perfection perfection per per- and thought what a fin fine guardsman he would mike make m ke b but exam examined ined his heart twice before he passed him as physically fit it was beating so fast e eFrom From the recruiting depot Lloyd was taken with with- many others In iri charge harge oJ of ofa a sergeant to the training depot at Aldershot Aldershot Al- Al where he was given an outfit of ot khaki and drew his other equipment equip equip- ment He made a 0 looking fine-looking soldier r except for tor the slight in his shoulders and the hunted look In his eyes At the training depot It does not take long to find out a mans man's character and Lloyd Llod was promptly dubbed windy In the English army windy means cowardly The smallest recruit In the barracks looked on him with contempt and was wa-s not slow to show It In many ways Lloyd vas as a good soldier learned quickly obeyed every order promptly never groused at the hardest fatigues He was afraid to He lived in In deadly fear tear of ot the officers and noncoms over him They also despised him One morning about three months after his enlistment Lloyds Lloyd's company was paraded and the names picked out for the next draft to France were read When his name was called he did not step out smartly two paces to the front and answer cheerfully Here sir as the others did He Just fainted fainted faint taint ed in the ranks and was carried to barracks barracks barracks bar bar- racks amid the sneers of the rest resL That night was an agony of ot misery to him He could not sleep Just cried and whimpered In his bunk because e eon on the morrow the draft dratt was t to sail for tor France where he be would see death on all sides and perhaps be killed him him- self On the steamer crossing the channel he would have Jumped overboard overboard over- over board to escape but was afraid of f drowning Arriving In France he and the r rest st were huddled Into lato cattle cars On th tb side fide of each appeared la in white letters Hommes 40 Chevaux 8 After ho hour hov of ot bumping over the uneven French roadbeds they thel arrived at the training base bua of ot Rouen At this place they were put through a weeks week's rigid training In trench trench war war- fare On the morning of ot the eighth day they paraded at ten o'clock and were Inspected and passed by General H H- H then were marched to the quartermaster quartermasters quartermaster's to draw their gas ras helmets and trench equipment At four In the afternoon they were a again aln hustled Into cattle cars This time time the Journey lasted two days dills They disembarked at the town of ot Prevent Fre Pre vent and could hear a distant dull booming With knees knee shaking Lloyd asked the sergeant what the noise was WaI and nearly dropped when the She sergeant replied In a somewhat bored tone Oh them them's the guns up up the line Well We'll be up there In a a couple o 0 days day or so Dont Don't worry my laddie laddle you'll see more of ot em than you want before you get ret ome to Blighty again that Is If It youre you're lucky enough to get back Now lend a hand there them cars and quit that I believe elleve yer scared The last with a contemptuous sneer They marched ten kilos full tull pack to a little dilapidated village and nd the sound of ot the guns grew louder constantly constantly constantly con con- louder The village was full of soldiers who turned out to Inspect the neW new draft the men who were shortly to be their mates matesi In the trenches for they were going up th the line on the morrow to take over their certain sector of ot trenches The draft was paraded in front of f battalion headquarters and the men were Vere assigned to companies Lloyd was the only man assigned to toD toD toD D company Perhaps the officer In charge of ot the draft had something to todo todo todo do with It for he called Lloyd aside and said Lloyd you are going to a new company com com- pany No one knows you Your bed bed will be as you make It so for Gods God's sake sak brace up and be a man I think you have the stuff In you my boy so good good good-by by and the best of ot luck to you yon The next day the battalion took over their part of ot the trenches It happened to be a very quiet day The artillery behind the lines was still except for tor foran foran torn an n occasional shell sent over to let the Germans know the gunners were not asleep In the darkness In single file the c company slowly wended their way down the communication trench to the front line No one noticed Lloyds Lloyd's white and drawn face tace After they had bad relieved the company In the trenches Lloyd with two of ot the theold theold theold old company men was was put on guard gnarl In one of ot the traverses Not a shot ahot was fired from the German lines and no noone noone noone one paid any attention to him crouched on the firing step On the first time In a new recruit Is not required to stand with his head over the top He only sits sit It out while the older men keep watch At about ten o'clock all of ot a IJ sudden he thought hell had broken loose and crouched and shivered up against the parapet Shells started bursting as he Imagined right In their trench when In fact they were landing about a hundred hundred hundred hun hun- dred yards In rear of them In the second second sec sec- ond and lines One of ot the older men on guard turning turnIng turnIng turn- turn Ing to his mate said There goes Fritz with those d d-d d d trench mortars again Its It's about time our artillery taped them and sent over a n few Well VeIl Ill I'll be d d-d d d wheres where's that blighter of ot a draft man mangone mangone mangone gone to Theres There's his rifle leaning against the parapet He must have legged It Just keep your eye peeled Dick while I report It to the sergeant I wonder If It the fool knows he can be shot for such tricks as leavin his post Lloyd had bad gone When the trench mortars opened up a maddening terror terror terror ter ter- ter- ter seized him and he wanted to run mn to get away way from that horrible horrible- din anywhere to safety So quietly sneakIng sneakIng sneaking sneak- sneak Ing around the traverse he came to the entrance of ot a communication trench and ran madly and blindly down It running Into traverses stumbling into muddy holes and falling taIlIng full tull length over trench grids Groping blindly with his arms stretched out In front of ot him lie at last fame came out of ot the trench Into the village or or- what used to be a village before before- the German artillery razed rued It Mixed with his ls fear Pear he had a peculiar peculiar peculiar pe pe- culiar sort of ot cunning which whispered whispered whispered whis whis- to him to av avoid id all aU sentries because because because be be- cause If It they saw him he would be besent besent besent sent sent back to that awful destruction In Inthe Inthe the thee front line and perhaps be killed or maimed maimed The thought made him shudder the cold sweat coming out In beads bead on his face Empey learns that a streak Of of yellow sometimes can turn all allwhite white He tells the unusual story In the next Installment TO BE CONTINUED |