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Show SALT LAKER TELLS j SHELL-FIRE SIGHTS David Y. Spencer, in Letter to Parents, Depicts Experience. IS AMBULANCE DRIVER Narrowly Escapes Death When Gas Bomb Wrecks His Shelter. How it feels to drive an ambulance full of wounded soldiery in the face of an artillery ar-tillery bombardment that shakes the earth, with shells dropping all around so near that almost any kind of a hole in the ground looks attractive and to have the experience of petting cut safely after being enveloped in the vapor of deadly gas, is vividly told by David V. Spencer of Salt Lake in a letter to Ins parents, Mr. and Mrs. John D. Spencer, 238 B street. Young Spencer is an ambulance driver in section 636, automobile convoy. U. A. A. artillerv service, with the French army. The "Heine" refered to in hie letter is Henry Wallace, a son of YV. R. Wallace. Democratic national committeeman committee-man of Utah. The communication, which bears date of March 30. in part follows: I must tell you about an exciting two days I spent at our front posts. Just after returning from lazy old Nice. Heine and I went up together. On the way up Fritz started shelling a barrack which was nestled in some trees just off the road where we were passing. It was just close enough so that we couldn't hear the whistle of the shell, which is a bad sign and goes to prove the cheerful statement that "you never hear the shell that hits you." We had just gotten to posts when a hurry call came In for a car for some officers of high rank. Shells Come Close. We went up to the place and were jjjst turning the car around in the narrow road when Fritz became very impolite and started shelling. This time the shells sounded even worse, for we were in a little wood and breaking limbs added to the wicked explosions. Needless to say, we lost little time in reaching the dugout, which was just off the road. I had never realized just bow attractive a hole in the ground is until I came over here. There were six Frenchmen French-men in the little cave, all of us being present for the same purpose. The shells were coming one a minute and the pieces were falling on and about the cave. I had to smile when I glanced about the cave, for it was really a poor imitation and a direct hit from a small shell would have demolished it. Between the shell bursts I heard a dove cooing and looking under the table saw a basket of doves which one of the poiius was taking up the lines. Moved to Laughter. I laughed when I thought of the Dove of Peace being there. Heine and I were scared pink or T should say green, but we kidded each other out of it by agreeing to go to the Or-pheum Or-pheum that night if someone else didn't have our girls out. Our voices were slightly shaky during the conversation, con-versation, but it got us to laughing and made the Frenchmen thtnk we were crazy or brave, probably the former. Well, Fritz finally changed his range and we got our officers in and away from the unpleasant spot. The shelling went on all day at different points and by night the roads were in a nasty shape. We, had a lot of work to do and mdn't get back from our last call until 2 a, m. We were just getting undressed when the Boche started a drum fire on and around our posts. For three hours there was a constant bombardment, which means that the sound of one shell doesn't cease before the next one arrives. The earth shakes like an earthquake all the time. After a couple of hours I dozed off in spite of the noise, for I was pretty tired. I was awakened with a crash of timbers and falling rocks and earth. My first thought was that a big shell had gone through the other end of the cave, for the only thing the matter with me was that 1 was scared. Facing Deadly Gas. In less than a minute I got the awful odor of gas, the cave was full of it. I held my breath and grabbed my mask. IJeine had gotten a whiff of it and was choking a little. A new man, who was next to me, was coughing cough-ing hard. I lit a candle and the next minute he said t that one eye of his mask was broken. He seemed dazed and helpless. Heine put his hand over the broken eye and I jumped out of bed in search of a mask. Luckily Luck-ily there was one there and we helped him on with it. All of this happened in less time than it takes to tell. We found on dressing that a gas shell had hit the mouth of our cave and filled the entrance en-trance with timbers and rocks. We were told later that SOGO gas shells had been dropped in our little sector in three hours, i We had a lot of work that day. T hate to mention that two yojjng fellows fel-lows In the cave next to ours died in our ambulance on the way to the hospital. hos-pital. We were all perfectly all right and even the new man, whom I was nervous about, was not affected by it. I am glad we had the experience, for It is the only one I have had in this sector. I wouldn't tell you of these things if I weren't sure that it would prove to you how safe I am no matter where, and that 1 am being watched over and shall return in safety. I will write you about our new quarters quar-ters when we get there. |