| Show Salt Lake Boy On n Guard in hi Telephone Dugout in France Francel Loc Local l Soldier in Front Line tine Trench Celebrates Washington's Birthday a By Fred S S. S Ferguson t United Press Sta Staff ft Correspondent T THE TIIE IE WITH W I ARMY IN FRANCE Feb 23 Standing on fire steps crouching in listening posts and machine gun positions or concealed in dugouts where telephones telephones' and other war instruments are hidden American soldiers observed Washington's birthday It was the first time the sons I of the father of democracy hadI had spent that day In a European battle battle battle bat bat- I tle line to save savo the principles he heI represented I Every maiTin m tn the front line honor tJ riC of dinner t In q honor of the occasion German shells were whistling by and shrapnel was bursting overhead as the anniversary was wa Wile ushered in hi at midnight A cold brilliant moon lighted up the trenches and No Mans Man's Land al almost almost almost al- al most like day The knifelike temperature tem tem- cut through the heavily bundled men standing rigidly Inthe Inthe in inthe the trenches watching for some boche movement The Oft tin in hats surmounted wool hel liel- helmets mets met J which were drawn dram tIP up to their eyes They kicked their feet softly against the s of the tho trench in an effort to warm them Then came canie the life lIfo savers Men len from the tho rear brought up steaming l lt hot coffee t coffee carrying the huge cans through tho the twisting communication trenches Everyman Every Everyman Everyman man got a big cup It was not only hot but good coffee Meantime a boche bache or American machine gun or automatic rifle would rattle a grenade explode and then the German artillery would op open n up with a brief chorus The shells would swish and scream over the trenches bursting bursting burst burst- ing far in the rear German bullets would whine closer overhead as the American sentries cut loose with their rifles at suspicious objects In No Mans Man's Land In the artillery's telephone dugout were two boys from Chicago Chicago Chicago Chi Chi- cago two from Boston and one from Salt Lake City Two were constantly watching the telephone which connects the battery with all parts of the American sector The In the dugout wanted all the tho news from home They had come over in December I The dugout was tight curtained I and Invisible until clambering down steps one came abruptly I into a warm dry cramped room lighted by flickering tuckering candles The post commander a captain captain capt cap cap- t tain ln had his dugout on the main floor It was filled with water by bythe bythe bythe the recent rains but was pumped out today In an automatic rifle emplacement emplacement emplacement ment was a Middle Westerner watching No Mans Man's Land through a small porthole for a suspicious movement In a listening post far out a aboy aboy aboy boy was stationed whose chief Job was to keep still with his ears open It was quiet out his way and all he had done d me was to keep still As the night passed the cold grew more intense The Tho mud froze hard The guns were quiet and the silence was deathlike No church was ever so quiet no silence so crushing The moon cast weird lengthening lengthen lengthen- ing shadows of the men as they peered toward the bocho boche lines Thus Titus they waited tensely through the tho hours until dawn The kitchen is located in a shell shattered house Jn n the rear Turkeys Turkeys Turkeys Tur Tur- keys for today's feast hung from tho the rafters Men worked nightlong night night- nightlong long preparing slum for break break- fast Tho The men in the front line trenches are given hot coffee at midnight every night and are served with hot meats during thecIa the tho cIa day clay Approaching the front lines linea one passes passos through many ruined villages villages villages vil vil- lages whose shattered walls and aull crumbling spires assume tho the most fantastic shapes In the moonlight Great lines of or wagons drawn by husky American mules take supplies to within a few hundred yards of the tho forward trenches Germ Germans ns Hurl Mustard Gas Shells at Yankees Yankees- By International News S Service WITH TIlE TIE AMERICAN ARMY I IN FRANCE Feb Peb 23 The The Germans Germans Ger Ger- mans opposite the Americans ona on ona I I a certain section of the the Lorraine front attempted to bombard the I I Yankees in the first line with II I I mustard gas shells late Thursday I night T They Tiley ey failed their shells falling way short Th The fumes Dissipated dJs Dis I I themselves in No Mans Man's the Americana Land the Americana not not all them at Two Americans Americana were killed and I four foul were wounded when a nying flyIng flyIng fly ny Ing pig trench mortar dropped into the Americans' Americans position Just Justat Justat Justat at nightfall Thursday a party of fifteen Germans was discerned along the barbed wire in front of ot the German position American artillery Immediately opened up upon upon upon on thorn thom an and the Germans beat a hasty retreat I Later the Americans discovered j I another party of Germans attempting attempt I ing fag to repair tho the barbed wire The rile I I Yankees opened up with machine guns and sent the enemy scurrying scurry- scurry 1 ing to cover The Germans arc are believed to tobe tobe be using a new device to hide llido the tho flash nash of the big guns when they are discharged |
