Show VER THE TOP by an american guay empey machine gunner serving in france copyright 1917 tr arthur our empty EMPEY AND HIS COMRADES REPULSE A FIERCE GAS ATTACK MADE BY THE GERMANS synopsis fired by the sinking of the with the loss of american lives arthur guy ampey an american living in jersey city goes to england and enlists as a private in the british army after a short experience as a recruiting officer in london he Is sent to train ing quarters in prance where he first hears the sound of big guns and makes the acquaintance of booties cooties co oties after a brief period of training empens company Is sent into the front line trenches where he takes his first turn on the fire step while the bullets whiz overhead empey learnt as comrade falls that death lurks always in the trenches chaplain distinguishes himself by rescuing wounded men under hot fire alth pick and shovel has experience as a trench digger in no man s land exciting experience on listening post detail ex citing work on observation post duty back in rest billets empey writes and stages a successful play once more in the front trenches empey goes over the top in a successful but costly attack on the german lines CHAPTER continued 19 Y A gas helmet Is made 0 cloth treat cd with chemicals there are two win t dows or glass eyes in it through which you can asce inside there Is a rubber covered tube which goes in the mouth you breathe through your noser the gas passing through the cloth helmet f t bl Is neutralized by the action of the 4 chemicals iho foul air Is exhaled through the tube in the mouth this f tube being so constructed that it pre vents the inhaling of the outside air or g ii one helmet Is good for five hours i of the strongest gas each tommy g carries two of them slung around his shoulder in a waterproof canvas bag he must w ear tills bag at all times even while sleeping to change a de helmet you take out the new one hold OUT breath pull the old one off placing the new one oer your head tucking in the loose ends under the collar of our tunic for a minute pandemonium reigned in our trench commies tommies adjusting their helmets bombers banning here and there and men turning out of tha dugouts alti fixed bayonets to man the alre step lie were pouring out of the communication trenches our guns crew were busy mounting the machine gun on the parapet and i bringing up extra ammunition from the dugout german gas Is heavier than air and abon fills the trenches and dugouts dug outs where it has been known to lurk for two or three days until the air Is purl fled by means of large chemical spray 1 ers we had to work quickly as arltz generally follows the gas with an in attack f A company man on our right was too slow in getting on his helmet he aal to the ground clutching at his throat and after a few spasmodic went west died it was horrible to see him die but we were powerless to help him in the corner of a traverse a little muddy cur dog one of the companas comp anys pets was lying dead with his paws over his nose it a the animals that suffer the most the horses mules cattle dogs cats 0 and rats they having no helmets to tare them tommy does not with rats in a gai attack at times gas has been known to travel with dire results fifteen miles behind the lines A gas or smoke helmet as it Is tailed at the best Is a alle smelling f thing and it Is not long before one gets a violent headache from wearing it our eighteen were burst f ing in no mans land in an effort by the artillery to disperse the gas clouds the alre step was lined with crouch ing men bayonets fixed and bombs near at hand to repel the expected at tack our artillery had put a barrage of curtain fire on the german lines to try and break up their attack and keep back re enforce ments I 1 trained my machine gun on their trench and its bullets were raking the c parapet then over they came bayonets alls in their respirators which have a large snout in front they look ed like some horrible all along our trench rifles and ma L chine guns spoke our shrapnel was F bursting over their heads they went s down in heaps ant new ones took the fi places of the fallen thang could atop that mad rush the germans reached our barbed wire which had s previously been demolished by their P bells then it was bomb against bomb and alie devil for all suddenly my head seemed to burst from a loud crack in my car then my head began to swim throat got dry and a heavy pressure on the lingg warned me that my helmet was leaking turning by gun over to no 2 I 1 changed helmets the trench started to wind like a make and sandbars sandbags sand bags appeared to be floating in the air the noise was horrible I 1 sank onto the fire step needles deemed to be pricking my flesh then blackness I 1 waa awakened by one of my mates removing my smoke helmet how delicious that cool fresh air felt in my hodgs A strong wind had arisen and dispersed the gas they told me that I 1 bad been out for three hours they thought I 1 waa dead the attack had been repulsed after a hard fight twice the germans bad gained a foothold in our trench but had been driven out by counter at tacks the trench was filled with their dead and ours through a periscope I 1 counted eighteen dead germans in our wire they were a ghastly sight in their horrible looking respirators I 1 examined my first smoke helmet A bullet had gone through it on the left ilde just grazing my car the gas had penetrated through the hole made in the cloth out of our crew of six we lost two killed and two wounded that night we burled all of the dead excepting those in no man s land in death there 18 not much distinction friend and toe are treated alike after the wind had dispersed the gas the R A M C got busy with their chemical sp spraying out the dugouts and low parts of the trenches to dissipate any fumes of the german gas which may hae been lurking in same two days after the gas attack I 1 was sent to division headquarters in an awer to an order requesting that captains of units detail a man whom they thought capable of passing an examination or the divisional in department before leaving for this assignment I 1 went along the front line trench saying good by to my mates and lording it over them telling them that I 1 bad A gas helmet clicked a cushy job behind the lines and how sorry I 1 felt that they bad to stay in the front line and argue out the war with fritz they were envious but still good natured and as I 1 left the trench to go to the rear they shouted after me good luck yank old boy dont forget to send up a few fags to your old mates I 1 promised to do this and left I 1 reported at headquarters with six teen others and passed the required ex out of the sixteen apall cants tour were selected I 1 was highly elated because I 1 was I 1 thought in tor a cushy job back at the base the next morning the four reported t division headquarters for instruct alons two of the men were sent to large towns in the rear of the lines with an easy job when it came our turn th officer told us we were good men md had passed a very creditable examination my tin hat began to get too small for me and I 1 noted that the other man atwell by name was sticking his cheat out more than usual the officer continued I 1 think I 1 can use you two men to great advantage in the front line here are your orders and instructions also the pass which gives you full authority as special M P detailed on intelligence work he port at the front line according to your instructions it Is risky work and I 1 wish you both the best or luck my heart dropped to zero and at wells face was a study we saluted and left that wishing us the best of luck sounded very ominous in our ears if he had said wish you both a swift and painless death it would have bee more to the point when we had read our instructions we knew we were in tor it good and plenty what atwell said Is not alt tor pub ll catton but I 1 strongly seconded his opinion of the war army and divisional headquarters in general after a bit our spirits rose e were full fledged spy catchers our instructions and orders said so we immediately reported to the nearest french and had sev eral glasses of muddy water which they called beer after drinking our beer we left me and hailed an empty ambulance after showing the driver our passes we got in the driver was going to the part of the line where we had to report bow the wounded ever survived a ride in that ambulance was ble to me it was worse than riding on a gun carriage over a rock road the driver of the ambulance was a corporal of the R A M 0 and he had the wind up that Is he had an aversion to being under fire I 1 was riding on the seat with him while atwell was sitting in the nabu lance with his legs hanging out of the back As we passed through a shell de strayed village a mounted military policeman stopped us and informed the driver to be very careful when we got out an the open road as it was very dangerous because the germans lately had acquired the habit of shelling it the corporal asked the trooper it there was any other way around and was informed that there was not upon this he got very nervous and wanted to turn back but we insisted that he proceed and explained to him that he would get into serious trouble with his commanding it he returned without orders we wanted to ride not walk from his conver salon we learned that he had recently come from england with a draft and had never been under fire hence his nervousness we convinced him that there was not much danger and he appeared greatly relieved when we at last turned into the open road we were not so confident on each side there had been a line of trees ut now all that was left of them were torn and battered stumps the fields on each side of the road were dotted with recent shell holes and we passed several in the road itself we had gone about halt a mile when a shell came whistling through the air and burst in a field about three hundred yards to our right another soon followed one and burst on the edge of the road about four hun dred yards in front of us I 1 told the driver to throw in hla speed clutch as we must be in sight of the germans I 1 knew the signs that battery was ranging for us and the quicker we got out of its zone of fire the better the driver was trembling like a leaf and every minute I 1 expected him to pile us up in the ditch I 1 preferred the german fire in the back atwell was holding onto the straps for dear life and was singing at the top of bis voice we beat you at the marne we beat you at the aasne we gave you bell at beuve neuve chapelle and here we are again just then we hit a small shell hole and nearly capsized upon a loud yell from alie rear I 1 looked behind and there was atwell sitting in the middle of the road shaking his fist at us ills equipment which be had taken off upon getting into the ambulance waa strung out on the ground and his rifle was in the ditch empey I 1 called upon to do duty as a member of a firing squad his description of the execution Is given in the next installment TO BBS CONTINUED |