Don
Martin diary entry for Saturday, August 24, 1918:
Stayed in Meaux today. [Edwin] James
[New York Times] went to Paris.
Wrote some letters and took a nap. Had dinner across the river with [Carroll]
McNutt [Colliers] and several other correspondents.
Don Martin's dispatch of August 24 gave a gloomy picture of American wounded being treated in a hospital. It was published in the New York Herald on August
25.
STOICISM OF THE AMERICAN YOUTH GLORIFIES TRAGEDY
Don Martin, in Shock Hospital,
Finds Boys Smiling at Death
WONDERFUL BODIES AID
IN RECOVERIES
The Story of a Sergeant Whose One Thought
Was of His Mother
By DON MARTIN
Special Correspondent
of the Herald with the American Armies in France
[Special Cable to the
Herald]
WITH THE AMERICAN ARMIES IN FRANCE, Saturday
The records of the hospitals where
the most serious cases of wounded are taken show that for pluck and
sportsmanship the American soldier is the best there is. I have visited many of
the hospitals in the last fortnight, and I have found the boys are Spartans.
But, then, they are the finest physical specimens, and the result is they are
recovering quickly from wounds which ordinarily would incapacitate a man for
weeks.
One day I saw a sergeant who was
brought from the Vesle region with a leg shattered by shrapnel. He was in bad
shape. He lay for fourteen hours in the zone between the lines where his
comrades could not go to his assistance
because of enemy fire. He bound up his wound as well as he could and lay in a
spot where snipers might get him at any moment and where shells were extremely
likely to fall. It was late at night when he was rescued by stretcher bearers.
He was in terrific pain but them was never a grumble. When at length he arrived
at the hospital he asked for a cigarette. That is the first request of all the
men when they are able to speak. The sergeant smoked his cigarette. He knew his
case was serious, and said to the surgeon: “I only hope mother won’t know how
bad I’m hurt. I’ll wait till later to tell her. I wrote her a letter a week ago
and said I was sending a package, but I haven’t had a chance. I packed it up,
but I was unable to leave the dugout, so the package is there now. I wish she
could get it.”
A Lad from New York
The sergeant recovered from the
shock of the operation and seemed to have a chance of recovery. Then gangrene
developed and suddenly he died a few hours later.
Another chap had a leg which was
torn by a grenade. He was exposed only a few hours before he was found. He
lives in New York. Telling of his experience he said he had trouble passing his
physical examination, but he certainly is strong now, although he is slight of
stature. He said:--“A Boche threw a ‘potato masher’ and hit me. Then I drew my ‘gat’ and killed him,
but I couldn’t get up.”
The physician said the boy would
recover. The training the men have received and the life out of doors have
transformed the weaklings among the men into structures of iron.
A third American was brought into
the hospital while I was there. A piece of shrapnel passed entirely through his
chest. He was made as comfortable as possible, and since he recovered from the
shock of operation, which was severe, the surgeons say that he has better than
an even chance of recovery.
Then there is another case of a
hardy private who had a bullet through the fleshy part of the arm. He was
walking around in five days and playing baseball in a week. Now he asks at
least three times a day when he can return to the line. He will be back, too,
in a couple of weeks.
In a Shock Hospital
I could give you an endless number
of cases similar to these. I talked to-day with Dr. Wagner, of Asbury Park, a
lieutenant in a shock hospital, and he said:--“the condition of the Americans
is simply wonderful. Out of a hundred shock cases I should say offhand that
sixty recover. Take a hundred civilians at random of the same age, with the
same wounds and under the same conditions, sixty of them would die. Flesh
wounds heal almost overnight, due to the perfect physical condition of the men.
It seems to be all the same whether they come from New York’s east side or the
ranges of the Rocky Mountains. And the spirit is the same all the time. I have
been in the midst of the worst phases of the war and I had heard no grumbling.
Legs torn off, bodies lacerated—they smile just the same so long as they are
conscious. When they are told they are going to die—it is necessary to tell
them this in rare cases—they say, ‘I’m sorry, but I did the best I could. Tell
the bunch to finish the job.’
“Often they leave a message for
their mother, sister or sweetheart. It is sad and heartrending at times, but it
is part of war. The bravery and stoicism of the American youth brought face to
face with probably or certain death lends a touch of grandeur to the grim
tragedy. The number of gangrene cases is neither large nor small in comparison
with the records of other armies. Gangrene is inevitable; gas gangrene is
occasional, but we expect to overcome them with a new serum.”
The case of Captain Patterson, of
New York, is a remarkable one. For fourteen hours he lay within twelve feet of
an enemy trench in the broiling sun, waterless and without a bite of food. The
slightest move meant discovery and certain death. The ground sloped downward so
the Germans, twelve feet away from him only would have to lift their heads to
above level of the trench to see the captain. That would be a very daring act
on their part, however, because the American snipers could pick them off.
In this perilous and torturous
position Captain Patterson lay till darkness enabled him to crawl to safety.
Hard Fighting Continues
The fighting in the Vesle region
continues of a savage character, but small in scale. The Germans are keeping
their strongest troops opposite the Americans. The prisoners we have captured
recently furnish a contrast to others from weaker units. They say the Germans
are not discouraged by the retreat from the Marne or the reverses elsewhere.
They declare these moves were necessary to strengthen the German line in
preparation for another big operation soon. It seemed to me, though, that the
Germans in saying this reflected their boastfulness more than their confidence.
Though it is dangerous to overestimate
the losses suffered by the Germans and to underestimate their power of
resistance, also the possibility of an attack, there is the utmost confidence
everywhere among the highest officers and officials in France that Germany is
facing a decidedly serious situation. The constant harrying of the enemy armies
by the Allies has added to their loss tens of millions of dollars’ worth of
ammunition and guns, placing them in a trying position. And the Allies will not
let up, so they are bound to remain for weeks, and possibly permanently, on the
defensive,
A dispatch of August 24 for Paris gave an interesting insight on soldiers from Alsace and Lorraine in the German army. It was published in the Paris Herald on Sunday,
August 25.
ALSACE-LORRAINE SOLDIERS
SUFFER UNDER HUN RULE
German Commanders Issue Orders
Requiring Strict Measures to Be Taken Against Them
(Special Telegram to
the Herald)
By DON MARTIN
With the American
Armies, Saturday
Unmistakable evidence of German
distrust and suspicion of the soldiers who come from Alsace and Lorraine
appears in German documents of official character which have recently come into
possession of the French.
Here is a verbatim translated copy
of a German order communicated in May to all the non-commissioned officers of a
certain branch of the German army:--
“Comrades of the infantry depot:
Among the men who have come back from the Eastern front there are a large
number, born in Alsace and Lorraine, whose purpose is to disavow and betray the
Fatherland. Led by unscrupulous subjects in the pay of the enemy, and under the
control of enemy agents and spies, these soldiers who have been misled have
attempted to escape to Holland, forgetful of their oath of allegiance. Their
attempts failed completely, and the leaders are either in jail or will soon be
captured. Once for all it is necessary to put an end to the actions of these criminal
betrayers of the Fatherland. I am counting upon you for your assistance in this
work. All those denouncing these traitors will fulfill their duties toward the
Fatherland and will merit the gratitude of the country as well as that of our
admirable comrades at the front.
“Help me to arrest all of these
miserable creatures who are not yet arrested. You will thus fulfill your duty
to the brave Alsatians who are fulfilling theirs. In using the French language,
in singing French songs and in gathering together in the woods and other
solitary places these misled cowards are attempting to get up their courage so
as to do the work of the enemy and to renounce the Fatherland. I am thus obliged
to take the following measures, from which many innocent will suffer. It
depends upon the latter and particularly upon the best of the non-commissioned
officers and men that these measures shall be done away with or, on the
contrary, shall be made more severe:--
“I order that the measures to be
taken against the Alsatians and Lorrainers, mentioned above, be executed at
once. The splitting up of their organizations shall commence at once. The men
will be divided equally among the various companies. I hold company commanders
personally responsible for the strictest surveillance of these men, who are
forbidden to leave the camp without permit.”
This order was signed “Woide,
Lieutenant General.”
A secret order of the 42nd
Division, dated July 4 and just now made public, reports that in the Crown
Prince’s army Alsatians and Lorrainers shall on no pretext be employed in the
first line during operations. The order reads:-
“The army group of the Imperial
Crown Prince reports that, because of numerous cases of desertion on the part
of Alsatians and Lorrainers, these troops shall not be employed in the first
line. Consequently the division orders that all suspected Alsatians and
Lorrainers and other troops who cannot be trusted shall until further notice be
kept out of the zone of combat. The severest measures should be taken. The
regiments will be entirely responsible for the loyalty of those Alsatians and
Lorrainers who remain in the first line. In order that these retirements from
the front shall not seem to be a recompense for disloyalty, the men who are
brought back will be employed in agricultural labor and guard service with
trusted troops, etc.”
These orders are of particular
interest in view of the fact that last March the German High Command said that
it had become necessary to bring Alsatians back from the Eastern front for use on
the Western front.
And Don Martin's August 24 daily dispatch for Paris was published in the Paris Herald on Sunday, August 25.
PRISONERS ADMIT GERMANY
CANNOT WIN THE WAR
American Air Squadron Drops Thirty-Six Bombs on the Railway Yards at
Conflans
(Special Telegram to
the Herald)
By DON MARTIN
With the American
Armies, Saturday
Quiet marked the American front
along the Vesle last night and to-day. There were clashes of patrols and
artillery fire, but no important infantry action. The positions here remain
practically unchanged.
Reports reaching here from the Toul
front tell of an attempted raid by the Germans on an American day outpost. One
officer and twenty men left the German line and engaged the Americans. They
were forced to retire, leaving one prisoner behind.
A German corporal recently taken prisoner says
that the German soldiers as a rule are quite satisfied with the present
military situation, because it convinces them that there will be no German
attack on a large scale. Various prisoners assert that Germany cannot win the
war, but express the belief that it is inconceivable that the Allies can carry
the war into Germany.
Lieutenant Hugh Bridgmann had an
engagement yesterday with two Fokker machines. He was on reconnaissance when
the two German machines attacked him. Lieutenant Bridgmann fired at once, and
was veering to attack the other, when both descended with a swiftness which led
to the belief that they were destroyed. Another airman said he saw a Boche
plane going down in a steep slide after having been fired on.
Direct Hits
This morning an American bombing
squadron dropped thirty-six bombs on the railway yards at Conflans. Six direct
hits were observed, five on the north and western part of the yards, and one on
a warehouse. There was only slight resistance from enemy anti-aircraft guns and
the fire was inaccurate. All the bombing planes returned safely. A German
“chase” squadron rose from south of Conflans, but the planes caused no
inconvenience to the Americans. On Thursday morning American bombers dropped
thirty-eight bombs on the railway yards at Conflans.
Lieutenant Jones on August 21
engaged a German Albatross and is believed to have destroyed it.
The Germans are using moving
pictures as an aid to battle. Information gathered from the enemy shows that
the Germans had moving pictures of the territory which they expected to conquer
in their advance started on July 15. A captured document says:-
“Officer
in charge of cinematographic service will prepare for the attacking troops
exhibition photographic views of the ground over which they are to operate.”
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