u 
 
 570 
 .31 
 305th 
 .F4 
 
 <fT-H> 
 
 MPANY "F 
 
 OVERSEAS 
 
mtk 
 
COMPANY U F" 
 OVERSEAS 
 
 £ffll 
 
 —BY- 
 SERGEANT FRANK T. FLOYD 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS BY 
 CORPORAL EMERY HARRIS 
 
 PHOTOGRAPHY BY 
 SERGEANT JOHN J. JORDAN 
 

 
 
 <, 
 
 PITTSBURGH PRINTING COMPANY 
 PITTSBURGH. PA. 
 
 Company "F" Overseas. 
 
jjiiiiimiiiiiiiimiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiii miiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiimmiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimmiiiiuiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiii^ 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 iiiiiiiiiii 
 
 Kg 
 
 PHIS Book is written with a view of placing in the 
 ■*■ hands of the men of Company "F", 305th Engin- 
 eers a record of the Company's activities while in 
 France. The Company log-book forms the skeleton 
 on which the story is built. Incidents and notes 
 from the log-book are expanded from the 
 memories of the members of the Company 
 at large. Dates of the principle activities 
 are given, but an effort is made to 
 avoid a diary or a tedious chain of 
 minor movements. Limited as we 
 were as to equipment and sup- 
 plies while in the forward 
 area, our illustrations are 
 quite few, but those 
 shown are official and 
 were made at the 
 time of our occu- 
 pation of the 
 district. 
 
 IS 
 
 = 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 m 1 1 1 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 j i i 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 iiiiiiiiiii 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 r 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 n i i^r 
 
 Company "F" Overseas. 
 
Captain Rockwell 
 
 Company "F" Overseas. 
 
To Our Captain: 
 
 Fred Gore Rockwell 
 
 This Book is Respectfully 
 Dedicated 
 
 ipany "I ■" Overseas. 
 
Table of Contents. 
 
 Page 
 Preface 3 
 
 Roll of Honor 8 
 
 The Wounded 9 
 
 The Last Few Days at ('amp Lee 11 
 
 1. Double D May 25 — Jane 8 15 
 
 2. That First Week . . . .June 8 — June 17 20 
 
 3. Hallighen June 17 — July 5 24 
 
 4. Beauval July 5 — August 5 28 
 
 5. Chateau de la Haie . . August 5 — August 25 32 
 
 6. Plum Hill August 25 — September 5 ... 39 
 
 7. Three Weeks Under Camouflage 
 
 September 5 — September 26 4)1 
 
 8. Bethincourt — Plus . .September 26 — October 13.. 50 
 !). A Rest October 13— November 1 ... 59 
 
 10. Back to the Argonne November 1 — November 11 0!) 
 
 11. Cheating a Railroad .November 11 — December 5.. 82 
 
 12. Chassignelles December 5 — March 10 .... 89 
 
 13. The S.O.S March 10— May 22 108 
 
 14. Headed for the {'. S. A 
 
 May 22— June 3 110 
 
 Directory 1 22 
 
 Company "F" Overseas. 
 
SUUl nf Hmtm* 
 
 "/ have fought a good fight, I have finished my 
 course, I have kept the faith. — [-Tim., IV-7. 
 
 Killed in Action: Date: 
 
 Private James R. Smith - Nov. 1st. 1918 
 
 Sergeant William J. Carthew Nov 1st. 1918 
 
 Private Joseph A. Collins - Nov. 4th. 1918 
 
 Died of Wounds: Date 
 
 Private Frank Thomas - - Oct. 9th. 1918 
 Corporal Ralph E. Fraker - Nov. 3rd. 1918 
 
 Died of Sickness: Date: 
 
 Corporal Gus Wells - - Oct. 24th. 1918 
 
 ) our Souls shall be xchere the Heroes are 
 And your Me?nory shine like Ihc Morning Shir." 
 
 Kn mi u. 
 
 Company "/•" ( ': 
 
©Ijr Homtteii 
 
 1st Lt. Henry (!. Buckingham 
 M. E. Jr. Gr., John C. Kunkle 
 Sergeant Joseph J. Zilinsky 
 Sergeant < )rville V. Wink 
 Sergeant Frank T. Floyd 
 Corporal Mato Fabina 
 Corporal I [erbert (i. Brigman 
 Corporal Charlie Suskey 
 ( Iorporal James E. Moseley 
 Wagoner Dick Dishong 
 *h0rsesh0er heragin yljchnow 
 Private Joseph W. Burchill 
 Private Frederick I,. Clark 
 Private A ntoxi Danilevsky 
 * Private Angelo Molinaro 
 ^Private Wyatt W. Thompson 
 *Private Harvey .1. Webb 
 ^Private Antonio Zanotto 
 
 (*) These men did not return in die organization 
 ,-i fter recovery- 
 
 Company "F" Overseas 
 
THE LAST FEW DAYS AT 
 CAMP LEE. 
 
 Mi fa 
 
 > 
 
 I mi >- 
 
 liteai 
 
 OLD GLORY 
 
 GENERAL CRONKITE'S BUNGALOW (BUILT BY F COMPANY) 
 
 The Last Feiv Days at Camp Lee. 
 

 -! m 
 
 i 
 
 ■ 
 
 RQI I I'MKNT inspection 
 
 I 
 
 > * K % %. * JP$ ™/™ WMKB 
 
 RNINO FROM THE LAST REVIEW 
 
 
TENT DIMM, ON PARADE GROUND 
 
 ALL ABOARD Toll NEWPORT NEWS 
 
 The Last Few Days al Camp Lee. 
 

 I 
 
 - 3 
 
 ~ -M.= 
 
 Wj 
 
 LOADING T11K WAGONS FOR PRANCE 
 
 Company "/'" Overseas. 
 
Company "F" Overseas. 
 
 M 
 
 DOUBLE "D" 
 
 A.Y 25th was just Saturday to most of the people 
 of Virginia, but those Living on the line of march 
 from Cm nip Lee to City Point will agree that it 
 was an unusual day. First call for Reveille blew ;it 
 1.2:15 A. M. and at 1:40 A. M. we departed with every- 
 thing oil our backs from postage stamps to hob-nailed 
 gondolas. The road was dark' and the packs were heavy, 
 so we took an easy pace with frequenl rests. People 
 rose from their >h-<'p to see us pas s, and we blush to admit 
 that some of us were so rude as to throw beams of light 
 from pockel lamp.- on them, tearing utterly the screen 
 of darkness that they had thought secure. We embarked 
 on tli«- Pocohontas shortly after dawn and arrived at 
 Newport News a1 noon. 
 
 We were firsl taken to a large field near tie- dock. 
 Here guards were posted to keep us from straying. The 
 people of Newport News gave us a big send-off. They 
 gathered around the field, crowding in as closely as the 
 sentries would permit. Men and women amused them- 
 selves throwing fruit, cigars and chewing gum to us. 
 We scrambled for them like newsboys after pennies. 
 Women who lived near brought piles of sandwiches and 
 small cakes from their homes and passed them across 
 the line. We stayed about two hours then hiked down 
 to the dock enclosure. We sat inside tie- fence, huddled 
 
 Fifteen 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 together in a column of squads. The sun beat down un- 
 mercifully but we could not move to shelter as there was 
 none. Smoking was forbidden so we just sat there and 
 cussed the management. 
 
 After much waiting and fretting and checking and 
 verifying we walked the aft star-board gang-plank of 
 the good ship BURON and were ushered to a composite 
 state room labeled "DD". Thai night the freight was 
 put aboard and between the nimble of machinery and 
 the groan of tackle we got very Little sleep. The air 
 circulation was poor as the boat was not in motion, so 
 many of the boys Hopped on the upper deck. We set sail 
 the following afternoon and towards evening we were 
 congratulating each other on our flexibility as travelers 
 on either land or sea. 
 
 Now a few words to describe our quarters. The aft 
 hatch of the well deck had four stairways placed side by 
 side. The treads were of steel and each step overhung 
 the one beneath it so as to Leave about two inches in the 
 clear when descending. To turn and descend ladder- 
 fashion was quite safe, but to go down in one's ordinary 
 stair descending manner was dangerous and brought 
 several of the boys to grief. We were forbidden to wear 
 any but garrison shoes on the ship as the heel plates of 
 field shoes would not hold <>n wet deck or shiney stair 
 tread. 
 
 The floor level of "DD" was about forty feet below 
 the well deck, and on the way down it was necessary to 
 be on the alert, for there were three large thwarts in easy 
 head bumping distance. Arriving in "DD" one would 
 imagine he was in a stock room and that the bins were 
 all empty. The bins were canvas bottomed. In eacli 
 
 Sixteen 
 
DOUBLE "D" 
 
 was a life preserver and painted on each was the hunk 
 number and the number of the life boat to be used in 
 case of an alarm. The canvas in 1 he bottoms of the bunks 
 was entirely too short for a man above average height. 
 The long boys strapped their haversacks across the bunk 
 poles ,-in(l made a fairly comfortable couch nevertheless. 
 "DD" had an air to it, also an odor. It smellecl like 
 "DD", nothing else can express it. After we got to sea 
 the big wind jambers were put up and they ventilated 
 the hold very well. 
 
 After breakfast each morning the boys were chased 
 on deck and were not allowed to go below except at meal 
 times. Any time a soldier stopped anywhere he was 
 chased somewhere else by one of our sentries or by one 
 of the crew. "Gangway for a sailor". "Gangway for a 
 petty officer", and "Coming through with hot stuff" 
 were to be heard Prom stem to stern and from dawn till 
 dusk every day. There was no rule to prohibit one from 
 sitting on deck' between interruptions, but the deck was 
 always wet and as soon as it would dry the gobs would 
 have to scrub it again. "You can't stand up here 
 soldier" was the stock phrase of the crew. "The ( ). I). 
 says you gotta stay on deck" was the standard phrase 
 of tiie sentries below. And so many of the boys in an 
 earnest endeavour to be obedient spent their fourteen 
 days at sea climbing up and down the hatch stairways. 
 
 The soldiers' mess was cooked by the boat crew and 
 served by our own kitchen force. There were two ser- 
 ving rooms for the regiment, so one battalion was as- 
 signed to each. The food was good and there was plenty 
 of it, but the trip down to the serving table was not one 
 to stimulate the appetite. The trip back- to the deck 
 
 Seventeen 
 
COMPANY "F" OVFRSEAS. 
 
 carrying a loaded mess kit up a slippery stairway was 
 a risky one. We ate on dock. The deck, in places where 
 eating was permitted, was so crowded at meal times that 
 there was not room to sit down. Each man stood with 
 his feel apart and his food between them to keep others 
 from walking in it. A lucky few got scats on the hatch 
 covers and in around the ventilators. After washing our 
 mess kits we would stroll up past the officers' mess, gaz- 
 ing in at the spotless linen and sparkling glass, inhaling 
 Our dessert as we went. 
 
 Every evening at sun-down the "Secretary of the 
 Navy" came around and ordered all smokes thrown over- 
 hoard. After aboui a week at sea with him we found 
 that this dignitary did not own the ship hut merely acted 
 that way, and that the sailors knew him as the "chief 
 master of arms". One of the mysteries of the trip was; 
 Where did the first lighl come from in the morning 1 ? The 
 smoking Lamps in the recreation rooms were never lit 
 and no one was allowed to have matches or lighters, yet 
 no-matter how soon after daylight one would go on deck 
 he could always "Bum a Light". 
 
 Every day the siren would blow. Then there was a 
 big bustle, every one would rush to the life boats and 
 stand for roll call and recall. No matter where yon went 
 on the boat yon had to have with yon your life preserver, 
 your emergency rations, and a canteen of fresh water. 
 When we reached the danger zone a navy bugler blew 
 first call every morning before dawn. We would then 
 clamber on deck and watch the gun crews. In case any- 
 thing was sighted the gunners would be the first to be 
 told so we kept our eyes on them. One morning when 
 we awoke we heard an unusual humming and hurrying 
 
 Eighteen 
 
DOUBLE ■■ir- 
 on deck we saw numerous airplanes and several dirigible 
 balloons. The escort of destroyers was greatly increased 
 and the very air breathed excitement. A few hours later 
 we sighted the cliffs of the Freii'-h coast, and by noon we 
 were ascending the river to Brest. That evening the 
 company was taken ashore on a large tug. Forty men 
 were left behind to handle the freight. 
 
 —7- 
 
 Nineteen 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 THAT FIRST WEEK. 
 
 THE company hiked through Brest and up the hill 
 to the barracks south of lh< i city. They wore the 
 Pontanezen Barracks. These buildings, it is said, 
 were formerly \\>i>i\ by Napoleon. Our principle interest 
 in Napoleon had to do with the value of our Francs. The 
 French mint made a lot of francs with Napoleon II on 
 them and later made sonic with the image of Napoleon 
 III. Now for sonic reason unknown to the A.E.F. Nap. 
 III. lost his credit in the Banque de France, and they 
 called all of his coins out of circulation. Sonic say that 
 his head presented an unniilitarv appearance, while 
 others uphold the theory that, being "the IN", he was of 
 too remote relationship to the great one to deserve the 
 lienor of having his likeness placed on a silver coin, hut no 
 matter. \\ hat concerned us was thai if we presented 
 the coin it was "Pas lion", which is French for N. (J., 
 hut if a Frenchman returned one to us in change it was 
 as good as anything that the French language will des- 
 cribe. Now, which of the three Napoleons used the Pon- 
 tanezen we are unable to say, but whichever it was, he 
 certainly had a nasty disposition. We inspected the pil- 
 lories, gallows, the wall behind the brig, with its rows 
 of breast high bullet marks, and other relics of discipline 
 as practiced in by-gone days. It was a very interesting 
 place. The area was surrounded by high walls with 
 broken glass set along the top to make scaling uncoui 
 
 7 ivcutv 
 
77/. 17 FIRST WEEK 
 
 Portable. There was a wash house, a batli house, and 
 plenty of space to stroll in. so the men taken here were 
 in luck. 
 
 One platoon remained al the dock as an unloading 
 detail. These men billeted in an abandoned slock yard. 
 In L918 there were only thirty-one days when it did not 
 rain at Brest, and we were there when the dry season was 
 ;il its height. The roads around the stock yard were knee 
 deep with line black dust. The wind was fairly high, 
 and, when leaving the chow line with a loaded mess kit, 
 you could gather enough dirt on one meal to lill a shell 
 hole. At night the dust blew over and covered our 
 blankets so heavily that the sentry would pull out the 
 first few men in the morning and they would then proceed 
 to exhume the rot of the detail. On the fourth day tin' 
 company came down from the barracks and everybody 
 packed up for a long journey. All who could get any 
 joy developer oiled up to overcome the gloom which our 
 .-top al 1 his port had developed. 
 
 We left Bresl in dilapidated coaches of all three 
 classes. Il was our only passenger car trip but we did 
 not fully appreciate it then. Later trips a la 40H.8C 1 . 
 convinced us that on this first trip the French railroads 
 were trying to make a fuss over us. We saw ,v BTimeur" 
 on some of the car doors and assumed that it meant t. ( 
 convey the message that the compartment would hold a 
 few more. We were also surprised to see that nearly 
 every large town was named ''Sortie", and that they put 
 the name right over the gate leading from the station 
 platform. After two and a half days of spasmodic bunip- 
 ings, pushes and long stops, we arrived at Calais. We 
 marched at once through the citv and out to a British 
 
 Twcntv-uiie 
 
COMPANY ••/•"• OVERSEAS. 
 
 "Rest Camp". Subsequently after careful consideration 
 it was decided that our stomachs were all that got any 
 rest while there. It was our first association with His 
 Majesty's troops. While there we each received a tin 
 hat, a gas mask and a "Lee Enfield II" Rifle. We each 
 received a * * Pull Through" also. But more of rifle and 
 pull through later. It was a mile and a half across 
 country to the place where this equipment was issued, 
 hut the British do not believe iu being hasty, so we made 
 :i detour of about six miles. Calais was visited by air- 
 plane raiders so frequently that all ordnance was stored 
 in dumps outside the town for safety. The trips to the 
 dumps were figured as good practice hikes for the soldiers 
 drawing material Prom them. 
 
 Such journeys occupied the daylight hours. At 
 night the aircraft guns kept everyone awake, so there 
 was no resting done. (Every man that goes to a real rest 
 camp is personally conducted by a regimental chaplain.) 
 One of the big troubles at Calais was that a tent big 
 enough to house five men was assigned to eighteen men 
 and the eighteen had to bring their packs and barrack 
 bags in also. The tall men slept with their feet piled 
 about six dee]) around the center pole. 
 
 We marched through Calais several times in our 
 short stay. There were many Belgian soldiers on leave 
 there. The town showed signs of recent air raids. Many 
 women and children ran after us asking for cigarettes or 
 trying to sell chocolate or oranges. We saw for the first 
 time many little French actions and customs that aston- 
 ished us and which we were wont to criticize, but, as the 
 novelty wore off, we ceased taking notice of them. 
 
 While at Calais we saw more acrobatic stunts ex 
 
 Twentv-tn > ■ 
 
THAT FIRST WEEK 
 
 ecuted by airmen than at any othei place. On the 
 Sunday morning included in our stay a big dirigible 
 balloon came over our area and flew so low thai we could 
 sec its maneuvers and means of control very distinctly. 
 Pilots of airplanes also treated us to a few thrills. Then 
 one day we salvaged all (lie surplus clothes and all the 
 little nice things that we had brought with ns in our bar- 
 rack' bags, and the next day we look a little bcx ear ride 
 of about four hours to Samer. 
 
 We were prepared to jump Prom the ears and do 
 battle with the blood thirsty Hun at any moment, for the 
 British had told as that we were about to make a very 
 dangerous trip and that it was entirely possible that we 
 might have to detrain and dig in while enroute, but the 
 most warlike act we encountered was the struggle for 
 seats in the Chevaux ears. Arriving at Samer we took 
 a short rest and ate some hard tack and bully. We then 
 started our hike to 
 
 Twenty-three 
 
\IPAX} - KAS 
 
 HAl l IGHEN 
 
 Wl 1 1 ' \ tu-s vlilapulnlVxl 
 
 t lu»nu\ ppaiv 
 
 <\l ouo staml 
 
 u tinu' 
 Httt 
 
 xx y nx ■ '. uno tho 
 
 x 
 
 y 
 
 y 
 y 
 
 S 
 
 \- VV? 
 
 \\ 
 
 - 
 
 ! 
 
 • - 
 
 w 
 
II M.l.l'.ll I 
 
 ■ >■ could li.i i < 1 1 •• i i up enough 1 1 tun to climb bad i • > 
 ..in IhII'-i ;ii t. i meal \\ ' leai m d II aboii! the Hi il i h 
 Hold i u\ ion W «■ ill not de fi i be Krili h l»ull boej bu 
 ill ley < ii buried in on i iim in-- 1 m 1 1 hould Ini i beei 
 
 I I I I I I I ' I I ' ; I I ,' ' I I I • I ' I I ' ' < ' ; I I I I < • I ' I Ml ' ' I I p | ' I I ' I |f ' ( In' 
 
 l*,i iti I- mal <• lab of hit* tile and call them A KM i 
 
 1:1 I i I'l l !;- I- i'i,'-i, mal - Mi- nnw. lull ii 
 
 '.'.III:: 
 
 ■ and 'i '• ii foi putl I/,;/ i s',i on i..; rii I: ' . - jam 
 
 ■ fj IjiiI .1 poonfull '.i' jam poi <li ol tain 
 olnlier under inten ive tn 'I he to 
 
 lar ii' nothing el •<•. Two ] ' ' I 
 ettfH or a no hit* ' n ■ •■ enl plu# 'I 
 
 |,i j,< tobacco ... I no i hat ii ot f he 
 
 o I obtainable, for White Cloud had taken mai v. 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 at British expositions. Competition could not have been 
 very keen. As a delightful smoke Unity Queens are 
 slightly inferior to Corn Silk makings, and slightly better 
 than the Indian Tobies which grow on Catalpa Trees. 
 Ruby Queens had taken twenty-one gold medals. They 
 must have boon displayed as a fertilizer or a fumigator. 
 
 The town was well stocked with British instructors. 
 They were proficient in the use of the rifle, the bayonet, 
 and the gas mask. There could be no doubt about it. 
 They admitted it themselves. The rifle instructors called 
 their art "Moosketry" and laid great stress on the im- 
 portance of knowing the name of every screw and gadget 
 from the bayonet hoss to the butt-trap hinge pin. Second 
 to this was knowing the proper answer to the great 
 English musketry joke "What is the weight of the 
 pull-through ?" The gas mask instructor taught the 
 boys to gel into their masks in six seconds. After this 
 was accomplished (we could all do it before we left Camp 
 Lee) he ran games such as Leap frog, ducks and drakes, 
 etc., to accustom his class to wearing the masks while 
 exerting themselves. The bayonet instructor had more 
 to show than the others, lie had quite a lot of pep in 
 his points and withdraws. Part, of his spiel was "Classes 
 Shun", "Classes hup", "At the bloomin Art— Point". 
 "At the bloody throat — Point". His favorite stunt was 
 withdrawing with so much snap as to "Throw the oil 
 bottle out of the butUrap". 
 
 These classes were held in the mornings. In the 
 afternoons we went on hikes wearing tin hats. This 
 was hard at first. We would go out with our masks in 
 the carry position but would wear them all the way back. 
 
 Twenty-six 
 
HALLIGHEN 
 
 A little double time was sprung on us occasional} 7 to see 
 thai we were keeping in condition. 
 
 When we first came to town prices in the wine shops 
 were Low, but the British, to improve their own standing, 
 informed the Estaminel keepers thai the Americans had 
 "Beaucoup Francs". Almost over-nighl Vin Blanc went 
 from 2 to 5 francs and Champagne from 7 to 22 francs. 
 We later found thai every time Americans look billets 
 in a town, the village crier would make his rounds im- 
 mediately, beating his drum and making official an- 
 nouncements. These we construed to be notices to shop 
 keepers to run prices up, and whether he said thai or 
 not the result was the same. We still regarded French 
 money as so many cigar coupons and handled it rathe:' 
 carelessly, so the rise in prices was to some extent due 
 to our own prodigality. On the morning of July 41 li we 
 packed our belongings on our hacks and struggled down 
 the goal path to Mente. That evening we piled into box- 
 cars and started Tor the forward area. Each carried in 
 addition to his ordinary impedimenta a big double 
 breasted overcoat. None of us had ever stepped out on a 
 Julv 4th evening with an overcoat before. 
 
 TtL>eutv-s,-i i t-ii 
 
COMPANY ••/•'•■ OVERSEAS. 
 
 BEAUVAL. 
 
 BEAUVAL was a town situated about twenty miles 
 behind the line on the Artois sector. We were 
 
 taken there for some trench practice. The billets 
 were better than at Hallighen, but the chow, although 
 substantially increased in quantity was of the same 
 quality as was issued before. Every morning we hiked 
 up to the British (i. II. ( c ). Line. While there we studied 
 trench systems and practiced wearing our masks for 
 periods ranging from an hour to two hours. The hike 
 hack le our billets made a total of aboul fifteen miles 
 march per day. One nighl the company went out and 
 qualified at digging in the dark. Corporal Stewart 
 caughl his hand under somebody V pick, and gave Major 
 New hold a little practice at dressing wounds. Excite 
 nieut ran high when the boys were whistled out after 
 dark. Somebody stalled the story thai Fritz had broken 
 through, but nothing more exciting happened than the 
 building of a splinter-proof rampart around a corral. 
 
 A siege of sickness broke out among the New Zealand 
 outfit that had been in town before us. so we were for- 
 bidden to enter houses or associate with any of the towns- 
 people whose company might be a prejudice to our health. 
 Two of our Sergeants were caught by an M.P. when leav- 
 ing a house where they had had some supper. They were 
 forced to submit to medical treatment in no way con- 
 nected with the eating of chips and beef-steak. 
 
 Twenty-eight 
 
BEAUVAL 
 
 Water was as scarce as it was at I lallighen. Private 
 Claude Webb rigged up a little bathing booth by hanging 
 his shelter half across a small recess between two barns, 
 lie then proceeded to bathe with a few pints of water lie 
 had gathered in an old hard tack can. The screen hung 
 about ten inches above the ground. Ten inches of 
 Claude, measured from the heels, were visible from the 
 barn-yard. The old lady who owned the billet saw this 
 and went over to investigate. She pulled the screen 
 aside and had a lot of fun kidding him. The bath was 
 spoiled, Tor Webb immediately forgot all about the preci- 
 ous water and started piling on his clothing. 
 
 After about ten days we went forward to Louven 
 court. We remained here about ten days. While in 
 Louvencoiirt we had access to the British bath-house. 
 This was our first chance at bathing since coming over- 
 seas. By day we dug trenches and strung wire at points 
 where the British would ultimately retire. In the even- 
 ings we watched ''The Crown and Anchor" games <>r 
 listened to the Tommies blowing off about their gallantry. 
 At night we could hear barrages and bombardments, and 
 ;i day seldom passed that we did not see reliefs going into 
 the trenches or wounded being brought back'. We began 
 to know from first hand information that there really 
 was a war going on. After completing a piece of trench 
 behind Louvencouii we moved up to the artillery line and 
 dug in beside Molly — a big six inch naval gun. 
 
 Molly had a cute little way of discharging at the most 
 unexpected moments both by day and by night. At night 
 we would see the Hash on the sides of our Dog House 
 Tents, and a moment later we would hear a roar that 
 would raise a sleeping man about two inches, drop him 
 
 Twcntx-nine 
 
COMPAXY •'/'"' OVERSEAS. 
 
 with a dull thud, and then throw dirt on him from the 
 sides of the hole. By day the report would cause an in- 
 ternal jump of about ten inches. 'This was quite a shock 
 to a stomach charged to the rim with bully beef and hard 
 tack pudding. We rested a few days building corrals, 
 razing buildings etc., then started work on our bivvys at 
 the Chateau. In the evenings we practiced baseball, 
 
 
 Hsmm 
 
 , ■ ."-^ 
 
 | . 
 
 DUCKING A DETAIL 
 
 kicked football, and watched the air-craft gunners dec- 
 orate the beautiful summer sky. 
 
 Every night the top kicker and a couple of carefully 
 selected Xon Coins would go on reconnaissance to the 
 near-by town of Souastre. The only engineering equip- 
 ment the party carried was an empty sand bag and a cork 
 screw. The trips were very fruitful as was attested Ir 
 the dead soldiers strung along the route in the mornings. 
 
 Thirty 
 
BEAUVAL 
 
 We played two games of base-ball. In one game we 
 defeated "D" Company by a score of 17 to 18. The game 
 was a pitchers' battle. Both pitchers were heavily bom- 
 barded. Captain Gnmow of "D" Company and late of 
 "F" Company was the most enthusiastic spectator. He 
 was at war with himself, his sympathies for the players 
 were all with "F" Company, but his duty was to support 
 his company team, so he was in as comfortable a position 
 ; s a dog with a rubber band over its mouth and a can on 
 its tail. He didn't know which way to go. Several days 
 later we moved up to the bivouacs which had been started 
 near Chateau de la Haie. 
 
 Thirty-one 
 
COMI'AXY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 CHATEAU DE LA HAIE 
 
 THE Chateau was a fine big building with a large 
 square enclosure behind it. In the center of the 
 square was a quaint belfry. Forming the four 
 sides were long stables of brick. The buildings were 
 modern and the stables were equipped with the best fix- 
 tures. The owner had been a horse fancier and nothing 
 was too good for his steeds. The Chateau sat on high 
 ground about five kilos in front of the German line. It 
 stood in bold relief on the sky line, and was used daily 
 by the German artillery for target practice, and those 
 Dutch gunners could drop a whizz-bang into a derby hat 
 at a range of ten miles. So Chateau de la llaie looked 
 like the last live minutes of a mis-spent life. A short 
 • list a net- from the ('bateau, and just over the crest of 
 the hill, was the site chosen for our bivouacs. We dug 
 holes ten feet square, placed half circular sections ol 
 corrugated sheet steel over them, dug fox hole stair ways 
 at one end and then filled the hob' up. This made a line 
 home for four men. Nothing but a direct hit could hurt 
 us. At the foot of the hill lay a British battery. Every 
 time a piece discharged the report rang through the 
 bivouac as if a heavy blow was struck on the top of it. 
 Hue afternoon Major Knight came up to look us over, 
 and rode his horse over a bivvy which had very little 
 earth overhead. The occupants came tumbling out in 
 great disorder. The horses foot had struck the steel 
 covering and they thought they were struck by a 
 
 Thirty-tin. o 
 
CHATEAU DE LA HAIE 
 
 German 210. This was a quiet sector. Every morning 
 Ave Avent forward at 6:00 A.M., worked till noon, and re- 
 turned. The distance was about four miles so Ave usually 
 started from the Bivvy at about 5 :00 A.M. Part of the 
 company was engaged in clearing Pigeon Wood. Anoth- 
 er part was rebuilding and revetting Stout Trench. A 
 third party was building bivouacs in a combat trench un- 
 der the direction of the New Zealand Engineers. This 
 
 CHATEAU BE LA HAIE 
 
 last group was farthest forward, but had by far the most 
 quiet work. The trench repair gang was fired on on 
 four occasions, but as they were working in a trench they 
 were in fairly safe positions. The Pigeon Wood gang- 
 had the most exciting job. Every morning things Avould 
 go as quiet as a lawn party at an old ladies home until 
 10 :30. Then Wzzzzzz — BoAvie ! ! ! Sometimes they came 
 one at a time, sometimes three or four at once. At in- 
 
 Thirty-three 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 tervals of three to five minutes the iron rations would 
 come over until 11 :15 A.M. Then they would call it a 
 day as far as Pigeon Wood was concerned. There were 
 plenty of shell holes, so we had no trouble getting down, 
 except when two men dove for the same hole and stoved 
 each others tin hats. r l 'lie trip to and from work took 
 us through the village of Fonquevillers. Fonquevillers 
 was pretty well shot up. A few of the buildings were 
 in good enough shape for billeting, but that isn't say- 
 ing much. The church, situated in the middle of the 
 town, was used as a target for the town. What remains 
 of it is being preserved by the French government as a 
 monument to show to future generations the extent of 
 German villainy and desecration. On the side towards 
 the enemy a portion of one wall stands intact. The 
 remainder is a heap of ruin. The section that stands 
 was materially stiffened by a huge crucifix carrying a 
 large image, which is mounted against the wall on the 
 inside. Nothing hit the wall behind the crucifix. As it 
 stands unscratched in a tremendous and utter ruin it 
 makes an impressive picture. To the religious French- 
 man it depicts a divine denial to the (iernian slogan 
 "Gott Mitt Ins". The billets were occupied by those 
 terrible, Boche destroying, fearless of man or devil, 
 Royal Engineers. They were laborers used for road 
 repair behind the lines, but the tales they told each other 
 would give you a cauliflower ear. It is not known 
 whether they believed themselves or each other, but it 
 is certain that no one in the "F" company ever took them 
 seriously. One would say "Me laddd were ye oop be 
 Seeps". And the other would answer "A blawsted 
 beetle couldn't live there". Or it might be the sad tale 
 
 Thirty-four 
 
CHATEAU 1)E LA HAIE 
 
 of how his brother-in-law had been forced to bayonet six 
 husky Germans that he had stumbled into in a M. G. nest 
 while out on night patrol. Or maybe you might be for- 
 tunate enough to find a bird wearing a copper watch fob 
 pendant on his chest of which he would proudly say 
 •'This decor-ayshun is for the gallant retreat at Xulle- 
 part". 
 
 After our days work we would return to the biwys 
 and spend the rest of the day in recreation. We got 
 along very nicely with our neighbors the "Diggers". 
 These were the New Zealand troops. They had a Y. M. 
 C. A. and Canteen over in an unbattered end of one of 
 the Chateau stables. It was well protected with sand 
 bags and was a fine place to drop in. Tea and Cocoa 
 were always hot and were served "Buck-she". We were 
 as welcome here as if it were our own hut, but not so with 
 the Tommies. Relations between the Diggers and the 
 Tommies were not what one would characterize as cor- 
 dial. The X. Z. V.. was so good to us that arrangements 
 ere made whereby we could in a measure return their 
 hospitality. The regimental band and minstrel troupe 
 stationed at headquarters at Beauval were loaded on 
 trucks and driven up to the chateau. They pulled off 
 a show of which all the Americans were justly proud. 
 About three hundred Diggers were present, and they 
 were as well pleased an audience as any performer could 
 wish for. The Viand was in usual form with plenty of 
 jazz, ragtime, and pep. The minstrels wen- at their best. 
 They had never been close enough to hear shell fire be- 
 fore, and after a few real manifestations of shock they 
 became accustomed to the guns and noises, hut one end- 
 man continued to pantomime fright, and he made a hit 
 that was nothing short of tremendous. 
 
 Thirty- five 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 About this time we moved back to an orchard in 
 Baycncourt. It was a "Dug in Camp" with pup tents. 
 We stayed here only five days. Several days were spent 
 working- in dugouts near the chateau and the rest of the 
 time we did close order drill. In the evening we guessed 
 whether it would be the"Ook, the die, or the Ould Sargint 
 Major" at so many francs per guess. 
 
 Then one evening we were told to retire early as 
 reveille would blow at midnight and we would leave at 
 1 :()() A.M. Well — it rained. We rolled our packs and got 
 underway on a night that was so dark that you couldn't 
 see the man in front of you when marching in a column 
 of squads. We carried two meals with us, Squad Ra- 
 tions. The line of march was Bayencourt, to Authie, to 
 Marieux, to Beauquesne, to Beauval. Between Beau« 
 (mesne and Beauval we rested for four hours and had 
 a little slum. At 2:00 P.M. we resumed the march 
 through Beauval to Candas to Bernaville. The distance 
 was 23 miles, and was marched with full packs, tin hats 
 and dog tags. The Major said the march hung up a 
 record. lie did not know how many individual records 
 it hung up for he was just interested in the battalion. 
 He usually gauged the freshness of the men by the con- 
 dition of his horse, and that steed was quite a pace setter. 
 
 The first night at Bernaville was a festal one. We 
 all had plenty of francs so we proceeded to put them in 
 circulation. A Major of the Ammunition Train found 
 out that an enlisted man is entitled to fifteen pounds of 
 straw for a bunk, and the Mess Sergeant found that 
 Champagne served in a dining room lends class to a meal, 
 whereas champagne served to the cooks does not. The 
 company ration detail drew rations for the entire bat- 
 
 Thirtv-six 
 
CHATEAU I)K LA 11A1E 
 
 talion and delivered them to "F" company. Sergeant 
 Baxter wont hunting and bagged a line big metal rooster 
 that was perching on a nearby church steeple. We were 
 in that town two days. When wo left we pulled out at 
 dusk and hiked to a rail-head at Prouvillo, a distance 
 of throe miles. The entire distance was covered with- 
 out stopping for a rest. We boarded Class 4 'Z" coaches 
 and rode to Chatillon-sur-Seine. These rides remind a 
 a soldier of that bit of aiming exercise popularly known 
 as ''Push and Pull". Before pulling out wo received one 
 
 i^» 4 Jt A 
 
 AT MAISEY LP] DUC 
 
 of the most delightful surprises that ever gladdened a 
 soldier's heart. You will recall that up to this time we 
 had been struggling along with the British tobacco issue. 
 Each man received an Overseas Box from the American 
 Tobacco Fund. It was distributed through the American 
 Red Cross. Each package contained a tin of Tuxedo, 
 four packages of Bull Durham, and three packages of 
 Lucky Strike Cigarettes. They were a bigger treat than 
 any civilian can imagine. 
 
 Thirty-seven 
 
COMPANY ••/'" OVERSEAS 
 
 We arrived on a Saturday afternoon and started 
 aboul 5:00 P.M., on a seven mile hike to Maisey-le-Duc. 
 Here we camped in a fine big meadow. There was a 
 
 si ream at its edge. The following da\ we bathed, wash- 
 ed clothes, swam, loafed, etc. It was a real day. At 
 7:00 P.M. we struck tents and marched eighteen miles. 
 it was part macadam, part cow-paths, and mostly all up 
 hill. We Mew in at 6:00 A.M., but most of as were about 
 blown out. 
 
 
PLUM HILL 
 
 PLUM HILL. 
 
 CBAUGHEY is an old stone village sitting high in 
 the hills. II was a rest billeting town. When a 
 company hiked up to Chaughey it needed a rest. 
 We arrived at six o'clock on a Monday morning. We 
 slept Monday and policed up the village on Tuesday and 
 Wednesday. It was the cleanesl French village we had 
 ever seen, so we tackled the joh of making it "Spotless 
 Town." We drained and scrubbed the village wash- 
 house and the big stone watering troughs, we swept ail 
 the streets, in fact, we were gluttons for work. Being in 
 a bomb-proof area was a wonderful relief, so we worked 
 off our surplus pep by putting a Tiffany finish on every 
 thing in sight. We were only there for a week. It was 
 just our luck. As soon as we had the place fixed up tit 
 for Americans to live in, the "Powers That Be" decided 
 that we should get under way. But before leaving let 
 us finish out the week. 
 
 We stood reveille and retreat in a military manner 
 and did a lew hours of close and extended order drill 
 each daw It was a rural community, so the hoys com- 
 muned with nature in their leisure hours. Some tastes 
 were agricultural, some were artistic, some were pas- 
 tural. The men interested in farming and farm products 
 sampled plums in a nearby orchard or strolled around 
 viewing the fields of Yin Blanc hushes. Those with an 
 eye for scenic beauty were enthralled with the morning 
 mists and the multi-colored sunrises and sunsets. The 
 remainder, after putting themselves in the proper mood 
 by partaking of such nostrums and tonics as are avail- 
 
 Thirty-nine 
 
COMPANY ••/•'" OVERSEAS. 
 
 able in a small French town, went forth to pass judg- 
 ment on the sheep and cattle owned by the villagers. 
 
 There were several young wives and widows Lef1 
 lonely by this cruel war. They were easy to look at, and 
 a soldier will do anything that's easy. The madames 
 did not resent it, lint were rather pleased, so a few of the 
 boys, inspired by their natural desire to alleviate suffer- 
 ing and lighten the Load of the burdened, did their lit 
 most to help the lonely ones forget their worries and the 
 cause thereof. 
 
 On Friday evening we were told that we were going 
 into action ami that we had plenty of hiking ahead, so 
 we should lighten our packs to the minimum. The sal- 
 vage heap that we put under the old tree in the middle of 
 the town looked like a ( c >. M. supply dump. We dis- 
 carded all extra clothing, and with heavy hearts and 
 tear-stained cheeks we parted with our condiment cans, 
 bacon cans, tent poles and pins, etc Y ES, WE DID. 
 We had been waiting eagerly for authority to ditch all 
 that junk since the day that it was issued. 
 
 The next morning we started the eighteen mile hike 
 hack to Maisey-le-Dnc. We camped that night on the 
 same field we had stopped on the week before. The nexl 
 morning we started a fifteen mile hike to Poincon. This 
 trip took ns through Chatillon-sur-Seine. We went 
 through at about Ll:30 A. M. The people were just com 
 ing out of church and many of the Blue Ridge hoys were 
 on the street. This may have been merely a coincidence. 
 We arrived at Poincon late in the afternoon and pitched 
 tents in a field about a half mile below the railroad. In 
 the evening we received four big bags of mail. It was 
 very welcome, as we had received none for about four 
 
 Forty 
 
f'LCM HILL 
 
 weeks. We rested thai nighl and all the nexl day. II 
 was Labor Day and two of our staunch Organized Labor 
 advocates wenl over to the nearesl town and celebrated. 
 The day was brighl and clear and quite warm. We 
 washed our clothes in the village wash-house and spread 
 them in the grass to dry. Al six o'clock thai evening 
 we rolled our packs and hiked up to a space alongside the 
 railroad. Strung along the track as far as we could see 
 were 40-S cars with straw on the floors and notches in 
 
 the wheels. All railroads were represented. Nord, Etat, 
 P. I,. M. and P. cV 0. Extensive travellers in Sunny 
 France via box-car have come to know the roads by dif- 
 ferent names than are used by the stock-holders. For 
 instance, E T A T means Every Turn Another Thump, 
 N ORD is interpreted, Xo Officer Rides Dis. P. & 0. is 
 said to describe the ride you gel which is Pulsating and 
 Ornery. And so it was all along the siding, Hal cars, 
 gondolas and box cars, all lined up to take the Engineers 
 up to the Big Show. We ale our evening meal of hard 
 
 Forty-one 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 bread, bully and water while waiting for orders to en- 
 train. We then drew two days' travel ration- by squads 
 ami at dusk we piled aboard. We knew that we were 
 going some place, for there were about a hundred am- 
 bulances lined up to be loaded on ears from the same 
 siding. At least that's the way we felt about it. We 
 never considered such a thing as the ambulances and us 
 travelling by different routes. 
 
 Before pulling out. Corporal Welch decided that his 
 car did not have enough rations, so lie located a bread 
 dump and put in a supply. We arrived the next day at 
 Tronville. The mess sergeant had nothing t<» serve with 
 the canned tomatoes and bully except Army Biskwee, 
 so the corporal turned over what bread he had left to 
 be divided among the men of the company. There was 
 only enough left to feed the entire company at noon and 
 in the evening. Brother Ritz could not sec that we had 
 a clear title to the bread, so he abstained at both meals. 
 A- soon as it was dark we slung equipment and hit the 
 macadam. We marched through Ligny and up a long 
 hill to an obscure little village named Nancois-le-Petite. 
 It was only nine miles, so we blew in about midnight, 
 just well warmed up. It was a mere stroll. Pour horses 
 went to Chevaus Heaven trying to climb the hill. The 
 officers were on the alert. The movement was to lie 
 shrouded with secrecy, so every precaution was taken 
 to screen lights, smokes, etc.. from aerial observation. 
 Sergeant Mnldoon had been sent ahead to pick billets. 
 He didn't believe in scattering the company all over 
 town, so he put us all into a barn that was about as big 
 as the body of a liberty truck. We slept in layers. The 
 next day at noon we started masquerading as shrubs and 
 bushes. 
 
 Fortv-two 
 
THREE WEEKS UNDER CAMOUFLAGE 
 
 THREE WEEKS UNDER 
 CAMOUFLAGE 
 
 ABOUT a half-mile from Nancois-le-Petite there was 
 a large hill covered with low shrubbery. We 
 pitched tents on this liill and cut paths, choosing 
 ionics where the bushes were high enough to provide 
 overhead covering. The entire regiment was scattered 
 over that hill, and barring an occasional bugle call, or a 
 loud argument, a passerby, or passer-over would not 
 know that there were any other occupants than the wog- 
 gle bugs and the whiffle-) tool's. In the valley over the 
 hill then 1 was a stream where we bathed and washed 
 our clothes. The water was colder than anything Doe 
 Cook ever saw, and was so hard that it wouldn't splash. 
 The best cake of soap we had in the outfit lathered as 
 freely as if it was a glass paper weight. Every tent had 
 a couple of heel holes dwj, in the floor to keep the hoys 
 from sliding down hill while asleep. It was here that 
 we tried out the platoon mess. As an army institution 
 it was a tremendous success. Instead of bothering only 
 the cooks and the K. P.'s at meal time, it gave them their 
 usual share of work and loaded about live men of each 
 platoon with a shun slinging job as well. We had a 
 British rolling kitchen, so even though the ration was 
 the finest, and though the cooks were the best, they could 
 
 Forty-three 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 turn out nothing hut slum. It rained most of the time 
 we were here, and when it was not raining we knocked 
 down drippings from the bushes as we passed, so that 
 continual rain was well simulated. After three days we 
 
 took to the roads again. We packed up and started at 
 dusk one evening. It rained by the tub full, and the 
 lightning was blinding. We were hiking at a rate that 
 was almost dooble time. As we passed through Ligny 
 
 the Colonel happened to see us and he slowed us up. It 
 looked like the rush for first place in a chow line. We 
 marched about a mile beyond Ligny and stopped. It 
 was a nine-mile hike. We flopped on the Held at the 
 right of the road, simply throwing our shelter halves 
 over us. At daylight we gathered our belongings and heat 
 it for the woods below the road. The transport was left 
 on the road so it had to ho camouflaged with branches. 
 We pitched tents and fixed for a stay. We stack around 
 for live days. As we had to keep under cover the work 
 was light. We took an afternoon doing a hunt under 
 cover. Another afternoon we shot on a tin can range. 
 Someone would hit the wire at nearly every volley. We 
 then hiked over the hill to billets in Yillereneourt. where 
 we lay in reserve for the St. Mihiel Offensive. We were 
 to he ready to go into action that evening. They issued 
 each man a loaf of bread, a pick or shovel and an extra 
 hundred rounds of ammunition. The Colonel arrived in 
 the evening, and when he heard how we were loaded with 
 extra t«',,l> and ammunition he ordered the stuff returned 
 at once. He said that his hoys were not hauling supplies 
 all over the country. The next day we saw hundreds of 
 prisoners being taken hack. They were a disgruntled, 
 half-starved looking lot. Most of them were Austrians. 
 
 Fort} 
 
THREE WEEKS UNDER CA MOUFLA GE 
 
 On the third day we were issued lard to nil) on our 
 feet. This was a new stunt and we had trouble in dop- 
 ing out the sense of it, but we put the lard on just the 
 same. On Sunday evening a troupe of "Y" entertainers 
 blew in and put on a show. There were three men and 
 two women. x\ll were clever performers, hut the star in 
 our eyes was the younger of the ladies. She was chicken. 
 Why say more! When the show was well under way, 
 Major Knight went up and held a little "Close to the 
 ear" pow-wow with the leader of the troupe. We 
 couldn't figure whether he was volunteering to sing or 
 negotiating for an introduction to the attractive actorine, 
 but we were not held in suspense for long. The actor- 
 man came forward and announced that the show was 
 fini and that we were to fall out in full marching order at 
 once. 
 
 We em I mssed an hour later and rode from the St. 
 Mihiel sector to Verdun. It was a six-hour ride. The 
 night was clear and the moon shone brightly. The last 
 few hours of the ride was quite spectacular. We ran 
 parallel to the front line and a short distance behind it. 
 Flares and Very lights were sent up in such large num- 
 bers that it reminded us of a fire-works display. The 
 train of trucks was furnished by the French. The driv- 
 ers were Frenchmen, but the trucks were American 
 Whites. We arrived at St. Andre at 4:00 A. M., and 
 hiked a few kilos to a wooded place where we lay down 
 for a few hours' sleep. At daylight we moved to another 
 stretch of woods nearby, pitched tents, camouflaged them 
 and settled for a four days' stay. Here we did some 
 setting-up exercises, refreshed our memories on lashings, 
 
 Forty-five 
 
MPAXT ■■!'-- • SEAS. 
 
 wilding, lid a little drilling. Our tents 
 
 . and under their camouflage, all lo< 
 alike. S _ man was awakened about 
 
 ' " get 1 
 liefs out. a: that we 
 
 ked up to rained. \Y< 
 
 _ ' 
 _ ' under way until aft 
 mid _ g i four- 
 
 unmand start we huddled in 
 
 sang, others I si r them and 
 
 \Y< ssed lighl ad it 
 
 _ it. but sleeping with rain falling in 
 ghts - an old art with us 
 
 rain continued until _ 
 
 A: S:00 o' nother clump of 
 
 two mil« s Xortheas 
 
 and we w< _ . and though the 
 
 glad to 1 
 our packs 
 
 __ _ 
 •and tl \V- 
 
 — slum. fee — but we wei _ 
 
 "and - _ Cats 
 
 the big 
 '_ s - tion, so 1 
 
 had _ Us _ 's s A: 
 
 ard the 
 t of the m, 
 to si 
 
 
THREE WEEKS UNDER CAMOUFLAGE 
 
 after dark before proceeding*. The nighl was ;i fine one 
 for secrel movements. At abonl 9:00 o'clock we ar 
 rived al our new station on a liill near Germanville. II 
 was thickly wooded, and was honey-combed with deep 
 dug outs. We were there with orders to move on a mo- 
 ment's notice, so we pitched tents and disguised them as 
 bushes. The dug outs were wot and had forced venti- 
 lation so we were pleased lo sleep on the surface and 
 take a chance on an occasional shell. W'e were there 
 two days. Many pieces of artillery were massed at this 
 point, hut did not open tire until midnight of September 
 25th. Each nighl the cause of all our troubles let us 
 know that he was still alive by dropping a few gas shells 
 in on us. The breeze was always pretty fair, so the gas 
 cleared quickly. 
 
 Al dusk on the 24th the first two platoon.' went for- 
 ward to get things ready lor the big show. The first pla- 
 toon took the section of road from Hie dump at Esnes to a 
 point about a quarter of a mile behind the front line. 
 Behind them we strung two companies of Pioneer Infan- 
 try which were attached to us as a working party. The 
 second platoon took the piece of road from the first pla- 
 toon's section forward to the river. Very little work 
 was done in front of the front line trench, for it was un- 
 safe to take many men out, for a flare would reveal the 
 fact thai we were making ready for a push. We fixed 
 up all the had holes from the dump to the <-'-est of the 
 hill. Several of the boys, scraping material to till holes, 
 were horrified to find that bodies were scarcely covered, 
 and that nearly every place you could set foot was some- 
 body's hastily-made grave. This was not surprising*, for 
 
 Forty-seven 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 we wore in the middle of probably the bloodiest battle- 
 field of all history. It was the valley between Le Mort 
 Homme and Hill 304. Here the first battle of Verdun 
 was fought and here untold thousands of French and 
 Germans fell in hand-to-hand combat. 
 
 One incident is worthy of mention. Steel I-beams are 
 ordinarily handled roughly, tilted to the edge of the 
 wagon and dropped. Not so on this night. We needed 
 six beams to bolster up the road in a place where it had 
 been badly blown out. Each beam was carried with in- 
 finite care. Plate glass was never handled more cau- 
 tiously. We covered each beam with soft dirt before 
 bringing the next one up, for should a beam be dropped 
 or allowed to strike against another, the sound would 
 have carried volumes of news to the alert German out- 
 posts. At 4:00 A. M. we had accomplished all that could 
 he done, and had cleared nearly two miles of road for the 
 advance of our artillery when the drive started. We then 
 returned to camp. It was an exciting trip. The Ger- 
 mans suspected some activity about a mile behind the 
 line and dropped a few dozen whizz-bangs around us. 
 This was followed by eight or ten gas shells. We put on 
 our masks and waited until the gas had blown by. We 
 did not proceed because at this point we turned onto a 
 corduroy road which was in bad shape and very difficult 
 to walk on. and to walk through here with masks in place 
 would be inviting accidents. When the gas had cleared 
 we proceeded to camp without further excitement. The 
 
 Fortx-eight 
 
THREE WEEKS UNDER CAMOUFLAGE 
 
 next day we were told to get all the sleep we could, for 
 we were going to nerd it. So everybody rested. Toward 
 rvciiing we were told to make short packs and prepare 
 for action. 
 
 Forty-nine 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 BETHINCOURT PLUS — 
 
 EVERYTHING was ready. At 6:00 A. M. the great 
 Meuse-Argonne drive was to start. This was the 
 drive which was to bring home the bacon, but at 
 this time we did not realize that the end was so near. 
 "F" Company arose from slumber at midnight. We had 
 breakfast at once — bacon, bread and coffee— and then 
 started to the front. The bombarding of the German 
 positions was in full swing. The artillery fire was in- 
 cessant. In the fields of the hack area five rows of light 
 field pieces stood huh to huh and extending along the 
 entire sector. These were to Lay the barrage in the morn- 
 ing. The heavy pieces in the rear were dropping shells 
 promiscuously over anything German that was in range. 
 The idea was to create uncertainty in the enemy's mind 
 as to where the attack would he launched. The roads 
 were already filled with transport. First came batteries 
 of field artillery in readiness to move to advance posi- 
 tions, then came trucks of small ammunition, then am- 
 bulances and finally a few ration wagons. 
 
 We threaded our way through all this and arrived 
 at the front line at about 2:00 A.M. The Boche artillery 
 had started retaliating, and things were fairly warm 
 around there. One shell had wounded four men and they 
 were being fixed up along the road side. A platoon of 
 dough boys were getting chow from G. I. Cans, brought 
 up on the narrow gauge at the edge of the road. The air 
 
 Fifty 
 
BETHINCOURT PLU8- 
 
 was pungent with the smoke of the guns and there was 
 a little bit of gas drifting around, luit it was not dense 
 enough to cause any anxiety. We passed out into "no- 
 man's-land" and scattered in groups of live and six and 
 lay in the shell holes waiting. "B" Company had the 
 river to bridge and "F" Company had to make a trail 
 to the next ridge to take the artillery up in case the 
 Boche retired when we started our push. We were ting- 
 ling with excitement. Shells were bursting all around 
 us and from away behind came the roar of our heavy 
 grins. 
 
 BETHINCOURT 
 
 At five o'clock the barrage started. Tli<> noise was 
 not what we expected. The number of discharges was 
 so large and the rapidity of fire so greai thai it was a 
 continual rumble. After a few minutes we became so 
 accustomed to it that we could hear nothing but the soft 
 purr of the shells passing over us. The air was still and 
 
 Fifty-one 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 the smoke lay in clouds over the fields. We were safe 
 Prom enemy observation. The doughboys came forward 
 in a skirmish line and lay behind ns. At 6:00 A. M. a 
 few Hares went up and the Machine (inn barrage started. 
 The Infantry then fixed bayonets and went to it. 
 
 We had one old trench to fill down near the river 
 and then we waded across and started clearing a wagon 
 path through what was once Bethincourt. There wasn't 
 enough of that town standing to shelter a pair of field 
 mice. It was flat. Stones from the walls of buildings 
 lay in heaps in the streets, and at one point an obstacle 
 
 '». 
 
 ~ W$* f : 
 
 OUR BETHINCOURT BRIDGE 
 
 had been built to join two ruins directly opposite each 
 other. It was 1 1! feet high and 20 feel thick, and was 
 made with heavy building stone. To clear it was too 
 bis;- a job to attempt in the limited time at our disposal. 
 So we made a trail around it and kept going. It took 
 us just fifteen minutes to build ramps to drive around. 
 We worked like beavers. The road from Bethincourt 
 
 Fifty 
 
BUTHINCOURT PLUS— 
 
 toward Cuisey was covered. A German trench had been 
 dug parallel to the road, and the earth was thrown across 
 to cover the macadam. This made pretty soft going. 
 The first few wheels sunk about six inches into the soft 
 earth, and then ruts started forming. These had to be 
 tilled and tamped as fast as they appeared in order to 
 prevent tie-ups. 
 
 We had the artillery up on the next ridge at 10:00 
 A. M. The Colonel was greatly pleased, we had buill 
 a bridge and made four miles of passable road in four 
 horns. Some Engineers. That evening the Germans 
 made a stand and there was some brisk fighting. Their 
 defense was made mostly with Machine Guns. Prison- 
 ers were taken and started to the rear a few minutes after 
 the dough-boys stepped off, and this continued through- 
 out the day. They were the most virile looking men that 
 we had ever seen coming from the enemy's lines. At 
 St. Mihiel the prisoners were weak looking and poorly 
 clothed, but here the enemy divisions seemed to be high 
 grade troops. They presented a more military appear- 
 ance. The first prisoner taken in Bethincourt was cap- 
 tured by a Company "F" man. 
 
 The wounded started back late in the day. At dusk 
 a Large tent hospital was raised in a held below Bethin- 
 court and corrals were established along the road toward 
 Cuisey. In the evening four German planes flew over 
 this area and made a thorough survey of things. They 
 ilew too low for the air-cral't guns, but they drew a heavy 
 fire from the men armed with rifles. This apparently 
 caused them no concern, but to let us know thai they 
 knew a war was going on, they sprinkled us generously 
 with their machine guns. 
 
 Fifty-lhree 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 All day long and Late into the night we worked on 
 the roads, filling ruts as soon as they formed and starting 
 vehicles that could not proceed without assistance. That 
 night we worked in relays, and on the following nights 
 traffic guards were posted. On the evening of the sec- 
 ond day our rolling kitchen arrived and we had a hot 
 meal with bread. We can hardly say how good a meal 
 it was as meals are ordinarily judged, hut we all know 
 that up there in the dark, after having had nothing to eat 
 hut bully, hard tack and water and mighty little of these 
 Tor two days, it was the most satisfying spread any of as 
 had ever eaten. 
 
 The first two nights we slept in shell holes, with no 
 covering hut our slickers. Of course it rained, hut our 
 hours for sleep were few, and we were so exhausted that 
 these hardships were too small to notice, and we slept 
 just as well as tired children. ( )n the morning of the 
 third day we had a rude awakening. The German ar- 
 tillery had located ns and gave ns a thorough bombard- 
 ing. No one in our company was hurt, hut that was no 
 fault of theirs, for more than a dozen shells dropped 
 within our area, throwing dirt all oxer us and cutting 
 anything that was standing high. We lost one horse in 
 this shelling. 
 
 That night we moved forward to a German system 
 of dug outs on the next hill. From here we went down 
 on the roads each day. We uncovered the old macadam, 
 and got things going so smoothly that we were able to 
 cut down to six hours' work per day. Our dug-outs were 
 deep, and barring cooties and a few rats, we were quite 
 comfortable. 
 
 Fifty-four 
 
BETHINCOURT PLUS- 
 
 The entire area was freely littered with Potato 
 Masher grenades. These had caps removed so that the 
 unwary might easily discharge them, as the trigger but- 
 tons lay exposed. We had no accidents with them 
 though, as careful men gathered them from all frequented 
 places and threw them in shell holes. Sergeant Letourn- 
 eau was badly injured while chopping wood for the 
 stove in liis dug-out. The ax struck a dynamite cap 
 which was concealed in the floor and discharged it. His 
 
 OBSERVATION BALLOON BEHIND NANTILLOIS 
 
 hands and one leg were badly torn. He did not return 
 to the company after recovery. 
 
 The fellows salvaged everything they saw that 
 they thought was useful. The most pretentious item 
 salvage* 1 was a pair of three-ton British cargo trucks. 
 Parts were taken from one to repair the other, and, after 
 two days' work the truck was brought up to "F" com- 
 
 Fifty-five 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 pany headquarters under its own power. The idea was 
 to have a truck to haul our packs. Its service with us 
 was short lived, for after about a week a regular salvage 
 man came along and took it away. 
 
 An observation balloon was anchored in the hollow 
 beyond the hill where we were quartered. This balloon 
 bad a fine field of vision, so the Germans were untiring 
 iu their efforts to keep it down. On the fourth day of 
 the drive seven attempts were made at burning- it. Each 
 
 '■ & : * 
 
 BOCHE PLANE NEAR rllssi-'.Y 
 
 time tlic observer descended by parachute. The seventh 
 trip was successful. The plane darted out from a low- 
 hanging cloud and swept down on the balloon. The 
 Hun flier pumped a few tracer bullets into the big green 
 envelope and then made a hasty turn back to the German 
 lines. It is said that the observer received the D. S. C. 
 for his part in the proceedings. 
 
 Fifty-six 
 
BETHINCOURT PLU8- 
 
 After about three days on the hill the supply ser- 
 geant came up with a big load of clothes and the Per- 
 sonnel Officer brought up a big pile of francs. We were 
 outfitted and paid. The next morning we went into the 
 line again. We were under heavy fire all day. This 
 was in the section between Cuisey and Sepsarges. Mas- 
 ter Engineer Kunkle and Sergeant Wink were slightly 
 wounded with shrapnel, but were able to remain with 
 the company. Corporal Floyd was hit by a machine gun 
 
 
 GERMAN ARTILLERY NEAR XANTILLOIS 
 
 bullet and was taken back. The next day two platoons 
 went forward on road work. Eighteen men went up at 
 night to remove three big concrete obstructions on the 
 road near Mont Faucon. The artillery men sleeping 
 nearby were roused to move their ammunition to a safer 
 position as it was too close to the obstructions. When 
 the blast.- were fired, anyone that had not been awakened 
 for work were brought to their feet by the shots. They 
 
 Fifty-seven 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 were a lot heavier than anything that the Germans had 
 ever fired at ns. The demolition was as complete as a 
 Boche operation on a French cathedral. The next few 
 days the company laid out trenches and put up wire in 
 front of the line in the vicinity of Nantallois. This work 
 was done under continual fire and frequently under en- 
 emy observation. Returning from one of these parties, 
 Lieut. Simmons and Private Thomas were hit with shrap- 
 nel. The lieutenant was taken to the hospital and re- 
 turned to duty seven weeks later. Thomas died the day 
 after he was hit. As most of the work was done at night 
 the boys had a few hours of daylight to themselves. Dur- 
 ing one of these periods a shell dropped close to an "Af- 
 rican Golf Tourney" and Private Moseley and Sergeant 
 Zilinsky received slight shrapnel wounds. Corporal Gus 
 Wells was taken sick at this time and was taken to the 
 hospital, lie died on October 24th at Base Hospital No. 
 50 from bronchial pneumonia. After two weeks' resi- 
 dence in the German dug-outs we were relieved. We 
 marched to a wooded space three miles south of Montze- 
 ville. Private Wyatt Thompson was missing. Two days 
 later he was reported wonnded and received at an S. 0. S. 
 hospital. 
 
 Fifty-eight 
 
A BEST 
 
 A REST. 
 
 AFTER a day in the Montzeville Woods we hiked 
 twelve miles to Ippecourt through heavy mud. 
 The next day we proceeded to Evres. It rained 
 incessantly. Here we moved into billets and staved a 
 week. During - the first few days equipment was cleaned, 
 new clothes issued, we were de-cootyized, etc. There 
 were plenty of oofs and chips and a fair grade of beer for 
 sale. The billets had plenty of hay in them and aside 
 from the work of fixing Tip the kitchen and doing some 
 "East and West" it was a good rest. Here they made 
 the new Top-Kicker and made his former assistant the 
 new Supply Sergeant. 
 
 Up to this time there had been nine fatal casualties 
 in the regiment. An imposing memorial service was 
 held for them. Chaplain Clarke officiated. The regi- 
 mental band rendered fitting music for the occasion. 
 
 Master Engineer Bodie was again assigned to the 
 i ompany. He had been away from "F" company for six 
 months. We had heard much about leave areas and fur- 
 loughs but no one ever dreamed that anything like that 
 could happen to anyone in our outfit. But one day we 
 were all given a big surprise. Nine men were called on 
 the carpet and were given seven-day passes, and the re- 
 mainder of the company were led to suspect that more 
 leaves were to be granted. The priority list was to be 
 made on a basis of individual efficiency. Everyone now 
 had something to strive for. 
 
 Fifty-nine 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 Sixty 
 
A REST 
 
 Sixty-one 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 Sixty-two 
 
A REST 
 
 Sixty-three 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 Every night German planes flew over the town try- 
 ing to get a pot-shot at the near-by aerdrome. Search- 
 lights probed the darkness in every direction, and the 
 roar of aircraft guns was continuous from dusk till dawn. 
 Observation planes came over daily and these were al- 
 ways greeted with heavy fire Prom our ever-alert gun- 
 ners. After a week in Evres the company boarded motor 
 trucks and went f'oreward. We boarded the trucks at 
 9:00 A.M., and arrived at Le Claon at about 1:00 P.M. 
 Enroute the drivers made a one half hour stop for chow. 
 "Chow" it was, for the d livers were all Chinese and 
 their meal consisted of rice and then more rice. A China- 
 man is said to make a line washwoman, and, for those 
 who can stand it, they say he makes a very good cook, 
 but as a chauffeur he just is'nt. Any time yon want a 
 thrill just take your Ford down to the local Washee 
 emporium and ask Hip Lang Sing to take you out for 
 a ride. The Bureau of War liisk Insurance has since 
 placed a ban on the moving of troops by Chink driven 
 camions. 
 
 With a sigh of relief and a prayer for our deliver- 
 ance we set foot on terra firma at Le Claon, then started 
 a two mile hike up the hill to the Argonne forest. We 
 remained here for three days. We did a little I. D. R., 
 and some Target Practice and spent the odd hours pre- 
 paring for action. 
 
 At about 9:00 A.M., on the morning of October 28th 
 the Company fell in and left Camp Monhoven for our 
 usual destination "Somewhere in France". The morn- 
 ing was clear and the air bracing, just the morning for 
 a walk. After traveling a few kilos we came upon scenes 
 of recent fighting. The woods, Ave were now in the heart 
 
 Sixty-four 
 
A REST 
 
 of the Argonne forest, were very dense and shells had 
 shattered the tree trunks leaving splintered stubs testi- 
 fying to the destructive power of German H. E., and 
 shrapnel. The stubs became more frequent and finally 
 we emerged upon a belt of utter devastation. Here no 
 
 CAMPED IN THE AKGOXNE FOREST 
 
 Sixty- five 
 
COMPANY '■!<" OVERSEAS. 
 
 trees were left standing and shell hole lapped shell hole 
 for a distance of nearly a mile. Here was the line where 
 the French had stopped the German advance and where 
 each side had stubbornly held for four years. Belt after 
 belt of barbed wire lay on each side and trench after 
 trench testified to the intensity of the lighting-. It was 
 ,mi awe inspiring sight and one apt to impress a company 
 on its way to the line. It was here that the American 
 advance had started on September 26th and from the 
 
 AX UNDERGROUND ORDERLY ROOM 
 
 number of the machine gun nests and Yankee graves 
 passed on the rest of the trip, we knew that Germany 
 bad collected heavy toll for the land wrested from her. 
 From this belt on we passed many camp sites and bun- 
 galows hidden in the woods and now occupied by Ameri- 
 can army P.C's., but formerly harbouring German Head- 
 quarters. The signs along the road were all written in 
 German and we felt that we were in Germany for sure. 
 
 Six!) 
 
.1 REST 
 
 At noon we lined up for lunch and received a de- 
 licious bully beef sandwich and a rest. Between the two 
 we were much refreshed and soon resumed our march. 
 Finally we caught glimpses of the Artillery Balloons and 
 we knew we were drawing near our destination. We 
 came out of the woods, descending a steep hill, passed a 
 camp hospital and came out into a beautiful valley. Af- 
 ter a few more hours we were told to establish camp on 
 a hillside about two kilos outside of Fleville. We had 
 
 WATCHING THE "BIRDIE"' 
 
 covered about fifteen miles of hard marching and Ave 
 were not very much elated over the prospect of digging 
 in on such a steep hill, but by this time we knew what 
 was safest so we were not long in establishing ourselves. 
 Our kitchen, which had by this time arrived, was 
 soon in operation and about 7:00 P.M., we lined up for 
 mess consisting of well seasoned tomato soup. As we 
 started eating we began to think that it was too well 
 
 Sixty-seven 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 seasoned, but when our eyes began to smart and we 
 .-tailed to sneeze and kept on sneezing we couldn't de- 
 cide whether the cooks were serving as a little tomato 
 soup with our pepper or whether some wag had put 
 cow itch on the bread, but the gas alarm soon settled 
 the mystery for us, and we then knew thai il was a little 
 seasoning from Fritz that we were experiencing. Gas 
 masks were soon in position excepl that a few who 
 had carelessly forgotten theirs had to return to the tents 
 for them. There we sat with our soup in our mess kits 
 and no way to gel at it, for the drill masters had never 
 shown ns any way <>!' eating tomato soup with the mask 
 in place. The gas soon cleared and we proceeded with 
 our evening meal. For three days we lived in pup tents 
 on the hill side well dug in. Working parties went out 
 sorting Lumber, fabricating bridge parts and transport- 
 ing bridge material to Sommerence. Our nights were 
 interrupted by frequent gas alarms as the Boche was 
 trying to get the batteries that were on our right and left 
 on the hill side. If noise was any indication those bat- 
 teries must have been very troublesome to one enemy. 
 The nighl of October :51st we were told that we would 
 break camp and move forward at 3:30 the next morning. 
 A detail was in Sommerence all that night guarding 
 bridge material, etc.. to he used in the next day's work. 
 
 Sixty-eight 
 
BACK TO THE ARGOXXE 
 
 BACK TO THE ARGONNE. 
 
 THEBE was no need of bugle or whistle at 3:30 on 
 the morning of November Lst in that section of 
 France for at that moment the earth began to rock 
 and the skies were vivid with the flash of guns that start- 
 ed the bombardment preparatory to the advance winch 
 was to start at 5:30 A.M. The company formed without 
 commands as hoik- could be heard, and started up toward 
 ill,- scene of the racket. Shortly after passing FTeville 
 we were halted and turned out of the road and contin- 
 ued our way single file through the fields, as the roads 
 were being swept with our guns. Soon we were among 
 the 75's and here it was every man for himself, wand- 
 ering in and out as he saw best and safest. Jerry was 
 wide awake by this time and was hitting pretty heavy 
 with gas shells causing us to "Snap into" our gas masks 
 every few moments. The flash of heavy guns was blind- 
 ing and the roar deafening. Finally we got through 
 and formed again on the road. Here we were greeted 
 with the sharper whistle of .Machine Gun bullets travel- 
 ing "n, both directions. Somehow we out-maneuvered 
 this new difficulty and came through with but one man 
 hit. This was Private Harvey Webb who was struck 
 in the abdomen. He was taken to the first aid station 
 then established in Sommerence and evacuated to a field 
 "hospital in the rear. From last reports Private Webb 
 had returned to the United States fully recovered from 
 his wounds. 
 
 Sixty-nine 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 At Sommerence the Company was halted and here 
 we established a dump for our blanket rolls. The de- 
 tail that had been on guard all night over the trucks 
 of bridge material here reported an exciting night and 
 as evidence showed us a truck that had received a di- 
 rect hit. Luckily no one was injured. 
 
 At 5:30 A.M., the Infantry started to follow the bar- 
 range that was laid on the German lines a few hundred 
 yards ahead. They advanced in extended order. After 
 
 A FRENCH "75" CREW 
 
 them came the second wave in squad column. We were on 
 the 2nd Division sector and it was our first glimpse of 
 the much advertised Marines in action. We tried to 
 follow the second wave but the first truck was stranded 
 in a shell hole. This held up our train, A platoon had 
 previously been assigned to each truck to overcome such 
 difficulties and the boys hopped to dislodging the stalled 
 truck knowing that the bridges would be needed to keep 
 
 Seventy 
 
BACK TO THE ARGONNE 
 
 the artillery and ammunition going forward. We were 
 at our task only a few moments when the drone of a 
 German piano was heard aloft. The piano circled calmly 
 above ns. This was a signal for renewed efforts on our 
 part as we knew it would not be long before it would 
 send back word as to our whereabouts. We woe not 
 mistaken for it was only a few minutes when things 
 started fast and furious for us. Shell after shell drop- 
 ped in our immediate vicinity. Knowing our location 
 was no longer a secret to the Germans we started our 
 trucks over the hill but were halted at the crest owing 
 to the intensity of the fire at his point. The road here 
 v, as under direct observation. A detail was left to act 
 as guard and loading detail for the trucks at Sommer- 
 ence. This detail suffered the next casulties of the drive. 
 A shell lighting right at our packs instantly killed 
 Private James R. Smith and severely wounded Corporal 
 Ralph E. Fraker. Corporal Fraker was taken to the 
 dressing station and thence to a hospital where he died 
 three days later. 
 
 Immediately following the second wave two mine 
 locating details, or as we called them, Dynamite gangs. 
 were sent out to clear the roads, bridges, and fields of 
 any traps Jerry might have left for our entertainment. 
 These details were under Lieut. Menke and Sergeant 
 Baxter. 
 
 The shelling continued on the hills immediately 
 ahead of the trucks but we felt that enough time had been 
 lost and determined to run the gauntlet. So the trucks 
 were started again and up and over the crest we went. 
 We had not progressed very far however before we had 
 to abandon the trucks and take cover in shell holes. 
 
 Seventy- one 
 
COMPANY ••/"• OVERSEAS. 
 
 Such cover was very plentiful here After a wail of 
 ten or fifteen minutes the shells seemed to come less 
 frequently and we forged ahead. A report came back 
 that the bridges at St. George's and [mmecourt were 
 still intact so we established a dump of the bridge ma- 
 terial just beyond St. George's and set to work on the 
 loads. The road at St. George's was in terrible con- 
 dition owing to the heavy shelling from both sides and 
 it was well after dinner before we had it in any kind of 
 shape, though the lighi 75's and ammunition wagons 
 were kept moving over it all day. At about 4:00 l\M., 
 we dropped back toward Sommerence to a small stream 
 and started to construct a box culvert there as the 
 wagons bad worked the roads to too bad a condition for 
 fording. Before we bad it completed we were driven 
 away by heavy shell lire and returned to the place where 
 the Marines had jumped off early that morning. Here 
 we established headquarters and prepared to spend the 
 nighl in the fox holes occupied by the outposts of tin 
 Marines on the previous night. A detail went up that 
 evening and completed the culvert. 
 
 During the greater part of the day we had been ex- 
 posed to very heavy shelling and while we were very 
 lucky we did not escape without a few casualties for 
 Privates Burchill, Zanotto, Malone, and Danilevsky, and 
 Corporal Kabina had been wounded by flying shell splin- 
 ters and evacuated to the rear. Burchill and Danilevsky 
 returned to us about six weeks later but Zanotto, Malone. 
 and Corporal Kabina did not rejoin the company when 
 they recovered. 
 
 Xo report was received from the Dynamite gang 
 that night, but they had bad their share of excitement. 
 
 Seventy-two 
 
BACK TO THE ARGONXE 
 
 Corporal Brigman was wounded by shrapnel and taken 
 back. In its advance the Infantry had divided at a rise 
 in the ground, thereby leaving a A' — shaped knoll un- 
 taken. At this point a platoon of Germans with Machine 
 Guns surprised our party. The boys took cover at the 
 road sid<- and started shooting. Nine Germans were 
 killed before a German Machine Gunner could get to the 
 road. In this skirmish Sergeant Carthew was shot 
 through the heart and instantly killed. When the Ger- 
 man Gun was placed on the road our men were left with- 
 out protection and Hod to a safer position. Private 
 Hatfield was busy picking off any Jerry who popped 
 up and hf missed the queue to beat it. Ho was taken 
 prisoner. A few minutes later Lieut. Menke sent up a 
 platoon of Blue Iiiduc doughboys and in another few 
 minutes that Boche gang won- asking Saint Pete if they 
 mighl be attached for quarters and rations. Private 
 Hatfield was taken back to an officer. They handled him 
 pretty roughly. The Germans -tripped him of his equip- 
 ment, hut lie appealed to the officer to be allowed to keep 
 his gas mask and helmet, and this was granted him. 
 The officer questioned him as to our strength and Hat- 
 held told him that we had nine divisions in that sector. 
 He was turned over to a wounded man. one with a broken 
 arm, who was ordered to take the prisoner to the rear. 
 After traveling quite a distance Hatfield decided that 
 he would have a smoke, so he lit a cigarette. The Boche 
 asked for one and was given it. While he was getting 
 a light Hatfield got the brightest idea that over entered 
 his mind. Fritz was stooped over so he clouted him. 
 It was a full swing that landed just right and the Ger- 
 man went down for the count. Hatfield then finished 
 
 •enty-three 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 him with his hob nails and took refuge in a shell hole 
 at a safe distance from the encounter. Under cover of 
 darkness he moved as close to our lines as was prudent 
 and waited for daylight. He then put up his helmet and 
 waited until the doughboys came up for him. He return- 
 ed that day to the company and he was greeted as one 
 restored from the grave. That night the dynamite gang 
 reported by runner that all was well. The same even- 
 ing the report reached us that the Germans were fleeing 
 by railroad and that our advance men were giving chase 
 in motor trucks. 
 
 The morning of November 2nd we were awakened 
 with the glad tidings that the cooks had brought us up 
 some (i. I. cans filled with hot coffee and rice. Having 
 spent tlie past twenty four hours on Bully and Hard 
 Tack it was not long until we were eagerly awaiting our 
 turn to be fed. After breakfast we went to work on 
 the loads again. There was practically no shelling all 
 day and from the news brought back by the wounded 
 and prisoners we knew that the Germans were too busy 
 saving their guns to turn them around for a shot. Af- 
 ter passing St. George's the roads were in bad condi- 
 tion and our main job was to drain them and scrape the 
 mud from the surface. The weather changed, or rather 
 came back to its old form, and there was a mean drizzle 
 all day. That night we dug in on a little embankment 
 just outside of Immecourt. The clay was wet and sticky 
 and would stick to our shovels and boots making the 
 task anything hut agreeable after a hard day's work on 
 the road. However, we dug in and pitched our pup tents. 
 The kitchen joined us here and we had another hot meal. 
 It was nearly a banquet as we had butter, and sugar in 
 
 Seventy- four 
 
BACK TO THE ARGONNE 
 
 our coffee. As it grew darker the sky ahead of us be- 
 came a glowing' red. The Germans were firing Buzancy 
 preparatory to withdrawing from that town. 
 
 After a night's rest we broke camp again and march- 
 ed through Immecourt to Buzancy where headquarters 
 were established in a large barn. The day was spent 
 in cleaning up the roads through the town. The weather 
 had cleared and we were spectators to several thrilling- 
 air battles. We were also driven to cover several times by 
 the Machine Guns from German planes. But it was anoth- 
 er day free from shelling for which we were all thankful. 
 That evening we received rumors of the abdication of 
 the Kaiser and of armistice overtures. These were re- 
 ceived with scepticism but we knew that if things kept 
 going as they had been for the last few days that that 
 would surely happen or else we would land in Berlin. 
 
 The roads, with the aid of an all day sun, were in 
 fair condition so we pushed ahead on the next morning 
 in an indeavor to catch up with the Infantry but were 
 held up at the forks of the Harricourt-Sommauthe road 
 just outside of Yaux by shell fire. Here we established 
 camp and had dinner. The company returned to the 
 road and worked from the forks back toward Buzancy. 
 Jerry was handier to us than Ave thought and soon be- 
 gan to land whizz-bangs right and left. The road was 
 full of trucks and artillery at this point and so they un- 
 hitched their horses, running them down th rough our 
 cam]) in search for cover. The shelling still confined 
 itself to the roads some two bundled yards from our 
 location so the cooks calmly proceeded in preparations 
 for supper. But Jerry soon began lengthening his 
 range and the shells soon began to fall in cam]). This 
 
 Seventy-five 
 
COM PAW "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 was a signal for evacuation and we "Retired" down into 
 a deep valley where we were comparatively safe. 
 Moists were running loose and several casualties oc- 
 curred along the road and on the hill side. In en- 
 deavoring to gei our horses to a place of safety Pri- 
 vate Joseph Collins was struck with a piece of shell which 
 penetrated his heart killing him instantly, Horse-shoer 
 Yuchnow was seriously wounded and carried to the rear. 
 Wagoner Dishong also received a slighl flesh wound. 
 Between "shell storms" we tried to move our equipment 
 from the danger zone, hut were unable to do much until 
 our artillery had silenced the offending battery late in 
 the afternoon. In one of these attempts Pvt. Suskev 
 received a small wound in the hand from ;i shell splinter. 
 Both Suskey and Dishong remained with the company. 
 We dug in for the night on the side of the hill. It 
 was not very long after we were tucked away in oni 
 blankets that we heard the unmistakable throbbing of 
 a Boche plane overhead. Me seemed to he very low, so 
 we Lay breathlessly waiting for what we knew was sure 
 to happen. Presently there was an explosion down near 
 Buznncv and we knew that the night's work had begun. 
 Explosion followed explosion in rapid succession as if 
 the operator had dropped the tail-gate and let his whole 
 load fall. We lay listening as he flew hack over our 
 camp. Me returned with another load and then with 
 another. Each load was dropped beyond us but we lay 
 wondering if he was going to reserve one for us on one 
 of his trips hack. After the third trip we went to sleep 
 and were not disturbed again that night. 
 
 On November 5th we marched to Sommauthe and 
 
 occupied billets deserted by the (ierinaus on the previous 
 
 Scveiitv-sLr 
 
BACK To THE ARGOXXE 
 
 day. There were good stoves, pianos, some cushion 
 furniture and other reminders of civilian life here. 
 There was also an abundance of souvenirs for any who 
 cared to be bothered with them. The company had 
 plenty to do as the roads in this section wen- badly in 
 need of attention, so we did not gel much time for scout- 
 ing around. That night our division was relieved but 
 the engineers were placed on detached service with the 
 Corps so we remained on the job after the doughboys 
 and artillery had gone back to rest. Word was sent 
 to Beaumont for the Dynamite gang to rejoin the com- 
 pany so they came back the next morning. 
 
 The activities of the mine-searching parties from 
 the beginning of the drive are well worthy of mention as 
 they defeated several well laved German schemes. On 
 November 2nd Sergeant Baxter's party located a buried 
 mine in a field near Yerpel. It consisted of ten six-inch 
 shells laved at ten yard intervals and all cross-connected 
 with trip wires. This plant was disconnected and ren- 
 dered harmless. On November 3rd Lieut. Menke's party 
 located and removed a mine placed under the bridge in 
 the main road leading out of Buzancy. There were 
 eighteen six-inch shells primed and connected, and four 
 hundred pounds of dynamite in this little nest. On the 
 morning of November 4th Baxter and the Lieutenant 
 with eight men arrived in Beaumont. They were the 
 lirst Americans to reach the town. 
 
 The Germans had a few machine gunners in Beau- 
 mont but the main body of them had fled. The French 
 fed our boys well, kissed them effusively and gave them 
 as royal a welcome as a shot up, Avar stricken community 
 could. That night the boys slept, but the Lieutenant 
 
 Seventy-seven 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 kept watch. The next morning" four men went out, and 
 returned at about 2:00 P.M. At 7:00 P.M., the detail 
 was ordered to rejoin the company at Sommauthe. 
 
 The company remained stationed at Sommauthe un- 
 til the morning- of the 11th. During our stay the weather 
 was bad and the roads demanded attention night and 
 day. As a result of the bad weather and of our precau- 
 tions to keep our lights screened we had no interferance 
 from the German fliers. Every night they came over 
 and we received reports of their activities behind us. 
 \\Y were free from shell fire except that every evening 
 at mess time two shells, never more, never less, would 
 light somewhere in town as a gentle reminder that we 
 were still within reach. These apparently came from 
 over the river, and all the damage they did was to knock 
 a few more holes in a town that was already full of them. 
 
 We built several kilos of corduroy roads. The 
 roads were so soft that we had to use caterpillar tractors 
 to haul the heavy trucks through. In Sommauthe we 
 saw many sad sights. Refugees just liberated aftei 
 four years under the German yoke came ploughing 
 through the nmd. Women with children in their arms, 
 i.iU'd men and women pushing carts piled high with 
 household goods, little burros pulling immense carts 
 heaped to overflowing, all came struggling out of Beau- 
 mont. Soldiers returning from the lines carried boxes 
 and bundles or helped the aged on their weary way. 
 The young women told tales of German outrage and 
 brutality and their appearance gave ample support to 
 their stories. But all had an eager look, prompted by 
 the longing to rejoin the happy ties that had been sev- 
 ered when the war first descended upon them. 
 
 Seventy-eight 
 
BACK TO THE ARGONNE . 
 
 C*"»f"f'"' / \ 
 
 Ale use Va //ej near- 
 
 Seventy-nine 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 At G:00 A.M. November 11th we turned out and 
 ma relied back to Le Mort Homme. The distance was 
 about twelve miles. The route lay through Vaux and 
 Buzancy. The roads were crowded with artillery and 
 motor trucks headed forward so most of our marching 
 was done in Indian hie. Of course our thoughts and 
 conversation were mostly on the rumored armistice. 
 But as we could still hear the roar of guns we doubted 
 that anything could stop them. Finally the distant 
 booming ceased, but we didn't know whether it was a lull 
 iu the proceedings or whether we had marched beyond 
 the range of the noise. 
 
 We had left the field with two men unaccounted for. 
 These were Privates Frederick Clarke and Angelo Moli- 
 naro. These men were missed on November 6th. Later 
 we received word that they had been wounded and taken 
 to the rear. As no one was with them we do not know 
 the extent of their injuries further than that they were 
 not returned to the organization when they had recov- 
 ered. 
 
 The night of the 11th was one such as none of us 
 had ever experienced. The armistice rumors were un- 
 confirmed and everyone was in a state of suspense. It 
 grew quite chilly and someone sought permission to build 
 a lire. The C. 0., said "Burn anything you see" so we 
 went to it. This was our Official Announcement that the 
 news was true. The band struck up a lot of old Home 
 Melodies that carried the fellows right back home. It 
 was hard to say whether we were saddened or cheered 
 by the music. The news that fires were permitted spread 
 rapidly and in a few minutes Le Mort Homme was ablaze 
 Squads vied with each other to see which could build the 
 
 Eighty 
 
BACK TO THE ARGONNE 
 
 biggest fire. Few went to sleep for the entire hill was 
 charged with the spirit of revelry and celebration. 
 
 Eighty-one 
 
COMPAXY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 CHEATING A RAILROAD. 
 
 AT six on the morning of the twelfth the company 
 rolled up its packs once more and started. Where 
 we were going now was a question. Heretofore Ave 
 were either going toward or away from the front. But 
 now the war was over, so rumors ran, and our thoughts 
 began to turn toward Hoboken. So we were in fine 
 spirits that cool November morning as we marched back 
 through the shell torn fields and ruined villages where 
 not so many days ago the now vanquished foe had des- 
 perately struggled to maintain his hold. The weather 
 was fair but the roads were covered with a thin sheet 
 of slippery mud that made walking difficult. Where the 
 surface was gone the roads were almost impassible and 
 we made many detours through the fields. Our route 
 lay through Beffu, Champigneulles, St. Juvin, Marcq, 
 and Cornay, all hardly more than stone piles, so heavy 
 had been the bombardment. About 1:00 P.M., we 
 reached Chatel Chehery where we went into billets for 
 the night. 
 
 The next day was a repetition of the day previous 
 except that we soon came on familiar ground again for 
 we had re-entered the Argonne and were on the road 
 we traversed on our way up to the last big show. How- 
 ever it did not impress us in the same way this time for 
 we knew that no matter how fierce the fighting had been 
 there it was all over now. After ten miles of hard 
 marching through muddy roads we finally arrived at 
 Camp Monhoven again and pitched our pup-tents over 
 the same holes we had dug some weeks previous. 
 
 Eighty-two 
 
CUE AT IS (i A RAILROAD 
 
 Eere we spent five days resting and waiting for 
 orders. Would we be placed in the Army of Occupation 
 or would we go homo "Tool Sweet'"? This was the 
 question of the hour. At night we had celebrations that 
 would shame Coney Island on the fourth of July. We 
 discovered a lot of French rockets and flares stored 
 away in a dug-out and proceeded to celebrate in real 
 American fashion. Rockets darted hither and thither 
 through the trees and flares lit all around the tents until 
 a fellow began to think that Avar wasn't so dangerous 
 after all as compared with Young America <>n the ram- 
 page. 
 
 A second lot of men were granted passes to leave 
 areas. They were seven-day passes so we told them as 
 they left that we would probably meet them at the port. 
 We didn't. The Regimental Band and Minstrels gave 
 lis an entertainment on Sunday. 
 
 November 18th saw us packed up and on the move 
 again. There was a rail-head nearby. Rumor again 
 came forward with the news that we would entrain here 
 for Germany or the Port but Rumor was, as usual, mis- 
 informed. We marched on by the rail-head without a 
 moment's hesitation and after twelve miles' tramp we 
 landed in the village of Passavant. This was a town of 
 fail- size and in a very good state of preservation as 
 the Germans had disturbed it only from the air and but 
 a few times. However we were all too tired to take in 
 the sights, and as marching orders Avere in for the next 
 day, we hit the floor as soon after supper as was possible. 
 
 Twelve more miles of hiking the following day found 
 us in the village of Sonnnilles. There was another myth- 
 ical rail-head located here. Again the railroad was to 
 
 Eighty-three 
 
COMPAXY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 come to its own and we were to entrain. Sonic real 
 imaginative genius went so far as to have us turn in 
 our transport here, but alas, bright and early the next 
 morning we again shouldered our packs and headed 
 south with our complaining feet still marked "Duty". 
 By noon we reached the village of a fair size for that 
 part of Prance and though our orders called for an addi- 
 tional three miles for that day it was decided to billet 
 here, so we stayed. The billets were rather poor but 
 even the soft spots of a stone Moor fell good to us then. 
 There were several Cafe signs in evidence so we spent 
 the remainder of the day trying to keep ahead of the 
 officer who was closing the wine shops up. 1 1 ere we had a 
 day of rest and were also treated to a bath in an old hath 
 house discovered near a small stream. It was a real 
 French military bath consisting of a half inch pipe with 
 a little brass sprinkler head placed about every two feet 
 mi il. These little sprinklers let out five gentle streams 
 except when clogged and then the number varies. The 
 water was carried from the creek and placed in a barrel. 
 Prom the barrel the water was pumped to a small tank 
 overhead, from there it circulated through a coil in a 
 heater and up to the sprinkler pipe. This is not a very 
 satisfactory arrangement but has its advantages over 
 ail old bacon can. This type of bath house was in gen- 
 eral use throughout the American and French armies 
 and when properly attended, could moisten about twenty 
 soldiers per hour. 
 
 The rest was good but the next day the real siege 
 started. Woe to the man who could not walk, for the 
 ambulance was so laden with souvenirs that the one 
 patient assigned to ride in it could not lind enough room 
 
 Eighty-foil) 
 
CHEATING A RAILROAD 
 
 to lie down and he found that laying on helmet spikes and 
 miscellaneous German scrap iron was little better than 
 walking- anyhow. 
 
 The band marched between the two battalions and 
 every time we reached a village it would start playing. 
 They wanted to make their music lively to cheer up the 
 civilians and make them think that they were having a 
 grand parade, but in so doing they ran their cadence up 
 to 150 or thereabouts and we sure had to shake a leg to 
 keep the music in step. 
 
 Our next stop was at Villers-en-Lieu. It was a four- 
 teen mile stroll. Here we were billeted in bunks, some 
 had straw, for the night. There was plenty of good beer 
 here and one pretty little Madamoiselle. As we marched 
 in she stood in the doorway in the first house in town 
 and we knew right away that we were going to like the 
 place. By this time we had the moving habit and 
 couldn't stay long in one place so at sun-up we again 
 managed to get our feet tracking toward Voillecomte 
 twelve miles in the distance. 
 
 Voillecomte was booked to entertain us during anoth- 
 er day's rest. Here the band gave another concert. We 
 didn't care how much jazz or speed they put in their 
 music when they were playing it all in one place. There 
 were two Yin Blanc parlors in town and they did a land 
 office business. Here we spent our rest in washing trans- 
 port, etc., for inspection. We surely must be going to 
 turn in our transport and entrain. First we painted 
 the hub nuts red and white, but they were too much 
 like circus wagons that way so we repainted them black. 
 As a day has only twenty four hours we hadn't time to 
 try the rest of the proposed color schemes. After we 
 
 Eighty-five 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 got all slicked up, as if to punish us for our vanity, it 
 started to rain. That cold damp drizzle that gave to 
 this lovely country the poetic appelation "Sunny 
 France" was again upon us. 
 
 Downstairs in our billet lived a little Belgian Ma- 
 damoiselle, a refugee. She was engaged to some French 
 Captain, so she told us, hut was very engaging to us and 
 tried very hard to make our stay a pleasant one. She 
 relieved one of the K. P.^ and dished out slum in the 
 chow line. 
 
 When we lined up on the morning of the 25th in the 
 drizzle that was still falling no announcement was made 
 relative to entraining or turning in our cleaned up trans- 
 port. All the captain said was "S( L )IAI)S RIGHT" 
 and we knew that old man Rumor was wrong again. 
 France isn't a very large country on the map hut try 
 walking across it with sixty pounds of miscellaneous 
 ( c >. M. C. issue on your hack. Off again, on again, tramp 
 again, was our programme. We cut off ten miles and 
 landed in a town of wonderous size. It was Somme- 
 voire. There were plenty of M. V.'* in sight when we 
 went in, hut they were immediately relieved. Before 
 going they tipped the hoys off concerning the stock of 
 Cognac, etc., in the town and about where it was for sale. 
 Everybody proceeded to oil up. Before the officers could 
 get regulation established everyone was pretty well 
 charged. Some of the boys hired rooms to avoid un- 
 rolling their packs. When the march was resumed in 
 the morning, some had a hard time keeping up, for a 
 cognac party has a funny way of putting a man out of 
 condition. The rain made everyone miserable. The 
 heaviest drain on our strength was just beginning. 
 
 Eighty-six 
 
CHEATING A RAILROAD 
 
 Sommevoire was the stop at the end of the first day, 
 there were six of them, each worse than the others. The 
 -tups were Sommevoire, Levigny, Nuisement, Gye-sur- 
 Seine, Rugny, and Etivey. The distances covered were 
 Ten, twelve, twelve, eighteen, eighteen, and twenty miles 
 respectively. On the roadside between Nuisement and 
 Gye-sur-Seine we ate our Thanksgiving dinner. The 
 weather was not favorable for an outdoor feast. The 
 rain was heavy and the mud was deep. Xo programme 
 was arranged to follow the outlay. 
 
 MENU (pronounced Mean-eh!) 
 
 Ragout de Cheval 
 
 Eau de'Pomme de Terre 
 
 Pain — English & French. 
 
 Coffee? ! 
 
 At Grye-sur-Seine we were not permitted to cross 
 the river and enter the live part of the town. Dad Mor- 
 ton was feeling naughty and decided to go over and 
 bask in the white light and incidentaly find out why the 
 town was ''Out of Bounds". The bridge was closed to 
 soldiers so Dad tried to slip across as a submarine. 
 Poor fish. The boys hauled him out of the Seine as soon 
 as the splash subsided and he sputtered like a whale. 
 
 The country traversed was one of the most beauti- 
 ful parts of France, Burgundy. The road ran through 
 mile after mile of vineyards and the view from each 
 hilltop was magnificent, but after struggling up a hill 
 only to see another ahead of you, one was hardly in the 
 frame of mind to enjoy scenic effects. It was a case 
 of your left foot saying to your right, "If you pass me 
 this time I'll pass you next". With a heavy pack 
 on your back and a drizzle beating in your face all day 
 }ou are quite apt to let French landscape go unappre- 
 
 Eighty-seven 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 ciated. At night we would try to find a fire to dry our 
 clothes and a light to "Read our Shirts" by. The chow 
 consisted of travel rations and travel rations are very 
 unsatisfactory as such. A few eggs or a rabbit in the 
 evening, cooked by some French woman, was more to 
 our liking. Many such feasts were enjoyed by the crowd 
 in the numerous French homes where we chanced to be 
 billeted. The people as a rule were very good to us and 
 hearty in their welcome. It would have been a wonder- 
 ful trip in a Limousine. 
 
 The company settled in Etivey for a rest. During 
 the five days we stayed there we had two close order 
 drills, battalion inspection, and a thorough cleaning up 
 of equipment and transport. Doggy Zinsser opened his 
 shop and did a rushing business. All along the way 
 shoes had been going to the bad and he had been making 
 repairs at every stop. New shoes could not be had and 
 the men had in many eases ruined the old ones by cut- 
 ting them to relieve their tired and aching trilbies. At 
 Etivey every one was comfortable and we were soon in 
 shape to start again. Every one had thought that when 
 the hike was finished we would pile on to a boat, but to 
 err is human. And our thoughts were badly in error. 
 On the morning of December 4th we fell out and hiked 
 though mud and rain to Chassignelles. Here we located 
 at Truchy Farm. It was not a very attractive billet 
 but before we left it we fixed it up to our liking. 
 
 Eighty-eight 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 CHASSIGNELLES. 
 
 TRUCHY Farm was a. square barnyard with farm 
 buildings on two sides, a one and-a-half story 
 dwelling on the third, and the fourth closed with 
 a high stone wall with central gates. The buildings 
 were all in good repair and all had good tile roofs. The 
 yard had several manure piles and a miscellaneous clut- 
 tering of old farm wagons and equipment in it. We 
 started cleaning up. The owners were persuaded to 
 remove the manure. It is a rash and trouble provoking- 
 stunt to interfere with a Frenchman's manure pile. By 
 its size and odor the owner's financial status is estimated. 
 Old man Truchy was pretty rich. The carts and wagons 
 were removed and loads of cinders were hauled in to 
 resurface the area. Our wagons and limbers were neatly 
 parked, and the place was so much improved that it could 
 hardly be identified as the old farm-yard. In the stables 
 mangers were built, stoves were placed in all the build- 
 ings, and four-man double-decker bunks were put in all 
 the billets. It was a fine place when we got it fixed. 
 
 We were about two hundred yards from the edge 
 of the town. Chassignelles consisted of one long street 
 running from the canal to the gate of Truchy Farm. 
 From this the small side streets branched. Each side 
 street connected with a macadam road leading to a near- 
 by town. The towns so connected were Fulvy, Ancey-le- 
 Franc and Raviers. In the middle of the town stood 
 the Mairie. The Maririe housed the school, the town coun- 
 
 Eighty-nine 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 cil chamber, and the residence of the Mayor. The build- 
 ing sat back from the street leaving- an open square. This 
 space was nsed by our band for its semi-occasional con- 
 certs. Here also the buglers lined up when we stood 
 Battalion Retreat. The football team worked out its 
 1>1 ays and ran signals here and on one occasion an itiner- 
 ant Frog show stopped and pulled off a "Cinema" per- 
 formance. It was a much used piece of ground. When 
 not otherwise occupied Hugh Bell took the 2nd Battalion 
 runners out on it and gave them a little close order drill. 
 Passers-by always stopped to watch them. The runners 
 always had the sympathy of anyone who stopped to 
 watch them drill, for Bell always handled them so rough. 
 The town had two bakeries, a butcher shop and enough 
 Estaminets to keep all who felt so inclined well illumi- 
 nated. 
 
 Regimental Headquarters was at Fulvy. A com- 
 pany runner rode over on horse back twice every day 
 carrying reports and returning with mail, sometimes. 
 Division Headquarters was at Ancey-le-Franc. Ancey 
 was not a very live place. It had too many officials per 
 square foot to suit most of us. There were a few pretty 
 good souvenir stores there but that is about all. Ancey 
 had a Chateau that had a very interesting collection of 
 eld ordnance and a very attractive interior but from the 
 outside there was nothing about it but its size to attract 
 the attention. The caretaker of the chateau had a long 
 tale about the importance of the owners and the class 
 that blossomed from their family tree but we were never 
 very much impressed with this part of the story. Our 
 principle reason for going to Ancey was to buy cigars 
 and candy at the Divisional Commissary. 
 
 Ninety 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 The principle points of interest in Chassignelles 
 were the cafes. These were the most important build- 
 ings in the town. The most notorious of these was the 
 Bendez-vous des Marines. It was popularly known as 
 the "White Horse". The White Horse specialized in 
 a brand of liquid barb-wire that led many an unwary 
 soldier to the pogey. The place was run by an old lady 
 that was not easy to look at. She coughed and sputtered 
 and spit, but she was very obliging and her customers 
 overlooked her unpleasant features. She was slow of 
 movement and not much of an asset to the establishment. 
 Her daughter, Charlotte, was very much on the job. 
 When the shop was open she showed amazing speed at 
 filling orders. Here came the fellow with the grouch 
 to tell his troubles. Charlotte knew just what was good 
 for insomnia, ennui, fever, grip, flu or anything else. 
 She always prescribed white-horse. The fact that the 
 White Horse was at one edge of the town, and our bil- 
 lets Avere beyond the opposite edge did not seem to both- 
 er her trade any. Customers had to pass about four 
 other wine-shops on the way, but that made no differ- 
 ence. Charlotte was a sport. She did not lose interest 
 in her customers when their francs were all gone, but 
 ran generous charge accounts. She also made cash 
 loans to the unfortunate who needed them and had the 
 Irish- American stunt of treating "on the house". 
 
 The Boar's Xest was not a regular cafe. It was 
 private. Anybody in the Second Battalion could con- 
 sider himself a friend of the family and go in and make 
 himself at home. Wagoners, stable sergeants and 
 chevaux orderlies were especially welcome as they car- 
 ried an air with them that was pleasing to the ladies. 
 
 Ninety-one 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 The ladies were Wire Haired Liz and Big Sue. No one 
 ever heard any sober man saying anything flattering 
 about either of them. The average French peasant girl 
 is not much to look at in her field clothes, but there is 
 usually something about her that makes you feel that 
 a few nifty clothes properly hung on would make her 
 look like an American porch-wren. But not so with Liz 
 rind Sue. If they had any beauty it was in their souls. 
 They had a couple of dirty tied-together kids that ran 
 errands. The kids were always very much on hand. 
 They ran a blind tiger with no stock. The gang would 
 go in, pool their francs, and send one of the kids out 
 for the wet goods. Xo one ever suspected the operation 
 of any but the regular wine shops, so Liz and Sue got 
 their sliee of Velvet even when all the estaminets were 
 closed to Americans. As stated above, neither Liz nor 
 Sue were attractive, but as the evenings grew late and 
 the guests' powers of perception became dimmed, a cer- 
 tain charm enveloped the girls and they were the objects 
 of gallantry and attention that would flatter a Parisian 
 belle. 
 
 The Cafe Bourgonne was the most orderly place 
 in town. It was "Emmie's" to all the boys. Emmie 
 did not "compree" cognac unless you were a regular 
 customer, and any other strong drink was "finish". 
 The orderliness of the establishment was not a matter 
 of sti'ict management nor of high class patronage. It 
 was merely a matter of location. This was the most 
 prominent corner and the chance of getting away with 
 any rough stuff was not so good as at the other joints. 
 Emmie had many admirers. Wiggle was one of the 
 most ardent of these. Emmie's mother ran a little curi- 
 
 Ninety-two 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 osity shop at the entrance to the cafe. She didn't sell 
 anything that we could use except post cards, so she 
 didn't get as many francs as Emmie did. 
 
 The Cafe Francaise had a little grocery pigeon hole 
 where only one customer could stand at a time, but the 
 wine shop could seat a hundred without crowding. Up- 
 stairs the football team had its quarters. They held 
 meetings at night and did not observe the 8:00 o'clock 
 closing order. The charmer of this joint was Marie 
 During our stay she received forty-seven boxes of candy 
 in token of the appreciation of her many customers and 
 admirers. There was method in this bar-maid sparking. 
 If you stood in good you could get cognac and benedic- 
 tine and occasionally a little shot of rum, but if you were 
 just a soldat ordinaire you could buy nothing but Yin 
 Blanc and Yin Rouge. 
 
 Some of the non-coms sought privacy for their par- 
 ties so they established exclusive places for getting to- 
 g-ether. The principle places of this sort were Madame 
 Saloni's and Madame Bully's. Madame Saloni ran a 
 sort of Sergeants Mess. The boys would go down about 
 six P.M., eat supper at live francs per, and spend the 
 evening parley-voo-ing with the madame's daughters, 
 Germain and Madelaine. The top-kicker and Sgt. Todd 
 were strong for Madelaine. Sgts. Joe and Carter were 
 ready to draw any minute in defense of the beautiful 
 Germain. M. E. Bodie was willing to accept the notice 
 of either of them but he never had a show. It was at 
 one of these sessions that Bodie was invited outside and 
 decorated. Madame Saloni put up a good feed, and 
 could procure vintages which no cafe keeper in town 
 would sell to American soldiers. She and her family 
 
 Ninety-three 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 were refined people, so no one ever got boisterous while 
 in her house. Every evening an old woman, known to 
 the soldiers as Dirty Kate, dropped in to see Madame 
 Saloni. Sgt. Fleekenstein gets credit for having kissed 
 her, but anyone who ever saw her plowing or hauling 
 manure would doubt it. For though Flecker is reckless, 
 it is hard to believe that he ever did anything as reckless 
 as that. It was at Madame Saloni 's that Sgt, Carter 
 uttered those immemorable words "Bon Ami pour 
 Vous". This statement is denied by some, but they are 
 just letting Carter down easy. 
 
 A couple of Master Engineers had a room at the 
 home of one Madame Bully. Madame Bully was broad 
 minded ami indulgent. She would put nothing in the 
 way of the poor American boys, far away from home, 
 when they wanted to have a good time. After the wine 
 shops were closed to soldiers for the night she would 
 go out and get anything that was needed. Some of 
 the parties at this quiet little home were rather wild 
 and wooley. The madame was always well paid for any 
 damage done to her property, so she was satisfied. One 
 evening a big, dusty, moth-eaten stuffed heron offended 
 one of those present. What could be done.' A inangey 
 old Jo-Jo bird could not be allowed to stare down and 
 gum an otherwise happy party. So it was pulled down 
 and torn apart. The question among those who knew 
 about it was "Who breezied 'Erin'?". Anyone want- 
 ing a pass never dared mention the heron around the 
 orderly room. One of the ornaments at Madame Bully's 
 was a large wax plant with rectangular berries and 
 haves on it. This had been dubbed the "Chiclet Bush". 
 It had a large glass dome over it and was mounted on 
 
 Ninety-four 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 a pedestal. When anyone came in, one of the boys would 
 lift the dome and offer the visitor a chiclet. The chiclet 
 bush soon had little left but the trunk and branches. 
 I >ne night one of the boys felt like dancing- so he grabbed 
 up pedestal, globe, chiclet bush and all and started waltz- 
 ing around the room. He let his imagination carry him 
 so^far that he squeezed the globe too affectionately and 
 it shattered in his arms and fell to the floor a total ruin. 
 Minor accidents to furniture and building were too fre- 
 quent for mention here, but the crowd was small and re- 
 sponsibility quickly acknowledged, so no trouble ever 
 
 developed. 
 
 All through the month of December the recovered 
 wounded were returning to the company. Every in- 
 dication pointed to an early sailing. Rumor had the 
 date set at December 28th. But the 28th came and went 
 but we did not move. 
 
 As Christmas drew near we planned a celebration. 
 Lieut. Furrer was placed in charge of the eats and Lieut. 
 Ellis ran the programme. A Frog bakery was procured 
 and pies were built from dried apples, flour, water and 
 maybe a few other things. They tasted like regular pies 
 too. A pig was bought and butchered under the per- 
 sonal direction of one of our experts. Potatoes, grapes, 
 American cigars, and a few other trimmings completed 
 the feast. 
 
 At last the big holiday arrived. The dinner was 
 the big event of the day. The ration dump issued bread, 
 onions, and canned salmon to make three Xmas meals. 
 We used the bread. The company mess fund paid for 
 the rest. Dinner consisted of roast pork, bread, real 
 butter, doughnuts, apple pie, grapes, coffee, cigars, cigar- 
 
 Ninety-five 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 ettes, candy and chewing gum. The programme which 
 followed was immensely interesting. There were 
 twenty-four numbers. The officers all responded to 
 calls for speeches, and there were songs by the entire 
 company, songs by the few with talent to sing alone, 
 recitations, dances and what not. That night large 
 quantities of bottled Xmas cheer were consumed. The 
 beverages ran all over the list from canal water to table 
 vinegar. 
 
 The following week was uneventful. It just rained 
 and rained and rained. "F" company received a dis- 
 liict to do engineer work in. The following towns were 
 included in our area: Pimelles, Gland, Cruzy-le-Chattel, 
 Villon and Quincerot. Details of non-coms were sent to 
 each of these towns to direct and expedite road repair. 
 Later the fourth platoon was sent to Brigade Headquar- 
 ters to work that district, as working parties were not 
 available there. 
 
 Xew Year's was celebrated in soldierly style. At 
 twelve o'clock a bugler blew First call. Everybody 
 turned out under arms. "Without command tiring open- 
 ed. A rifle barrage was dropped into Chassignelles. 
 The streets were empty. The sentries lay in against 
 the houses and waited for things to quiet down. The 
 Sergeant of the guard came up and made a big fuss, but 
 no investigation was made so he didn't have to report 
 anybody. A bugler then blew "Cease Firing" and the 
 reception of 1919 was considered complete. 
 
 The mess hall used by "D" company had a rough 
 stage. Any entertainments which blew in were pulled 
 off here. The regimental minstrels were over to see us 
 and to let us see them twice. They announced a third 
 
 Ninetvs:.r 
 
CIIASSIGNELLES 
 
 performance but nobody showed up but the audience. 
 A troupe of Y. M. C. A. entertainers came one evening. 
 They were excellent performers but their show was a 
 little bit too high-browed for the army. When the aver- 
 age soldier goes to a show expecting to see some slap- 
 stick stuff and on arriving hears "Flow Gently Sweet Af- 
 ton" or "Sweet and Low", he is very apt to come out and 
 say that the show was rotten. But an entertainment 
 troupe is a delight even though they say or do nothing. A 
 "Y" entertainer differs as much from a canteen worker 
 as a shop girl at the annual picnic differs from a Quaker 
 Miss on her way to church. By this, it is not meant that 
 all the canteen workers were angels, but few of them 
 had the faculty of stirring up pep among the boys. One 
 cold night we went down to the mess hall and waited for 
 a "Y" troupe to show up, but they were at the mercy of 
 the P. L. M. and when they did not show up, we did not 
 hold it against them, but rather sympathized with them, 
 for all of us had had plenty of French Railroad experi- 
 ence ourselves. 
 
 The road details came in every Saturday to visit. 
 The fourth platoon did not come in en-masse, but a few 
 always came in to get the news, tell some news, or try 
 to squeeze a few pairs of socks from the Froggy. Sgt. 
 Cicchetti was all fixed up at his station so he called on 
 us rarely. He was living with the family that owned 
 the platoon billets, and, being in charge, was received 
 with proper grace by the French people. He stood ace 
 high with the ladies and was so busy with them during 
 his leisure hours that nobody knows much of his activi- 
 ties more than what he has told on himself. Cook Riste 
 was also a welcome guest at the farm house but lie did 
 not follow up his advantage as did Cicchetti. 
 
 Ninety-seven 
 
COMPAXY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 Down at Cruzy the "Bodie" resided in the home of 
 the Mayor. He had a sketching case with him and he used 
 it. One day the officer out on road inspection saw him 
 with the table set up on the road side. He was viewing 
 the surrounding country with a locator's level. About 
 two weeks later one of the boys was in his room and 
 sighted a something hanging on the wall. Tt was a Stan- 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Life 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 %^^" 
 
 t - 1 > 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■ R m 
 
 
 
 
 v> 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^^^^HHMhkms 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 THE CHURCH AT CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 ley Map. The mapist pointed to it with pride and said 
 "Dats the Cruzy". The other men from F company 
 billetted with A company of the 319th Infantry. They 
 showed the dough-boys how a billet should be run. They 
 had cooking utensils, grease, salt, pepper, etc., and 
 broom, shovel, axe, and other little billet conveniences. 
 Every morning the doughbovs went out for reveille and 
 
 Ninety-eighi 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 then to breakfast. When they came back they brought 
 breakfast for the engineers with them. The billet Mas 
 then cleaned up for the day. At night if the supper 
 was not 0. K. the cooking utensils were brought out and 
 provisions were bought for a regular meal. 
 
 At Villon, (Hand, and Pimelles conditions were .just 
 as agreeable. Every man that was out on detail was 
 well pleased with his station, and sorry to have to re- 
 turn to the company. The company had to keep in com- 
 
 CHASSIGXELLES 
 
 munication with these outlying towns and the trip around 
 the circuit was about fifty miles, so we added a motor- 
 cycle and side car to our equipment. We then had to 
 develope a "Speed King". This was easy. The Cap- 
 tain gave the gasoline goat to Corporal Schaeffer and 
 lie did the rest. The King could give you a ride that 
 was some sensation. Mud, sleet, rain, or snow — ca ne 
 (ait rien — lie drove through it all. 
 
 Ninety-nine 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 Down at the rail-head was a regular place to be de- 
 tailed. We had a platoon or more down there nearly 
 all the time. The Pacy crew always lived on the fat of 
 the land. The work was not always pleasant, but the 
 jobs there had redeeming features. The ground was 
 muddy and the season rainy. The work was mostly 
 furnishing carrying and sorting parties for the lumber 
 dump. Rations were unloaded here for the entire di- 
 vision and the detail saw to it that the regular issue was 
 
 CARROT CONSUMERS 
 
 increased in both quantity and variety. We hadn't done 
 night scouting on the front without learning a few things 
 about it. Infantry men on guard duty were so strict that 
 Several of our boys were .jugged for minor offenses. 
 These guards were attached to as for rations, and when 
 we saw their attitude towards us while they were on 
 post, we limited their chow to "RATIONS". They got 
 
 One Hundred 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 all that they were entitled to, and there is where it stop- 
 ped. We figured that this was our day for chow. Some- 
 body else was getting it when we were forward and when 
 we got to where the getting was good, we certainly got 
 ours. Pancakes, Biscuit, Doughnuts, Steaks, — if it came 
 over the 1\ L. M. to Pacy we got some, that's all. 
 
 Back in Chassignelles the few who remained worked 
 on the roads in "A" Company's district. "D" and 
 ! 'E" Companies had -one out to their districts, so "F" 
 
 JUST MULE SKTXXKRS 
 
 Company fed everyone left in the 2nd Battalion. The 
 divisional school activities started and we got our little 
 gang of students together in the Mairie for elementary 
 work. The advanced classes never got started as we had 
 to move. We built a bath house down by the canal, and 
 a hot air delousing plant beside it. Both were a com- 
 plete success. The water for the showers was carried 
 
 One Hundred One 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 from the canal. Days that the bath house was running 
 a Xon Com was scut down to handle the necessary de- 
 tail. One day Freddie Wolfe was in charge. He ran 
 across to see Charlotte, Oh, many times, and so you may 
 know that he was very cheerful. A canal boat stopped 
 
 THE CANAL BOURGONNE 
 
 ()//<• Huudrcr Two 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 and Freddie went down to the tow-path to see who was 
 on it. There were a couple of Madamoiselles on board, 
 so our carefree undertaker moved up dose. He stood 
 on the hank and leaned on the gunwhale of the boat, 
 chatting and parley-vooing with the ladies. He was so 
 interested that he did not notice that the boat was slowly 
 moving- out from the bank. But he was soon brought 
 to full cognizance of his carelessness. Nothing but a 
 
 •■ 
 
 • 
 
 v. 
 
 
 \ . r" 1 
 
 i ► 
 
 
 
 
 ■i ^ 
 
 CHOW MONGERS, ALL 
 
 sky-hook could save him, and he didn't have any. The 
 boat continued to move slowly out from the bank. By 
 this time Freddie had just a toe and finger holt and lie 
 was pretty well stretched. Due moment, then 
 —SPLASH!!!. The temperature was way below freez- 
 ing, but Freddie didn't know that. He burned the air 
 in his flight of a half mile to quarters. Here he clothed 
 himself in a blanket and organized the Hiawathian l)i- 
 
 One Hun (I red Three 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 vision. But going around with no other clothing but a 
 blanket and a pair of old arctics soon lost its charm and 
 the Hiawathian Division became extinct as soon as the 
 supply Sergeant could gather some clothes for the big- 
 chief. 
 
 The Order of Skunks was founded by one Francis 
 Or. A., etc., one dark and stormy night. He decided to 
 get members by conscription and proceeded to initiate 
 all who came within range. One of the new members 
 
 OX A SUNDAY AFTERNOON 
 
 decided to reciprocate, and gave the organizer the first 
 degree himself. This took all the fun out of the pro- 
 ject, so the Order of Skunks lives now only in the mem- 
 ories of a privileged few. 
 
 The Ould Owwwls was not a secret organization. 
 Meetings were held by chance on the road between the 
 White Horse and Truchy Farm. The Owwwls had no 
 tendency toward prohibition. It was a good gang to 
 
 One Hundred Four 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 belong to for no one but an Owl could find his way home 
 on a dark night when the Frog electric lights were feeling 
 down-hearted. The light plant was French. A new 
 Tungsten lamp glowed about as brilliantly as the ember 
 of a blown out match. Sometimes the power house man 
 would get next to himself and bring the lights up to 
 about three fourths of full brilliancy but you could not 
 depend upon having this condition continue for more 
 than a few minutes. So with such a lighting system is 
 it any wonder that an Order of Owls was organized ! 
 
 Hack in Hallighen, when plain grub was worth its 
 weight in Liberty Bonds, six hungry boys out scouting 
 for chow chanced to meet in a peasant's house where 
 there was enough on hand to put up a dinner for the 
 gang. They had difficulty making themselves under- 
 stood, as none of them could speak any French except 
 Froggy Harris. All he could say was ' ' Oui ! Oui ! " He 
 learned this from his mother when she used to play "This 
 little piggy went to market" with him in the days when 
 Froggy was young and innocent. After much motion- 
 making they finally got the chow, and while eating they 
 decided to organize a French club. They never had a 
 chance to get together until we reached Chassignelles. 
 Here the French club was resurrected, and feeds were 
 held every few weeks. There never were any applica- 
 tions for membership received, as those who were mem- 
 bers were satisfied with the size of their organization and 
 those who were not members were satisfied with its size 
 also. 
 
 The division sent out a bulletin in February stating 
 that we would pass into S. 0. S. jurisdiction on March 
 20th, and that we would leave the Ancey-Le-Franc area 
 
 One Hundred Five 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 before April 1st This caused lots of excitement. We 
 counted days, just where we would entrain, discussed the 
 possibilites of having to hike it, and worried about how 
 we would be quartered in the embarkation center. 
 
 Then right in the midst of our surmises dropped an 
 older that brought us to our senses with a snap. The 
 second battalion was to leave in three days. We had 
 
 LEFT TO RIGHT: CAPT. !•' G. ROCKWELL, Isl LIEUT. H. G. BUCKINGHAM, 
 1st LIEUT. \\. T. BALLARD, 2d LIEUT. .1. T. ELLIS.lsl LT. OSCAR BOHLIN 
 
 the painting of the transport well under way, and this 
 was rushed to speedy completion. All tin hats were 
 stenciled with the divisional insignia and then given a 
 coal of oil. The wagons were packed, and everyone 
 made up two packs, a heavy one strapped in the haver- 
 sack which was to be hauled, and a horse-shoe roll to 
 
 One Hundred Six 
 
CHASSIGNELLES 
 
 carry along. We hiked to Nuits-sur-Raviers a distance 
 of seven kilos and there we entrained. There were Pas- 
 senger coaches for three platoons and the rest of the 
 battalion had to ride in Chevaux cars. The first platoon 
 of "F" Company drew box cars but the rest of the com- 
 pany got in the coaches. 
 
 The train pulled out of Nuits at about 3:30 P. M. 
 and acted like a regular train for about six hours. It 
 then started French tactics. It would go four kilos and 
 then mark time for four hours. The second night is one 
 to be long remembered by everyone on board. From 
 5:00 P.M., till 10:00 A.M., we traveled about six miles. 
 We had several "Coffee Stops" along the way, and when 
 we finally got into the forwarding camp we had a hot 
 feed from our own kitchens. We rested for a few hours, 
 then started a fifteen kilo hike to the Belgian camp. It 
 was a long round-about road. Firing on the rifle range 
 ( loses the direct route so anyone hiking out while the 
 range was working was out of luck. 
 
 One Hundred Seven 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 THE S. O. S. 
 
 THERE was little to do except work at the Belgian 
 Camp. Every morning our non-coms took out 
 several hundred dough-boys and exercised them. 
 Road repairing, railroad building, erecting barracks and 
 welfare 1 huts, etc., formed the principle diversions. The 
 carpenters were busy all the time. The new delousing 
 plant was turned over to kk F" company so we had a 
 large force there. The plant clothing supply was at 
 the mercy of the detail. Any man who did not get a 
 new blouse at the deloiiser had no one to blame but him- 
 self. The plant was a steam and hot-air system. There 
 were fans and boilers and pumps and heaters and Hues 
 too numerous to mention. We installed everything that 
 was delivered to the building, but at the time we were 
 relieved the only cooties that had met their deaths in 
 the building were killed on the thumb-nails of their hosts. 
 The Battalion built seven miles of narrow gauge rail- 
 road around the camp. "E" company was assigned to 
 unload the narrow gauge cars from the standard gauge 
 flat cars on which they were brought to camp. The small 
 cars were ruggedly constructed and were still in ser- 
 viceable condition when set on the narrow gauge tracks. 
 The locomotives were gasoline propelled and had it not 
 been that our "Judy" figured out the combination of 
 them they might have been a white elephant on the hands 
 of the A. E. F. The night that the Locomotives were 
 put in operation all the officers in the battalion went 
 
 One Hundred Eight 
 
THE S. 0. 8. 
 
 on a tour of inspection. They rode over one stretch that 
 had „ot been lined and the loco jumped the track. Aside 
 from this the trip was a success both from a business and 
 a social standpoint. 
 
 At night the boys went to movies and regimental 
 .hows at the "Y". The A. E. C. was cry generous with 
 Us passes. We had been accustomed to receiving 
 seven or eight pass,, at a time. Hen- they came to the 
 battalion in lots of fifty to one hundred. \\ e had our 
 
 HEAVY ARTILLERY AT LE MANS 
 
 allowab le 20% away on have all the time we were .thew. 
 The mess was not so good as it should have been bnt w€ 
 
 ,, v, g I barracks. About the middle of April the 
 
 „ battalion and Regimental Headquarters moved 
 d S wn t0 the LeMans area and settled in the Forward^ 
 ( !amp . We then knew that it was 3 nst a matte of a fe* 
 da7 until we wonld move down to them. We turned 
 in aU excess clothing, had company and battabon pictnres 
 
 One Hundred Nine 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 taken, stood a divisional equipment inspection in the 
 field, took a shot of "Triple T. A. B. Lipo- Vaccine ", 
 turned in the animals and transport and by this time it 
 was Saturday April 26th. We hiked down to the For- 
 warding Camp and were greeted with a regular sand and 
 dust storm. There was a good rain the next day and it 
 'brought relief from the blinding dirt clouds. We had 
 our final field inspection and had the Castle Picture taken 
 here. We stayed nearly two weeks. Most of the time 
 was spent getting hack into form along soldierly lines. 
 We had East and West, Setting-up Exercises, Manual 
 of Arms and little practice hikes. The eats were very 
 poor and the Camp managemenl entirely too hard boiled. 
 The bird who was our block commander strutted around 
 as if he could shut off the sun-light and spite the World 
 if things didn't go to suit him. And, Oh! Girls!, he had 
 i he entest little swagger stick. 
 
 We were slated to leave the camp live days after our 
 arrival but we were set hack for a week. There were 
 plenty of Welfare lints and al! gave excellent service. 
 The recreation field was tilled with bast-ball fans every 
 afternoon and evening, and there was always a game in 
 progress. While we were here the first battalion held 
 its divisional field inspection. We went out to practice. 
 The day was a miserable one. It was cold, the wind was 
 high, and there was a continual downpour of rain. Our 
 blankets were saturated but we dried them by running 
 them through the cooty plant. The next day we stood 
 the final A. E. C. Field Inspection. The packs were 
 spread and lined up with strings. After the inspection 
 each man stood behind bis layout while a photograph was 
 taken then we all moved off the field leaving the equip- 
 
 ' hie Hundred Ten 
 
THE s. <>. s. 
 
 ment lay. The packs were then photographed. It was 
 a beautiful sight, eighteen hundred packs layed out in 
 perfect allignment in both rank and column. This was 
 the last inspection at Le Mans. 
 
 'bUBBlN-OJVTHL- RIGHT 
 
 We left for Brest on American Troop (Freight) 
 Car-. They were eight wheel cars with springs and the 
 train had right of way so it was a very comfortable and 
 enjoyable trip as troop trips are rated in France. We 
 had an evening meal served on the train. Of course i1 
 was a plain meal hut it had "travel rations" beat a 
 thousand ways. In the morning we pulled into Bresl 
 
 Hundred Eleven 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 and had breakfast at a big mess-hall near the station. 
 About an hour after breakfast we slung equipment and 
 started for the Pontanezen Camp. The first part of the 
 trip was much the same as it was on our previous hike 
 eleven months before, but as we got out of town we be- 
 gan to see changes. The French kid that played "Hail, 
 Hail the Gang's all Here" on his tin fife had enlarged 
 his repertoire during the year and ran beside our column 
 piping "Beautiful Katy", the road was now filled with 
 motor transport whereas a year before it had been an 
 empty country road, the fields at the top of the hill were 
 now hidden by hundreds of corrugated steel buildings. 
 The road had boardwalks at each side and there were 
 duck-board walks everywhere. To read all the signs of 
 warning, direction and instruction would be a liberal 
 education in itself. We finally arrived at our billets. 
 They were in good shape. The grounds were spotless so 
 we knew that we were going to have to be very careful 
 where we dropped tilings. The old Pontanezen Barracks 
 were very much transformed. The parade ground had 
 been transformed into a parking place for motor trucks. 
 The old barrack buildings where we had slept were board- 
 ed up and every available inch of space was occupied 
 with portable barracks, welfare buildings, or sheds of 
 some sort. 
 
 The afternoon of the day that we arrived we were 
 taken down for "the Brest Bath". First they looked 
 us over for cooties and then we went into the mill. It 
 was a large room. Over at one side stood a battery of 
 steam delousers. In the adjoining room were the show- 
 ers. It was a regular Bedlam. Any S. O. S. man in 
 there could yell, blow his whistle or beat on a tin pan 
 
 One Hundred Twelve 
 
THE S. O. 8. 
 
 if he wanted to, but a man in there for inspection must 
 not talk. ''You're at Ease," "Shirts 11])," "Stand Up," 
 "Turn Around," "Sit Down," "Hurry along there," 
 "Come Back, You," "Stand Mere," "Move On". That 
 was what it would sound like if the attendants could ar- 
 range to speak one at a time, hut they insisted on all 
 talking at once and the result was as clear as the music 
 rendered when a grind stone is played on the victrola. 
 We endured this for nearly two minutes and were then 
 chased into the shower room. Here we found covered 
 troughs filled with a liquid soap that smelted strong* of 
 Kerosine. As soon as we were in, the talk started, but 
 as there was only one mouth working we got his instruc- 
 tions without any difficulty. He turned on the water, 
 then — "Open the soap boxes — don't put the soap on your 
 heads — get the soap off — close the soap boxes — get a 
 towel as you pass out the door to the left" — lust like 
 that and the bath was Fini. The underwear was issued 
 on the run. The sizes were no consideration. Sirwell 
 drew garments that would lit Spade, and Suskey's out- 
 tit was about right for Hopkins. Two days later Ave 
 had another trip through the mill. This time we went 
 to the big building behind the bath house with full equip- 
 ment and spread it on the Moor while an Officer stood 
 nearby yelling "shake it up". Then the officer strolled 
 down past us, then another, then a third. The fourth said 
 "Roll up, You" and the inspection was over. We then 
 had two days practice at preparing for the final pack 
 inspection. The order came in for us to report at 9:30 
 P.M. We went down with all our equipment, our packs 
 were perfect, everyone in the regiment exactly like all 
 the others. Our rifles were cleaned, our shoes brushed 
 
 One Hundred Thirteen 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 and every thread of our equipment was placed just so. 
 We went into the inspection building and had GLOVE 
 INSPECTION. If you had a pair of gloves you were 
 O.K. 
 
 We felt proud of the showing we had made until the 
 next day. Then an outfit blew in from somewhere and 
 were placed ahead of us on the sailing orders. We were 
 peeved. Here we were all dolled up sweet enough to kiss 
 and along comes a shaggy looking half equipped unin- 
 spected gang (we knew they were soldiers only by their 
 mess kits) and they beat our time. Instead of climb- 
 ing the gang-plank we mount guard and furnish a 100- 
 man detail on the same day. We lay around camp for 
 a week doing odd jobs, loafing and getting inspected. 
 On the eighth day we were told that our boat was as- 
 signed and that we would leave on the following day. 
 We didn't. The boat was turned over to another out- 
 fit of our Division and we just stayed. By this time 
 many of us were thinking of applying for French citi- 
 zenship papers. On the eleventh day the Engineer train 
 pulled out leaving the rest of the regiment. On the 
 same day we received orders to drill one hour per day. 
 What we thought of that is not fit to print. But that 
 evening we had our temperatures taken so we cooled 
 down a. little because the temperature reading is a sure 
 sign of an early departure. Sure enough, the next day 
 we packed up and hiked down to the port and gave our 
 last names first. We were crowded on to a lighter and 
 
 One Hundred Fourteen 
 
THE S. 0. S. 
 
 were taken out to a ship anchored in deep water in a very 
 short wliile. We were not given a rest from the time 
 we left the camp until we threw our packs on the trans- 
 port bunks. Oh, what a relief! 
 
 One Hundred Fifteen 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 HEADED FOR THE U. S. A. 
 
 TJIK boat assigned to us was a converted freighter 
 making its first trip as a transport. It had done 
 service as a freighter under the name Minnesota 
 but this name was later changed to TROY as the names 
 of states were being held to name battleships. The 
 TROY was reputed to be the biggest freighter afloat. 
 She made the trip to Brest from New York in eleven 
 days. We knew all these tilings about her before we 
 saw her and so we came down expecting to see a big 
 mudscow and were considerably surprised when we be- 
 held a line looking big boat with anchors and life rafts 
 and smoke stack "and everything". The hold was fitted 
 with spring-bottomed bunks in tiers of four. The steel 
 was newly painted and the lighting was excellent. We 
 liked our boat before we were on her more than ten 
 minutes. The anchor was hauled up and we were under 
 way two hours after we climbed the gang-plank. We 
 had expected to lay in the harbor overnight at least. 
 The evening meal was ham and cabbage and a few trim- 
 mings. This was the first ham we had eaten in a year so, 
 smmning things up, we started with everything looking 
 rosey. The first class passenger list of our regiment was 
 larger than the boat could accommodate so some of the 
 officers were sent on a different boat. The second class 
 passengers were simply out of luck for there was no 
 provision made for them at all, so our high ranking non- 
 coms went down in the hold with the bucks. 
 
 One Hundred Sixteen 
 
HEADED FOR THE U. S. A. 
 
 The Troy, was very large and heavy and was quite 
 steady. She tossed very slightly. The troops were 
 quartered in eight compartments, four forward and four 
 aft. Most of 4 'F" company was in G 6. There were 
 six sections in each compartment. Sections 5 and 6 were 
 on the third stage 1 below the deck so we had state rooms 
 located the same as old "1)D" except that we were aft 
 whereas on the way over we were forward. The eats 
 were wonderful. After a year of corn meal, bacon, beef, 
 potatoes, and rice with carrots thrown in occasionally as 
 a delicacy we were surprised to find that oranges, eggs, 
 pork, cucumbers, apples, cake, etc., were still considered 
 lit food for soldiers. 
 
 THE U. S. S. TROY — F COMPANY IS AFT 
 (Courtesy of the Pittsburgh "Post") 
 
 One Hundred Seventeen 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 The Troy should have carried a crew of eight hun- 
 dred but. somehow or other she landed in Brest with 
 only six hundred "gobs" aboard. As usual the soldiers 
 were given a chance to work and being short of help 
 there was work for everyone that wanted it. We had 
 forty men working in the coal-bunkers and as many more 
 scattered all over the vessel on various duties. The coal 
 passers ate with the crew, got a bath after each shift, 
 and had an excuse for strolling anywhere on the ship 
 that their fancy might lead them. The first night down 
 in the hold Solverson collided with a lowhanging support 
 and received two ugly cuts on the head. He spent the 
 remainder of the voyage in the ship's infirmary. The 
 privileges allowed the soldiers on the Troy were quite 
 generous. On the Huron a man could get into trouble 
 by throwing a piece of scrap paper over the side, matches 
 and lighters were taken from us before we left Chesa- 
 peake Bay, bread was kept under lock and key, and 
 fresh water was issued by the canteenfull between 8:00 
 A.M., and 9:00 A.M., daily. On the Troy lights burned 
 all night, smoking was permitted at all hours on all parts 
 of the ship, bread boxes were always accessible, there 
 was plenty of fresh water and anything could be thrown 
 overboard at any time Every day our band or the 141st 
 Infantry band would play and the boys would put on the 
 gloves for a few rounds. In the evening movies were 
 shown on the quarter deck. The soldiers perched all 
 over the aft rigging to watch the pictures. To climb to 
 any place as high as a hatch door was an unpardonable 
 sin on the Huron. 
 
 As stated above the Troy was not a glutton for 
 speed and it was a little bit disconcerting to see boats pull 
 
 One Hundred Eighteen 
 
p behind us. come abreast and then leave us behind 
 ,U m the space of an hour. This happened several times 
 V three-mast sailing vessel headed for Europe passed 
 us on our third day out. It was a real curiosity, bail- 
 ing vess,l> were all laying in ports when we came over 
 s0 we did not see any and many of the boys had never 
 seen one on the sea before. With the aid of the Engi- 
 neer coal heavers the engineer found it possible to oper- 
 ate fourteen of the sixteen boilers and we soon ran our 
 speed all the way up to twelve and a halt knots. 
 Every day a chart was posted showing the course, the 
 position of the ship, the distance covered on each pre- 
 ceding dav and the total distance from Brest and to Bos- 
 ton There was always a crowd around the chart. 
 
 ' The aft gallev had four long dining tables in it. 
 These were of no use as such on a transport, but were 
 -after in the way at meal times as they cramped the 
 Hues going to the kitchens. But after dark they became 
 as busv as a market square. You could bet anything 
 from a nickle up at Stud, Draw, Black Jack or the bones. 
 The onlv thing it lacked was a wheel or we might refer 
 to it as' a floating Monte Carlo. When we were about 
 half way across the mess officer saw that the space the 
 tables took was needed badly for the chow lines so the 
 gambling room fixtures went over the side. 
 
 The first dav out overalls were issued to all enlisted 
 men These were a great convenience. We could squat 
 any place without soiling our uniforms. The men who 
 had work to do wore them of necessity tat the rest of 
 us just wore them for style. You couldn t tell a Sr 
 Gr M E from an ordinary garden variety buck. A 
 few non-coms from Regimental Headquarters felt a little 
 
 One Hundred Nineteen 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 bit too holy to appear before the rest of the regiment 
 in fatigue clothes but these celebrities will have their 
 
 whims. 
 
 On Memorial Day we had a treat. Turkey and ice 
 cream were the features. Our old friend JupPluv saw- 
 that there was a party on so he attended. He stayed 
 from 11:45 A.M., till 12:15 P.M. Of course meal time 
 is the proper time for rain on a transport for then all 
 the men are on deck and cannot get below. But if every- 
 thing wont Lovely all the time it wouldn't be the army, 
 it would bo heaven. Toward evening the wind rose and 
 the rain made a fresh start. The boat began rolling 
 and by dusk the sea was pretty rough. All that night 
 .Mid all the next day we had wind and wave to contend 
 with. The storm lasted from Friday night until Sun- 
 day morning. It was a seventy-two mile gale. Very 
 few men went on deck until it was over. Lieutenant 
 Ballard went forward to see if the anchor was hanging- 
 straight or for sonic such reason and came back minus 
 one Cap, Overseas. Several venturesome soldiers went 
 up to see w hat a storm looks like and came back drenched. 
 Two of the ship's life rafts were swept over the side. 
 The following morning the wind subsided and before 
 noon the sea was as smooth as a mirror. Early in the 
 afternoon we received orders to land in Xew York in- 
 stead of in Boston. This was widely rumored but our 
 fust verification of the change in course came from the 
 loungers on the poop-deck. They had seen the change 
 in direction of the waves in the wake of the vessel when 
 she changed her course. 
 
 We pulled into Xew York harbor without further 
 
 ( hn Hundred Twenty 
 
HEADED FOR THE U. S. A. 
 
 incident. "F" company's overseas trip was at lasl 
 complete. 
 
 "My country, 'tis of The< — Sweet laud of Lib- 
 erty— " 
 (AIN'T IT A GRAND AND GLORIOUS FEELING) 
 
 One Hundred Twenty-one 
 
DIRECTORY 
 
 Fred G. Rockwell Captain 
 
 tWiLHAM R. Grunow Captain 
 
 ^Alexander W. Yereance ist Lieut. 
 Wilson T. Ballard ist Lieut. 
 
 tJoHN G. Menke ist Lieut. 
 
 Henry G. Buckingham . . ist Lieut. 
 
 JBen T. Collier 2nd Lieut. 
 
 ^Arthur N. Allcroft 2nd Lieut. 
 
 Edward A. Furrer 2nd Lieut. 
 
 John T. Ellis 2nd Lieut. 
 
 Joseph V. Muldoon 2nd Lieut. 
 
 Ackerman, Carl F Sgt. ist class 
 
 Akers, James C Private 
 
 Alexander, Edward Private 
 
 -{■Alexander, William C. . Sergeant 
 Anderson, Russel D Private 
 
 fANNA, Maurus T Private 
 
 Antignano, Luigi Private 
 
 Bailey, Alfred E Corporal 
 
 Barbour, Frederick W. . . Private 
 
 IBarker, Carty O Private 
 
 JBarron, Alexander F. . . . Corporal 
 Bartlett, Clarence F. . . . Private 
 Barton, Harry E Private 
 
 ^Baxter, David A M. E. Jr. Gr. 
 
 Bechtel, John D Sgt. ist class 
 
 Bell, Hugh M Corporal 
 
 Bender, Ray W Private 
 
 Birx, Harry O Corporal 
 
 JBodie, Stanley M. E. Sr. Gr. 
 
 JBowden, Hill C Corporal 
 
 Bowell, James V Private 
 
 Bowersox, Charles Cook 
 
 Boyd, Harry P Private 
 
 IBrigman, Herbert G Corporal 
 
 Brooker, Charles W Private 
 
 JBrown, John R Private 
 
 Burchill, Joseph W Private 
 
 Burgy, Lewis Wagoner 
 
 Buskirk, Urias B Horseshoer 
 
 22 Huston Street, Towanda, Penna. 
 
 125 E. 91st Street, New York City. 
 
 67 Scotland Road, South Orange, N. T. 
 
 Mount Royal Ave-, Baltimore, Md. 
 
 922 14th St., Golden, Colorado. 
 
 712 Vance Ave-, Memphis, Tenn. 
 
 710 Line Street, Decatur, Ala. 
 
 133 South Street, Ada, Ohio. 
 
 2913 5th Ave., Altoona, Penna. 
 
 P. O. No. 63, Shawsville, Va. 
 
 1205 B Street, Johnstown, Penna. 
 
 Ford City, Penna. 
 
 Crystal Springs, Penna. 
 
 316 W. 44th St., Seattle, Wash. 
 
 Ehrenfeld, Penna. 
 
 Ogalalla, Neb. 
 
 Hastings, Penna. 
 
 181 Franklin Ave., Brooklyn, N. Y. 
 
 1615 Meadville St., N. S. Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 
 115 Hamilton Ave., Vandergrift, Penna. 
 
 Benhams, Virginia. 
 
 7316 E. 70th Place, Chicago, 111. 
 
 Simpson, Taylor County, W. Va. 
 
 804 Crest Ave-, Charleroi, Penna. 
 
 Portage, Penna. 
 
 4 Homes Ave., Johnstown, Penna. 
 
 1 181 Water Street, Indiana, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 1 Rossiter, Indiana County, Penna. 
 
 1 150 Basin Street, N. S. Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 
 243 Chestnut St., San Antonio, Texas. 
 
 Raleigh, Georgia. 
 
 Main Street, Belle Vernon, Penna. 
 
 J330 Johnson Ave-, Kittanning, Penna. 
 
 Somerfield, Penna. 
 
 331 Duke St., Norfolk, Va. 
 
 RFD No. 1, Newton Falls, Ohio. 
 
 Remington, Va. 
 
 509 21st St., Altoona, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 1, Willow, W. Va. 
 
 Box 414, Logan, W. Va. 
 
 One Hundred Twenty-two 
 
DIRECTORY 
 
 Campbell, Lee H Private 
 
 Campbell, William G. . . . Med. Detach. 
 
 Cannon, Joseph E Private 
 
 Carter. George Sergeant 
 
 JCavbos, Manuel Private 
 
 Chappel, Fonzy G Private 
 
 Christensen, Robert E. . Private 
 Cicchetti, Guiseppe Sgt. 1st class 
 
 *Clark. Frederick L Private 
 
 $Clark, Harold E Corporal 
 
 Claud, Frank L Corporal 
 
 Cramer, Cyrus G Cook 
 
 Current, Wilbur R Private 
 
 Danilevsky, Antoni Private 
 
 Demijroski, Benjamin ...Private 
 
 Deutsch, Creston S Private 
 
 Devnney, George Private 
 
 Dishong, Dick Wagoner 
 
 Ditko, Peter Private 
 
 Doty, James C Sergeant 
 
 Ea heart, Joe Private 
 
 tEmbrey, William T Private 
 
 Eppley, Norman R Corporal 
 
 *Fabina, Mato Corporal 
 
 fFARMER, Wiley G Private 
 
 Fitzgerald, Hunter Corporal 
 
 Fleckenstein, Frank G. .Sergeant 
 
 Floyd, Frank T Sergeant 
 
 Flynn, Donald L Bugler 1st clas 
 
 fFosTER, Royal L Mess Sgt. 
 
 Fralin, Frank W Private 
 
 Frantz, Henry A Private 
 
 Freiler, Charles A Private 
 
 Fulton, Arthur H. Jr. . . Corporal 
 
 Geidel, Harry J Sgt. 1st class 
 
 Geisinger, James A Private 
 
 Gelardi, Zaccaria Private 
 
 Gibson, Urbert P Corporal 
 
 Goodge, George E Private 
 
 Goul, William A Private 
 
 Grant, Daniel R Private 
 
 tGROSso, Joseph Corporal 
 
 Grotophorst, Carl Corporal 
 
 Haines, Robert A Sergeant 
 
 Hall, Aaron Private 
 
 Box No. 7, Lignite, Va. 
 Freeport, Pa. 
 
 1401 E. Plane St., Avoca, Penna. 
 301 1 Chartiers Ave., Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 1 103 Wiley Ave., Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 RFD No. 1, Abingdon, Ya. 
 417 Newman St., Erie, Pa. 
 Box 475, Brownsville, Penna. 
 Coudersport, Penna. 
 Belle Vernon, Penna. 
 Arringdale, Va. 
 236 4th St., Sagamore, Pa. 
 Thornton. W. Va. 
 104 Baron Ave., Johnstown, Penna. 
 302 Pottsville St., Minersville, Pa. 
 244 Arabella St., Knoxville, Penna. 
 1219 S. 24th St., Philadelphia, Penna. 
 Harrisonville, Fulton County, Penna. 
 165 Benshoff St., Johnstown, Penna. 
 131 E. Penn St., Bedford, Penna. 
 Radiant, Va. 
 Dexterville, Ky. 
 
 158 Strayer St., Johnstown, Penna. 
 1313 B. Street, Johnstown, Penna. 
 Madison Heights, Va. 
 Nottoway, Va. 
 
 72 K Street, Johnstown, Penna. 
 5810 Howe Street, Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 S155 Glenwood Ave., Meadville, Pa. 
 Timblin, Penna. 
 Rocky Mount, Va. 
 RFD No. 2, Slatington, Pa. 
 32 Carbon St., Minersville, Penna. 
 RFD No. 2, Leesburg, Va. 
 RFD No. 1, Box 165, Kitlanning, Penna. 
 220 E. 4th St-, Altoona, Penna. 
 1010 Virginia St., Norfolk, Va. 
 1439 Oak St., N. W. Washington, D. C. 
 126 N. Main St., Cambridge Springs, Penna. 
 RFD No. 1, Smithton, Penna. 
 Box 214, Houtzdale, Penna. 
 1215 13th St., S. W. Roanoke, Va. 
 RFD No. 1, Plain, Wisconsin. 
 Craigsville, Penna. 
 121 Pittman St., Penns Grove, N. J. 
 
 One Hiuidred Twenty-three 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 JHalstead, Edward C Private 
 
 Hamlett. Thomas J Private 
 
 Hammer. John E Private 
 
 Harris. Emery Corporal 
 
 Harris. Pall H Sup. Sgl 
 
 Hart. Elmer F Private 
 
 tHarville. Carlton L Private 
 
 {Hatfield. William M. . . Private 
 
 Henry. Everett O Private 
 
 Hopkins. Lawrence L. .. Corporal 
 
 Horsman, Phillip L Private 
 
 Howard, Rlpert E. . . Serg ant 
 
 Hudson, Henry A Corporal 
 
 Hyer. James Private 
 
 Jenkins. Raymond J. ... Private 
 
 S \ . Arvid S Corporal 
 
 Wallace S Private 
 
 - S rgeant 
 
 rdon Private 
 
 - S ". O Private 
 
 5, Walter P Private 
 
 ,E W . . . ral 
 
 v J St recant 
 
 IKamer. Matthew H. Serg ant 
 
 Karalfa. 1. uis A Pi 
 
 Kataj - v A. . . Pr 
 
 Kexley. John E 
 
 ^Kennedy. Hughey Private 
 
 John H Private 
 
 ■i-KiRK - Private 
 
 Kirk. T - Wagoner 
 
 Kohlbeck, Ant \ J Pi 
 
 Kohr. Charles R S 
 
 Serg ant 
 Kozelka, Frank A. Jr. . . Pri\-ate 
 
 Kubofcik, John Private 
 
 C M. E. Jr. Gr. 
 
 ILaff: :vate 
 
 Laidig. Harvey W. . . ral 
 
 Lambertson. Walt 
 
 Lavf.i.t f. John F Pr 
 
 Lave s . Private 
 
 Lawrence. Owen G Private 
 
 .rd. Ben C Private 
 
 S - ant 
 
 -/ :>ur 
 
 Carterville. 111. 
 
 Durmid. Ya. 
 
 RFD No. i. Lu Verne, Iowa. 
 
 Arbutus. Md. 
 
 S Railroad Ave., Portage, Pa. 
 RFD No. i. Chandler. Minn. 
 325 Shepherd St.. Petersburg. Va. 
 
 5th Ave.. Huntingdon, W. Ya. 
 RFD Xo. 2, Front Royal, Va. 
 - : Baum Blvd.. Pittsburgh. Penna. 
 672 Union St.. W. Philadelphia. Penna. 
 
 St.. Clifton. Forge. Va. 
 040 Wilson St.. Kittanning, Penna. 
 Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 RFD Xo. 7. Johnstown, Penna. 
 Box 176. Wheatland. Va. 
 1 1 26 E. Market St.. Charlottsville, Va. 
 102 Chapin St.. Johnstown, Penna. 
 Xewcastle. Ya. 
 Toms Creek. Ya. 
 
 Dormont, Pa. 
 - 1 Si Johnstown, Penna. 
 
 30S I Si :.. Penna. 
 
 Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 74 Cooper Ave., Johnstown. Penna. 
 804 H - Toledo, Ohio. 
 
 Brewster. Ya. 
 1720 X. Al 5 Philadelphia. Penna. 
 
 Hon. Ya. 
 8001 Elsa Court, Cleveland, Ohio. 
 War fords burg, Penna. 
 1021 1 SL, -cegon Hei§ 
 
 hnstown, Penna. 
 
 . - 
 
 136 H S ohnstown, Penna. 
 
 239 Baron Ave., Johnstown, Penna. 
 1616 I S ilkinsburg, Penna. 
 
 : na. 
 214 Tazzle Ave., Cape Char 
 144 Greenfield A Pittsburg h. Penna. 
 5510 I- 5 W. Philadelphia, Penna. 
 
 RFD X'o- 1. E. Millsboro, Penna. 
 RFD Xo. 1. Bristol, \ a. 
 315 Portage St.. Emporium, Penna. 
 
DIRECTORY 
 
 Lines, Carl (. Private 
 
 Lininger, Ralph C Wagoner 
 
 ±I.ixi), John Private 
 
 Love. John Y Private 
 
 Lynch. Arthur P. G. ...Cook 
 
 M w.i.oy. Andrew J Private 
 
 Markovics, John Private 
 
 Marti x. George YY Private 
 
 M vsterson, James P Private 
 
 Mazi r. Walter A Private 
 
 Meanor, YVilford Private 
 
 Miller, Alexander A. ..Private 
 
 Miller, Donald S Corporal 
 
 Miller. Norman L Private 
 
 Miller, Philetus C Corporal 
 
 Mingee, Lewis E Private 
 
 *Molinaro, Yngelo W. ...Private 
 
 Morgan, Jasper C Corporal 
 
 Morris, Fred H Private 
 
 Morris, Joseph J Private 
 
 ±Morrison, Joseph F Private 
 
 Morton, Frederick C. ...Private 
 
 Moseley, James E Corporal 
 
 Muldoon, John A tst Sgt 
 
 Murphy, Edward E Private 
 
 Murphy, Harry C Private 
 
 fMuRPHY, Joseph M Private 
 
 McCaffrey, Joh n E Private 
 
 McCaig, Robert Cook 
 
 McCollum, William J. ..Sgt. 1st class 
 McDonald, Joseph M. ...Corporal 
 McFadden, Aden YY' Private 
 
 fMcFARLAND, Ralph F. ...Private 
 
 McKee, Joe Private 
 
 McKibbin, Francis M. ..Wagoner 
 
 Xeace. Oscar Private 
 
 Neville, Raymond M Sergeant 
 
 Newman, Oliver W Private 
 
 Norton, Blair Sergeant 
 
 ±Ogle, James J Private 
 
 Oswald, Walton W Private 
 
 Ott, Roy L Private 
 
 Parker, Russel S Private 
 
 Partsch, Charles W. ... Corporal 
 Pearsall, David Private 
 
 Centerville, Penna. 
 
 McConnellsburg, Prima. 
 
 Hayward, Calif. 
 
 ( ieorgeA i'.le, X. C. 
 
 RF1 ) Xo. l Everett, Penna. 
 
 RFD Xo. 3, Dubois, Penna. 
 
 Si iiithwest, Penna. 
 
 1015 Egelson St-, Richmond, Y a. 
 
 8294th Ave., Warren. Penna. 
 
 Humboldt, Arizona. 
 
 71 Walnut St.. Coraopolis, Penna. 
 
 [067a Wheel St.. Milwaukee. Wis 
 
 100 ) Lexington Ave., Altoona, Penna 
 
 Glenn Richey, Clearfield County, Penna. 
 
 33 Main St., Sharpsville, Penna. 
 
 29 Hope St., Phoebus, Va. 
 
 25 Hospital St.. Carbondale, Penna. 
 
 Holland. Va. 
 
 013 Race St., Logansport, Ind. 
 
 Mammoth. YY Y'a. 
 
 Tyrone, Penna. 
 
 4845 Pierce St., Omaha, Nebr. 
 
 \I. >s( ley Junction. Va. 
 
 1205 B. St., Johnstown, Penna. 
 
 646 X. Beville Ave, Indianapolis, Ind. 
 
 417 X. St., Logansport, Ind. 
 
 240 Payson St.. Pontiac, III. 
 
 814 Broad St.. Johnstown, Penna. 
 
 10 10th St., Farrell, Penna. 
 
 X. Jefferson St., Kittanning, Penna. 
 
 151 Jordan Ave. Carbondale, Penna. 
 
 La Jose, Penna. 
 
 RFD Xo. 1, Allison Park, Penna. 
 
 RFD Xo. 4, Martinsville. Ind. 
 
 Amaranth, Penna. 
 
 Box 93, RFD Xo. 3. Huntingdon, W. Y'a. 
 
 i,i,() Sutton St., Punxsutawney, Penna. 
 
 ( 'hnekatnek. Y'a. 
 
 McKinley St., W. Kittanning, Penna. 
 
 RFD Xo. 1, Barren Springs, Va. 
 
 X. Jefferson St., Kittanning, Penna. 
 
 I lolsopple, Penna. 
 
 Wilsonville, Neb. 
 
 521 Woodvale Ave., Johnstown, Penna. 
 
 P. O. Box ft, Hewlett, Long Island, \. V 
 
 One Hundred Twenty-five 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 Pearson, Howard S Private 
 
 -j-Pence, Seram Private 
 
 Perkins, Willard C Private 
 
 Pessagno, Geisuppe Corporal 
 
 Peterson, Percy W Private 
 
 fPoNELL, Joe Private 
 
 Pope, Bush Wagoner 
 
 $Port, Clarence F Corporal 
 
 Preston, Peter Private 
 
 ^Powell, Frederick S Private 
 
 Price, Willie W Private 
 
 Raasch, John Private 
 
 Ray, Bell D Private 
 
 Retzer, Andrew Sergeant 
 
 Rifenburg, George W. . . . Private 
 
 Riste, Bozin Cook 
 
 Ritchey, Ernest V Corporal 
 
 Ritz, Charles H Private 
 
 Robinson, Loyd D Private 
 
 Rocus, Michael J Private 
 
 Rodgers, Harry Corporal 
 
 JRoot, William J Private 
 
 fRouNDS, Walton E Private 
 
 Ryan, Martin C Private 
 
 fRYDHOLM, Ivan Private 
 
 Sarcinella, Charles .... Private 
 
 Schaffer, George M Corporal 
 
 Schall, Richard J Corporal 
 
 Scharmann, Fred C Private 
 
 Schilling, Louis J Corporal 
 
 Schmidberg, Andrew H. .Private 
 Schriefer, Frederick A. . Private 
 Schroeder, Oliver W Private 
 
 JScollon, James A Sergeant 
 
 Seamon, Edward S Private 
 
 Sebring, Albert L Private 
 
 fSEE, Alfred N Private 
 
 Seibert, Joseph Wagoner 
 
 Selensky, Joh n Private 
 
 Seward, Allen P Private 
 
 JShadle, Frank L Corporal 
 
 Shaffer, Oscar L Private 
 
 Share, George L Private 
 
 fSHEETS, Charles V Corporal 
 
 Sherne, Adolph G Private 
 
 Box 34, Dellaplane, Va. 
 
 Broadway, Va. 
 
 Ashland, Va. 
 
 244 Maple Ave., Johnstown, Pcnna. 
 
 Box No. 6, Commonwealth, Wis., Florence Co 
 
 McKees Rocks, Penna. 
 
 Box 33, Newell, Penna., Fulton Co. 
 
 High St., Ebensburg, Penna. 
 
 2,22,7 N. Lwandale Ave., Chicago, 111. 
 
 Parmale, N. C. 
 
 Walker St., N. Emporia, Va. 
 
 426 Dewitt St., Clinton, Iowa. 
 
 1000 Water St., Indiana, Penna. 
 
 1039 7th Ave., Ford City, Penna. 
 
 Box 215, Masontown, Penna. 
 
 P. O. 456, Ford City, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 1, E. Brady, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 3, Hancock, Md., Box 41. 
 
 1 130 Henton St., Petersburg, Va. 
 
 931 Mitchell St., Gallitzin, Penna. 
 
 15 Bigelow St., Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 
 Chew's Landing, N. J. 
 
 22() W. Washington St., Corry, Penna. 
 
 10 Williams St., Fitchburg, Mass. 
 
 42 Locust St., Warren, Penna. 
 
 1026 Darr Ave., Farrell, Penna. 
 
 439 V2 Reynolds Ave., Kittanning, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 1, Kelly Station, Penna. 
 
 2517 Wallace St., Erie, Pcnna. 
 
 717 Chestnut St., Johnstown, Penna. 
 
 309 Bank St.. Norfolk, Va. 
 
 2126 Liberty St., Erie, Penna. 
 
 2408 S. 39th St., St. Louis, Mo. 
 
 Box 252, Barnesboro, Penna. 
 
 Box 48, Bowerton, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 2, Brookville, Penna. 
 
 365 Liberty Place, Oakmont, Penna. 
 
 Strawn, Somerset Co., Penna. 
 
 419 Dunmore St., Throop, Penna. 
 
 Surry Court House, Va. 
 
 Market St., Leechburg, Penna. 
 
 Hyndman, Bedford Co., Penna. 
 
 5202 Butler St., Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 
 P. O. 697, Leechburg, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 2, Box 174, Hudson, Wis. 
 
 One Hundred Twejity-six 
 
DIRECTORY 
 
 Shifflktt, Henry W Private 
 
 Silvis, Joseph E Private 
 
 Sirwell, Samuel M Private 
 
 Smith, Louis A Wagoner 
 
 Smith, Owen Private 
 
 Smith, Walter G Bugler 
 
 Smith, Wave A Private 
 
 Solverson, Norman T. . . Private 
 
 Spade, Frank B Private 
 
 Spiker, Thomas A Private 
 
 $Steinmann, John H Private 
 
 Sterne, Fenton E Private 
 
 Stevens, Clyde F Private 
 
 Stewart, Roy M Corporal 
 
 Stine, Clyde E Med. Det. 
 
 Suskey, Charlie S Corporal 
 
 Swearingen, Wade H. . . Private 
 
 JTaylor, Robert Private 
 
 Tench, James H Private 
 
 ♦Thompson, Wyatt W. . . Private 
 
 Todd, James E Sgt. ist class 
 
 Trexler, Donald J Private 
 
 Trigaux, Alfred Private 
 
 Truax, Callie D Private 
 
 fTuRNEY, Frank Private 
 
 Vaughan, Willie D Private 
 
 :j:Veronesia, John Private 
 
 Vickey, Charles A Private 
 
 Vickrest, Michael J Private 
 
 Wagner, Paul D Corporal 
 
 Wagoner, Rush Private 
 
 Wall, James R Private 
 
 Walls, Edwin L Corporal 
 
 Waters, French W Mess Sgt. 
 
 Webb, Claud Private 
 
 *Webb, Harvey J Private 
 
 Webb. Millard A Private 
 
 Welch, James A Sergeant 
 
 Welsh, William P Private 
 
 Werner, Albert A Corporal 
 
 Wertz, John L Private 
 
 :|:White, Walter Private 
 
 Whitehurst, Herman E. Private 
 
 Wigle, George F Private 
 
 Wilbur, Andrew L Corporal 
 
 1 >ayton, Va. 
 
 00 Forman St., Bradford, Penna. 
 
 150 Jacob St., Kittanning, Penna. 
 
 48 Clark St., Warren, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 1, Vienna, Va. 
 
 Blackshurg, Va. 
 
 RFD No. 6, Corry, Penna. 
 
 314 W. 6th St., Emporium, Penna. 
 Emmaville, Fulton Co., Penna. 
 
 155 Hazelwood Ave., Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 
 68 Ceres Alley, Rear, Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 
 Dinwiddie, Va. 
 
 Ford, Washington. 
 
 RFD No. 1, Yatesboro, Penna. 
 
 Glasgow, Pa. 
 
 1009 Beaver St-, McKeesport, Penna. 
 
 453 Vandalia St., Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 
 150 Park Ave., Washington. Pa. 
 
 335 Main St., Petersburg, Va. 
 
 Rice, Va. 
 
 Main St., Fayette City, Pa. 
 
 RFD No. 2, Patton, Penna. (Cambria Co.) 
 
 Salem, W. Va. 
 
 RFD No. 2, Pleasant Ridge, Penna. 
 
 1 156 Wilson Ave., Kittanning, Penna. 
 
 RFD No. 3, Orange, Va. 
 
 925 E. 28th St., Erie, Penna. 
 
 00 Gilbert St., Johnstown, Penna. 
 
 Moseley Junction, Va. 
 
 Knobsville, Pa. 
 
 310 Alexander St., Greensburg, Penna. 
 
 509 Grant St., South Fork, Penna. 
 Box 112, Berkeville, Va. 
 
 Box 192, Forest City, N. C. 
 
 510 Tunnellhill St., Gallitzin, Penna. 
 81 Pearle St., Millsboro, Penna. 
 2616 Cornet St., Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 365 N. German St., Harrisonburg, Va. 
 297 Delaware Ave., Johnstown, Penna. 
 100 E. Walnut Ave., Altoona, Penna. 
 Scottdale, Penna. 
 
 Linn Haven, Va., RFD No. 1, Box 19 %. 
 
 315 Butler St., Etna, Penna. 
 1801 Goode Ave., Norfolk, Va. 
 
 One Hundred Twenty-seven 
 
COMPANY "F" OVERSEAS. 
 
 Williams, Clyde A Corporal 
 
 Williams. Joseph E Private 
 
 Williams, Thomas Corporal 
 
 fWiLLiAMS, William H. ..Private 
 
 W'lLLOUGHBY, WALTER M. Corporal 
 
 Wills, Joseph D Private 
 
 Wilson, Lloyd E Private 
 
 Wilson, Samuel S Private 
 
 Wink, Orville Y Sergeant 
 
 Wiseman, John E Private 
 
 Wissinger, Joseph C I'm ate 
 
 Witter, Douglas Private 
 
 Wolf, John F Corporal 
 
 Woodworth, Ralph Corporal 
 
 Yokimcus. VlNCENTY ....Private 
 
 *Yuchno\v, Heragin Horseshoer 
 
 *Zanotto, Antonio V Private 
 
 Zilinskv. Joseph J Sergeant 
 
 ^Zinsser, Charles F Saddler 
 
 Moseley Junction, Va. 
 
 58 River St., Sharon, Penna. 
 
 Box 56, Elizabeth, Penna. 
 
 Jacob's Creek, Pa. 
 
 445 H. Street, N. W. Washington, D. C. 
 
 Sedley, Va. 
 
 346 W. 7th St., Tarentum, Pa. 
 
 Mount Joy, Penna. 
 
 Hustontown, Penna. 
 
 M. B. Star Route, Staunton, Va. 
 
 Leechluirg, Penna. 
 
 Austin, Penna. 
 
 11N Allegheny St., Hollidaysburg, Penna. 
 
 Box [33 Jamestown, Penna. 
 
 42 X. 3rd St., Duquesne, Pinna. 
 
 Mine St., Leechburg, Penna. 
 
 1 1 16 Woodlawn Ave., Zanesyille, Ohio. 
 
 5128 Butler St., Pittsburgh, Penna. 
 
 (*) Transferred Wounded 
 (f) Transferred Sick 
 (t) Transferred for Duty 
 
 One Hundred Twenty-eight 
 

 
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