By chance, I witnessed a great military spectacle. As I did not have
to fly in the afternoon, I went to the artillery observer's post with
our Captain. About four o'clock we reached V.; from here we had
another half hour's walk ahead of us. From a distance we could see
there was heavy firing going on. The Major, in the company's
bomb-proof, told us that the artillery would hardly have time now to
avail themselves of airplanes to find the range for them. The French
were just at the time trying to get revenge for an attack we made the
day before, and the artillery was very busy. From there we went to the
observer's post and were very lucky. Our batteries were just firing at
the enemy's, our airplanes finding the range for them. Suddenly the
non-commissioned officer at the double-periscope yelled over to
us that the French were bringing up reinforcements through the
communicating trenches. The Lieutenant of Artillery ran over to the
field artillery and showed them the beautiful target. Soon after that
a few of our shrapnel burst over these positions. Bang! And the enemy
was gone. Suddenly a ball of red fire appeared in the first French
trench. This meant--shells fall ahead of trenches; place shots further
back. Just then, over a front of one and a half kilometers, a whole
brigade of Frenchmen rose from the trenches, shoulder to shoulder, a
thing I had never seen before. We have to admire them for their
courage. In front, the officers about four or five steps in the lead;
behind them, in a dense line, the men, partly negroes, whom we could
recognize by their baggy trousers. The whole line moved on a run. For
the first four hundred meters (in all they had seven hundred meters to
cover) we let them come without firing. Then we let them have our
first shrapnel. As the artillery knew the exact range, the first shots
were effective. Then came the heavier shells. We now opened a
murderous fire; it was so loud that we could not hear each other at
two paces. Again and again our shells struck the dense masses and tore
huge gaps in them, but, in spite of this, the attack continued. The
gaps were always quickly closed. Now our infantry took a hand. Our men
stood up in the trenches, exposed from the hips up, and fired like
madmen. After three or four minutes the attack slackened in spots;
that is, parts of the line advanced, others could not. After a quarter
of an hour the French on our left wing, which I could see, reached our
trenches, shot and stabbed from above, and finally jumped in. Now we
could plainly see the hand-to-hand combat: heads bobbing back and
forth, guns clubbed (they seemed to be only trying to hit, not kill),
glistening bayonets, and a general commotion. On the right wing,
things progressed slower, almost at a standstill. In the middle a
group jumped forward now and then, and into them the artillery fired
with telling effect. We could see men running wildly about, they could
not escape our artillery fire. The whole slope was strewn with bodies.
After about a quarter of an hour the Frenchmen started to retreat.
First one, then two, then three, came out of our trenches, looked all
around, and started for their own trenches. In the meantime more
troops came up from the rear. But after the first few started to run
more came out of the trenches, until finally all were out and
retreating. Our men also got out to be able to fire at the retreating
enemy to better advantage. Again and again the French officers tried
to close up their ranks, rally their men, and lead them anew to the
attack.
But in vain, for more and more sought safety in flight. Many
dropped--I think more than in the advance. In the center, the French
had advanced to within fifty meters of us, and could get no closer. As
the retreat started on the left, some in the center also lost heart,
and fled like frightened chickens. But almost all were killed. I
saw six running away when a shell exploded near them. The smoke
disappeared; there were only four left. A second shell, and only one
was left. He was probably hit by the infantry. The following proves
how completely we repelled their attack: Four Frenchmen rose, waved
their arms and ran toward our trench. Two of them carried a severely
wounded comrade. Suddenly they dropped their burden and ran faster
toward us. Probably their comrades had fired on them. Hardly were
these four in our trenches when fifty more of them got up, waved their
caps and ran toward us. But the Frenchmen didn't like this, and in a
second four well-placed shells burst between them and us; probably
they were afraid that there would be a general surrender on the part
of their men. The retreat was now general. At 6:15 the main battle was
over. Afterward we could see here and there a few Frenchmen running or
crawling to their trench.
I was very glad I had the opportunity to see this. From above, we
aviators don't see such things.