ALL QUIET (?) ON THE WESTERN FRONT
At Brigade Headquarters I happened to overhear a conversation between
our G.O.C. (General Officer Commanding) and the Divisional Commander.
From this conversation I learned that we were to bombard the German
lines for eight days, and on the first of July the "Big Push" was to
commence.
In a few days orders were issued to that effect, and it was common
property all along the line.
On the afternoon of the eighth day of our strafeing, Atwell and I were
sitting in the frontline trench smoking fags and making out our
reports of the previous night's tour of the trenches, which we had to
turn in to headquarters the following day, when an order was passed
down the trench that Old Pepper requested twenty volunteers to go over
on a trench raid that night to try and get a few German prisoners for
information purposes. I immediately volunteered for this job, and
shook hands with Atwell, and went to the rear to give my name to the
officers in charge of the raiding party.
I was accepted, worse luck.
At 9:40 that night we reported to the Brigade Headquarters dugout to
receive instructions from Old Pepper.
After reaching this dugout we lined up in a semicircle around him, and
he addressed us as follows:
"All I want you boys to do is to go over to the German lines to-night,
surprise them, secure a couple of prisoners, and return immediately.
Our artillery has bombarded that section of the line for two days and
personally I believe that that part of the German trench is
unoccupied, so just get a couple of prisoners and return as quickly as
possible."
The Sergeant on my right, in an undertone, whispered to me:
"Say, Yank, how are we going to get a couple of prisoners if the old
fool thinks 'personally that that part of the trench is
unoccupied,'--sounds kind of fishy, doesn't it mate?"
I had a funny sinking sensation in my stomach, and my tin hat felt as
if it weighed about a ton and my enthusiasm was melting away. Old
Pepper must have heard the Sergeant speak because he turned in his
direction and in a thundering voice asked:
"What did you say?"
The Sergeant with a scared look on his face and his knees trembling,
smartly saluted and answered:
"Nothing, sir."
Old Pepper said:
"Well, don't say it so loudly the next time."
Then Old Pepper continued:
"In this section of the German trenches there are two or three machine
guns which our artillery, in the last two or three days, has been
unable to tape. These guns command the sector where two of our
communication trenches join the front line, and as the brigade is to
go over the top tomorrow morning I want to capture two or three men
from these guns' crews, and from them I may be able to obtain valuable
information as to the exact location of the guns, and our artillery
will therefore be able to demolish them before the attack, and thus
prevent our losing a lot of men while using these communication
trenches to bring up reinforcements."
These were the instructions he gave us:
"Take off your identification disks, strip your uniforms of all
numerals, insignia, etc., leave your papers with your captains,
because I don't want the Boches to know what regiments are against
them as this would be valuable information to them in our attack
to-morrow and I don't want any of you to be taken alive. What I want
is two prisoners and if I get them I have a way which will make them
divulge all necessary information as to their guns. You have your
choice of two weapons--you may carry your 'persuaders' or your
knuckle knives, and each man will arm himself with four Mills bombs,
these to be used only in case of emergency."
A persuader is Tommy's nickname for a club carried by the bombers. It
is about two feet long, thin at one end and very thick at the other.
The thick end is studded with sharp steel spikes, while through the
center of the club there is a nine-inch lead bar, to give it weight
and balance. When you get a prisoner all you have to do is just stick
this club up in front of him, and believe me, the prisoner's
patriotism for Deutschland Uber Alles fades away and he very willingly
obeys the orders of his captor. If, however, the prisoner gets
high-toned and refuses to follow you, simply "persuade" him by first
removing his tin hat, and then--well, the use of the lead weight in
the persuader is demonstrated, and Tommy looks for another prisoner.
The knuckle knife is a dagger affair, the blade of which is about
eight inches long with a heavy steel guard over the grip. This guard
is studded with steel projections. At night in a trench, which is only
about three to four feet wide, it makes a very handy weapon. One punch
in the face generally shatters a man's jaw and you can get him with
the knife as he goes down.
Then we had what we called our "come-alongs." These are strands of
barbed wire about three feet long, made into a noose at one end; at
the other end, the barbs are cut off and Tommy slips his wrist through
a loop to get a good grip on the wire. If the prisoner wants to argue
the point, why just place the large loop around his neck and no matter
if Tommy wishes to return to his trenches at the walk, trot, or
gallop, Fritz is perfectly agreeable to maintain Tommy's rate of
speed.
We were ordered to black our faces and hands. For this reason: at
night, the English and Germans use what they call star shells, a sort
of rocket affair. These are fired from a large pistol about twenty
inches long, which is held over the sandbag parapet of the trench, and
discharged into the air. These star shells attain a height of about
sixty feet, and a range of from fifty to seventy-five yards. When they
hit the ground they explode, throwing out a strong calcium light which
lights up the ground in a circle of a radius of between ten to fifteen
yards. They also have a parachute star shell which, after reaching a
height of about sixty feet, explodes. A parachute unfolds and slowly
floats to the ground, lighting up a large circle in No Man's Land. The
official name of the star shell is a "Very-light." Very-lights are
used to prevent night surprise attacks on the trenches. If a star
shell falls in front of you, or between you and the German lines, you
are safe from detection, as the enemy cannot see you through the
bright curtain of light. But if it falls behind you and, as Tommy
says, "you get into the star shell zone," then the fun begins.
You have to lie flat on your stomach and remain absolutely motionless
until the light of the shell dies out. This takes anywhere from forty
to seventy seconds. If you haven't time to fall to the ground you must
remain absolutely still in whatever position you were in when the
light exploded; it is advisable not to breathe, as Fritz has an eye
like an eagle when he thinks you are knocking at his door. When a star
shell is burning in Tommy's rear he can hold his breath for a week.
You blacken your face and hands so that the light from the star shells
will not reflect on your pale face. In a trench raid there is quite
sufficient reason for your face to be pale. If you don't believe me,
try it just once.
Then another reason for blacking your face and hands is that, after
you have entered the German trench at night, "white face" means
Germans, "black face" English. Coming around a traverse you see a
white face in front of you. With a prayer and wishing Fritz "the best
o' luck," you introduce him to your "persuader" or knuckle knife.
A little later we arrived at the communication trench named Whiskey
Street, which led to the fire trench at the point we were to go over
the top and out in front.
In our rear were four stretcher bearers and a Corporal of the R.A.M.C.
carrying a pouch containing medicines and first-aid appliances. Kind
of a grim reminder to us that our expedition was not going to be
exactly a picnic. The order of things was reversed. In civilian life
the doctors generally come first, with the undertakers tagging in the
rear and then the insurance man, but in our case, the undertakers were
leading, with the doctors trailing behind, minus the insurance
adjuster.
The presence of the R.A.M.C. men did not seem to disturb the raiders,
because many a joke, made in an undertone, was passed along the
winding column, as to who would be first to take a ride on one of the
stretchers. This was generally followed by a wish that, if you were to
be the one, the wound would be a "cushy Blighty one."
The stretcher bearers, no doubt, were hoping that, if they did have to
carry anyone to the rear, he would be small and light. Perhaps they
looked at me when wishing, because I could feel an uncomfortable,
boring sensation between my shoulder blades. They got their wish all
right.
Going up this trench, about every sixty yards or so we would pass a
lonely sentry, who in a whisper would wish us "the best o' luck,
mates." We would blind at him under our breaths; that Jonah phrase to
us sounded very ominous.
Without any casualties the minstrel troop arrived in Suicide Ditch,
the front-line trench. Previously, a wiring party of the Royal
Engineers had cut a lane through our barbed wire to enable us to get
out into No Man's Land.
Crawling through this lane, our party of twenty took up an
extended-order formation about one yard apart. We had a tap code
arranged for our movements while in No Man's Land, because for various
reasons it is not safe to carry on a heated conversation a few yards
in front of Fritz's lines. The officer was on the right of the line,
while I was on the extreme left. Two taps from the right would be
passed down the line until I received them, then I would send back one
tap. The officer, in receiving this one tap, would know that his order
had gone down the whole line, had been understood, and that the party
was ready to obey the two-tap signal. Two taps meant that we were to
crawl forward slowly--and believe me, very slowly--for five yards,
and then halt to await further instructions. Three taps meant, when
you arrived within striking distance of the German trench, rush it and
inflict as many casualties as possible, secure a couple of prisoners,
and then back to your own lines with the speed clutch open. Four taps
meant, "I have gotten you into a position from which it is impossible
for me to extricate you, so you are on your own."
After getting Tommy into a mess on the western front he is generally
told that he is "on his own." This means, "Save your skin in any way
possible." Tommy loves to be "on his own" behind the lines, but not
during a trench raid.
The star shells from the German lines were falling in front of us,
therefore we were safe. After about twenty minutes we entered the star
shell zone. A star shell from the German lines fell about five yards
in the rear and to the right of me; we hugged the ground and held our
breath until it burned out. The smoke from the star shell travelled
along the ground and crossed over the middle of our line. Some Tommy
sneezed. The smoke had gotten up his nose. We crouched on the ground,
cursing the offender under our breath, and waited the volley that
generally ensues when the Germans have heard a noise in No Man's Land.
Nothing happened. We received two taps and crawled forward slowly for
five yards; no doubt the officer believed what Old Pepper had said,
"Personally I believe that that part of the German trench is
unoccupied." By being careful and remaining motionless when the star
shells fell behind us, we reached the German barbed wire without
mishap. Then the fun began. I was scared stiff as it is ticklish work
cutting your way through wire when about thirty feet in front of you
there is a line of Boches looking out into No Man's Land with their
rifles lying across the parapet, straining every sense to see or hear
what is going on in No Man's Land; because at night, Fritz never knows
when a bomb with his name and number on it will come hurtling through
the air aimed in the direction of Berlin. The man on the right, one
man in the center, and myself on the extreme left were equipped with
wire cutters. These are insulated with soft rubber, not because the
German wires are charged with electricity, but to prevent the cutters
rubbing against the barbed wire stakes, which are of iron, and making
a noise which may warn the inmates of the trench that someone is
getting fresh in their front yard. There is only one way to cut a
barbed wire without noise and through costly experience Tommy has
become an expert in doing this.
You must grasp the wire about two inches from the stake in your right
hand and cut between the stake and your hand.
If you cut a wire improperly, a loud twang will ring out on the night
air like the snapping of a banjo string. Perhaps this noise can be
heard only for fifty or seventy-five yards, but in Tommy's mind it
makes a loud noise in Berlin.
We had cut a lane about halfway through the wire when, down the center
of our line, twang! went an improperly cut wire. We crouched down,
cursing under our breath, trembling all over, our knees lacerated from
the strands of the cut barbed wire on the ground, waiting for a
challenge and the inevitable volley of rifle fire. Nothing happened. I
suppose the fellow who cut the barbed wire improperly was the one who
had sneezed about half an hour previously. What we wished him would
never make his new year a happy one.
The officer, in my opinion, at the noise of the wire should have given
the four-tap signal, which meant, "On your own, get back to your
trenches as quickly as possible," but again he must have relied on the
spiel that Old Pepper had given us in the dugout, "Personally I
believe that that part of the German trench is unoccupied." Anyway, we
got careless, but not so careless that we sang patriotic songs or made
any unnecessary noise.
During the intervals of falling star shells we carried on with our
wire cutting until at last we succeeded in getting through the German
barbed wire. At this point we were only ten feet from the German
trenches. If we were discovered, we were like rats in a trap. Our way
was cut off unless we ran along the wire to the narrow lane we had cut
through. With our hearts in our mouths we waited for the three-tap
signal to rush the German trench. Three taps had gotten about halfway
down the line when suddenly about ten to twenty German star shells
were fired all along the trench and landed in the barbed wire in rear
of us, turning night into day and silhouetting us against the wall of
light made by the flares. In the glaring light we were confronted by
the following unpleasant scene.
All along the German trench, at about three-foot intervals, stood a
big Prussian guardsman with his rifle at the aim, and then we found
out why we had not been challenged when the man sneezed and the barbed
wire had been improperly cut. About three feet in front of the trench
they had constructed a single fence of barbed wire and we knew our
chances were one thousand to one of returning alive. We could not rush
their trench on account of this second defense. Then in front of me
the challenge, "Halt," given in English rang out, and one of the
finest things I have ever heard on the western front took place.
From the middle of our line some Tommy answered the challenge with,
"Aw, go to hell." It must have been the man who had sneezed or who had
improperly cut the barbed wire; he wanted o show Fritz that he could
die game. Then came the volley. Machine guns were turned loose and
several bombs were thrown in our rear. The Boche in front of me was
looking down his sight. This fellow might have, under ordinary
circumstances, been handsome, but when I viewed him from the front of
his rifle he had the goblins of childhood imagination relegated to the
shade.
Then came a flash in front of me, the flare of his rifle-and my head
seemed to burst. A bullet had hit me on the left side of my face about
half an inch from my eye, smashing the cheek bones. I put my hand to
my face and fell forward, biting the ground and kicking my feet. I
thought I was dying, but do you know, my past life did not unfold
before me the way it does in novels.
The blood was streaming down my tunic, and the pain was awful. When I
came to I said to myself, "Emp, old boy, you belong in Jersey City
and you'd better get back there as quickly as possible."
The bullets were cracking overhead. I crawled a few feet back to the
German barbed wire, and in a stooping position, guiding myself by the
wire, I went down the line looking for the lane we had cut through.
Before reaching this lane I came to a limp form which seemed like a
bag of oats hanging over the wire. In the dim light I could see that
its hands were blackened, and knew it was the body of one of my mates.
I put my hand on his head, the top of which had been blown off by a
bomb. My fingers sank into the hole. I pulled my hand back full of
blood and brains, then I went crazy with fear and horror and rushed
along the wire until I came to our lane. I had just turned down this
lane when something inside of me seemed to say, "Look around." I did
so; a bullet caught me on the left shoulder. It did not hurt much,
just felt as if someone had punched me in the back, and then my left
side went numb. My arm was dangling like a rag. I fell forward in a
sitting position. But all fear had left me and I was consumed with
rage and cursed the German trenches. With my right hand I felt in my
tunic for my first-aid or shell dressing. In feeling over my tunic my
hand came in contact with one of the bombs which I carried. Gripping
it, I pulled the pin out with my teeth and blindly threw it towards
the German trench. I must have been out of my head because I was only
ten feet from the trench and took a chance of being mangled. If the
bomb had failed to go into the trench I would have been blown to bits
by the explosion of my own bomb.
By the flare of the explosion of the bomb, which luckily landed in
their trench, I saw one big Boche throw up his arms and fall
backwards, while his rifle flew into the air. Another one wilted and
fell forward across the sandbags--then blackness.
Realizing what a foolhardy and risky thing I had done, I was again
seized with a horrible fear. I dragged myself to my feet and ran madly
down the lane through the barbed wire, stumbling over cut wires,
tearing my uniform, and lacerating my hands and legs. Just as I was
about to reach No Man's Land again, that same voice seemed to say,
"Turn around." I did so, when, "crack," another bullet caught me, this
time in the left shoulder about one half inch away from the other
wound. Then it was taps for me. The lights went out.
When I came to I was crouching in a hole in No Man's Land. This shell
hole was about three feet deep, so that it brought my head a few
inches below the level of the ground. How I reached this hole I will
never know. German "type-writers" were traversing back and forth in No
Man's Land, the bullets biting the edge of my shell hole and throwing
dirt all over me.
Overhead, shrapnel was bursting. I could hear the fragments slap the
ground. Then I went out once more. When I came to, everything was
silence and darkness in No Man's Land. I was soaked with blood and a
big flap from the wound in my cheek was hanging over my mouth. The
blood running from this flap choked me. Out of the corner of my mouth I
would try and blow it back but it would not move. I reached for my
shell dressing and tried, with one hand, to bandage my face to prevent
the flow. I had an awful horror of bleeding to death and was getting
very faint. You would have laughed if you had seen my ludicrous
attempts at bandaging with one hand. The pains in my wounded shoulder
were awful and I was getting sick at the stomach. I gave up the
bandaging stunt as a bad job, and then fainted.
When I came to, hell was let loose. An intense bombardment was on, and
on the whole my position was decidedly unpleasant. Then, suddenly, our
barrage ceased. The silence almost hurt, but not for long, because
Fritz turned loose with shrapnel, machine guns, and rifle fire. Then
all along our line came a cheer and our boys came over the top in a
charge. The first wave was composed of "Jocks." They were a
magnificent sight, kilts flapping in the wind, bare knees showing, and
their bayonets glistening. In the first wave that passed my shell
hole, one of the "Jocks," an immense fellow, about six feet two inches
in height, jumped right over me. On the right and left of me several
soldiers in colored kilts were huddled on the ground, then over came
the second wave, also "Jocks." One young Scottie, when he came abreast
of my shell hole, leaped into the air, his rifle shooting out of his
hands, landing about six feet in front of him, bayonet first, and
stuck in the ground, the butt trembling. This impressed me greatly.
Right now I can see the butt of that gun trembling. The Scottie made a
complete turn in the air, hit the ground, rolling over twice, each
time clawing at the earth, and then remained still, about four feet
from me, in a sort of sitting position. I called to him, "Are you hurt
badly, Jock?" but no answer. He was dead. A dark, red smudge was
coming through his tunic right under the heart. The blood ran down his
bare knees, making a horrible sight. On his right side he carried his
water bottle. I was crazy for a drink and tried to reach this, but for
the life of me could not negotiate that four feet. Then I became
unconscious. When I woke up I was in an advanced first-aid post. I
asked the doctor if we had taken the trench. "We took the trench and
the wood beyond, all right," he said, "and you fellows did your bit;
but, my lad, that was thirty-six hours ago. You were lying in No Man's
Land in that bally hole for a day and a half. It's a wonder you are
alive." He also told me that out of the twenty that were in the
raiding party, seventeen were killed. The officer died of wounds in
crawling back to our trench and I was severely wounded, but one fellow
returned without a scratch without any prisoners. No doubt this chap
was the one who had sneezed and improperly cut the barbed wire.
In the official communique our trench raid was described as follows:
"All quiet on the Western front, excepting in the neighborhood of
Gommecourt Wood, where one of our raiding parties penetrated into the
German lines."
It is needless to say that we had no use for our persuaders or
come-alongs, as we brought back no prisoners, and until I die Old
Pepper's words, "Personally I don't believe that that part of the
German trench is occupied," will always come to me when I hear some
fellow trying to get away with a fishy statement. I will judge it
accordingly.