Trench and camp. (Augusta, Ga.) 1917-1919, December 05, 1917, Image 1

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SEND THIS PAPER HOME y .. , Published Under Auspices of National War Work Council Y.M.C.A. of the United States Vol. 1. Major General Clement Returns From France Commander of 28th Division Arrived in Camp Yesterday Afternoon After Several Weeks’ Absence. Given Warm Wel come at Headquarters. Had Interesting Experiences on the Western Front. With the bands playing “Hail, Hail. ’ and “Auld Lang Syne.’’ 'Major General Charles M. Clement, commander of the Twenty-eighth division at Camp Han cock, returned to camp yesterday after noon at 2:30, after an absence of several weeks in France. It was not generally known that Gen eral Clement would return to Camp Han cock yesterday and as a result, hundreds of civilians missed one of the greatest sights ever presented in this country—an entire division of troops standing at “At tention.” It was an inspiring sight. Troops lined the Wrightsboro road,-extending ail the way from the entrance to camp, to the road leading to the post office. On the right were the infantry brigades and machine gun battalions and on the left stood the brigade of artillery and sanitary train. The drill field was a rrfass of horses and men, all in fine condition, and it must have gladdened General elem ent's heart to see his division in such perfect form. General Clement has been at his home in Sunbury, following his report to Wash ington, and in an interview given to the Pittsburg Gazette-Times at his home in ii.iburv, he makes some interesting ■%jonts. The following. arOe'e is frosjn ' Gms? ni-'fnnes- ' ' ■ fl. ’’tat his command and probably thou sand's more -ff Atnerhmn tttnoos “ sent to France during tKe ' next few months is the opinion of Major General Charles M. Clement, commander of the Twenty-eighth Division, Pennsylvania National Guard of the American army, who is spending a few days at his home here; following his recent return from a six weeks’ stay at the theater of war in France. During December it is quite likely that 50.000 men will be sent over and if Bra zil provides promised transports twice as many will go next month, is the opinion of tlie general. After the first of the year the men will be rushed across just as rapidly as possible. The general would express no opinion as to when the end of the war will come, but he does believe that when the _gnd comes it will be uqickly, like the bursting of a bubble. Death in Every Wind. He spent twenty-one days along the French and British lines in France and on several occasions Was within zones where dekth rode whistling in every wind c'. rged with torment and destruction. On October 28, his birthday anniversary, he was so near the battle lines that one of the French officers informed him that if it were a clear day, instead of being rainly and cloudy, he would have been extremely lucky to have left the place alive. They were within easy range of the German guns and shells dropped all around them, and the adverse weather conditions alone prevented the Boche gunners getting range of the building where the party of which General Clem ent was a* member was sheltered. Within a radius of an eighth of a mile the earth was frequently rent with great shell holes. Some were 40 and 50 feet deep. On another occasion he was along the French line of battle so close that a big shell exploded, within 150 feet of him. Once his atitomobile skidded and an auto mobile “lorry” driver tyarned his own car into the path of the general's and saved it going over a 60-foot embankment. On the Messines Heights a shell burst close to the general as he was walking towards the trenches. A French officer remarked: “They have the range of this crater and we would not dare to be here two minutes if the sun was shining.” There are several dents in the English helmet the general wore on his tour of the trenches. This he brought home, with him. together with one of the gas masks used at the front. General Clement also met and dined •with General Pershing. An engagement had been made to cat at . a restaurant, but when the time came General Per shing had to hurry to a different point to confer with an allied war council, and he wired Clement to meet and dine with him on a train. To do this General Clement had to make a speed pt nearly a mile a minute to arrive at a junction point in time to meet Pershing’s party. Germans Glad to See Hirn. France has been churned into a clay pit. the general says. The mud every where is from four inches to two feet deep. The- soldiers stand for hours in mud. that reaches half way up to their knees. THE AUGUSTA HERALD Edition for CAMP HANCOCK Augusta, Ga. The general saw many German prison ers. At one internment camp he and his aide. Theodore D. Boal. of Boalsburg, were sighted by one of the Germans ,who cried, “Americans.” The Germans, in their eagerness to see ''the Americans, pressed forward in such great numbers that their guards had to threaten to use their bayonets to hold the men in check. Prisoners captured in actual fighting are often brought back over the lines with their clothing torn into rags, due to their coming into contact with the barbed wire entanglements. Stories to the effect that German sol diers are poorlv fed and half-clothed arc discredited by the general. The German:; in the front-line trenches are fine speci mens of manhood.' One group of prison ers included about thirty boys of the 11)19 class. These from their appearance were pale and underfed. This was ex plained bv the fact that those at home sacrifice to the limit so that the soldiers may be fed. The 191!) class had not been in the trenches long enough to profit by the food provided for the men at arms. Saw Several Battles. At one of the’ fighting fronts he saw several engagements. At one time ha sat with a French commander during a w.tt.le. . A, t i - .c,t od it d II ft tcn KJ"* -hl to surrender as the dugout ■ ...w-n-d and AS IWi reached for sergeant used a grenade. After the battle General Clement accom panied the French officer as he made a detour of the trenches. Soon a man- cov ered with mud saluted. “How many men did you account for?” asked the French command. "Seventeen, sir,” was the answer. The conversation appeared as informal as customer asking the price of eggs of a country merchant. The mon are taught to kill and they work with the same un concern as the mechanic at his his trade. Soldiers never pass a German body with out using their bayonet to make sure that the man is not shamming, and will later shoot them in the back. Speaking of the valor of the allies, the general said that of all things spent and squandered there hu man life is held least dear'. The officers and men calmly accepted all hazards un mindful of the death to follow. On account of the general dampness of the atmosphere, rain falling nearly every day; the water in the trenches and no heat, frim the men relieved from duty, respiratory diseases run rife. The things in the knitted products most needed, in his opinion, are warm stockings and ab dominal bands. General Clement and his aids suffered Slightly from the cold, but were not delayed in carrying on the pur poses of their visit. American Troops Eager. During his stay on the other side Gen eral Clement also spent considerable time with the American forces. He says the American boys are in good spirits and health. In the short time they have been there they have made great progress irt solving the problems of modern warfare and all are eager and anxious to go to the immediate front without delay. The trips over and back were unevent ful. On the way over one of the pas sengers insisted that he had seen a sub marine, but this report was not given credWhee. The ship was shrouded in dark ness after G p. m., and for four nights the passengers slept in their clothes to be ready for any emergency. On the re turn trip the portholes were closed early in the evening. At all times a captive balloon was kept suspended over the boat, where a" lookout kept watch for a Hun's submarine. On the return trip on a French steamer General Clement spoke several times to a little American nurse who had been in jured in the bombing of a French base hospital. The French government had decorated her with the cross of the Le gion of Honor. In spite of all efforts she refused to talk of her injuries, which were understood to have been serious. SOLDIERS PLANNING MARDI GRAS. If present plans materalize, Augusta will be given a novel sight on New Year's Day, when th» soldiers from Philadelphia will stage a-miniature Mardi Gras. Many of the soldiers participated in the annual Mummer's parade in Phil adelphia and they have asked to have the magnificent- costumes used on that occasion, sent to UaS;p Hancock. . If these gorgeous trappings may be had in time, Augusta wil) witness one of the most specticular sights ever witnessed in the South outside of New Orleans. CAMP HANCOCKe DECEMBER, 5, 1917 SECRETARY HUNTER GOES TO FRANCE Augusta Y. M. C. A. Man Will Leave in Few Days to Work Abroad. General Secretary Walter M. Hunter of the Augusta Y. M. C. A. has returned from a hurried summons to New York City where he was in conference with the officials of the Y. M. C. A. War Work Council, and as’ a result of the deliberations, Mr. Hunter will leave Au gusta in a few days for “somewhere in France.” Mr. Hunter has been secretary of the Augusta Y. M. C. A. for several years and has endeared himself to the peo ple of the city by his readiness to as sist every desirable cause. In accepting his resignation, the board of directors did so with the proviso that the posi tion would be held open for him' upon jhis return from France. When Camp Hancock became a cer tainty, Mr. Hunter foresaw the neces sity for enlarged equipment and a cam paign for $15,000 was inaugurated early in September, with which fourteen new shower baths have been installed and other improvements made. Thousands of men from Camp Hancock have visited the Augusta Y. M. C. A. and have en joyed the free privileges and all regret Mr. Hunter's .departure, but wish him great success in his labors among the American troops in France. F. M. Whiteside, who has been the ef ficient assistant secretary at the Y. M. C, A. has also resigned to accept th© his wife and child the latter part of this week. Mr. Whiteside came in close contact with the men of Camp Hancock and did all in his power to make things convenient for the soldiers. EVAN WILLIAMS - WILL SING IN GAMP Noted Welsh Tenor Will Give Programme Here Monday, December 17 th. Evan Williams, whose wonderful tencr voice has been heard wherever talking machines are known and who is one of the world’s greatest concert artists, will sing at Camp Hancock under the aus pices of the Army Y. M. C. A. on Mon day night, December 17th. Mr. Williams is making a tour of the army camps- and the men are delighted with his glorious voice. For years, he has been one of the higher priced vo calists on the American concert stage and his services are always in great de mand. Os a recent concert in Camp Dix, the camp paper said of his singing: “Evan Williams, America’s great con cert tenor singer, charmed the hearts and ears of his mammoth audience with a beautiful program. Mr. Williams held his audience spellbound for nearly an hour, with scarcely an intermission. Probably the greatest hits of the evening' were, "Oh, Dry Those Tears,” and “Tim Rooney’s at the Fightin’,” though every number was a favorite. The program was gloriously concluded by Mr. Williams leading the whole bouse in singing “The Star Spangled Banner.” The soldiers gave three cheers for the artist that bade fair to raise the roof off the big au ditorium.” “Germany Will Be Beaten” Bishop Luther B. Wilson, who re cently returned from Europe, where he went on a mission from the Y. M. C. A., brought back with him a message to the American people from General Pershing, American commander in France. The message said: “Tell them there is no ground for the heresy that Germany cannot be beaten. Germany can be beaten. Ger many must be beaten. And Germany will be beaten.” COLONEL-Tn SPECTOR HERE Colonel-Inspector E. A. Helmick, of the inspector general’s department. United States Army, arrived in Camp Han dock recently to make an inspec tion of th eeouipnierit an I personriel of the division. ONE CENT POSTAGE ARMY NEWS FOR ARMY MEN AND THEIR HOME FOLKS CAVALRY AGAIN IS DISMEMBERED Official Order Sends Men to Various Commands in Division —Sunbury Troop at Head quarters. z j During the past few days, the mem bers of the 101st United' States Cavalry have gone through another shifting pro cess, an order having been issued re assigning the troops to the units, as per the original dismemberment order. The men have been scattered through out the division, some to the artillery, others to the ammunition train, trench mortar battery and engineers. First City Troop, of Philadelphia, which was assigned to division head quarters in the previous order, has been sent, to Company F, 103rd Engineers, while Troop I, of Sunbury, which had been transferred from headquarters to the Engineers, has been sent back to headquarters and bad the honor of es corting Major General Clement on his return to camp yesterday. There is general regret over the loss of the Cavalry regiment, but. the troop ers are bearing their disappointment with true soldierly spirit. COUNTRY CLUB r HELPS THE RED CROSS [ The Board of Gpvernors of the Country Club of Augusta have kindly loaned the use of the two private during rooms for : hfr Winter. An a.itxßiin-y to the AOgusta Chapter has been formed with Mrs. Joseph McKnight Speer, chair man; Mrs. William C. Denny, secretary and treasurer. Executive Committee—'Mrs. Frank H. Denny, Mrs. Charles Johnson. Mrs. Henry <Tinker, Mrs. William E. Mikell, Mrs. Longsdon, Mrs. Sawyer. Mrs. Stevenson, Mrs. Lawton B: Evans. Mrs. A. D. Coch rane, Mrs. George Barnard. Work will begin on Monday morning. December 3rd. al ten o’clock, a. m.. and the rooms will be opened every week day morning after that, date from ten to one o’clock. All Pennsylvania women and others interested in Red Cross work are cordial ly invited, whether they are members of the club or not. In view of the fact that the demands for Red Cross supplies are growing every day to such an enormous extent, it is hoped that there will be plenty of as sistance offered to this new activity. Billy Sunday May Visit Camp Hancock Rev. William Milton Hess, building sec retary at No. 79, made a trip to Atlanta last Saturday for the express purpose of inducing Rev. William Sunday, otherwise known as “Billy,” to pay a visit to Camp Hancock and deliver one of his famous sermons to the men. Dr. Hess attended a meeting at the tabernacle and heard Mr. Sunday speak, although it was with great difficulty the noted evangelist was able to address the immense gathering. Mr. Sunday promised to give the invi tation earnest consideration and though he' would come, if his voide improved, but only on condition that he.be not asked to speak in the open air. ile will speak in Building 79 if he comes to Camp Hancock, but will not be able to say definitely for several days whether or not he will be here. There are thousands of men at Camp Hancock from Scranton. Wilkes-Barre and other places who have heard Billy in their home towns and if he comes to the camp, he will be sure of an overflow audi ence, no matter where he speaks. AMERICANS DECORATED War crosses have been awarded to Robert P. Lamont, of Evanston, Ills.; Benjamin Burton, Jr., of Colusa. Cal., and Herbert Hope, of Oakland, Cal., of the American field service. Lamont’s left hand was torn off by a shell October 7th. Burton and Hope drove a motor truck under heavy bom bardment October Bth, two men with them being killed. A divisional citation has been awarded to Philip Rice, of Wilkes- Barre, Pa., for bravery in carrying wounded men from the battlefield un- : der heavy fire. Germany is able to put fourteen men in the field for the cost of a single Am erican soldier. i 1 v CM L‘ V Cl V % \ X $ . JlrT Bjj SH II t <l I h in M cm No. 9