Sunday May 14th 1916
Had fearful time starting 1: 25 this morning. If you don’t spin
it she wont go and if you do she bitches. Twenty five valuable minutes
were consumed in this way and finally I got off for menial. In spite
of the delay I reached the place ten minutes early and had time to
look around. I sidled into the store – room while the bearded
man was there and he had just asked me if there was anything there
that I would like when the assis were announced. I just had time to
infer that I would like a helmet and then I had to bear it. I believe
he muttered something about seeing what he could do for me, but I
don’t suppose that I shall ever be there again, as it won’t
do me much good. I took the two assis and the coucher to Toul by the
grace of heaven rather then the D (devil) – engine, and was
shunted off Baudgen – Thureuot (14)
and Thureuot (15). The former was as awfully
inefficient as ever, the D (devil) red bearded man rushing around
and proving nothing. Got lost trying to find my way around Thureuot,
by got out in time for a fully asparagus dinner at the Caserue (16).
In the afternoon Roche, or however you spell it, came up to the dormitory
and it was mighty interesting to hear him talk. He was in Champagne
and Verdun. After a march of 80 kilometers his regiment reached fort
outside of Verdun at 12 o’clock at night from which they left
the next morning at 6 for the battle. The Germans advanced in a long
file of about 20 men and with about 2 or 3 meters between the files,
having apparently given up the massed advance. The slaughter was pretty
bad, only 10 men of Roche’s company being seen by him when he
got back to the trenches after the futile advance. He saw everyone
else running so he decided that the best thing he could do, and dashed
back to his trench to find his whole squad of 12 men wiped out. The
12 days that he was at Verdun before being wounded he only had 3 meals
and those consisted chiefly of cold soup. When he was wounded in the
left arm by the éclat (17) from a
hand grenade, he first went to his poste- de – secours (18),
situated 200 meters back of the first five trenches where he was patched
up and compelled to walk – in three kilometers from there back
to the American ambulance. Those that are badly wounded they transport
over this distance on stretchers, but it is strange they don’t
send an ambulance over this as we do here at Baudgen – Thureuot
and the Thureuot.
Regarding the German prisoners seems that they never shoot them but
after the officers have questioned them they either sent immediately
back to the rear or used to carry wounded. Many of them talk very
good English, and are very agreeable fellows according to Roche. At
Verdun the French line was thoroughly protected by batteries and mitrailleuse.
The latter were stationed one every 150 yards, which amounted to 80
along the 3 kilometers of front, while there was a 75 centimeter gun
for every 4 men.
All the Champagne (19) gains which the French
made were secured in less than 3 hours, thus the four to eight kilometers
which they advanced were taken between 9:30 and 12. At six o’clock
it began to pour and rained all night long, the gloom being alleviated
at intervals by German or French fusees (20),
which bit up the battlefield to give the batteries and watchers more
advantage. The French fusees had the advantage over the Boche (21)
by remaining up for a longer period, which they do by means of parachutes,
but on the other hands the Boche fusees light up sooner then the French
and thus capable of taking the enemy unawares. The French ones remain
in the air, lighted for 10 or 12 minutes, whereas the German go up
and then almost immediately come down. The dobuess (22)
was also illuminated by great search lights some of which carried
their light as far as 4 kilometers.
The great mistake which the French made was in ineffective use of
their batteries on the second line of defense. They successfully took
the front line trenches and then had to advance across an open field
towards the second defense. This should have been destroyed by the
French batteries, that is the troops should have entrenched themselves
before crossing the field until the second Boche lines were broken
up by their artillery. The French artillery having failed to do this,
the men advanced against an absolutely intact line and were consequently
beaten back.
In prophecy Roche thinks that in all probability there will be an
offensive either at Champagne again or one of the corners of St. Hubiel
(23) salient, in any case he hopes for an
offensive as that is vastly better for the soldiers than a defensive.
The French called the Germans 77’s firecrackers. The French
75’s were quite useless against wire entanglements as a matter
of fact, very little is at use of these fil de feis, the Germans having
started using a thing which travels very low, having hooks on it,
its catch the wires and twist them all open. Bartlett received rather
interesting information from a brother –in-law who said that
at Verdun the heavy guns fired in ten days 277 shells per gun per
day, a total of 36 guns and ten thousand shots. In Tunhas (24)
were used at Verdun as they were afraid of shell fire and would have
became demoralized.
