Continuation of Second Diary

The next morning orders arrived ordering us back to the front for the drive. We departed at 12 noon marching until 4:30 arriving in the woods to the left of our original first line position. We remained here until 10:20 p.m. when we were ordered to fall in and start a march through Montauville to a position one kilo to the right. Here we rested until morning when after being served with breakfast we went over the top. After moving forward for about 1 hour passing over the trenches that the night before were held by the Germans who had been forced to leave on account of our barrage. During the day we continued to pass over ground recently evacuated by the enemy and at 3:30 p. m. we came to the edge of a wood where we were forced to cross an open strip of ground to gain the German trenches. It was while trying to cross this open space we were sighted by the German artillery, and they began to drop large shells all around us. We were ordered into shell holes where we were forced to stay until nearly dark when we finally moved into the trenches vacated by the Germans. We remained here all night with shells landing very near and the swish of our own shells going over sounding in our ears. The next day was uneventful with the exception of heavy shelling on both sides. At 2 p.m. the following day, Sunday Sept. 16 we were ordered to move forward and take a hill which was 2,000 yds. in front of us. This hill was a German stronghold and we knew that we had a hard fight ahead. Promptly at 2:40 we went over the top passing through the town of Villers Sous Prenz. Fritz saw us coming and opened up with every thing he had, but let it be said here that not a man faltered although their comrades were falling on all sides. We reached our objective at 4:45 p.m. and dug in. After completing the job of digging in we were relieved and sent back as support. We remained in support six days when at 8:00 p.m. Sept. 22nd. we started once more for the line of defence arriving on the hill to the rear of Villers Sous Plenz. On the early morning of Sept. 27 our third platoon went over the top with two companies of the 2nd. Battalion 360 infantry with the intention of capturing a German Colonel with his staff who was reported to be in Pagny. On this raid we had several casualties and the Colonel escaped, but it was later learned we prevented a counter attack they were intending to make. After the raid we remained in the second line until the night of Oct. 1st. when we moved forward one and a half miles north of Villers Sous Prenz. Here we remained until the night of Oct. 7th. when we returned to Jacainville and rested one day leaving on the night of the 8th. for that long looked for rest we had heard so much about. Hiking 25 kilos that night arriving in the woods at what was known as S.V.A. barracks at 2 a.m. Here we remained for the rest of the night and in the morning set march for Toul. Every man looked forward to the rest he expected to get but when as usual about 2 p.m. Sunday Oct. 13th. we received orders to prepare for a move at four p.m. We hit the trail in a blinding rain, marching 5 kilos to Choloy arriving at 6 p.m. spending the night in the usual hay loft. On the morning of Oct. 16th. we left in trucks for a 70 kilo ride to the Verdun front. We arrived at Blercourt 6 p.m. Oct. 16th. and had to hike six kilos with full packs to some old shacks in the woods known as Camp St. Perrie. We remained here until the morning of Oct. 21st. when we hit the trail for the famous Argonne Forest. During this march we saw the famous Dead Man's Hill, where many soldiers had lost their lives. The farther we went into the forests the wilder the country grew. The trees were in shreds and the ground was literally torn up by shell fire. We passed the Montfaucon now famous as one of the strong points wrestled from the Germans. This town is situated on the highest hill in that part of France and it was from here that Kaiser Bill often times watched the battle of his troops. We continued our march through the woods to a portion just north of Nantillois, where we remained in shell holes until Oct. 30th. Here we recieved orders to advance and at 8 p.m. left this position, going through Romange, and taking up our position on a sunken road 150 yds. behind the infantry out posts. On the morning of Oct. 31st. a large shell struck right among our men causing the loss of the lives of several. On the night of Oct. 31st. we continued to press forward into a small wood just in front of the infantry line. This was for the purpose of throwing a machine gun barrage into a small woods and a near by town, both of which were numerously infested by German machine guns. On Nov. 1st. 1918, the greatest artillery and machine gun barrage that has ever been was delivered, lasting some three hours. At 5:30 a.m. under this barrage the 3rd Battalion 360 infantry advanced followed an hour later by the 2nd. Battalion and Companies D., G., and C. 345 Machine Gun Battalion. At 11 a.m. we reached our objective and had captured many prisoners who were constantly streaming in through our lines to the rear. While the Germans did not counter attack they retaliated with heavy artillery fire and it was during this shell fire that we suffered severely losing several men. At 11:a.m. the third battalion 360 infantry leap frogged us and drove the enemy some three kilos. We were temporarily relieved by the 179th Brigade of the same division who drove the Germans another 8 kilos. This left the 360 infantry and ourselves in the line of support where we remained under heavy shell fire until 6 p.m. Nov. 3rd. when we were once more starting forward marching until 11:30 p.m. when we pitched pup tents in the edge of the woods on one of the five hills known as five fingers or cat's paw. It was from these hills that our artillery did such effective work on the German railroad. On the night of Nov. 9th. we started on an all nights hike which ended in Mouzay the following day at 4 p.m. and in the afternoon of Nov. 10th. we took up our position on the side of the road about two kilos north east of Mouzay. We soon discovered that this was only about 150 yds. from the German front lines. It was while trying to reach this position that many of our men were gassed.

Continuation of Second Diary

We remained here until the morning of Aug. 17th. when we were notified we had a forced march to Le Tracy 44 kilos to the north. As per orders, we discarded our barrack bags and were forced to carry all our belongings in our field packs. These packs when made weighed about #80 pounds each. We departed from Benureve 6 a.m. marching 22 kilos to Denude arriving there 3 p.m. where owing to the exhaustion of men and animals we called a halt for the rest of the day and night. The next day we started on to Le Tracy, marching another 22 kilos and arriving at 3 p.m. here we found the larger part of the division awaiting us. We rested on the grass until six p.m. Aug. 20th. when we were loaded on a freight train and at 9:15 p.m. started for the front lines arriving in the city of Toul 6:45 a.m. August 21st. Here we unloaded and marched three miles without any breakfast, to again go into billets. We rested here until August 22nd. 8:15 p.m. when we started for the front in trucks. We rode until 10:30 p.m. when we arrived at St. Etienne where we rested for the remaining part of the night, and next day departing at 9:00 p.m. August 13rd. hiking 25 kilos to the north of Jacainville where we landed in the second line trenches. We remained in these trenches until Aug. 31 when we marched 3 kilos into the woods north of Montville taking over the first line trenches. We were now within 1,500 yds of the Germans and everyone was on his toes and ready to go, but nothing of importance happened with the exception that Fritz sent over a few shells every evening and morning, but our boys sent back three for every one they sent and it didn't take Fritz long to close up. We held this position until the night of Sept. 10th. when we withdrew to the second line again remaining there over night. The next day we
moved three miles to the rear into the woods west of Jacainville. Here we received news that at 1:00 p.m. Sept. 12, 1918, the barrage for the St. Mihiel drive would start. You may depend as the hour of one drew near we were excited. Sharp at 1:00 the big guns that were in front, in rear and on both sides opened up with a tremendous roar, and you will never know the feeling of men as they lay in their bunks with sleep a thousand miles away.

Continuation of Second Diary

We debarked at 8 a.m. July 1, marching some 4 miles to another so called rest camp. This rest camp was called "Bon Sur Dorie". The castle was owned in the earlier days by the family of Sir Walter Raleigh. It was during our visit at this camp that we saw our first American woman since leaving home. This young lady was with the Y.M.C.A. and she served us with good things to eat and smoke-also stationary. At 7:25 a.m. July 2 we marched back to Cherbourg where we were loaded on a freight train 36 men to the car. We remained on the train until 4 p.m. July 4, crossing two thirds of France, arriving at the village of Villers Saint Noge 4 p.m. We were de-trained to find that G.H.Q. failed to send anyone to meet us. We only had rations for one meal left and for a short time it seemed that we were a lost battalion. But our Major finally got in touch with division H.Q. and supplies were sent by special truck and we were served with supper afterwards pitching out tents and spending a very pleasant night on the grass. Early the next morning, the boys started out to sample the new French drinks, and by eleven o'clock several of us had thoroughly proven that French drinks could not be mixed. We were served with supper and dinner at 11:30 tearing down our pup tents immediately afterwards and rolling packs. We hit the trail for Chalmessin 14 kilos in the distance. We arrived at Chamessin 5:15 p.m. going into out first billets that we had heard so much about heretofore. These billets proved to be old vacant houses and rock barns where at the time of our entering the spiders, rats, and other insects had been holding midnight jamborees. We found this to be one of the filthiest villages we had ever seen as the slop was emptied in the street and the stock ran loose. A military officer was immediately appointed to act at town Major, the noncoms appointed ward bosses. These ward bosses organized sanitary squads and started the clean up movement, and by night had the town looking very respectable. The populace did not at first approve of our clean up acts and when the men and women returned from the fields in the afternoon they hardly knew their little French village and the chickens on going to roost were absolutely lost, many of them going to strange places on account of the change in scenery, making it impossible for them to find their respective hen houses. We stayed in this village doing our daily training until the morning of July23 when we departed for the village of Benureve marching through a blinding rain some six kilos. We arrived at Benureve 12 noon and again went into billets with our friends the rats and spiders who by this time were by no means strangers to us. Here we drank wine, went through our daily drilling, and added to the excitement by shooting our machine guns on the nearby hills.

Second Diary Continued

The first two days were uneventful with beautiful water which made our starting look good to the boys. The third day out a cold north wind set in accompanied by a slow drizzling rain which kept every one below. The morning of June 24th we entered the waters known as the war zone:these waters being numerously infested with enemy submarines. However, we were not molested until the morning of the 25th. The day dawned bright and clear the Atlantic appeared to be one large lake of rippling, and there was no evidence of danger, when at 9:01 a.m. we were startled by the shrill blast of the danger signal from our flag ship. We immediately took up battle formation: the two troop ships who had previous to the signaling been traveling on the port side of the group shifted their position to starboard, placing the two freighters between us and the man of war who at the time of signaling was traveling in the center and at the head of the group. All guns swung their guns to port in which direction the enemy had been sighted. At 9:05, we saw a puff of smoke and heard the roar of the 6 inch gun from the man of war. We immediately crowded the upper deck to view our first naval battle, which however proved to be very short. After the man of war fired three rounds the intruding submarine disappeared below the foamy surface. As to the amount of damage done it will always remain a mystery, but fearing we might have missed our mark all ships steamed ahead at full speed the rest of the day. We awoke on the morning of the 26th to find that our long looked for convoy had arrived during the night. This convoy consisted of six American destroyers and the British destroyers, which should have reached us some 24 hours earlier when we entered the war zone, however they chaperoned us safely into the harbor of Liverpool, England arriving at 9:10 a.m. June 28. We lay in the harbor until 3:27 p.m. when we pulled into the dock and debarked. Marching in battalion formation from the docks to the Great Central Railway Station where we had our first view of an English train, these proving to be mere toys compared with our up to date American trains. Here we were loaded 5 men to the compartment in passenger cars and at five twenty departed for Winchester, England, arriving 5:10 a.m. June 29. Here we marched four kilos to a rest camp called "Camp Morn Hill" and our stomachs as usual mourned for good old garrison rations for the English fed us on what the soldiers know as corned willy. At 10:15 a.m. June 30, we marched back to Winchester where we boarded another train for Southampton arriving at 11:55. Here we found a lunch counter where we could buy sandwiches, cakes and etc. with those big pennies we had been carrying since arriving in Liverpool. There was plenty and every body filled his stomach, smoked a fag and forgot his trouble. We rested until 5:10 p.m. when we boarded H.M.S. King Edward. and after dark crossed the English channel arriving in the channel from Hampton Roads at 10 p.m. We were carrying three companies of a battalion and the King Edward was very small therefore, we were badly crowded and when the men stretched themselves out to sleep they found themselves about three feet on the floor, and as the English sailors were not particular where they stepped sleep was impossible. Our boys used their extensive vocabulary of cuss words and were searching the dictionary for more when at daylight we steamed into Cherbourg France.

The Second Diary

We left Camp Tra0vis, Texas U.S.A. 3:30 p.m. June 5, 1918 via M.K.V.T. to Austin thense: T.V.P. to Texarkana: thense from Mt. to St.Louis, arriving there 10:30 a.m. June 7 taking the Lake Shore route via Mattoon Ill.,Indianapolis, Ind., Buffalo, N.Y. and thence to the metropolitan city of the world. De-training at Weehawken N.J. 3:25 p.m. June 10, taking the boat down East river via Battery Park and Brooklyn Bridge to pier #9 on the L.I. side of the river. Here we entrained on the L.I.R.R. for Camp Mills, Mineola L.I. N.Y. some 20 miles inland arriving at Garden City Station 5 p.m. June 10 marching with full packs some two miles to Camp Mills where after various inspections and exchanging clothes we rested until the night of June 12
when we received orders that no one would leave camp that night. We were served with black coffee at 12 p.m. marching to the station immediately afterwards and en-training on the Penn. R.R. bound for Philadelphia 3:15 p.m. June 13. We were marched thru the dock sheds where we were served with coffee and sandwiches by the Red Cross and loading on the C.O.G. at 5:00 p.m. June 13 We hoisted anchor at 6:05 p.m. and steamed down the Delaware River into Delaware Bay where we anchored for the night. At daybreak, June 14, we hoisted anchor and headed to Halifax, Nova Scotia arriving there 12:30 p.m. June 16th(Sunday). We waited in the Halifax harbor awaiting the arrival of out other 10 ships, who were to accompany us across the deep blue, until noon June 17th when we hoisted anchor and started with our ten companions who were composed of seven freighters (one of which was loaded with aeroplanes). The other six being loaded with stock and supplies,two troop ships, one of which carried 75 Red Cross nurses one man of war which was our protector, and one flag ship for signal purposes.