Upper, left to right—Capt. Frank E. Wolf, Lt. Ludz (French army, instructor), Capt. George D. Condren.
Center, left to right—Lt. John C. Dolan, Lt. John C. Carroll, Lt. Barry Keenan, Lt. Sidney Bacharach.
Lower, left to right—Lt. C. Lyon Rogers, Lt. Gustaf A. Nelson, Lt. John C. Carroll.
Top—Company D starting out from Niantic expecting to leave for
France, Sept. 23, 1917.—Barracks, winter of 1917, Certilleux.—Sgt. Fred
Klaussner teaching a mule its manners, machine gun ammunition cart to
the right.—Dugout in the Ormont.—Loading the train, Lizy-sur-Ourcq,
August, 1918.—Capt. Paton's dugout in the Ormont.—Main street in
Seicheprey.
Subject to a heavy share of artillery activity at all times, this sector proved comparatively quiet until early Sunday morning, June 16, when the Hun laid down a barrage indicating he was about to attack. Centering to the left of the Seicheprey positions, the enemy assault was directed against the village of Xivray-Marvoisin, held by units of the 103d Infantry Regiment and D Company, 103d Machine Gun Battalion. The nucleus of the latter was made up of former members of Troop A. The efforts of the Germans met such determined resistance that the lines remained intact and the invaders were hurled from their slight foothold with severe losses. Artillery fire continued intermittently during the rest of the day, but good dugouts afforded shelter for the men.
Favored by a fog in the early morning hours of June 19, the enemy prepared an attack which was to destroy the lines at Seicheprey and menace the positions in Jury Woods, the key to a ridge which would have been of military importance to him; but shortly after his barrage had covered our lines, with his men concentrated in thick woods covering his first defenses, he met the full force of the first projector gas attack launched by the American army. Sixteen hundred projectiles were used in the operation and they were thrown from a point in front of Jury Woods. Rage at these tactics was expressed in the terrific bombardment during the ensuing day of all our forward positions and communicating areas, but for some reason, supposedly because of the use of new artillery which had not become accustomed to the positions, most of the projectiles landed in places where little harm could be done. Results of the gassing were apparent from artillery observation posts, which reported the departure of several hospital trains from stations in the rear of the German lines. Ackerman and Barry, slightly gassed, were the only members of the Company to suffer from the fury of the Hun.
Relief by the French, taking over the sector in conjunction with the 82d American Division, came on the night of June 25, when the Company returned to La Rehanne Woods. Continuing the journey on the 26th, the men hiked twenty-two kilometers to Lay St. Remy, four kilometers west of Toul, where barns were assigned as billets and a long sleep was in order for the morning of the 27th.
Prompted by desire more than by information, the men eagerly followed the will-o'-the-wisp of a furlough or a short rest at the least, and arguments occupying the intervals when sight-seeing through the munitions factories and other points of interest nearby was not in progress bore heavily on the point that the Division had seen more than four months of front line service and was due for a rest. Force of circumstances, however, refuted this logic, and orders came for the Battalion to entrain for another part of the front.
Although eager to see new parts of the line, there were signs of genuine regret among the men when they knew they were to leave the sector with which they had become so familiar during the past three months. It had been the scene of their first real taste of duty as independent units, it held the grave of the first of their number to give his life, and they had watched it as the warm of spring days transformed its fields from bleak vistas of mud to living green dotted with the white and yellow of the early spring flowers, followed by the period when whole areas were covered with the brilliant hues of blooming poppies. Bound for an unknown part of the country, with the probability of finding most of their previous training discounted by new conditions, it was only the buoyant spirit characteristic of the Company throughout the most trying times, which, added to the thirst for adventure, prevented depression and sent them on their way singing and whistling.