It might be well, before going further into this narrative, to say that
the fellows who had accompanied me were the first American troops to
take charge of a sector of the French line, a sector which some day will
be moved into the heart of Germany and make old friend Hun wish that
there was a way for him to change his nationality and viewpoint.
[Sidenote: The artillery training camp.]
The training camp where we had prepared for the front after our arrival
in France had been purchased by the United States from the French, and
had been in use since the beginning of the war for the purpose of
putting the high spots on the training of men belonging to both the
heavy and light artillery. It was a spacious place; we had comfortable
quarters and lots of good food. I had been on the Mexican border, so
that sound of the heavy guns that were being used for training purposes
did not annoy me, though to about ninety per cent. of the rest of the
fellows this was a new sound, and orders were issued that cotton was to
be put in the ears.
[Sidenote: The French officers are fine fellows.]
Except for the return fire, we might have been at the front, for the
camp was an exact duplication of conditions under fire. Our equipment
was largely French, and the officers who tutored us in modern warfare
were all French--and as fine a bunch of fellows as ever lived.
[Sidenote: Buying a village for a target.]
One of the exciting incidents of the Camp was the day that news arrived
that the American government had purchased a small village just beyond
the Camp (France is honeycombed with small villages,--it is almost
impossible to walk a mile without passing through a village) and that
it was to be used as a target for the American boys.
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