BY H. D. TROUNCE FORMERLY OF THE ROYAL BRITISH ENGINEERS NOW CAPTAIN OF ENGINEERS, U.S.A. WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DIAGRAMS NEW YORK CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 1918 Copyright, 1918, by CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS Published October, 1918...

It has been frequently suggested to me that I write of my experiences at the front. As one of the advance-guard of the American army who participated in the great struggle for freedom long before the United States espoused the cause of the Allies, I am more than willing to do this, owing to my strong desire that the public should know something of the constant fighting which is going on underneath as well as on the surface and above the ground of the trenches both in France and elsewhere, especi

Being of British parentage and birth, most of my earlier life was spent in England. On coming of age, I left England for Canada, and after a few months there decided to study mining engineering in the United States. I attended a Western college, the Colorado School of Mines, leaving there in 1910 to practise my profession as a civil and mining engineer in California, where I took out my final papers as an American citizen several years before the war. By reason of my birth my sympathies were nat

The trenches in Flanders consist, in the front line at least, of sand-bag breastworks, and are not regular trenches at all. The country is so flat that it would be impossible to drain properly a series of trenches cut in the original soil. As a result of the lack of drainage, the consequent difficulties and hardships can be well understood. Each night the enemy would tear big holes in our breastworks in the front line, and we would have to duck and run past them on the following day, and at nigh

As it was a rare day for us in Flanders when the enemy or ourselves did not "blow" a mine, we were always on our toes. Except in cases of sudden emergency we informed the infantry of our intention to fire a mine, and gave them the time necessary to withdraw their men to points of safety. Often we would blow a mine at night in cooperation with the infantry so that they might at once rush out and "consolidate" the crater, or the nearest lip or rim of the crater. Certain positions in No Man's Land

In April, 1916, we were relieved of our work in Flanders, and ordered to move down to trenches some thirty miles farther south, to the chalk country of Artois. The new trenches were near Neuville-St.-Vaast, and about a half-mile south of the famous Vimy Ridge. The British at that time had just taken over another portion of the French line extending down as far as Péronne, in the Somme district and the infantry holding our part of the line at Neuville-St.-Vaast had relieved the French infantry on

Both the Germans and ourselves used huge mine-charges in the chalk and the effect of the explosion of many big mines is spread over a large area. We always felt the shakes in the ground even back in our dugouts at Aux Rietz, over a mile away; while in the forward trenches we had all the excitement of a regular earthquake. All dugouts would shake badly, timbers would be loosened and many men buried in other dugouts and shelters, while sleeping. The firing of mines at night or just about dawn was

All this time the fighting around us was fiercely waged. The Vimy Ridge was even then noted as being one of the "hottest" parts of the line, and the mining activity all along these sectors, especially where the trenches were very close together, was much in evidence. The tunnelling company who were on our immediate left had a very arduous time. One night they lost every single man then on duty in the front lines, all being captured. This happened at a time when the Boche raided their trenches in

Two sections of our company left Soastre the next day and proceeded to Albert. In going down we ran into a very severe thunder-storm. The roads were filled with a heavy traffic, troops marching into Albert and to neighboring towns, all going into the Big Push. Immense quantities of supplies and ammunition were being sent down. Shells and ammunition were piled everywhere on rough wooden platforms by the side of the road. Most of the troops were bivouacked near the roads, and on this day were havi

After some six weeks on the Somme we were ordered to return to Hébuterne and remained there during the operations known as the battle of the Ancre. Our rest-camp was at Souastre, a village some three miles back of the front line. Souastre was shelled irregularly. Whenever our artillery shelled a village behind the Hun lines, the Germans would retaliate by shelling the corresponding village behind the British lines. Retaliation was always a strong point with the Boches. Our work, which was now mo

In January, 1917, we were directed to proceed from Hébuterne to the trenches near Arras. Our rest-camp was at Beaumetz, a village about two and a half miles back of the lines, and our work was the construction of forward underground galleries under No Man's Land and deep-dugout construction in Arras and the villages and trenches to the south. Another man and myself were billeted at B. with a French family, four generations of whom were occupying the kitchen, while we used what was formerly the p

About three weeks after the enemy had retired on our front opposite Beaurains a series of operations started which were afterward known as the battle of Arras. These were practically started with the splendid capture of the Vimy Ridge by the Canadians. All our fellows were highly delighted at this event, mainly by reason of the fact that we had served there for three months in the previous spring, and could appreciate the extraordinary difficulty of the task of the Canadians in capturing it, esp

On May 20 we engineered a most successful underground operation, and very materially aided our infantry in capturing another 500 yards of the famous Hindenburg line. In order to understand the situation more clearly, I will endeavor to explain briefly the construction of these Hindenburg-line trenches. They had undoubtedly been constructed during the months previous to the German retreat and were cleverly planned and executed. It was apparent that the enemy had intended to retreat to them and to

From a prolonged and varied experience under shell-fire, machine-gun, rifle, trench-mortar fire, etc., and from an intimate and close association with men of all kinds in times of deadly peril, it seems evident to me that personal courage is very largely a matter of physical condition and general health, and that, provided a man be healthy and his nerves in good condition, it is natural for him to be brave. In the case of a man of liberal education, used to the refinements of life, imagination i

Mining is an effective weapon, but it must be applied to suitable objectives, and its use restricted by certain rules which have been deduced from experience. As regards the actual processes, the only important changes to be anticipated are the development of the use of rapid tools and of high explosives. The most vulnerable points in trench-mine warfare are the following: Listening and observation posts in advance of the line; machine-gun and trench-mortar positions; junction-points of communic