How to live at the front; tips for American soldiers

Front matter

TIPS FOR AMERICAN SOLDIERS

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Preface

During my stay in America I have been asked many questions about things at the front. In spite of the valiant efforts of newspaper men the impression still prevails that the present war is a continuous battle of Gettysburg. People have often said to me, ' ' But you haven't actually been in the front line trench, not in the very front." They cannot appreciate the fact that when a nation is in arms abnormal conditions, although they prevail, cannot be appreciated for any length of time by ordinary people. It seems to them impossible for a person to exist for many days in a fire trench without being killed or going insane. Human nature fortunately is very adaptable and one sometimes spends some very amusing and interesting hours in the actual trenches

8 PREFACE

perhaps only one hundred yards from the Germans.

Generally it is a small percentage of the men in an army who are actually grappling with the enemy. Hence a large percentage of one's life at the front is spent imder similar conditions to those prevailing in a military practice camp. Perhaps conditions will change.

I have had the honor of addressing young officers and men here preparing for active service, and have followed informal lines, giving straight tips about the things that struck me more forcibly in training and at the front. In this book I have followed similar lines. This and the fact of my having to work under pressure in the preparation of the manuscript will explain its informal treatment.

When you go to France you will enter upon new experiences with the Poilus, the Tommies, acquaintances behind the lines, with the enemy and, last but not least, with

PREFACE 9

yourself. In that life there will be a great deal whieli is not found on the official military text-hooks or presented in the pictorial or literary accounts of staff reporters.

I want to point out to you the little things in warfare — ^the ordinary personal things, the things that are not a bit thrilling or exciting. In the process I hope to show you how to avoid making other people, as well as yourself, suffer; the other people may be your comrades, your family or your nation. Your life will not be made up of attacking the Oermans or resisting their attack — although there will be a deal of both — for the greaterpartyour life will be one of personal relations under peculiar conditions, upon a strange stage.

It has many times been said that America will profit by England's mistakes — ^no one hopes that more than do I — ^I also hope that the American soldier who reads this book will profit to the degree of

10 PREFACE

recognizing that the good and bad of the war will largely depend upon the effect that fighting has upon the individual soldier, and that that effect, for good or bad, lies under the control of the individual. This book, giving you an acquaintance with the conditions that you will encounter, may make you a more valuable soldier, one better able to look out for his body and his soul (both are in danger at the front). If it has this result I will be thankful.

Contents

CHAPTER FAGB

I. At the Bakrier 15

II. Fitting into the Machine 22

Chapter II

Once upon a time there was a large firm of merchants whose chief business was the production of mechanical toys. Some of the toys were quite clever and a good deal of mechanical skill was needed in their manufacture. The country in which they lived was very rich and some of the fathers bought quite expensive toys for their children, such as small automobiles, also small locomotives that would run under steam. Unfortunately the coimtry had a big crisis in its history and the fathers refused to buy expensive toys an.y longer and things began to look very black for the merchants.

One member of the firm had spent his apprenticeship in the manufacture of engines for big liners. This member suggested that all the available capital should be put into a big plant for the manufacture of engines for ships. It was a bold step, but it had to be taken. The apparently impossible often occurs in life.

The merchants were fortunate in obtaining an order for the engines of a large liner. They received the drawings, but only the fellow who had spent his youth in the engine plant could understand them. He worked very hard and the others helped to the best of their ability. Finally the drawings were understood and the raw material ordered. The work was tremendous. It was difficult to get experienced foremen pattern-makers, but they had to take what they could get and hope for the best. The foundry presented many difficulties, but some good men were obtained. The forge also had to be supplied, but the time was short, and if anything was to be done it had to be done quickly. They got plenty of raw material and there were masses of it. It arrived in truck loads every day and as the head of the firm saw it coming in he wondered how on earth he w^as going to turn all that stuff into a perfect engine that would cause the liner to rush across the sea. He was discouraged but had to stick to it.

After a time the raw material was turned into rough f orgings and castings. This had been difficult, but after many failures a good many parts arrived at the machine shops. Here the difficulties were very great. First the lower foremen did not know their men very well. The machines were badly placed in the shop. Many of the foremen had to be dismissed. The roof started to leak during the winter. The department ordering lubricating oil occasionally failed. The men on the lathes and millers ruined a large amount of the work. Muddle and worry were everywhere. Still they had to go on or else ruin would stare the firm in the face. After months of worry and trouble at last the great engine showed signs of being what it was meant to be. Finally it was erected in the ship, and as the head of the firm sat at luncheon on the liner during her trial trip he wondered how on earth he could have got the job done at all. The engine was not a very good one at first, but the material was good, and after several alterations and repairs and several trips across the ocean it got tuned up and the firm received many orders for other ships.

If any of you know anything about the manufacture of machinery and large-scale machine-shop practice you will promptly discredit my fable. Perhaps you will be right to do so, but you will admit the possibility of such a thing happening.

Great Britain and America are the firm of merchants. The large engine for the ship is their new armies.

Now you fellows represent the raw material. The underforemen represent the

2G HOW TO LIVE AT THE FRONT

N.C.O/s, the head forenieu represent the officers ; the member of the firm who had spent his time with the experienced firm of engineers is your regular army.

Your preliminary training will have been faulty for certain. If every member of your new army were a genius their very inexperience would cause certain mistakes. The fact that all you American men have had good educations is an advantage and a little disadvantageous. You have very healthy, strong bodies and will be able to stand intensive training.

Many of you have not as yet been called up so I will give you a few tips that you may be able to see a glimmer of light.

You know that it is during one's training that one can pick up the little things that are going to be useful. Some of you already in the Service may have missed a great deal during the months that have passed. Perhaps these remarks will refresh your memory.

In England when a man joins the army in peace time, he is sent to a depot and most of the rough spots are removed from him before he j oins his regiment. He is taught the elements of soldiering. When he arrives at his station or post he finds himself with a few others in the recruit class. It is not very difficult for him. If he is a decent sort of chap, the older soldiers are willing to help. Being one of a few recruits, he is very much in the minority. He has to put up with a good deal of what we call in England ^'Ragging.'' It really does him a lot of good and after a year he is on the way towards being something of a soldier. Possibly the same thing occurs in the army of Uncle Sam.

When the war broke out, there was nothing approaching a continental army in England. There were about 200,000 regulars. There is now an army, it is said, of about five million. This means that to every twenty-five untrained soldiers there was one trained one, and the same proportion applies to officers. To train effectively and rapidly the present British army we really needed the whole of our regular army, and that might not have been enough. Of course, they had to go to France, so the training of our first couple of hundred thousand was left mainly in the hands of elderly officers, N.C.O.'s, a few old reservists, and a sprinkling of regulars. In time, men were wounded at the front and they returned, some of them to light duty, training men ; but as soon as possible they were sent back to France.

The actual firing of a gun, the actual killing of the enemy is but one part of warfare. Everything else leads up to it and that everything summed up in the words *^ effective organization" is most important. The supply of food requires the service of many thousands of men, at the head of whom are capable administrators with large staffs. Each man gets a certain ration every day; imagine what would happen if one hundredth part of the ration was not supplied. Ammunition, horse fodder, clothing, telephone material are but a few of the commodities which have to be brought up at the right moment. The trouble caused by not having a new pair of shoes the moment the sole is worn out gives you an inkling of the tremendous machine working behind a large army. It takes experience to get it going, no matter how clever the men in charge may be. In the English army to-day it works as it should, but it has now had experience — paid for dearly.

You will notice when you get to the front, and rather before you get to the trenches, that there are thousands of soldiers who never kill a single German. A very large percentage have never seen one alive or free.

At the beginning of the war in England, when a couple of hundred thousand men were called up there was bound to be a certain amount of disorganization, and the man who suffered most was the private of inexperience. He understands now. At first he did not and got a bit annoyed.

[N'ow in America things are just a little similar. You seem to be going to have in a comparatively short time a huge army. The work of the Quartermaster's staff will be tremendous. His staff officers will be a little inexperienced and it may be that you will be the man who suffers. Perhaps as you have British mistakes to learn from, everything will work like a book right from the start. It seems that Great Britain did not do so badly, considering all things. She did her very best, as you will.

In any case the organization of a huge army consisting of a million men requires the utmost efficiency, and when an army is really a mushroom growth, this efficiency is difficult to come by. It will come all right, but it will take a little time. An army organization is like a vast machine in which every pinion must do its part correctly or else the use of the machine will be impaired. Pinions take some fitting and machining. Possibly one or two of the pinions in your machine will have to be repaired or replaced.

The time will come when you will be ordered to report at a certain place, and finally you will find yourself at the railway station saying ^^ Good-bye" to your friends and relatives. You will feel a bit of a hero. Make the most of it, for except when visiting your home you'll never feel a hero again until you return for good. In the train you will find many others going to the same post or camp with you. You will get enthusiastic and doubtless, as the train passes through the country, people will cheer you, and you will all sing some song or other. I wonder what the song will be ? * ' Tipperary ' ' got so stale in England that if you now sing it to a British Tommy he feels faint. It may indeed happen that the train will be delayed on the journey perhaps for hours. Meal-time will arrive, but there will be no food. The people looking after supplies did not expect the train to be delayed; therefore, take some food with you and something to drink. The water on the train may get used up. You will be told that on your arrival at the camp or post you will be supplied mth towels, etc., and uniform. Don't be surprised if you have to wait many days, many weeks for both towel and uniform ; therefore, if you can take a thin extra shirt with you and a towel, do so. Many recruits in England had to dry themselves on pocket handkerchiefs for weeks. They were easy to wash but to dry them was difficult. People have a habit of pinching things in the army. Don't forget to take two tooth brushes with you. People even pinch these for some reason or other, possibly to clean buttons with. When you arrive at the post it may be late at night, but you will find that as soon as possible they will get some food for you. Don't be surprised if you don't get any milk in your coffee. There may be no butter. The food may be rough, but it will be clean. That night you will get a good meal. The next day you will have to look after yourself. Things will seem a bit horrible to you. There will be a long line of other rookies waiting for food. If you can be near the top of the line, be there. If you are at the end, it may be that the food will have run out and you'll get none. This will be owing to the inexperience of the man dishing out the food. He'll soon learn ; so will you. However, when you are left you will go to the Y.M.C.A. or the Regimental canteen and buy a tin of sardines. They are safer than tinned lobster or salmon. You will get some rather weak coffee, but even here at the canteen the food may run out. Expect all these things. They can't be helped at first. In a day or two all will be well and soon the food problem will be solved.

You may find at the beginning that parades are very short. There will be a shortage of officers and N.C.O.'s. Some fellows will find that it is easy to avoid parades. They'll get caught in the end. If you are a mounted soldier in the Gunners or the Cavalry, you will be ordered to attend stables at a certain hour. There will be about six men to every horse, and you will find that the stable hour will drag. You will get blazes if you are caught doing nothing. So do something. Once more, some fellows will avoid stables. They also will get nipped in time.

You will at first find that discipline is a little lax in spots. Sometimes, and when you least expect it, it will be very severe. There will be a good deal of time on your

FITTING INTO THE ]!^IACHINE 35

hands, but don't be deceived by this, it will change. To sum up, take all things as they come. If you can keep cheerful, do so. Expect many discomforts and don't be surprised if you detect what you may regard as inefficiency.

Like you, many of your officers will be inexperienced. They will do their very best. In the same way that you will find it difficult to march correctly, to understand certain commands, to handle your rifle correctly, so they will find it difficult to look after you. You know that to look after you is an officer's duty — to see that your clothing is in good condition, to see that you are well fed and that the food is good and well cooked, even to see that your bed is comfortable, and most of all, to see that you are happy and contented. The most important lesson an officer has to learn is not to use his sword well, not to be able to give correct commands and to know at once when they are not being obeyed correctly, not to be able to look like a peacock and salute his superiors; but to be able to understand you, to be able to look after you so well that you will respect him and be willing to die for him if necessary. It will take him a little time to learn this, but he will learn it. If he makes mistakes, try and put up with them cheerfully. He is doing his best and all the time he is getting blazes from his superiors — ^you don't hear it, or you ought not to.

At first you will be only a part of a crude machine, of which the bearings will want much oil. Through patient work the machine will get tuned up. When you first arrive you will find a number of noncommissioned officers, sergeants, corporals, and the like — ^they will possibly be old soldiers with a sprinkling from the regular army. Look out for the old soldiers. They are either very crusty or very affable. The affable ones are of little use to you. The regular army men are the f ellows from whom you can learn most. You will find them very neat and tidy. Look at their clothing, it will be very clean. Their shoes will be polished in a wonderful way ; their hats will be clean and neat. You will note how they hold themselves. Try and copy them.

From your ranks will be chosen a large number of N.C.O.'s. If you look a smart fellow, you will be chosen and you will rather enjoy the honor. You will write home about it, and your mother will tell her friends, and your father will be proud. Now be careful. An N.C.O. is NOT a person who merely gives orders to his men. He is placed in the position to get certain results. He may be a handsome fellow with fine shoulders and a commanding sort of way with him, but if he is not a man of character he is perfectly useless. The issuing of commands is nothing if they are not obeyed. Now you will find that with a little study the commands and manoeuvres can be learned. You will be able to put the men through their drill without much difficulty. That is all easy. But if one of the men under you does something wrong, forgets something that you have told him to do, he is not going to be blamed; but you are. You will find yourself, to your astonishment, getting blazes from your officer through no apparent fault of your own. You had been told to get something done and Private Jones had been duly ordered by you to do the thing. The officer finds it not done. He gives you blazes, you reply that you had ordered Private Jones to do it. To your amazement the officer only gets more annoyed. Do you follow me ? If you are told to do a thing, it must be done and you must be man enough to see that it is done. The fact that Private Jones forgot is your fault. If he had respected you at all he would have done it all right. You will learn in time. Make the men under you respect you. Don't be afraid of telling them what you think of them. They won 't mind.

The issuing of every order has a purpose. It is never done for fim. Quite often its object is the comfort of the many. Soldiers always hate a weak, wobbling X.C.O. They respect one who gets his own way. You can get your own way if you go about it in the right manner. Some N.C.O.'s get it by being brutal. They are fools. They die often.

Let the men know, not by telling them nor by explaining, that you want most of all to do your duty by them. In the same way that an officer merely exists to make his men efficient and effective, so you exist to help him gain the same object. You must think of the happiness of the many. There are thousands of instances that I could quote. In the barrack room a man may make himself unpleasant to the others — sit on him tight. Some N.C.O.'s think it is a sign of efficiency to be always reporting their men to the officer in charge — it is not. You are a leader of men. A leader of men seldom has to refer to higher authority. Be tactful. Don't ever ask a man to do a thing that you can't do yourself. Don't give commands that can't be thoroughly understood. If possible and convenient, explain the object of your commands.

Some N.C.O.'s are always putting men under arrest. The officer is compelled to bear out anything they may say. It is a matter of discipline. I have often had men brought up to me and after dismissing them with a few rude remarks I have kept the N.C.O. back and have given him much more than I gave the man.

At the beginning there are bound to be many N.C.O.'s who have been unwisely chosen for the job. If you have been chosen and don't feel yourself capable, drop the job at once like a hot cake. It will be better for yourself and the men. Nevertheless, remember that you are fighting for your country, and you can do more as an N.C.O. than as a private. It will be very difficult. It will become impossible or it ought to be impossible for you to be very intimate with your men. I do not mean that you must cut your friends if they happen to be privates, but it will be a little difficult. This may seem funny, and you may think that it is different in the American army. It will be just the same. In our army to-day all classes are mixed. They are not all serfs. When I was a private my cousin was a lieutenant, and I could not speak to him outside of his room where, however, I occasionally took my revenge.

Warfare is a horrible thing and to-day it has become an unnatural thing, and therefore much that is unpleasant has to be put up with. After a few weeks as an N.C.O. you will notice that your friends among the privates will be a little different. They will say you are getting ** stuck up." They will discourage you a little. Things will become increasingly difficult. You will be getting into trouble with your officers, and when you get to the barrack room instead of friendly glances you may get the opposite. You may be a big man, a man of great character, and will be able to ignore this. You may have played on your school football team or have been something special at baseball, consequently it will be easy. On the other hand, perhaps you may be quite a little man with no reputation to help you. Now don't get discouraged. Stick it out. Insist on the most rigid obedience. You will get it all right if your order has been a sensible one; and never, never give an order that is not clear and defined or that you fear will not be obeyed through misunderstanding. Therefore, think out your order and having given it insist upon obedience, even if it is a wrong order.

Always take the blame from your officers for the faults of your men. If a man is discovered by you to have committed a serious fault, don't excuse him, it is not your business. For his sake, for the sake of your regiment have the fault punished. The man won't respect you a bit more for letting him off. This will be very hard.

I once found a man asleep on duty as a sentry. It was very cold and miserable, and he, poor fellow, had felt a bit sick and having sat down, fell sound asleep. It was just before dawn and at the front. I turned my electric torch on him, then quickly turned it off. I wanted very badly to go away and fire a brick at him or start talking loudly to the horses near so as to give him a chance. I went over to where the men were sleeping, tired out and weary. We had had a long march. Then

I thought of that sentry whom we all trusted to wake us in ease of danger. I wanted to wake him up and to give him blazes, and let him off with that. I went over and looked at him again. I thought of his family and the disgrace that would follow his court-martial. We were at the front, and you know sentries may not sleep at their posts. They are there to look after the men who are sleeping. If they sleep themselves there is no point in having them. Finally I roused him and he told me the sad tale of his feeling ill — yet if he had thought, he had only to mention the fact to the N.C.O. in charge and he would have been relieved. So I placed him under arrest. Thank heaven, he had an epileptic fit before his court-martial, so we both escaped. I told the major afterwards about what I had thought and he said that I had merely my duty to perform, and had had no business even to think.

I remember once, in action at the front and being on duty as orderly officer, finding a sentry sitting beside the fire in a gun emplacement; I gave him every chance to escape, but he must have been deaf. I knew him to be a very good man and took the responsibility of giving him a good talking to instead of arresting him. I, of course, told the major about it and he agreed that it might work all right. You know officers hate having to punish their men ; all they want is efficiency, and if it can be got pleasantly all the better. Unfortunately another officer found the same man doing the same thing a week after.

So you see an N.C.O.'s job is a difficult one and consists really in leading men; not merely in wearing a few stripes. Try and manage your men well. Protect them not by letting them off, that doesn't help them a bit, but by teaching them and making them do their duty. Try not to lose your temper. It is often a good thing to pretend to get very angry when you are quite calm. As I said before, the issuing of orders is not the most important thing to which an N.C.O. has to attend. However, there is a lot in the issuing of orders. Develop a big, sharp voice. Bring out your orders distinctly and sharply like a bark. You'll get fine results if you do. Feel enthusiastic about your drill. Make it interesting. Think of the men. Let them stand at ease occasionally. If you are instructing and not on parade unbend as much as possible. Make contrasts. Bring out your points ; give the explanation softly, but distinctly, and then the order as though you were going to murder every man on the parade ground. They will laugh at you at first, but stick to it. In all walks of life people who start to get results are at times laughed at. When they start to discourage you, you will know that you are doing something worth while. There will be a period, if I am not mistaken, when you will go to your officer and ask him to relieve you of your stripes. You will feel a bit of a martyr. You are not. You are merely a quitter. You have failed to help your country.

The greatest difficulty we had at the beginning was the training of N.C.O.'s. A man hated having to be hard on his pals. We understood and sympathized, but we had to have N.C.O.'s somehow, so we persevered. The result was that the officers were overburdened. Out of two hundred men in my battery at the beginning, we succeeded in making only one really good N.C.O. He was uneducated and could hardly speak the King's English. He made some fearful mistakes in his commands. It was difficult for both myself and my men to keep from laughing at him. I remember before he was promoted, he was on sentry duty and I was Orderly Officer. As I approached he shouted quite correctly, ^^Halt, who goes there?" I replied ^'friend," wrong for the Orderly