ctor had
passed like months. The constant moving up, the difficulty of getting
adequate rations, the lack of good water, the shortage of sleep, and the
continual and strenuous activity through it all, had worn out the men
and killed many of our horses. But the division had done much in the
time during which it had been in the line, and our fatigue seemed
lightened by such statements as that of the divisional commander: "In
eight days the 42d Division has forced the passage of the Ourcq, made an
advance of 16 kilometres, and met, routed and decimated a Prussian Guard
division, a Bavarian Reserve division and one other division."

CHAPTER VI

IN THE ST. MIHIEL OFFENSIVE

Our train journey took us south to the divisional area, about Langres.
The regiment detrained at Bourmont, and from there the batteries hiked
to different towns, E to Bourg Saint Marie.

This is as close as the battery ever came to spending leisure at a "rest
camp," of which we heard rumors at the front, and it promised to be
quite the opposite of a rest, from the schedule laid out. No more than
promised, however, for the ten days spent there sufficed for only a day
or two of the schedule, after the time required for settling down and
before the days required to prepare for moving.

The men who went to the "scabies" hospital, at Bourmont, of whom there
was a considerable number, were the ones who had the rest. Those who
were members of the "Two Weeks' Club" enjoyed only what rest the
corporals, honorary members because their sentence was three weeks, who
were in charge of the details--which did various choice bits of
excavation work--allowed them; whether that was insufficient or
excessive can only be determined by testimony.

The dread schedule appeared only for one day, Monday, August 26.
Reveille was at 4:30; breakfast, 5; watering and feeding horses; foot
drill, 7:30-8:30; pistol drill, 8:30-9:15; standing gun drill,
9:30-10:30; stables, 10:30-11:30. In the afternoon two hours of pistol
drill and standing gun drill were followed by stables, 4 to 5 p. m.,
filling the time as completely as in the morning.

Next day reveille was at 5:45, and the schedule was thus rid of its most
disagreeable feature, early rising. Otherwise it was nearly as the
preceding day. Wednesday, however, a regimental review, and the
consequent washing of harness, and cleaning and greasing of carriages,
upon return, knocked out the schedule completely, and it had n