Angeley, and at
Camp Martin, the latter being about nine kilometres southeast of
Mittlach. All patients collected on the southern route were evacuated
through Dubarle. These numerous posts required many men, so that by July
4th there were forty from the company at Mittlach. The last detachments
that left Ranspach were a disappointed lot. The company was preparing a
big dinner for the next day, and some of these men had worked helping to
prepare it--then they had to shoulder their packs late on the night of
the 3rd of July and hike to Larchey and Mittlach.

During the month that this company had a detachment at Larchey there
were two raids in that sector. About the sixth of July, Company "H" of
the 138th Infantry made a raid. The artillery preparation began at 7:45
in the evening and at 8:30 the raiding party of one officer and 238 men
went over the top. They were gone one-half hour, and at about the same
time that they came back to our trenches the first wounded were brought
in by the stretcher bearers from the line organizations. Meantime our
litter squads had known of the contemplated raid, so they were ready to
receive the wounded and litter them on back to Brun. The raid took place
directly in front of Vialet. From there to Brun it was nearly five
kilometres, and uphill. Litter bearing is strenuous work at best, but it
is doubly so when performed in the dark, and over strange, up-hill
trails. There were in all nineteen patients to carry that night. The
first patient, carried by Joe Barnes, Vesper, Toohey and John Crowley,
was a Boche. The job lasted nearly all night, and it was getting
daylight when the last wounded man reached Larchey next morning. The
work of the infantry had lasted not quite a half hour.

Nearly a week later the Germans attempted a raid early one morning, but
it was easily repulsed. The work of our detachment during the remainder
of the month consisted mostly of carrying occasional patients, and
making the climbs back and forth to meals. In some cases this was no
small task. Frequently a litter squad would have to go a quarter of a
mile or more after rations, and the trails were steep and narrow. Then
there were occasional bombardments by the Germans, and the first shell
was enough to set everyone going for a dugout. During one bombardment a
large shell exploded close to a dugout occupied by three of our men, and
caved it in. Covington was one of the three men, and the event was more
or less imm