Part 5

It is not always that pumps are available, and the few of those which are, are of no practical use for a length of time sufficient to be of any value; in fact, they hardly repay the fatigue entailed in getting them to the trenches. For ordinary trench drainage several small pumps are of far more use than one large one, as the range’s limited by the difficulties of removing it or by the length of pipe attached. These pumps, whether large or small, must be given a large and substantial platform, placed in some central position among a number of sump-pits. Each pump must have not only a discharge pipe, but a suction pipe, the latter being movable from one pit to another in the pump’s area without moving the pump. The placing of these pumps must be thorough and systematic, and those sump-pits not reached by pumps must be kept empty by means of pails.

FLOORBOARDS

Although these are rarely available in sufficient numbers to be laid continuously along the entire length of the trench, it is unwise to throw one down on a particularly muddy spot in a trench as a remedy. The result is that when it becomes covered with mud it sinks out of sight, and another one is thrown down with the same result. Then, when an attempt to drain is made, much to somebody’s disgust they run into a layer of floorboards, quit work, and the trench never becomes drained. Patchy repairs to a trench bottom are as aggravating and as useless as bad revetment. When only a few floorboards are available, then they should be laid in one length and that length made as nearly perfect as possible, until more may be had, then that length continued. Patching here and there is of no use and never leads anywhere. Trench bottoms are treated in different ways up and down the line, depending on localities and materials on hand. In some places the trench bottom is of concrete blocks and bricks, with a small trench ditch of about 6 inches running along the side. This is not a very happy combination, as men traveling up and down the trenches at night with heavy loads sometimes stumble, their feet go in, the trench ditch becomes full of mud and blocked up, and your trench gradually becomes flooded up and down its length, unless very great care is taken. Where time and labor are available, long lengths of trench may be put and kept in good condition and the trench question partially solved if two rows of stout 4-foot sticks are driven well into the bottom of the trench, about 3 feet apart. Wooden rails are then nailed along the top of the stakes and cross-bars nailed and fastened to the rails. This work must be done thoroughly, though, or weak places will occur and become very dangerous for men traveling at night with heavy loads, as a fall through a hole in one of these bottoms generally means a broken ankle or some other accident.

In some parts of the line it has not been necessary to use anything for a trench floor, the ground itself being sufficient, with a small drainage ditch dug at the side, as in the case of those trench bottoms covered with cement and brick.

BRUSHWOOD AND STRAW

Brushwood should not be placed in a trench bottom, except under very exceptional circumstances, and, as a matter of fact, is very seldom used, its value lying more in the manufacture of hurdles. Once brushwood has been trodden into the mud it is absolutely impossible to remove it, and there is no means of removing the mud and properly repairing the trench bottom. Straw under no circumstances should ever be put in a trench bottom, and when put into dugouts or shelters, should be cleared out and burned where possible (which will not be in front line) as soon as it becomes sodden or sour. The floor of the dugouts and shelters must be thoroughly cleaned of all this old straw, sand bags and bad soil before fresh straw is put in. It is possible in large dugouts such as are found in reserve and support lines, to make bunks out of wire netting on the same style as the berth in a steamer, and in a modern dugout enough of these bunks may be made to accommodate a company. In all German dugouts this is the practice, although it is not possible in close proximity to the front line. Advantage must be taken of what material is at hand.

WORKING PARTIES

The routine of a battalion which is doing, for the sake of illustration, we will say six days in the trenches, is roughly as follows:

Six days are spent in what is generally known as a Brigade Reserve, which means living in the reserve dugouts or billets, depending on the closeness of a village to the firing line. During these six days the battalion supplies working parties to assist the battalion holding the line in the upkeep of its trenches. Very often this necessitates continuous work night and day for the men, more especially so during the winter months. At the end of the six days they go to the trenches and are in turn assisted by the working parties of the battalion relieved.

These working parties may sometimes be actually in the front line with the battalion that relieved them, or on the communication trenches leading to the front line, or on the second line defenses or reserve and support dugouts. This work is carried on under the supervision of engineer officers generally acting under orders from their brigade and divisional commanders. A request is made daily through the battalion commander for so many men to form the various working parties for that day and night, and the battalion commander keeping the brigade or division informed of his actual strength, protects his battalion from impossible allotments of work. These working parties are then detailed with the officer in charge, and he is generally given sufficient notice that he may have some idea of the task ahead of him. It is then to that officer’s benefit, knowing the amount of men who will have to do the task and what the task is like, for him to study out before leaving for the place where the work is to be done, just exactly what he intends to do and what sort of an organization it will require to do the work with the least possible friction.

This is absolutely essential, as naturally men coming from a six days’ tour of the trenches and being ordered on a working task, are not keen on the job, and when an officer has not studied beforehand what he intends doing and how it shall be done, it winds up in endless confusion, disgusts the men more than ever, and precious little work is done.

RELIEFS. The total time occupied in digging trenches is generally divided into parties called reliefs, usually of four hours. Shorter periods than this means much time wasted in commencing work and in delays; but, as a matter of fact, the time spent on the job and going to and from it will run to from 7 to 10 hours.

In digging trenches, the usual extension is to two full paces per man. Where there is little probability of attack the following method may be adopted: Halt party about four paces in rear of the left flank of the general line of trenches required to be dug; then form single rank, march ahead of party to the commencement of task and indicate to the first man his task, stepping off the next two paces for the next man, and so on until you have your party all placed. This takes a very short time and is one of the best methods. Allow the men to remove their equipment, but do not allow them to throw it any place they like. It is a general rule to place it about four paces to the rear of their task. Where attacks are possible, rifles must be kept within easy reach.

TRAVERSED FIRE TRENCHES

The following is a method for extending men to dig by night a traversed and recessed fire trench which is not already traced:

1. Detailing a covering party to guard against sudden attack.

2. Extension of the remainder to two paces.

3. Number quietly down the line by 4s.

4. Nos. 1 and 4 stop 2 paces back (these men then become traverse men).

5. Nos. 2 and 4 drive in their picks (half way between themselves and left-hand neighbors and in line with their toes).

6. Front rank to mark out tasks (Nos. 2 and 3 commence from the pick between them and mark out 7½ feet each way, that is, 2½ pick-handles’ distance).

7. Rear rank mark out tasks (commencing from pick between Nos. 1 and 4 to end of each recess).

As soon as this is done the men commence work, the officer going down the line at once to check any errors before they have gone too far. While this may sound very complicated it will be found that after a little training the men become accustomed to it and it is a very simple matter. This method renders unnecessary the giving of many orders in the dark once the men are extended, and prevents a great amount of confusion. There will always be a slight amount of readjustment of the work, such as the widening of traverses, etc., but it is easily done after the work has been started and even after the trench has been dug to some depth.

OBSTACLES AND ENTANGLEMENTS

The purpose of an obstacle is to obtain the control of the enemies in respect to direction and speed during an attack, and to deflect troops into areas favorable to their destruction by the defenders. They break up the unity of action, deflect parties isolated into the best swept fields of fire and hold them under close fire of the defenses. An obstacle should be close to the defender’s position, not more than 80 yards away at the most. A system is now in use on the Western Front where entanglements in front of trenches are placed approximately 20 yards from the parapet, as that has been found to be the distance at which the deadliest bombing can be done. They should be sheltered or screened, when possible, from enemy artillery, giving no cover to the enemy and be so placed as to surprise the enemy. They should not interfere with any counter attack necessary to be made and have occasional gaps, which may be mined. Types of obstacles are low wire entanglements, their height depending on the condition existing in No Man’s Land; high wire entanglements, barricades, mines, inundations, etc. Wire plays the important part in most of the obstacles now being used on all fronts, and is generally used, first, as a trip wire stretched just above the ground, or fastened in loose coils to short pickets. Flares and alarm guns and tin cans may be used in connection with this; second: a simple fence to cause delay and confusion to the enemy at night; third: as a concealed obstacle in fords and standing crops or long grass; fourth: as a help towards making hedges and brushwood impassable, and as a wire entanglement solely.

The wire entanglements are the best obstacles, as they are quickly and easily made, are very difficult to destroy and offer no obstruction to fire in view of the defenses.

LOW WIRE ENTANGLEMENTS. Stout sticks, 36 inches long and 1½ to 2 inches in diameter, are driven into the ground on level at 6-foot intervals. These should be driven in at least three rows so arranged that the sticks in one row are opposite the centers of gaps in the next. The heads of the sticks are connected by strong wires crossing diagonally from 12 to 18 inches above the ground.

HIGH WIRE ENTANGLEMENTS. To be effective, high wire entanglements should prevent the enemy from crawling through it at or near the ground level, and when possible, should be screened from enemy artillery observation. This obviously is utterly impossible as far as wire entanglements in front of the firing line is concerned, but it is possible to a certain extent to screen these high entanglements from observation in front of support lines and second line systems. Under conditions existing at the front, the wire work is often and generally, for very good reasons, of a hasty character, and it is best, therefore, to limit the first stage to just enough to form a nucleus of the whole entanglement, in order that the required area may be covered by obstacle before serious interruption occurs. To do this, the obstacle is best constructed in two zones, with a small space between. The pickets should be from 5 to 8 feet long and average five inches in diameter, being placed at irregular distances and with varying heights in order to make more difficult the passage over them by means of hurdles and planks. The outer pickets should be very firmly driven and stayed to prevent the enemy dragging the obstacle away. It is also nice to drive large nails into the tops of the posts with half their length projecting. After the posts are driven in, they are first joined diagonally, that is, from head to foot and foot to head, by winding the wire around each post and securing it by staples. Each set of posts should be stayed by four wires. There should be a trip wire 9 inches from the ground, or even less, running continuously round the outer posts, and another one foot from the top of the middle posts. The barbed wire can then be hung in festoons between the posts on no fixed pattern and fastened to them. It must also be fastened to the other wire where it crosses, by short lengths of wire especially cut beforehand. Slack wires are of more hindrance when cut than taut wires. Tight wires help the enemy’s advance by giving support to hurdles and other methods used to get across these entanglements. One method once used by the Germans was the carrying out of mattresses and endeavoring to cover the wire obstacles in that manner, and had the wire been taut it would have been a success, but as it happened, it was not.

The ground on the enemy’s side and within the entanglement, as a matter of courtesy, is strewn with broken glass and tangled wire. The whole system of entanglement should be under well-controlled machine gun fire from special points and should be widest where the fire of the defenders is least effective by night. There should be one sentry at least to each 50 yards of entanglement.

ABATIS. A form of obstacle made by trees cut down and laid side by side as close as possible with their branches towards the enemy is used. These should be in a hollow and screened from view to make it of any value. The butts of the trees should be firmly secured by burying them in the earth, or by laying logs of timber across several butts. Wire and barbed wire must then be interlaced between the boughs, which should also be sharpened to points on the enemy side. Some of the lower branches may be pegged to the ground, if thought necessary, to insure the maximum resistance.

BARRICADES. These are used for the defense of streets, roads, bridges, etc., and are made of any available materials, including furniture and vehicles, either overthrown or with wheels removed, carts filled with earth, railings, bales of goods, etc. Where trees are growing along the roadside, fell them across it and entangle with wire.

It must be kept in mind, though, that passages are required through these barricades to allow outposts to advance or retreat, that these passages, viewed from the front, must not appear as openings. To avoid this the barricade should be made in two parts, one overlapping the other. Sometimes, where there is a gap in a row of houses, or a sharp bend in the road, a barricade may be made in one part and a passage round one end left for traffic.

INUNDATIONS. They may be formed by damming streams at convenient points, specially in the valleys, or by damming up the arches of bridges. In the latter case, care must be taken not to endanger the stability of the bridge. The ditches of field works form a good obstacle when flooded. Destroyed trenches in front of a breastworks may be filled with water, and with barbed wire thrown into it, will prove an effective obstacle.

FOUGASSES. These are used in connection with obstacles and are really land mines loaded with stones, bricks, etc. An excavation is made in conical shape with an axis inclined to about 40 degrees toward the enemy horizon. A box of powder is then placed in a recess at the bottom and on the box is placed a wooden platform or shield 3 to 4 inches thick, over which stones are piled.

A fuse is placed in a groove cut at the back of the excavation. A line of least resistance must be so arranged that by placing the excavated earth on the back edge of the fougasse, the powder will act in the direction of the axis and not vertically. A fougasse charged with 80 pounds of powder may be constructed in this manner to throw five tons of brick and stone over a surface about 160 yards long by 120 yards wide.

All of the foregoing are labors of working parties, as well as construction of dugouts, carrying of supplies, ammunition, etc., drainage and building of the trenches and the many other jobs behind the lines. Always, no matter how small the job, careful forethought must be given to the planning and arrangement necessary to carry it out.

ORGANIZATION OF BOMBING SQUADS

Every infantry soldier must and does receive instruction in grenade throwing. Some men do not possess the temperament and qualifications necessary to make efficient bombers, and for this reason in every platoon there should be a bombing squad of one N. C. O. and 8 men, with a higher degree of training and efficiency as bomb throwers than the remainder, although all hope must not be given up for the remainder.

These men are available either to work with the platoon or to provide a reserve of bombers for any special job, such as raids, cutting-out parties, and clearing trenches just occupied. Only the very best men in each platoon should be chosen, taking into consideration physique, courage and steadiness, although it is not always the big man physically that makes the best bomber. The responsibility for the training of these men rests with the battalion and company commanders.

TRAINING

The first step is to overcome a man’s natural fear of the grenade itself. This is only done by explaining how it is to be used, the method of lighting and the length of time taken for the fuse to burn. A good idea is to have some of the fuses of the length used lighted and the men told to count while the fuse burns out. Dummy grenades with fuses attached can then be introduced and the men taught to light them, observing carefully how long it takes for the fuse to burn down to the grenade.

The second step is to develop accuracy in throwing. Normally, the bomb should be bowled overhand, although it is certainly not wrong to throw, but it has been found in tests that a man throwing bombs has tired a great deal quicker than a man bowling them overhand.

Stick grenades may be thrown over short distances like a dart, although this is unhandy and can only be done by a carefully trained man. Great care must be taken while in the trenches in throwing percussion bombs, as very often a man swinging his arm back to throw such a bomb has exploded it in the trench, with disaster to himself and those near him.

Men should be taught to throw standing, kneeling and prone. It should be impressed upon them from the beginning that if a grenade with a time fuse is dropped in the act of throwing there is ample time to pick it up and throw it out of the trench before it explodes, but this must be done immediately.

A is a diagram of a bombing field where men are trained in practice with dummy bombs. 1 is the target marked on the ground and having the same general plan as a firing target, with Bull, Inner, Magpie, and Outer, the score counting 5, 4, 3, & 2 respectively, or according to the instructor’s taste. 2 is the first line, 20 yards from the center of the inner ring. The men _must_ be trained to a high degree of accuracy at this range. 3 is the second line, 25 yards from the center of target. There are lines every five yards back until the 40 yard line is reached, which latter is the extreme range for bombing practice.

At each range the men should practice standing, kneeling, and prone. At 35 and 40 yards bombing from the kneeling and prone positions is very difficult and the time spent on practice here should not interfere with the obtaining of great accuracy at the shorter ranges.

At all ranges the men should be allowed to throw any number of dummy bombs, but should not be permitted to fatigue their arms.

B is a diagram showing the arrangement for trench practice with dummy bombs. Small trenches are built on the surface of the ground by screens of wire mesh covered with burlap or other similar material. 1 is the thrower’s trench and is built so high that he cannot see over the top. From this he throws, using a periscope for observation. 2 represents part of a traverse and fire-bay, the front part of which is about 20 yards from the throwing trench. 3 is a section of straight trench about 25 yards half right from the thrower’s front. 4 is a section of curved trench about 20 yards half left from the thrower’s front.

The general custom in the practice trenches is to give the man any desirable number of dummy bombs, say 18; 6 for each trench. Four out of six are required to be put in No. 2, and 3 out of 6 in Nos. 3 & 4. Men must not be kept at bombing practice too long at a time as it spoils both their interest and their aim.

In taking a line of trenches, it is well to remember that the attack will take place on a relatively small front by a large number of men, and therefore when the trenches are finally reached, there is liable to be great overcrowding in them. This can only be prevented by extending them along the trenches as quickly as possible, and is of the utmost importance as heavy casualties will result from allowing this overcrowding. To make this extending possible, it is the duty of the bombing parties to work along to both flanks of the trenches and take advantage of the temporary confusion of the enemy by obtaining as much of his trenches as possible, thus allowing for the extension of men. In a narrow trench the only portion of an attacking party coming into contact with the enemy is the head, or what is known as the Bayonet Man. The bombing party is composed of the following:

1. Bayonet man, 2. First thrower, 3. First carrier, 4. First spade man, 5. N. C. O. first squad, 6. Second bayonet man, 7. Second thrower, 8. Second carrier, 9. Spade man, in charge of second party.

These parties will work up a trench until they come to a junction, when the first party in charge of the N. C. O. will continue straight on and the second party branch to the right or left, as the case may be, and as they come on other parties keep working up behind them, and the infantry gradually following taking possession of the line and starting consolidation work at once.

Communication throughout these lengths of grenade parties is very difficult with men extended in single file, and the attendant confusion which accompanies such a stand.

A system is required which will enable supplies of bombs to be passed up and casualties replaced automatically. This system cannot be laid down on any cut and dried lines, but must be figured out before the attack, with due consideration being given to the line of trenches to be attacked and the difficulties which will be encountered in getting supplies to that line, and it is only on the spot that such a system can be worked out.