Page 7 - 1918 VES Meteor

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enlisted ancl lC';we for the training camp within a few hour~, and hope to be 'over there' in a short time. Good-bye unttl I :1m the man.
"Pnn·.\'l'E JonN DE WJTTE, U. S. A."
Pri·mte John De \Yitte was an exceptional soldier; always obedient ancl prompt, be advanced rapidly, and was one of six men chosen from ten thousand to try for a commission. Ue "·orked hard and in due time was on his way "oYer there." Bnt now it was First Lieutenant .Tolm De Witte who wore the uniform of his country.
The transports finally arrived at a port "Somewhere in France," and the American troops were loaded into freight cars and sent on tow:ncls the front. En 1·oute one of the cars became detached from the rest of the train and toppled OYer an embankment. Among those killed was the captain of the company, and so De \Yittc became a captain.
A\rriYing iu the fir:;t-line trenches they were assigned to their places, and Captain De Witte soon made a name for himself both for bravery and for coolness under fire. As an illustration of his coolness under fire the fo1lowing story is
told:
A company of Germans were holding a large stone house
which concealed telephone and telegraph stations of the enemy. Captnin De \Yitte was ordered to take it at once. Tie ordered the big guns trnined on it. ITis men, howm·cr, were being galled by heavy fire from the house. It was imperative that something be dm1e to hearten his men or else they might give way. Jumping down De Witte grabbed one of the gunners by the shoulders and asked his name.
"Taylor, sir," was the reply.
")Jen," cried De \Yitte, "this gunner's name is Taylor. Xow, will yon wait until our 'tailor' makes a pair of 'breeches' for us in the wall?" This witticism was received b.'· the men ·with shouts of laughter, and they grimly waited