Sidney D. Light's WWI Diary, Postcards & Letters, 329th Battery Book Accounts

 Can you look back to that memorable date and hour and review your thoughts when the sound of guns suddenly stopped and in its place we heard the music of the 55th Band, parading the streets of Bouillionville? Most of the men thought of home, "perhaps" there were a few up at the guns who thought more about getting some hot water for a shave than anything else. After two weeks of getting up at all hours of the day and night the idea of a night’s sleep without interruptions was hard to believe. But on the night of November 11th most of us had one whole night’s sleep. You may believe it or not, but that night it was hard to sleep—it was so deathly still and silent.

About 11:30 p.m., November 12th, the top sergeant came in with the welcome news that everyone was to turn out and go up after the guns. We say welcome news because it was welcomed by about every cuss word in the soldier’s vocabulary, which is quite extensive and fitting for any and all occasions such as this one. The news was received in the same good humor at the guns, where most of the boys had found their first good place to sleep in two weeks. But of course everyone turned out and helped get the guns back to the echelon. We arrived at daybreak, ready for a nice little nap as soon as we had eaten of Sergeant Holtzer’s appetizing breakfast which was waiting for us. But no such luck. We were ordered to pack all our possessions and be ready to hike at 7:30 P.D.Q. Were we downhearted? No!

We left Bouillionville at the specified time and marched all day through miles and miles of fields that were a maze of trenches and barbed wire—Jerry’s old fortifications which he had once thought impregnable but which the doughboys had taken in three days—and at dusk of a beautiful day arrived at the war-torn town of Pont-a-Mousson on the Moselle River. Here we were to spend a three months’ stay that none of us will ever forget; for we had good billets in an old school house which had been closed on account of lack of business and too much of Jerry’s artillery.

The first few days were spent in turning in all the horses and some of the extra equipment and from then on we began to prepare to go HOME—new clothing, shoes, etc., were issued and we felt sure we would be on our way by Christmas. However we soon found that getting home was not the quickest or easiest thing in the world. For a time we were disappointed but this soon disappeared through the simple application of Squads East and West and equal parts of "Right five" and "100 metres more." Also occasional doses of road hikes with packs.

For recreation we had but very little at first except to sit in our rooms and talk or write. But soon the Y.W.C.A. arrived and the Chaplain established a recreation room which was a big help. The Salvation Army was right on the job as usual. Through Captain Frazier’s efforts, we got hold of an old riding hall and were the first to fix this up for indoor games of various sorts. Later we turned the loft of a stable adjoining us into a recreation hall. With such activities—and the additional in and out door sports of hustling wood—we did not have much time to get homesick. We also had the task of helping police up the town; and it was Pont-a-Mousson that our P.G. force first put into effect the well known challenge of the A.E.F. : "Halt! Who’s there?" Answer: "Friend with a bottle of cognac." Command: "Advance, ‘friend,’ and draw the cork." It was here that friend Sullivan tried to shoot down the moon in order to present it to a fair mademoiselle of his acquaintance. It was here also that some of the boys wore the seat of their trousers shiny on the local (it certainly wasn’t a limited) fire department.

Max Corrigan trotted out his troupe of Royal Entertainers after the aforesaid riding hall was turned into a Hippodrome, and cinched the place of Battery "B’s" theatrical troupe as one of the best in the A.E.F. Max had been training his charges ever since the trip over, and from Cöetquidan on, presenting a number of very successful plays and specialties, among them "A Night in Modern Minstrelsy" and "The New Judge." Harry Goldberg, John Jasper, D.C. Kennedy, George O’Jibway, John F. Scanlan, Orville Luft, John A. Schmitt, Floyd Strehl, "Barney" Kobel, Joe Fox, Bernard Ritter, and that whale of a little man, Jimmy Donnelly, were all shining lights. Rya Torrey made some leading "lady" and Max himself starred as director and performer. All these boys deserve credit for their hard work and the "bit" they added to Battery "B’s" fame.

Perhaps the one event that will linger longest in our minds was the Christmas celebration at Pont-a-Mousson. We were able to secure nuts, apples, grapes, cigars and cigarettes to give everyone a good portion, thanks to the Captain and the best little Mess Sergeant of them all, Bill Holzer. The Chaplain, Captain Bowen and Captain Brady were with us at the dinner and it was some feed. All our officers spoke and Captain Brady sang—we’ll never forget that song. Corrigan was there again with his show troupe, among them Mlle. Fatima, and the evening was altogether a happy one.

Shortly after this Captain Frazier was taken ill with appendicitis and was removed to the hospital at Toul for an operation. He came up smiling in Battery "B" style. 1st Lieutenant Sargent was B.C. during part of his absence and 1st Lieutenant Curtiss the rest. About this time also, we acquired two "dove-tails" from Saumur—Sergeant C.M. Eddy, formerly of the 310th Train, and Sergeant Wm. R. Melton, formerly of Battery "A." The latter subsequently became editor of "The Barrage."

First Lieutenant Sargent

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