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{
    "localId": "17343226",
    "label": "The Memoirs of Sergeant Verne Chaney",
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{
    "id": "17343226",
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    "contentType": "document",
    "title": "The Memoirs of Sergeant Verne Chaney",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/17343226",
    "collections": [
        "Verne E. Chaney Papers",
        "Subject Files"
    ],
    "subjects": [
        "Truman, Harry S., 1884-1972",
        "Spina, Frank E., 1887-1972",
        "Klemm, Karl D., 1880-",
        "Wooldridge, Glenwood F., 1893-1977",
        "Pershing, John J. (John Joseph), 1860-1948",
        "Thacher, John H., 1872-1960",
        "Miles, John L., 1878-1961",
        "Soldiers",
        "World War, 1914-1918",
        "Artillery"
    ],
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            "logicalDate": "1919-01-01",
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    "seq": 34,
    "pageIndex": 0,
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    "ocrText": "34\nAfter going back to bed we had about another hours sleep, when the\ncall \"barrage\" came. We were on the job and were at it all day, firing about\nfive hundred rounds. It must have been this day that a counter attack was\nmade by the Hun as the doughboys remarked the next, day that it saved the\nday. They described it as being as if it was placed there by hand. They\ndescribed how the Huns fell back torn to pieces and in disorder.97 Having\nfired most of the day (Oct 1st) we were very tired at night. We constructed\na shelter with our paulins and threw our blankets down for a bit of sleep.\nThat night it rained and we got soaked thru and the morning found us\nnearly frozen and laying in a puddle of water.\nBy sections we walked down to Cheppy to get breakfast. Still raining,\nwe plodded back to the guns feeling better for our wet night on the ground.\nWhen we returned, we found it necessary to bail the water out of the trail\npit before we could fire. It kept us busy most of the day keeping the water\ndown as it seemed as we caught all the water from the hill. During the day\nthe drivers took to scouting around in some trucks about seventy five yards\nto our rear and explored many dugouts. They made some good finds as they\nbrot back many German helmets, blankets, rifles and one officers helmet.\nThey all showed signs of being hastily evacuated. Further scouting found\nmany dead around the trench. There were some underground passage five\nhundred meters long with comfortable quarters far beneath the hill. 98 Today\nbrot the news that a whole German battery, guns, horses, men and all had\nIRUMAN.\nbeen captured by our infantry and passed thru Cheppy going to the rear.\nARCHIVES VATIONAL RECORDS ADMIN Jose\nEs Govr\n97\nThe Germans were sorely pressed by the attacking Americans. They began to move divisions from\nquiet sectors to reinforce the Meuse-Argonne sector. Upon arrival at the Meuse-Argonne, these divisions went\nimmediately into counter attacks. Not familiar with the terrain or what their objectives were, they retreated in\ndisorder and confusion when in turn counter attacked by the Americans.\n98\nThis was a German Stollen. Constructed of thick ferro-reinforced concrete a Stollen was almost\nimpervious to all but a direct hit from a high caliber gun. The Stollen was 500 yards long, 40 feet deep and had\nexits every so many yards to enable the occupants to get to the front trenches rapidly. The Germans invariably\nconstructed Stollen when they had time. The Germans tried not to live like troglodytes and attempted to provide\nsome measure of comfort to their troops. The French, British and Americans had nothing similar."
}