forth
again. From 9 o'clock to noon the Russians hurled their heavy shells at
the German trenches and the German guns. The German batteries replied
slowly.

"There was mighty little fuss and feathers about this business of
dealing death from guns. The crews at each piece laughed among
themselves, but there were none of the picturesque shouts of command,
the indiscriminate blowing of bugles, and the flashy waving of battle
flags that the word battle usually conjures up. It was merely a deadly
business of killing.

"Over to the right, a scant 300 yards away, the Russians had apparently
succeeded in getting the range. As I watched through the glasses I saw
shrapnel burst over the battery there and watched a noncommissioned
soldier fall with three of his comrades. I was told that one had been
killed and three wounded. The Red Cross crew came up and bore away the
four--the dead and the live--and before they were gone the gun was
speaking away with four fresh men working it.

"But the shrapnel kept bursting away over it and soon an orderly came
riding furiously back on his horse, saluted the officers with me, and
shouted as he hurried back to the artillery reserve: 'Six inch shells to
the front; more ammunition.'

"I went back to see the wounded, but the surgeon wouldn't let me. I
expressed to him my wonder at the few wounded. I had seen only a few in
the trenches, and no German dead until I saw the artilleryman killed.
He explained that the losses on the German side were light because
the trenches were well constructed and because there had been no
hand-to-hand, bayonet to bayonet fighting.

ATTACKS BY RUSSIAN INFANTRY

"Yesterday, my first day at Wirballen, I saw the third attempt of the
Russians to carry the German center by storm. Twice on Wednesday their
infantry had advanced under cover of their artillery, only to be
repulsed. Their third effort proved no more successful.

"The preliminaries were well under way, without my appreciating their
significance, until one of my officer escorts explained.

"At a number of points along their line, observable to us, but screened
from the observation of the German trenches in the center, the Russian
infantry came tumbling out, and, rushing forward, took up advanced
positions, awaiting the formation of the new and irregular battle
line. Dozens of light rapid-firers were dragged along by hand. Other
troops--the reserves--took up semi-advanced positions. All the while the