PATROLLING AND ARTILLERY ACTIVITY
WITH the advent of the American army in force, Marshal Foch had decided that there would he no more
“quiet fronts.” This momentous decision on the part of the Allied Generalissimo was quite in keeping
with the opinion of even the humblest private, who had no desire to sit down in foreign trenches and
wait for something to happen.
The divisional front was far from quiet. Every opportunity to harass the Germans was seized.
Almost nightly patrols, often in strength, went out from each regimental front with the mission of
penetrating as far as possible into the enemy lines, securing information about their defenses, and
capturing prisoners. A total of eleven Huns were bagged during this period of stabilization by these
small patrols.
Seven of these prisoners were captured by the 359th Infantry. The aggressive spirit of the
officers composing these nightly raiding parties is illustrated by the action of Lieutenant (later Captain)
James A. Baker, Jr., who never failed to bring back a prisoner. One morning, about 3 A. M., after an
unsuccessful patrol had returned to our line, Colonel Sterling directed that another patrol be sent out.
Lieutenant Baker was given this patrol and returned before daylight with prisoners.
Patrols using the short shotguns also succeeded in inflicting casualties on German outposts. The
majority of prisoners were taken by surrounding outposts in front of Preny and along the Ravin Moulon,
which flowed into the Moselle south of Pagny-sur-Moselle. The town of Pagny itself was an object of
curiosity. It was known that a garrison of considerable size was sheltered in its cellars. Some daring
adventurers worked their way up the Tranchée de la Remise, an old German trench running almost due
north from Côte 327, and reached the very outskirts of Pagny, where they could see and hear what was
occurring within buildings.
The artillery was as aggressive as the infantry, and kept up the spirits of the latter by harassing
the Hun. The men remained cheerful, despite the enfilading fire which continually jeopardized their
lives, as long as they could count just as many shells going over their heads in the direction of
Bocheland. The intelligence personnel of the regiments worked in coöperation with the artillery, the
forward observers, particularly on Côte 327 and Croix des Vandieres, spotting many targets. Direct
telephone connection with the artillery made it possible to notify the batteries in time to lay the guns and
open fire on moving troops and transport which appeared within range. The observers of the 360th
Infantry, under the direction of Lieutenant Prescott Williams, intelligence officer, became expert at this.
Unfortunately Lieutenant Williams was evacuated on account of sickness before the regiment left the
sector. The Division observation station, under Sergeant Owen Covel and Sergeant Arthur C. Stimson,
which had become famous under the code name of “Dottie,” worked first from Côte 327 and then
returned to Mousson Hill, an eminence just east of Pont-â-Mousson, from which the spires of Metz can
be seen on a clear day.
On October 2 the north edge of the Bois des Rappes, particularly in the zone of the 2d Battalion,
358th Infantry, was saturated with mustard gas. That day 150 men were evacuated from the 2d
Battalion. Notwithstanding these losses, the battalion continued to hold the line. The effects of the gas
were horrible beyond description, some being blinded for life, others disfigured by the effects of the acid
on parts of the skin which the liquid had touched. In addition, practically every man in the battalion,
although continuing to do duty, was weakened by inhaling the fumes. On October 4 the 2d Battalion
moved over to the west, going into the front line in the sector taken over from the 78th Division. As a
result of the gas the men could not refrain from coughing, sentries on outpost duty sometimes giving
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