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close of a February day. Phellr.ot, who had Inin for hours unconscious, slowly raised himself in his cot, unwound the llag from his waist', cried out. I am an American!'’ and Tell back dead.No Mercy to Foreign Iregion.The battle of Givenchy. June If. and 17. 1D15. in which the foreign legion won Immortal fame, took its toll of American lives, the list of loaseB in that flght Including these: Bussell Kelly, son of a New York lawyer, and a former Virginia Mill-1 tary Institute cadet; John Earle i Flake, of Wooster. O., enlisted in the legion as John Smith.” taking the Iname or 1i!b grandfather; KennethWeeks, of Cambridge. Mass., an author; and Harman Edwin Hall, or Chicago.Fiske and Kelly were last seen In an advanced captured German trench, which -.van retaken by the enemy later in the day. Both wero wounded. Flske had a bullet through a leg and Kelly was hit in a shoulder. It 1b pnRBlbl* that both died from bayonet thrusts when the foe retook the trench, as the Germans had declared that not a man of the legion captured would be Bpared. }Weeks was the bomb-thrower for! the American squad, a most dangerous place. He went into action armed with his rifle, a sTieath knife, revolver and xnusptte full of hand grenades. The bomb-throwers had ordorp to see that no GermunB remained in their Uugou’.B lurking behind tho advancing French troops to shoot them from the rear, many legionnaires having been killed that way on May D. Weeks was reported as last seen running townrd the third line of the German trenches.All three Americans had a reputation in the legion as brave soldiers. Weeks had been mentioned in do-spatchcs for hi? vnlorous conduct In the first' battle of Arras. May 0.Wouldn't •*Iuck for Hochos.The story of Hall's death was brought back by his seargeant, himself badly wounded. Hall reached the front for the first time as a machine gun operator Just before the legion went Into battle. On the morning of June 16. the legionnaires charged the German works on Hill 119, rapidly and brilliantly carrying three lines of trenches. After being rushed orer th.j crest of Hill 119 the Germens received heavy reinforcements. and rallying, began making frantic counter attacks.Under a heavy-flre of shrapnel, and f*Hn- p storm of bullets from rifleswnl machina guns* UaU'arushed up to tho captured German trenches and set up Its guns to aid in holding the conquered ground. What had been the unprotected rear of the trenches the leglonnnires hnd captured was now the attacked front, and tho men ware poorly ahr-1 Cored. Jt was necessary to crouch low to bo safe, but Hall persisted In puttir.r up his head every few minutes ant. l'.oking over toward tho Germans.Keep your head down! advised his sergeant.I’ll not duck my head for an;/ damned Bochc. replied the Am can.A few minutes Inter n bullet crashed through Hall’s brain.Four in One Cemetery.Four American volunteers nre ly Ing in Che little cemetery near the Bols Sabot. where more than 600 hoI-cilers of the legion, who fell September 28, 1915. are buried. Their names were Henry Farnsworth, of Boston, a Harvard graduate; Corporal Frank Surrey and Henry Walker, of New OrleanH. All fell In the legion's historic charge against the German portion of the Bois Sabot.Suriey was only nineteen years old and though born In New York had lived mostly iu Paris. Duval and Walker were typical soldiers of fortune.Sergeant. Duval.Just before the legion left ts shelters on September 28 to charge the Germane, Duval remarked to Paul Pavelka: “This boats fighting natives all hollow. Pavelka. We'll have something great to tell the folk back home—If we ever get back— eh?Next day Parelka saw Duval's bullet riddled body lying on the shell-torn ground near tho remains of tho German barbed wire entanglements.Farnsworth was fighting side by side with Prlhce Sukuna at the FIJI Islands, who had been his comradc-ot-arms nil through the trench warfare. A bullet struck Farnsworth In the throat and he fell. Sakuna and another comrade dropped beside him and began hastily throwing up r shelter trench. Before tt could bo finished. however, two more ballets struck Farnsworth In the spine, killing him.Sukuna swore his native oath of vengeance and advanced on. the Germans, only to be severely wounded. He was recently discharged from a hoBpltal and released from the legion to return to tho FIJI Islands to raise a battalion of his subjects, which he will hiijjjs ta Frace* _
Newspaper Details
The Sunday Telegram
Clarksburg, West Virginia, US
Sun, May 07, 1916
Page 16
Full Page
Clipped by
Ellen B.
USA 15 Aug 2022
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