rifle bolt biting into your ribs, entrenching tool handle sticking
into the small of your back, with a tin hat for a pillow; and feeling
very damp and cold, with "cooties" boring for oil in your arm pits,
the air foul from the stench of grimy human bodies and smoke from a
juicy pipe being whiffed into your nostrils, then you will not wonder
why Tommy occasionally takes a turn in the trench for a rest.

While in a front-line trench, orders forbid Tommy from removing his
boots, puttees, clothing, or equipment. The "cooties" take advantage
of this order and mobilize their forces, and Tommy swears vengeance on
them and mutters to himself, "just wait until I hit rest billets and
am able to get my own back."

Just before daylight the men "turn to" and tumble out of the dugouts,
man the fire step until it gets light, or the welcome order "stand
down" is given. Sometimes before "stand down" is ordered, the command
"five rounds rapid" is passed along the trench. This means that each
man must rest his rifle on the top and fire as rapidly as possible
five shots aimed toward the German trenches, and then duck (with the
emphasis on the "duck"). There is a great rivalry between the opposing
forces to get their rapid fire off first, because the early bird, in
this instance, catches the worm,--sort of gets the jump on the other
fellow, catching him unawares.

We had a Sergeant in our battalion named Warren. He was on duty with
his platoon in the fire trench one afternoon when orders came up from
the rear that he had been granted seven days' leave for Blighty, and
would be relieved at five o'clock to proceed to England.

He was tickled to death at these welcome tidings and regaled his more