September 1918

Verennes, written at a later date: We had been in the Argonne Sector since the 26th of Sept. How I wish I had the words to describe the experiences we have passed through. In the historical old village of Verennes we worked seventeen days under heavy shell fire, living in the open like gypsies. We were in the midst of thousands of soldiers, as there were divisions located in the vicinity. One morning we were fired on 126 times by long range guns (sacrifice guns) which our boys had overlooked in their rapid advance through the woods. They were aimed at the crossroads near where the dressing station and our tent were located. It was not long however, until the big steel monsters were captured. Quite a few people were killed that day, and the debris from the shells almost covered us, they landed so close. Just the same, we made five or six thousand donuts, in addition to sandwiches and coffee, which we gave to the boys as they were relieved from the trenches. While the boys were standing in line waiting for their at the eats, a shell with a time fuse fell not far from us. One of the boys had the presence of mind and courage to pick it up and carry it some distance and threw it in an empty trench. Can you imagine the results of a gas shell exploding where it fell the first time and none of us with masks? This is only one of the many instances of danger and bravery I have witnessed.

            I shall never forget the day we spent there.

More Information

The following section provides historical context and is not part of the original diary entry.

Likely location: Varennes-en-Argonne, Meuse, France

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September 1918 saw the launch of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive on September 26 — the largest battle in American military history. Margaret was at Varennes-en-Argonne, a town captured on the first day of the offensive, witnessing the enormous scale of the American assault.

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