BEST SOUVENIRS LEFT BEHIND
“I’m sorry I had to leave the others
in France” said Pvt. William Round-
tree, overseas patient in Ward D-1,
formerly of Co. F, 119 th Infantry, who
arrived -last week at the U. S. Army
Basd Hospital, Camp Greene; in speak
ing of his momentos from the war
zone.
“My really good souvenirs I lost
when I was wounded as they were all
behind the lines and I only was able
to save what few I had on my person.”
A fair idea as to just what the “few”
referred to represent may be gained
from the above photograph which
shows many curious and interesting
keep-sakes from the battle lines.
Of the coins the first and last are
German 10 pfenning pieces taken from
an enemy corporal, the second the
cap button of a German private, found
in No Man’s land and the third a
Belgian coin, a remebrance from a
wounded comrade. The German
twenty mark note, above and the gold
watch in it’s gas proof case, lying next
to it, were both taken from a German
officer captured by Roundtree just be
fore he was wounded in an advance
near St. Quientin. On the right' is
the cap of a German sergeant, easily
distinguished from that of a private
by the cap device compared with that
shown on the left. The first and sec
ond rings were taken from a dead
German officer, Roundtree first ampu
tating their fingers with his bayonet
ter, remove them. The second ring
bears a replica of the famous Iron
Cross with the words Welt Krieg
(world war) upon it. The third was
taken from a prisoner who had made
it in his spare time from a piece of
nickle shell and a pen knife, it has
the word “Ypres” inscribed on it’s
surface. The fourth, also taken from
a prisoner, bears an odd design pre
sumable a luck charm of some descrip
tion. The last is a momento present
ed to Roundtree by a Belgian sergeant,
it has the colors of Belgium on one
side, those of France on the other and
the center strip is an inserted piece
of German brass shell with the word
“Kemmel” scratched upon it. This
was given him after his first battle at
Kemmel Hill in Belgium.
The belt below was a present from
a German officer, taken prisoner and
given to Roundtree by the officer for
a little kindness shown him, and on
it are mounted relics of both allied
troops and those of the enemy. The
first three are respectively the hat
device of a New Zealand infantry regi
ment, a South African collar insignia
and the hat emblem of a regiment
from Devonshire, England. All three
of these were taken from the body of
a German private who had presumably
taken them from prisoners he had cap
tured. The large brass belt buckle
was taken from a German prisoner,
this is especially odd as few bright ob
jects such as this were ever worn by
Fritz, or .Terry as the boys from over
there term him. The next four are
presents from friends, the first a cap
device of the Royal Scots, the second
a shoulder bar of the King’s infantry,
the third the hat ensignia of the Egyp
tian Engineers, curiously gained in
England, and the other a cap emblem
of the Royal Warwicksihires. The
next is the collar insignia of a Ger
man officer, killed in an attack on an
American position near Beilincourt. A
cap device of the Hampshire guards
with the large bronze hat insignia of
the Australian rifles. Then comes an
emblem of the German engineers worn
on their dress, uniforms with the col
lar marking of the German heavy artil-
iery next to it, both of these were
taken from prisoners. The hat device
of the British regiment of Buffs fol
lows, this was presented to Round-
tree in an American hospital near
London. The A. V. C., is the Ger
man aviation corps taken from the
body of a German airman whose ma
chine wrecked by the allied fire, plung
ed down behind the lines'. The next
object is believed to be the belt clasp
of a German officer found in an aban
doned Hun .trench. The next two are
presents from friends, the former the
collar ornament of the scotch rifles
and the latter the hat device of a New
Zealand regiment. The last of all is
one that Roundtree treasures mightily
as he took it with his own hands from
a high German officer whom he be
lieved to be a Colonel which he cap
tured in one of his first engagements.
Roundtree whose home is in Bosley,
N. C., joined the 119th Infantry at
—Photo By Toohey.
HOSPITAL PATIENT
Camp Sevier on Oct. 21st, 1917, after
a period of training, he was sent to
Hoboken, N. J., and embarked for
England on Ma^ 6th. The regiment
landed at Liverpool on the 27th of the
month and entrained immediately for
Calais. He says, “They loaded us
aboard a ship which took us across the
Channel in good time and landed us
in Prance the next morning. Prom
our landing point we went to Land-
thurn where we spent a period of five
weeks in training.” The first engage
ment in which they participated was
at Kemmel Hill in Belgium remain
ing at the front for ten days. After
a short stay in a rest camp they re
turned to this sector and assisted in
the capture of the hill from the Ger
mans. After a trip by motor lorries
they were brought up near St. Quen
tin on Sept. 27. While there they
assisted in taking Beilincourt from the
Huns before they were relieved. The
regiments’s next trip to the front came
on Oct. 17th, to use Roundtree’s
words:—
“We had been in the front trenches
but a short time when the order to
advance was given, we jumped out
over the parapet with a shout follow
ing our barrage as closely as safety
would permit. The boys of the 120th
were on my left and I could see them
dashing bravely ahead against a des
ultory machine gun fire from the
Jerries. On our part we met with
but little resistance for the first-few
yards, then I received one of the
greatest disappointments of my life,
a machine gun bullet in the left leg,
which left me out of the fighting. The
next I remember was some of the
Medics with four prisoners who car
ried me in on a littler to the first aid
station.”
He was carried rapidly to the rear
and sent to England for convalescence
remaining a patient at Base Hospital •
No. 37 near London until Dec. 9th,
when he was transferred to Liverpool
and sailed on the Baltic for America
on Dec. lit h .The ship arrived at
New York on Dec. 21st, and the pat
ients were turned over to St. Mary’s
hospital at Hoboken for eight days
when they entrained for various hos-
tion.