Item 01: G. O. Hawkins articles and notes ca. 1916-1919 - Page 3
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[Page 3]
(3)
This city was almost quite empty of civil population but in many of the half shattered buildings and in the cellars beneath, hundreds of soldiers were quartered, and hiding in the ruins, there were many busy guns licking their angry lips with fiery tongues all day long as they spat forth shells towards the trenches some miles away. I found the headquarters of the 7th Field Company so began once more another carrer
These quarters were in a half shell shattered building in a narrow street near the great church. Sand bag [indecipherable] protected the street doors and windows. The upper stories were smashed to wreck. The few lower rooms and cellars were alone safe or passably so.
Each section of the company was billeted in a separate ruin. I was put in No1 section and soon found where our billet was. This was a fine brick structure, a convent school, or