The Bamberg herald. (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, April 17, 1919, Page 2, Image 2
STORY OF SERGT. TIMMOXS.
Brave Lynchburg lioy Met Death Trying
to Relieve Soldiers at Front.
To Lieutenant L. J. .Morse, morale
officer aboard the transport Pocahontas,
which docked at Charleston
Thursday, March 27, with nearly
three thousand men and officers of
the thirtieth division, goes the credit
for solving what proved to be one
of the most baffling mysteries of the
war, the disappearance of Sergeant
Charles E. Timmons, of Lynchburg,
S. C., who is still officially "missing
in acuun.
Lieutenant Morse made the trip
with Pocahontas as morale officer,
in which capacity he worked
day and night, with the cooperation
of Robert Struthers, of New York
city, and Thomas E. Babb, of Worcester,
Mass., both Y. M. C. A. men,
entertaining and caring for the wants
of the officers and men throughout
the long and tiresome voyage from
France, and it was in this way that
he came across the information as
to the missing South Carolina boy. ]
It is a story in which is blended
strangely, but beautifully, sacrifice,
loyal friendship, and pathos.
Sergeant Charles E. Timmons, of
Lynchburg, company A, 118th infantry,
the old first South Carolina
regiment, "was reported "missing in
action" on September 24, 1918. For
, some unaccountable reason his
mother, Mrs. Charles Timmons, never
received notification. Hearing
notning irom ner son since eariy in
September her intuition told her
something was amiss and at once
* every possible means of information
was made use of. But to no avail?
until the transport Pocahontas docked
and word of the fate of her son
was hurried to the heroine mother
with all dispatch.
* V v" *
"When I was in Newport News in
January," said Lieutenant Morse, "in
charge of the personnel transportation
work of the Princess Matika,
Lieutenant Timmons, the brother of
the mising man, asked me to see
what I could find out in France.
When I got to Paris I saw all the welfare
oijganizations, the American Rea
Cross; the Y. M. C. A.?all of them,
and they tried hard to gain some
knowledge of the missing veteran's
v whereabouts, but in vain. To all purpose,
Sergeant Timmons had vanish
i ed.
"Qn this last trip home on the Po
*
cahontas, coincidence or fate ruled
+ >io+ tVia eaviraont'o worv r>r(rani7!>tinn
buab tUU 5VUUV O ? V* J V*
should he aboard, including Major
William D. Workman, of 315 Anderson
street, Greenville, his battalion
commander, Captain S/D. Willie, of
1 315 Earle street, Greenville; his company
commander, Sergeant Harold R.
Turner, of 117 Memminger street.
Greenville; his first sergeant, and
Corporal William Peeples, of Estill,
who was with him when he met his
end?for it appears practically cer/<
tain that the brave South Carolinian
is no more.
"Major Workman, who was on
special duty elsewhere when Timmons,
who was the supply sergeant
of his company, went out on the mission
that was to prove fatal, at once
wrote the sergeant's mother's."
An excerpt from the major's letter
folloWs: "On September 23rd the
59th brigade took over the line near
Hargicourt with Charlie's regiment
in the line. D company was on the
left of Hargicourt and failed to send
a guide to battalion headquarters to
guide its ration party forward. Charlie
volunteered to guide the ration
party which consisted of about thirty
men. Major Mahon showed Charlie
the route on the map and warned
him not to go if he had any doubts
of his ability to find D company.
cnarlie said ne was certain ne couia
guide the party and took charge. The
party was heavily loaded with water
and rations and Charlie told them to
leave their rifles at battalion headquarters.
"The party started out with Charlie
and Corporal Peeples in charge.
On the second halt Charlie told the
party to remain where it was while
he and Peeples went on forward to
locate D company. The two boys
went on and on in the moonlight until
suddenly they were challenged in
German by two men who immediately
opened fire at about ten paces.
Charlie crumpled and fell without a
word or sound and Peeples immediately
jumped into a ditch. Machine
guns opened fire and the Gerr ?ns
began to advance. Peeples realized
that he could do nothing against so
many, but that he could save the rest
of the party and started to run back.
"He met the party and led them
back to battalion headquarters. Char
lie's friends at once started to form
a party to rescue him or bring back
his body if he had been killed. Just
at this minute a large shell landed at
the entrance of battalion headquarters
and killed or wounded ten men.
The wounded had to be cared for and
Major Mahon, on examining the map
and hearing Weples's story, realized
. that Charlie had penetrated deeply
into the German lines and that only j
SUGAR BOWL DYNAMITE.
Making From Sweets the Glycerine
of High Explosives.
A few cubes of sugar and presto!
A shell breaks over the terrain to
shiver into fragments which maim
and kill! Just a few tablespoonfuls
of molasses and science is enabled to
blow the gnarled stumps out of the
unyielding earth with the same material
which makes the farmer wife's
gingerbread.
By the direction of Daniel C. Roper,
the commissioner of internal
revenue of the United States treasury
department, a new process has
been perfected for obtaining glycerine
from sugar and sweets. The experiments
on which the report has
been filed were made under the sunervision
of the chief chemist of the
department, A. B. Adams, a member
of the American chemical society.
When Dr. Alonzo Taylor was in
Germany about two years ago he
found that the Teutons had run short
of fats from which glycerine is usually
made and had raided the sugar
bowl. It was on this information
that a special laboratory was established
in the United States treasury
and several experts, including John
R. Eoff, W. E. Linder and B. F. Beyer
began the researches into this
method of obtaining glycerine.
Pasteur, the noted French chemist,
had years before discovered that a
small quantity of glycerine developed
in the fermentation of sugar and
that it was traceable in wine and
beer. The chemist, therefore, fermented
sugars and molasses with
yeast and from the mash thus obtained
produced the glycerine. The wave
Of prohibition which is about to
swoon tVm nnnntrv tHIT Tint ctnn thp
distillation of alcohol for industrial
and mechanical purposes and for fuel.
There will probably be more alcohol
distilled than ever before, but
it will be denatured and made absolutely
unfit for drinking purposes.
The manufacturing chemists of the
United States are preparing none the
less to produce it on a larger scale
, than ever before, subject to the supervision
of the department of internal
revenue.
Several large concerns are making
alcohol from cheap molasses brought
from the West Indies. This molasses,
which is uneatable is known as
"black strap." The treasury department
of the internal revenue chemists
have been able, however, to ferment
it and to obtain not only alcohol
but to so use the residue that
they get glycerine.
Four lots of "black strap" of l,OOfcO
gallons each-, turned out a very excellent
quantity of glycerine. There
are 100 gallons of this clear dynamite
glycerine as it is called, now on
exhibition in the treasury department.
Samples of it treated with nitric
acid by a well known firm of explosive
makers at the request of the
government, produced as good a nitroglycerine
as the market affords.
Nitroglycerine, when incorporated
with pulp or other inert substances,
becomes dynamite. Thus out of the
simple sweets of the sugar bowl
| comes forth the strength which will
rend the rock.
Now that the was is over the de
mand for high explosives will not' be
so great, but at the same time^there
are many uses to which it can be
turned in times of peace. It is especially
valuable for blowing up
heavy and clay soils which would ordinarily
resist the plow of the farmer.
Excellent crops are produced
from land treated' in this way and
general shaking up is conducive of
the better action of the nitrifying
bacteria in the ground.
Young Camouflage Artist.
Bessie is a bright one. The other
day her teacher set her and school
mates to drawing, letting them
choose their own subjects. After the
teacher had examined what the other
children had drawn, she took up
Bessie's sheet.
"Why, what's this?" she said.
"You haven't drawn anything at ail,
child."
"Please, teacher, yes, I have," returned
Bessie. "It's a war picture?
a long line of ammunition wagons
at the front. You cant see 'em 'cause
they re camouflaged. ?Boston Transcript.
an attack in force could possibly
reach the place where Charlie had
fallen.
"We were under orders for a tremendous
set attack and were ordered
not to launch an attack before the
zero hour on the day set. So nothing
could be done."
Sergeant Timmons was the first
American to be taken by the Huns in
that particular sector?the Cambrai
area?and according to the men of
the organization the Huns were not
in the habit of burying the dead then,
for they were retreating. To a man
they are convinced that their popular
comrade was killed and his body carried
to the rear, and examined for
possible information, then buried in
some obscure grave.
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