Rare Books – Stereoscopic views

Date: 1915-1932

Each sailor is expected to keep his clothing in good repair. Perhaps when he is sewing up a rent in his trousers or darning his socks he appreciates more than ever before the nimble fingers and loving heart of mother at home. It is needless to say that mother would be more than glad to be able to perform these little services for her boy at sea. Very likely she has provided him with a "comfort bag" for his use at sea. These "comfort bags" were made for our soldiers and marines under the supervision of the Red Cross Society and other organizations. The bags were made of washable material, measuring 10 to 13 inches with a draw string at the top. They contained as many as possible of the following articles : Khaki colored sewing cotton No. 30 ; white sewing cotton No. 30 ; gray darning cotton ; package of needles No. 5 ; darning needle ; needle case ; buttons, black and white, medium size, in bag 3 by 5 inches ; large thimble ; blunt pointed scissors ; soap ; safety pins, medium size ; common pins ; small comb ; tooth brush ; small, round mirror ; handkerchief ; lead pencil ; writing pad ; envelopes ; post cards; pocket knife ; shoe laces. The Navy League supervised the making of other articles for the comfort of the sea men. These were sweaters, helmets, mufflers and wristlets knitted of gray yarn. Units of this league were formed all over the United States. These units gave out the knitting material to all women who would knit for the soldiers at sea. If women could not go to war, they could at least do their bit at home as long as the Navy League, Red Cross and other organizations were in need of articles which would add to the comfort of the soldiers.

Date: 1914-1920

Date: 1914-1920

Date: 1915-1932

Human suffering breaks down many barriers. Here we see the French “fraternizing with the enemy.” Fritz and Hans are receiving the same free and impartial treatment that would be given to the wounded of their own ranks. No prisoners of war were ever more considerately and humanely treated than were the German prisoners in France and England. They were well housed, clothed and fed ; and were given such medical attention as their wounds or diseases required. Operative surgery made great advance during the World War. Opportunity for experimentation was unlimited! The treatment of wounds of the knee-joint is a conspicuous example. Infection of this joint, the largest and most complex in the body, has been one of the most dreaded in surgery. It resulted at the best, in a stiff and useless joint, often amputation and not rarely death. Not so any more. In this war most cases were healed and from half to two-thirds of the cases recovered with full or partial use of the joint movement. Perhaps the greatest permanent advance in surgery was made in the repair of shattered faces. Almost unbelievable miracles were performed. Gaps in the jaws were filled by bone transplanted from other parts, skin was borrowed from parts that could spare it and used to cover up scars ; cheeks were filled in, noses built up and lips replaced, and all fitted and moulded with the nicety of a cabinet maker or a potter.

Date: 1915-1932

Many of our boys who crossed the sea during the World War will recall hours spent in a hut like the one before us. Hundreds of them were scattered over France, in the back areas, where men were being trained for the front. As a rule these huts were open at all hours of the day and until taps at night. The “Y” furnished writing paper and envelopes free of charge, writing shelves were affixed to the walls and at all hours of the day men could be seen writing letters home. There was usually to be found an abundant stock of magazines, somewhat out of date it is true, but none the less interesting to men who had not read them before. Ordinarily there was so little of interest for the boys to do in their leisure hours that even old magazines were a boon. On certain nights of every week concerts and entertainments of various kinds were given by traveling “Y” troupes, and before very long our boys developed a keen perception of what was good and what poor “stuff”. After the armistice the men were encouraged to give their own shows and some of the performances they staged were as good as those given by professionals. The canteen was usually in one corner of the room, and there the “Y” secretary sold tobacco, cigarettes, candy, (whenever it could be h ad), chewing gum and other articles. The men were always eager for candy. Although their “mess” was excellent, better than that of any of the armies, it seemed to lack something in sweets and the men craved them. The scene before us is thoroughly characteristic, even to the man sitting near the stove, a half-smoked cigar between his fingers, his thoughts 3000 miles away, across the sea, with the old folks at home.

Date: 1914-1920

Date: 1915-1932

Here are some of the men who stopped the German in his tracks at Chateau-Thierry and held him like iron for thirty-six terrible days, who smashed his right flank at Soissons (Swa’ son’), drove him out of St. Mihiel, beat him from his famous trenches in Champagne, and finally saved the world in the murderous Meuse Argonne (mus ar’ gon’) forest, hacking their way with machetes (ma-cha’ta.) through dense undergrowth, in rain and mud, without fire, often without food, but ever going forward, grim and determined, resolved to make the world safe for democracy, safe for the loved ones at home. Now they are home again, among those loved ones, the gloomy days in France a fading dream. In happy reunion they stand, proud fathers of babes born during the war on the left, the American doughboy, the finest type of fighting man the world has ever seen to the right, the gallant officer who led him and who shared his perils, hardships and triumphs. By them stand the wives who bravely, yet in fear and trembling, sent them forth. In the arms of the soldiers are cradled the babes they saved from the tyranny of Germany. The pleasure the men feel in being once again in their home town, among friends and kindred, is reflected in their faces. Through many weary months they have looked forward to this hour. At last it has come. Their duty done, they are free to gather up the scattered threads of life and weave them into a happy future, untroubled by thought of war.

Date: 1915-1932

Artillery and ammunition are the most important things used in the modern battle. The late war has shown wonderful developments in heavy artillery with its necessarily large projectiles and heavy powder charges. There were used in Europe, shells weighing as much as 2,000 or 2,400 pounds. In our own 12-inch guns, which, together with the 12-inch mortars, were used extensively in our coast defenses, the weight of the shell used was 1,070 pounds, while the powder charge weighed 325 pounds. Armor-piercing shells are made of tough, dense steel, specially hardened. The walls are thick to enable them to penetrate armor without breaking up. They are usually fitted with delayed action fuses which will not fire the powder charge until the shell has passed through armor or struck some resisting object. The manufacture of explosives is one of the most important industries of the United States and this industry developed very rapidly after the beginning of the European War. During the war, the United States furnished the armies of Europe with large quantities of ammunition and supplied its own army with an adequate amount of this necessity of war. It is estimated that on October 1st, 1917, the United States had prepared for the army about 50,000,000 shells, costing about $1,000,000,000. This required nearly 2,000,000 tons of bars and steel forgings worth about $166,000,000. These figures show that the cost of ammunition alone was no small part of the expense of the war. When we consider that in firing one shell from a 12-inch gun, the projectile used is nearly as large as a man and 7 or 8 times as heavy, and the powder charge larger than a man and 3 times as heavy, we are appalled at the destruction that can be accomplished by one of these coast defense guns.

Date: 1915-1932

American soldiers on the Rhine! Half a century from now Germans will still talk of those irrepressible, incomprehensible American doughboys, who flooded into the Rhineland during the great war ; of these men who, though victorious, were not overbearing, molesting no one who interfered not with them ; Of these men who fought like devils during the war, yet like children played strange games with sticks and balls after the armistice ; of these men who paid for what they bought instead of seizing it as spoils of victory. And some of these men are here before us, in an hour of leisure, pup tents up, band playing, nothing to do but enjoy the sunshine and fresh air and view the noble river whose banks have been for ages the battleground of Europe. This is the storied Rhine, with its legends and folklore. Oft have Uncle Sam's boys heard of it, long have they wished to see it. And now they are here, a part of that army which watches with suspicion the Prussian Eagle while his talons are being drawn. In the distance powerful steamboats are towing barges up the river. This is a characteristic Rhine scene, for the traffic on the river is enormous. It is not unusual to see a steamer towing five barges laden to the rails. Villages like the one across the river are scattered at intervals of four or five miles throughout the entire course of the river, from Mainz (mints) to Cologne. They are picturesque at a distance, but often dirty and unattractive close at hand.

Date: 1914-1920

Date: 1914-1920

Date: 1915-1932

Here is London, metropolis of the world, with Trafalgar Square and the stately monument to Lord Nelson in its center. Here are English people, men, women and children, lining the sidewalks, most of the men with bared heads in fine appreciation of the occasion. And here are the famous London "bobbies," the best trained, most dependable and most courteous body of police in the world. See them standing at intervals, with their blue uniforms, cloth helmets and chin straps. Flags fly in profusion, streamers line the sidewalks, festooned from pole to pole, and on the base of the Nelson monument. It is a gala occasion, a significant day. Marching through the streets, now as friends and allies, are troops of France, for hundreds of years Britain's traditional enemy. Men bare their heads because these soldiers are veterans of bloody battles, fought against a common enemy ; because this day is visible evidence of friendship and good feeling towards their ancient foe. They bare their heads to honor the chivalry of France, to honor that something in the blood and strain of this people which made heroes of them over night, which uplifted them as fighting men. Frenchmen know the joy of life. Sunny France inspires song and joyousness. Yet in this war Frenchmen threw away their lives freely, with gay abandon, "pour la patrie," dying with the name of France on their lips ; suffering with sublime endurance of pain. These men are here today to fraternize with the Britons, to cement the friendship between the two nations, to give living, pulsing evidence of the bond that unites them.

Date: 1915-1932

Never before in the world's history have two million troops, with supplies, munitions and equipment, been sent over so many miles of open sea with so few losses. When America entered the great World War, one of our great problems—probably the greatest next to raising and training a huge army—was how to get them "over there." Indeed, the German people were made to believe by their government that even if the United States could raise and train a large army, it could not be transported across the Atlantic in time to win the war. The high efficiency of the British and American navies, and the wonderful cooperation between them, solved the problem of protecting the transports from the German U-boats. But vessels were badly needed for use as transports, and these transports had to be provided without interfering with the shipment of supplies, munitions, and equipment. Then, upon our entry into the war, our Government took over 109 German ships, which had been interned in American ports. In spite of the fact that their German crews had attempted to damage these ships so that they would be useless, American ingenuity had soon repaired the damage, and thousands of our boys went to defeat the Hun in these German-made vessels. Our boys were brought home in record breaking time, and with the German navy surrendered and the German U-boat swept off the sea, many of our finest battleships did "their bit" as transports. The Louisiana, shown in our picture, was engaged in this service.

Date: 1914-1920

Date: 1914-1920

Date: 1915-1932

Malines, one of the most charming towns of Belgium, undefended, was bombarded several times, apparently in a spirit of pure malice. On one of those occasions a hundred shrapnel shells exploded in the town. The church of Notre Dame was damaged, great holes were knocked in the walls and roof of the Cathedral Of St. Rombaut, houses were battered down and the town hall was smashed. In the intervals between the bombardments, the terrified inhabitants carried away to safety many valuable works of art that had hung in their places of worship. But there were many they had no opportunity to carry away when they, themselves, were forced to flee from bursting shells. The beautiful altar of the Cathedral, with its richly embroidered cloth, the fine metal candlesticks, the masterpieces of great artists which adorned the walls, the lovely stone pillars, were ruined. Bursting shells tore the pictures to shreds, knocked pieces out of the stone pillars, piled a litter of stone and dirt at the foot of the altar. The rains of heaven poured through the broken roof and completed the destruction man had begun. But a fraction of the destruction wrought in the Cathedral is visible to our eyes. We see but one spot, yet that is typical of many others. We cannot see the shattered walls, the gaping holes in the roof, the splintered arches ; yet they are all there, evidences o f the destructive policy of the invader. Malines was a town of great antiquity. It was formerly called Mechlin and it was there that the famous Mechlin lace was made.

Date: 1915-1932

This hospital ward was one of ten separate and complete hospital organizations that made up Debarkation and Convalescent Hospital Number 5, at the Grand Central Palace, New York City. It normally accommodated over 3,400 patients. There is evidence on every hand of the work of the nurses, medical officers and the Red Cross. With flowers, books, games and candy when allowed, on each bedside table, the wounded men had every encouragement to regaining their health. There are several games of checkers in progress, and the patients well enough to be dressed wander about on visits to the other less fortunate ones. When the men were strong enough to be sent on, they were sent to hospitals as near as possible to their own homes, and discharged from there. Unless a man was so unfortunate as to require some special treatment for an injury, which necessitated his being sent to a particular hospital, such as the one for shell-shocked in Washington, this was practically the last step toward home. While the men were kept in these convalescent hospitals, they were often allowed to spend an afternon at the theater, as guests of the management or the War Camp Community Service. This made the last days of their convalescence easier to bear.

Date: 1915-1932

The commanding general of the A. E. F., General John J. Pershing, is pinning on the tunics of these boys the ribboned medals that are their reward for courage and valor on the field of battle. At the left of the General is one of his aides with a list of the men and the decorations that are to be theirs. In the rear of the General is another American officer conferring with an officer of the French artillery. You know that he is of the artillery by the crossed cannon on his helmet. Without asking you can tell that the "order of the day" required gloves, that gas masks were to be worn on the right hip, that web belts and pistols were to take the place of Sam Browne belts. The officer nearest to you wears service chevrons for eighteen months, three of them. He is an officer of the artillery as the crossed cannons on his collar denote. Next to him is a medical officer, you can see the insignia of his corps, the caduceus, in bronze on his collar. By the crossed rifles you can see that the next three are infantrymen, all with a single chevron denoting six months' service, and farther along the line you can see one of the men with the Distinguished Service Cross with its red, white and blue ribbon pinned to his breast. And on the shoulder straps of General Pershing's tunic there are four stars which he can now wear for the rest of his life since Congress has made his rank of General permanent.

Date: 1915-1932

No ocean trip is so tiresome as that on which one returns from a foreign land. A certain novelty attends the outward voyage, but the return is all too slow. One longs for the familiar sights and the familiar comforts of home. For our boys, packed as so many of them had to be in the lowest holds of the ship, sickened by nauseating smells, with none but artificial light, physical discomforts were added to the monotony of the trip. They welcomed diversion of any kind and the most welcome of all forms of diversion was the boxing match. It is in our nature to like to pit our skill, strength or science against a worthy opponent, and to watch others do it. Although friendly bouts, these were by no means tame affairs nor were they often un-skillful ones. In their camps in France our boys acquired a liking for the game. Men who were novices when they went over became expert. When pitted against each other, company against company or division against division, pride in their unit and their natural aggressiveness inspired them to fight their best. The battles were often bloody ones, a test of grit as well as of skill. On shipboard the men packed five and six deep to see the bouts, yelling like Indians at each well delivered blow. The match was often conducted in a hurricane of yells and catcalls, and when two green men could be induced to hammer each other and make sport for the multitude the shouts of laughter were Homeric. These bouts were fought not only on the return, but on the outward trips as well. Submarines sneaked stealthily beneath the waters but no fear of them stayed these contests of skill and grit.

Date: 1915-1932

The bugler on a battleship is a very busy man. He opens the day with the “first call of reveille” at 5:45, followed by the “reveille” at 5:50 after which comes “turn to.” Then comes the “recall.” After any call which brings the men into action comes the “recall” which excuses them. At 7 o’clock is the “mess call.” At 7:55 is the ‘first call to the colours,” which is the same thing as “guard mount” in the army. This stations the men for their watch duty. At 8 o’clock the “colours” is sounded. The flag is raised while the band plays “The Star Spangled Banner” and all the officers and men stand at attention. At 9:15 comes the “call to inspection” and the “call to quarters” when the men are inspected, a division at a time, on the quarter deck by a captain. At 12 o’clock comes “mess call” again. After mess there is a “band call” and usually call for regular drill, though the time for regular drill varies on different ships. At supper time is “mess call” again, followed by the “call to the colours” and the “band call.” After the flag is lowered, the band gives a concert. The “first call to tattoo,” “tattoo” and the beautiful call of “taps,” when all the light must be out, end the day. Besides the regular calls there are many extra ones coming unexpectedly at any time. These are “fire alarm call,” “collision drill,” “abandon ship drill,” and “torpedo defense.” The bugler we see here is calling “attention” at the approach of a ship. If it is a foreign boat, as soon as its nationality is ascertained, our band will play their national air, while their band plays ours.

Date: 1915-1932

The town of Chateau-Thierry lies on both banks of the Marne. This view, taken from the south side of the river, looks toward the city hall and the heights beyond. The bridge is in part a temporary structure with ruins of masonry at one end. The temporary structure replaces part of the bridge blown out to hinder the advance of the Germans. This was the famous iron bridge, where the American troops first met the enemy at Chateau-Thierry. Many of the American soldiers engaged here had been called from quiet sectors, and although this was their first experience at real fighting, they proved superior to the veteran Germans who opposed them. On May 30, 1918, the Germans reached the Marne, east of Chateau-Thierry, and advanced along its north bank on the city. Pouring through a gap in the Allied lines to the left of the town, they advanced down its streets intending to establish themselves on the south side of the Marne. The American machine gunners, who were 100 kilometers to the rear, were ordered into motor-trucks and after travelling all night reached the south bank of the Marne at Chateau-Thierry early in the morning of June 1, in time to place their guns and to prevent the Germans from crossing. When the Germans under the protection of smoke from smoke-bombs, did attempt to cross this bridge, the Americans were equal to the emergency, part of the bridge was blown out and the enemy was held to the north bank of the Marne until the great American and French drive in July, 1918, swept them far back in rapid retreat.

Date: 1915-1932

"Mitrailleuse" is the French word for machine gun. The type used in the French army is the Hotchkiss. This weapon is operated by the powder gas of the successive explosions, each shot opening the breech, ejecting the empty cartridge and feeding in another at any rate desired up to 600 shots per minute. As the barrel is cooled by an air radiator and not by a water jacket, it becomes terrifically hot when the rate of fire is high. But this does not affect the gun in the least, as the barrel is made of special manganese steel and does not lose its shape. There is probably no weapon as effective as the machine gun in proportion to its cost and weight, the ease with which it can be transported from place to place, and the small crew necessary to handle it. It is particularly adapted to defensive tactics—a few men, armed with these guns, cleverly hidden in brush or rocks, can hold off a regiment. France had thousands of these guns mounted on light armored automobiles like the one before us in the narrow street of this German village. The armored roof is so arranged that it can be swung up in sections to form a shield when in action. The gun is mounted on an adjustable base so that it can be trained in any direction. These guns did great execution in the last months of the war when, driven from their Hindenburg and Kriemhilde lines, the Germans were streaming eastward on every road, hurrying to get out of France. The auto mitrailleuse, flying along every byroad and highway, enfiladed and ambushed them, shot them down and captured them by the thousand.

Date: 1915-1932

These hundreds of men in their slickers and web belts have passed through the rigorous routine of the embarkation camp which is located two or three miles beyond that high wall in the distance and are now tramping for the last time down the principal streets in Brest, past the drug store and the little retail shops to the piers where they will board the ferry boats that carry the troops from the land to the transports at anchor in the harbor. By their flag you recognize them as a part of a regiment of field artillery. Their guns and all excess equipment have been turned in at the army bases, leaving them with light packs—and light hearts. For months the natives of the city hung out their flags each day and assembled in groups along the side walk to bid a last farewell to the thousands of troops that passed on to the piers. As many as 40,000 troops can be checked out of the camp in a single day, an operation that would be impossible if it were not for the splendid system and facilities which the camp has for bathing, feeding, clothing and checking up the records of the men.

Date: 1915-1932

Towards the close of June, 1919, President Wilson and Mrs. Wilson left Paris to visit Belgium. King Albert and Queen Elizabeth met them at Adinkerke and the party proceeded to Brussels by automobile. Later, a visit was made to the devastated regions around Charleroi and nearby places, among others Louvain. Before us, within the scarred and blackened walls of the University of Louvain, deliberately and unnecessarily destroyed by the Germans in the early months of the war, stands President Wilson reading an address. On his right is the Queen of Belgium, in a simple white dress, and to her right Miss Wilson. At the near side of the platform we see Mrs. Wilson, in a rich blue dress, and between her and the President we can distinguish the manly figure of the King of Belgium. Potted plants and shrubs have been hastily arranged in the rear of the simple platform, to shut off the view of bare, smoke-blackened walls, all that is left of this once splendid university with its priceless treasures of books and manuscripts. Throughout the President's brief trip he was greeted by the grateful plaudits of the Belgian people. For Belgium knows that America is her friend, in deed and in word. "Vive l'Amerique !" resounded from the lips of children excused from school as the distinguished party passed through the streets of cities not entirely demolished. But it was not through ordered streets and welcoming citizens that most of the trip was made, it was through devastation and desolation indescribable. Even forests had been shot away. The Angel of Death seemed to have blasted the land.

Date: 1915-1932

On this great day Paris was almost delirious with joy and pride. The terrible war which had strained the resources and taxed the spirit of France almost to the limit had ended in glorious victory ; the dreaded enemy beyond the Rhine whose threats and menaces had for half a century hung like a black cloud over the nation, was humbled in the dust. Today the victory celebration ; today countless thousands are out in holiday attire, lining the sidewalks as the veterans who have won the war march by ; today, for the first time in the history of France, foreign soldiers, allies in the glorious struggle, march in triumph under the Arc de Triomphe. This famous arch is in one of the most splendid quarters of Paris. From it ten great avenues radiate as the spokes of a wheel. From its summit 155 feet high, one has a wonderful view—the city spreads out interminably in every direction, at one's feet these magnificent avenues lined with stately buildings and bordered with handsome trees ; near by the Seine, its winding course spanned by bronze, stone and marble bridges ; in the distance the great cathedral of Notre Dame, the stately Palace of the Louvre and other great buildings. The Arc de Triomphe was erected to commemorate the victories of the Great Napoleon. It is a really magnificent structure, a triumph of French art, 140 feet wide, 70 feet thick. The whole edifice is embellished with exquisite sculptures, some of colossal size. On the inner side of the arch are inscribed the names of those great victories which made France so powerful and which stamped Napoleon as the greatest military commander of his age.