Albert Benedict Dravland, 1893-1979,recounts his personal experiences as a Stretcher bearer in the Argonne Forest during the last months of World War 1, 1914-1918. Sargeant York, was Alberts friend and comrade. Albert was the younger brother of Jonas and son of Ole.

My experience as a WW1 Stretcher Bearer
With Co.G, 328 Infantry, 82nd. Division

Before we went into action in the Meusse Argonne, twelve men were selected as stretcher bearers and I was appointed as Corporal in charge.

None of us had any medical training and only received one day of instructions on how to put on bandages and even to pick an unconcious man and lay him across your shoulder, so we began to think we were pretty good.

We carried no guns or ammunition but I always carried an extra canteen of water since the first thing a wounded man would ask for was water because as a rule had used all their own.

The Chaplain who was at the dressing station most of the time made sure my ammunition belt was filled with extra first aid kits and most of the time a few packages of chewing gum or a cigarette if he was a smoker.

Our first chance to try ourselves out was on October 8th. when our Company was advancing to take over the front line. Three men were wounded by shell fire, even before we reached Hill 223 which was to be the jump off point for Company G. Six of us were on the way back with wounded when we met the Doctor who was in the process of moving his station closer to the front. We took the men under a small bridge when the Doctor checked them and put them on an ambulance. The Doctor told me he was going to establish in a basement of a wrecked building in the village of Chatel Chehery. When we reached Hill 223, which I knew was the jumping off point for Company G, they were already gone and we could see them rushing from one shell hole to another trying to find some protection against a terrific machine gun fire and at the same time the hill was shelled by artillery so we had to take cover in a trench for a short time until the shelling let up.

Two men had been wounded out there on the Hill but did not need to be carried when I told them the dressing station was just a short distance away. At this time I began to realize that as strecher bearers were in a unique position in having been always under the command of higher officials and now we had to act on our own initative.

What helped me I believe was the strong comradeship that develops between yourself and your buddies when you get into battle. A person gets to feeling that you consider the welfare of your comrade as much as you do your own.

For the next forty-eight hours from here on there laid a lot of work ahead of us. The first trip out was rather rough on account of enemy machine gun fire. But when we came out the second time, the fire had let up considerably. We soon learned the reason why when we saw Sargeant York coming out of the woods to our left with one hundred thirty-two prisoners.

The Company who was by now considerable distance ahead of us were still fighting and we could here the racket and at times the machine gun fire would reach the area where we were working.

Here again I want to point out the comradship amongst the troops in battle. We were about to pick up a man when he pointed to a shell hole a short distance away and told us to take the man in that hole first because he was worse off than he was.

One incident that stands out in my mind was when we had just laid a man on the stretcher when the enemy dropped a few shells in that area. We dropped into some holes for a few minutes and when the shelling let up again, we went back to the stretcher and found that neither the man or the stretcher would take part in the war any more. We also had another stretcher, found another man who did not seem to be badly hurt as he had used his own first aid kit and put bandages on himself. We carried him two or three hundred yards when we discovered that he did not need a Doctor any more. The next man we found we did carry to the station.

Another incident I remember was a case where a man had a compound fractured leg with a little bit of bone showing through the flesh on his leg. One of the stretcher bearers held his shoulders while I pulled on his leg and applied a new bandage. We used his rifle as a splint on the outside and his bayonet on the inside of his leg. He had lost his leg wrappings that we used so we had nothing at that time to wrap the splint with so I took off my own leggings and used them to wrap around the splint. This relieved the pain so much that he told me he thought I was a good Doctor. I never did find out but hope his leg was saved.

By this time we had worked continuously for two days and one night and were all getting rather tired. We hated to rest, however, since some of the wounded will try to find cover if possible and head for the woods or shell holes.

I reported to Regional Headquarters and asked for for help to search the field and they gave me sixteen men from an engineering company. We found only one man with a badly fractured leg. He had pushed himself with his good leg a considerable distance, even crossing a small creek with some water in it.

The sixteen men went back to their company and it was now midnight of the second day, so we had a little rest until daybreak when we joined our company who was moving out. Having held their position under artillery fire and counter attacks, the company had forced the enemy to move out of that sector.

The next few days the company spent more of their time in reserve or support although even then we came under artllery fire at times. One place we were digging in apple orchards in order to have some cover for the night.

Our field kitchen was brought up to give us a hot meal, which was something we had not had in over a week, but the enemy must have spotted the smoke because they dropped shells where we were digging and made a direct hit on our kitchen, which finished our chances for a hot meal.

The next thing I remember, we were alongside the road near Sommerance, a small village. I believe we were there as a reserve.

Some supplies were brought up such as iron rations, ammunition and even some clean underclothing. We had not had a bath or clean cloths for over a month. There was also a chance to report to the Doctor on 'sick call'. Most of the men reported to sick call because no one was feeling too well because of extreme fatigue and diarrhea.

One of the men was tagged hospital and was waiting at the dressing station for his turn for an ambulance when orders came that we were to go to the front for another attack that night. Here again the strong comradeship that exists between soldiers in battle showed up. This man came back, tore his hospital tag off and said "if you fellows are going, I am going too." He seemed to get better and was with us until the company was relieved.

One reason for everyone to be marked 'duty' was the fact that every man was needed as the ranks were getting thin, being reduced to half strength when we had entered the Argonne about three weeks before.

The company made the advance that night and drove the enemy back a short distance, but had to fall back to the original position because the unit to the right was unable to advance due to strong resistance.

As usual we stretcher bearers were left behind, and since it was such a dark night and raining, we had trouble finding our own company. We found a wounded German, and he asked for 'wassa'. I realized it meant water so gave him some. We left him thinking we should try to find our own men, but in so doing we ran into an opening in the line caused by the unit on the right not being able to advance, and we drew machine gun fire from both the left and the right. We decided to to wait until there was a little daylight. Those machine gunners were our own placed there to cover the opening in our line, but, of course, those gunners did not know who was moving about in the dark.

We went back and picked up the German and carried him back to our Doctor. We learned later that two of our men were wounded that night but were brought back by someone else. From that time on, we alternated 24 hrs. on the front and 24hrs. in reserve at Sommerance.

We always looked for a better place to rest. Most of the buildings were more or less a total wreck. One instance three friends of mine and I found a small building, built into a side hill. The hill was towards the the enemy side, so any shellingof it cleared the hill would pass over us. We felt much safer than we had been for a long time. The door was gone, but we hung a blanket over the entry so wecould have a light, a candle that one of the fellows happened to have in his pack.

One of the boys was a very good singer and he started singing and soon two of the other fellows joined in too. They sang some of the military songs that were popular at that time and also some hymns. I never could sing but have always been a good listener, so enjoyed it very much. When they quit singing it was suggested that I read something, so I got out my Testement with nothing special in mind but opened the book and put my finger on a page. I could never have selected anything more fitting for the occasion. It was Romans, chapter 8 starting with Verse Thirty-one through Verse Thirty-nine.

What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare his oun Son but gave him up for us all, will he not also give us all things with him? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies; who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, 'For thy sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This was about the 25th. or 26th. of October. We made two more trips to the front lines and on one of these trips our 1st. Sargeant and a boy from my state of North Dakota was killed and one man wounded by shell fire. He had a piece of steel in his back. I was able to pick it out with a small scissors that I had used for cutting bandages and put it in my pocket and still have it as a souvenir.

In the first day of November, the 82nd Division was relieved by the 18th. Division and Company G left the front lines at midnight. Our work as stretcher bearears was finished. There were only four of us left of the original twelve. After spending three weeks under almost continuous battle conditions, none of my men were killed or seriously wounded. They were evacuated mainly on account of the gas, slight wounds or sickness.

While at Sommerance, one officer approached me with a sheet of paper and asked me to sign it because I was being recommended for a Distinguished Service Cross, which at that time I wasn't too sure what that ment.

As we were marching away from the front, we met a lot of heavy equipment moving towards the front. We realized there was to be another big drive the next day. We were right as the next day there was another big drive and the enemy was on its final run or retreat. Ten days later the eleventh hour of the eleventh day and the eleventh month was a day we would never forget. As we were marching back we had a short rest, dropped all our equipment and sat on the ground.

When we got the signal to go again I picked up Sargeant York's gas mask by mistake and he got mine. Later when I told him, he said,"Lets keep it that way--we wll never need them again." I still have the mask as a souvenir.

I would like to tell about a surprise we had during the night we were marching away from the front. We came to a small village a most of the buidings were a total wreck but here was the Salvation Army and three American girls serving hot cocoa and doughnuts to all of us. No one can imagine how much this was appreciated and finding the girls so close to the front line when they were well in range of artillery fire. I know that there was not a man in our group that would not have been wlling to give his oun life to protect those girls if there should have been the need. We resumed our march until we came to an abandoned German camp whwere we would stay overnight.

We learned there was a chance for a bath and clean cloths about a mile away. Regardless of how tired we were at that time, quite a number of us went for the bathes. It was a wonderful feeling to shed those cloths that were mud covered on the outside and full of lice on the inside. They called them 'cooties' over there. This bath was run by the Red Cross.

A few days later a few of us got a leave of absence and went to an amusement center sponsored by the YMCA. We were assigned to hotels and slept in real beds, for the first time in months, and went sight seeing during the day.

We then went back to our Company at a small town named LaFriets where we stayed most of the winter waiting for our orders to get ready to go home.

On Christmas Eve we were informed that President Wilson was in France and that he was going to review his own troops. One Company from our regiment was selected. Sageant York and I were ordered to report to that Company and found we were to serve as color guards. We were gratefully honored because it was the first time The President Of The United States had reviewed his troops on foreign soil. In fact, it was the first time the President of our country had ever visited a foreign land.

Mrs. Wilson and her party of sixcars came alongside as we were marching on a road away from the reviewing area. She had her carswing in front of us with the colors and talked to us. I don't remember what she said but she seemed to be just as happy as we were that the war was over.

On February 11, the 82nd Division was reviewed by General Pershing. We were in front of the reviewing stand and Sargeant York, two other boys and I were called forward and General Lindsay escorted us to the reviewing stand where General Pershing pinned The Distinguished Service Cross on the four of us. General Lindsay jokingly said we were his acward squad. SargeantYork also recieved The Congressional Medal Of Honor at a later date. I was thrilled and felt deeply honored when The Distinguished Medal Of Honor was pinned on my uniform as there were so few given at that time. A lot of attention was showered upon me here at home which I have appreciated very much, but my wish now is that I be considered as representing those that we carried off the field whose lives we saved and others where their life may have saved but who were crippled for the rest of their lives and last but certainly not least, those whom we passed by and left them lay where they fell.

These are some of my experiences as a stetcher bearer over fifty two years ago. It makes our efforts seem so insignificant when one thinks of the number of those that made the complete sacrifice in the Meusse-Argonne those days as evidenced by the beautiful American Cemetary in that area of France

The fourteen thousand two hundred forty six (14,246) white crosses, row on row, covering an area of one hundred thirty acres. It is kept up by twenty five men working full time. It is most beautiful to see but yet so sad. I would like to end my little story with a short prayer:

Father of all mankind, as we pay tribute to our comrades who have given all they had for human freedom, help us all to be true to the cause for which they gave everything. Amen.