A DUMMY SENTRY.

Northern Advocate, 12 May 1915, Page 2

A DUMMY SENTRY.

BLINDED BY A BOOBY-TRAP. A remarkable story has been told by Albert Moore, of the Duke oi" Cornwall's Light Infantry, now in the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital, who was the victim of a German "booby-trap" —the dummy figure trick mentioned by '' Eye-witness.'' Moore has lost both eyes, and is in other ways in a pitable state. lie volunteered to go out near Arrnentieres with an officer to reconnoitre the Ger-. man trenches. Just before they reached the German wire they saw what, they took to be a sentry. Baid Moore: —

"We lay quiet for some, minutes and thought we should like to bring him in a prisoner. Then—in a whisper, .for the nearest German trench was only about 80 yards away—T said, ' You lie here and keep his attention drawn, and I will get away on the right and stab him from tho rear.' I wriggled away to the right till I got within about 10 yards of the sentinel's right foot. Then I could see it was a dummy.

"T crawled straight up to it and signalled to the officer to come up. He yaid, 'You had better shove the tiling over so that they can know a dummy has not frightened us.' 1 gave it a push and herd somefTiing like the noise made by a clock half run down. I said, 'Put your head down, .nir; it has very likely got something insirje which might j explode.' T gave tho dummy another I shove, and at once the thing went off. SHOT INTO THE ATT?. | "The dummy and T shot right up I into the air, and as T came down J J burst into flames all over. The stuff I inside it seemed to be some sticky j material; it citing fo me like treacle. ; .1 was in terrible agonies. ft could ' not have been made to kill outright. : Ten y;;rds to my left there was a ditch. .1 writhed and struggled up fo it and i plunged myself in. I thought my time | had coTiH , , and T said 'Good-bye to my- ! yell. ; "After a. tinif i felt "nuneLhing jerk ; me, sind that brought me to my senses, 1 said, 'Who's there? It was the | officer. He said, 'II is me.' ! sa'nl. ; 'Thank God, but lam not likely to ■■ live.' Me said. 'F will ,i:<'t you !>a<-k. " He tried to < arrv mo. bnt after going about six v:ii''!s liver vvr lmth wont, and that gave me nnnf her terrible shaking up. He got hol<l of me again and pii'kfd me up. 1 flung on fo him, and by some means I iii.'uia.ncd !o walk ;)s fnr as the open road, when we en me across a listening patrol, and then, liuding myself bark in safely, I collapsed. , '