World War One – Page 29 – Old Magazine Articles

The Western Front Elephant
(Der Welt Spiegel, 1915)

Animals have played important rolls in war from the beginning and World War One was no exception. Throughout the war the widespread use of dogs, horses mules and pigeons are all well documented and there have been some very interesting books written on the topic. Not so well documented is the presence of this one elephant who, being loyal to the Kaiser, is pictured in the attached photograph from 1915.

From Amazon: War Elephants

A Post-War Visit to Metz
(Literary Digest, 1919)

This is a letter from an American infantry Major, James E. White, who wrote home to explain that there was still much to do six days after the armistice.

The major’s letter relayed his experiences as being one of the first Allied officers to enter the formerly occupied city of Metz, in order to evacuate wounded American prisoners:

The following Tuesday the grand entry of the French troops took place, but no welcome was more spontaneous than than that given to the group of American officers who on that Sunday peacefully invaded the fortress of Metz.

Supplying Candy to the A.E.F.
(America’s Munitions, 1919)

Historians may ad the following to that list of the many firsts that World War I has claimed as its own:

The First World War was the first conflict in which the American soldier preferred candy to chewing tobacco.

Candy in the days of the old Army was considered a luxury. The war with Germany witnessed a change… Approximately 300,000 pounds of candy represented the monthly purchases during the early period of the war. Demands from overseas grew steadily. The soldier far from home and from his customary amusements could not be considered an ordinary individual living according to his own inclinations, and candy became more and more sought after. As the need increased, the Quartermaster Department came to recognize the need of systematic selection and purchase.

The suffering sweet tooth of the Yank was not appeased by candy alone. The third billion pounds of sugar bought for Army represents a tremendous number of cakes, tarts, pies and custards. An old soldier recently stated that the ice cream eaten by the Army during the war would start a new ocean…

Click here to read about the shipments of chewing gum that was sent to the American Army of W.W. I.

A Letter from the Freshly Dug Trenches
(New York Times, 1915)

This World War I letter makes for a wonderful read and it gives such a vivid picture of what the war must have been like once both sides had resigned themselves to trench warfare. The letter was dated October 8, 1914 and the British officer who composed it makes clear his sense that no war had ever been fought in this queer manner before.

Bertrand Russell on American Intervention
(Literary Digest, 1922)

The British philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872 – 1970; Nobel Prize for Literature, 1950) used to get mighty hot under the collar when the topic of American society came up and this column is just one example. During his 1922 American speaking tour Russell rambled-on about how prone Americans were to confuse the truth with commercial messages; believing that altruism was seldom a motivating factor behind a single American undertaking. He will have none of the thinking that America’s main concern for jumping into the meat grinder of 1914-1918 was entirely inspired by wounded France and poor little Belgium but was rather an exercise in American self-interest.

Read the thoughts of one W.W. I veteran who regrets having gone to war…

Where Did the Doughboys Board? Where Did They Land?
(Pictures of The World War, 1920)

A black and white map indicating the Atlantic ports up and down North America where the A.E.F. boarded troop ships, their trans-Atlantic routes and their French and British points of arrival. The map is also accompanied by a few facts concerning this remarkable trip across U-boat infested waters.

Click here to read an article about the sexually-transmitted diseases among the American Army of W.W. I…

When the Doughboys complained, they complained heavily about their uniforms; read about it here.

The Franco-Russian Alliance
(Literary Digest, 1897)

The Franco-Russian Alliance (1892 – 1917) was a military partnership uniting the Russian empire of Alexander III Alexandrovich and the French Third Republic under President Marie François Sadi Carnot. It was a key element that contributed to the deep sense of insecurity experienced by Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany. When one reads the attached article from 1897, with it’s strong anti-German language, you will come away wondering why the First World War didn’t begin sooner:

France may now hope to regain her lost provinces with the help of Russia. The hour of revenge has come. Alsace Lorraine will once more be French…

Evidence of a Growing Discipline Problem Within the A.E.F.
(The Stars and Stripes. 1919)

After reading this small notice, one comes away with the sense that Pershing’s Doughboys were losing their edge by February, 1919…

When the Doughboys complained, they complained heavily about their uniforms; read about it here.

British Uniform Insignia for General Officers
(Bovril Booklet, 1917)

Officer’s British Warm
(Thresher & Glenny Catalog, 1915)

A.E.F. Facts and Deployment Information
(Times Literary Supplement, 1921)

The attached essay reviews a colossal history written by a veteran of the U.S. First Infantry Division, Captain Shipley Thomas: The History of the A. E. F.
– for those who are looking for some knowledge concerning what the American Army was up to during the last six months of the War (it was bloodiest period) the review makes for a good read.

Click here to read about the high desertion rate within the U.S. Army of 1910.

Click here to read some statistical data about the American Doughboys of the First World War.

The British Rage Against Pacifism
(The Literary Digest, 1915)

While Western Europe was all ablaze during the Spring of 1915, many Americans were tapping their toes to a catchy tune titled, I Didn’t Raise my Boy to be a Soldier (by Alfred Bryan and Al Piantadosi). This really irked the editors at THE SPECTATOR who let their fingers trip across the typewriter keyboard at a tremendous speed spewing-out all sorts of unflattering adjectives; they even went so far as to rewrite a few verses.

The British 1912 Officer Jacket
(West End Gazette, 1915)

The January, 1915, issue of The West End Gazette devoted three pages of tailoring instructions for British officer’s Khaki Service Jacket. The uniform was first issued in 1912:[P]The latest development in connection with military tailoring is the introduction of a new style of Service Dress for field wear. Its principal distinction from the styles that has superseded is the abolition of the time-honored stand collar in favor of the open step collar style as generally adopted for mufti garments.

Von Kluck’s Drive on Paris
(West Point Supplement, 1944)

The British Officer’s Trench Cap of W.W. I
(Tatler Magazine, 1915)

Attached is a 1915 magazine ad from a British society magazine that illustrates the profile of the British Service Hat (trench cap). This wool headgear was worn by all British and Commonwealth forces prior to the 1916 introduction of the Brody Helmet (tin hat), which was issued in order to reduce the high number of head injuries.

British Officer’s Uniform Insignia
(Bovril Booklet, 1917)

Attached you will find five black and white drawings illustrating the British Army sleeve insignia worn throughout the First World War.

David Lloyd George
(Vanity Fair, 1916)

An article that served to introduce American readers to the new British Prime Minister, David Lloyd George (1863 – 1945), who replaced the incompetent wartime leader Herbert Henry Asquith (1852 – 1928):

People had began to doubt whether or not Mr. Asquith had ‘the will to win’ the necessary determination to make all things work together to that end. There was no doubt in the case of Lloyd George. He had supported credit, he had supplied ammunition, he had inspired general confidence, he had reconciled the irreconcilable. The question arose whether or not the box seat on the coach of state should not be given to him.

The article concentrates primarily on the radical instinct and liberal leanings of Lloyd George, who is often remembered as the Prime Minister who laid the foundations of the British nanny-state.

In 1940 Lloyd George wrote an editorial in which he condemned the leaders of Europe for procrastinating rather than dealing with Hitler when Germany was still weak Click here to read it.

The Death of Quentin Roosevelt
(Pathfinder, 1930)

The attached column pertains to a W.W. I image that was erroneously believed by some to show the earthly remains of American fighter pilot Quentin Roosevelt following his crash landing. Numerous veterans chime-in explaining why the gent pictured could not have been the late Lt. Roosevelt, among them was Captain Eddie Rickenbacker.

The picture is provided.