In this sector there were but few trenches, as the character of the ground made it impractical for the enemy to attempt much of an advance in this direction. It was protected on the right by marshy lakes and on the left by strong defenses on higher ground. To the right could be seen the forbidding German stronghold of Montsec, with Xivray and Seicheprey in the distance, later the scenes of the earliest actions in which American units participated, while on the left was the Apremont region, where the 104th Infantry Regiment won distinction repulsing a German raid. Expressing contempt for the "Malishy" the men of the 1st Division left the sector with the apparent feeling that it would soon be overrun by the Boche, but before going they transmitted more faithfully than they did many of their orders stories about American raids on the Hun lines which had penetrated through the last defense and had netted but one prisoner, a decrepit pensioner who travelled with the aid of a wooden leg and carried flares which he set off at intervals throughout the system of trenches. In spite of their feeling in the matter the Hun continued quiet for several days, using vari-colored lights and machine gun bullets to while away the long hours of darkness. A gas alarm broke the stillness on the 5th and the following night brought action for Gould's and Hunihan's guns, who fired on signal from the infantry, but nothing further developed. Almost incredible news was received on the night of the 9th, when orders came sending Sergeant "Tom" Reilly home as one of the fifty men selected to represent the American Expeditionary Force during the campaign for the Second Liberty Loan. When he left he had more messages for the home folks than he could have delivered personally in a month. [Illustration] Although a certain amount of shelling by both sides had occurred periodically ever since the Company entered the lines, the heavy bombardment which began early on the morning of the 20th betokened action in some part of the Brigade sector. Later news showed this activity to have taken place preceding and during the German attack on Seicheprey. There a battalion of picked shock troops had pierced the lines held by the first battalion of the 102d Infantry Regiment and A and B Companies of the 102d Machine Gun Battalion, finding its way through a mist which filled the low ground in front of Jury Woods. The enemy had surrounded certain units, including a platoon of B Company of the Battalion and most of D Company of the infantry, nearly all of whom were carried away prisoners. After inflicting damage as far as they could they were forced to retire before a counter attack, leaving hundreds of dead in their wake, while their wounded in unknown numbers had been carried off in the retreat. This was the first engagement of its size fought by American troops.