Opening the papers this week, I found an image and caption from World War I. The Fulton County News, dated 21 October 1915, shows a page three photo in the section titled “Pictures of World Events for News Readers”. While browsing the papers, the photo of the British Gas Mask caught my attention as it looked like a Halloween Monster at first glance.
When I zoomed into the photo, I noticed that it was a photo of the latest British Gas Mask. Also, while I was zooming in, I noticed a nearby photo of the Regimental Band playing between battles. I am not astute in my historical skills to identify which Regiment this Band belonged to or even which country this band belongs to. My best guess is that they are French. Honestly, however, I do not think the “who” is really the point of the photo. I think the photo of the photo is to show the reality of the war. Here is a band, covered in protective gear, attempting to rehearse their music under the threat of deadly gas. The obvious rubble of battle lies behind them, but they continue to play.
There are times that we think the bands are useless in warfare. But, this demonstrates the desire of the band to lift the spirits of the troops even in the worst of times. I am stunned as I see these photos from the front. There is so much about that war, I still do not understand.
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Images from: The Fulton County news. (McConnellsburg, Pa.), 21 Oct. 1915. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress. <http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86081889/1915-10-21/ed-1/seq-3/>