00:00On a sandy hill at the edge of the forest stands a wooden shelter, half hidden in the shade of
00:05the pines, banked high with earth and grass.
00:09Inside, between the broad supports, clerks sit at the telephone, and over maps and papers bends a general staff officer.
00:18He draws and measures with a serious face. Nothing else concerns him.
00:22But outside, in the sunlight, stands the commander, the general, his cap and coat a bit worn, his teeth clenched
00:30tightly, his posture straightened, his fist clenched, his hair iron-gray, but his eyes not old.
00:37Clouds, poisonous yellow and green, crawl along the ground, covering for days now the life that lies below in the
00:46trenches.
00:46In the trenches at Somme Sompi lies the German infantry, lying for days without yielding, among the dying and the
00:55dead.
00:56Nothing but misery and hardship to see, nothing but hard bread to chew.
01:01Helpless in wind and weather, half buried by shells, under the gray waves of smoke, hidden from view for days,
01:09but further away in the sunlight, stands and waits the general.
01:14He sees the flashes and flickering flames, clenches his teeth even tighter, does not turn his steely gaze away from
01:22the mighty spectacle.
01:24An iron will cools the blood. And yet, the heart is so kind, so kind.
01:30Quietly, an officer approaches, with an inquiry from headquarters, just in by telephone.
01:36Will the division hold?
01:38And the old man, with a serious face, turns quietly and speaks.
01:43He gives nothing but a short answer.
01:45It will hold as long as it lives.
01:47And as the sun set, at home on the stove bench, people were already reading.
01:53A German battalion had pushed into the Belgrade Konak, and five assaults at Somme Sompi.
01:59Our infantry pushed them back.
02:01History tells of many brave men and heroes, for even in childhood we heard in trumpet tones how the Greeks
02:09and Romans died and earned glory and honor.
02:14But nothing ever matched the German infantry.
02:18It knows no outward honors, knows only its hard duty.
02:23Stern eyes, pale cheeks, quietly went to their deaths.
02:27Where the father's body withers, the son follows and says not a word.
02:32But know this, the whole fatherland lies in your hands, and you are set too high for the world's vain
02:39splendor.
02:40Among those who strut and stroll about all dressed up, not one can be found worthy to tie your shoes.
02:47Simple and brave, day and night, undaunted and under assault, unpretentious infantry, may God protect you.
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