"A fight seemed to be coming our way. I had no men, however, and we had no actual orders, so I stayed in bed and hoped the bombardment would go away." (Memoir, page 81)

George Brown Sheppard

George Brown Sheppard in uniform War: World War, 1914-1918 Branch: Army Unit: 29th Division Service Location: France Rank: First Lieutenant Place of Birth: PA

George Sheppard's memoir of his service in "The GWW" (Great World War) is a frequently sardonic view of the absurdities of war. Upon his arrival in France, he watched his fellow officers, sure of their doom, blowing their last dollars on drinking and gambling. He later witnessed a sentry firing wildly at a tree rustling in the wind, setting off a barrage of grenades. One day, he and his men spent hours waiting for the start of a battle, only to find out that their orders were part of a ruse involving a bet between two American officers. In August 1918, he was reassigned to the States to conduct training exercises, only to encounter an enemy as deadly as the German Army: the influenza epidemic.