Cannon Fire and Desparation

Saturday, September 23

The occupying troops were becoming more and more desparate, killing the Etobonais' cows where they stood to provide meat. Didn't the people of Etobon sense how in danger they were? Perhaps they did, but could do nothing to avoid what was coming. Jules Perret writes:

"Woke up to cannon fire.  The battery at Bouloie is firing furiously.  We’re getting the cattle ready to transport.  It’s worse than the fair …  The mayor was at Belfort, so in my role of deputy, I received those who were asking for favors.  Here come four boches looking for one cow.  Even though I told them that 50 were on the road to Belfort, they argued.  One with glasses said to me, “Those won’t give us any meat.  Show me the house where there are some cows left.”  What a chore!  I took them to Guemann’s, Paul and Marthe started crying.  But what could I do?  The boches took, weighed, paid for – with Vichy money – and killed a pretty heifer, right then and there.  One of them dug a hole to bury the entrails.

"The Cossacks have attacked again and are trying to surround our maquis.  They had to abandon Voisin, wounded, where he lay.  Who will take care of him? (Emile Voisin was found dead in an attic, where, despite his broken leg and abdominal wound, he was able to crawl into for shelter.)

"Midnight.  Jacques, back from Belfort, and I killed our pig to keep it safe from looters.  We knocked it out and killed it near the rabbit cages, in the little shed , then dragged it through the orchard back to the stable."

Staying Here in a Trap

The maquis of Etobon had been busy avoiding German troops, making use of the woods to hide their guerilla attacks. Jules Perret wonders how they have escaped capture for so long, and whether it would be safer to try to join up with the American forces than to stay in Etobon.

Sunday, September 24

"Our pig gave us 105 kilos of meat.  I understand why we had so much trouble dragging it, last night, not daring to light the lantern.  Jacques and Kuntz were exhausted from their day at Belfort, in a pouring rain, on the Champ de Mars, surrounded by thousands of cattle.  Our guerrillas come home one by one, hands and faces scraped.  They’ve seen some sights!  They must have, not to have been picked off to the last man, there were so many Germans.  Wouldn’t they be better off slipping away to join the Americans than staying here in a trap?   With all his gendarmes, the adjutant Henry will try to get back to Champagney by way of the woods.

"Tonight, they’ll take away the German car and side-car left at the edge of the road and hide them in the fir trees at the Bouloie pass. They’ll smooth out the two German graves and hide them with dry leaves."