Chapters 23-24 Summary

Chapter 23, "The Fatigue-Party," shows the squad at dusk, picking up their digging tools and slugging through heavy rain to the Covered Trench, which vibrates to the engine of a searchlight. The wind is freezing at midnight, six hours after they begin their march. In Paris, it is theater time for the "rich and splendid." Their guide, a lieutenant, leads them wrong four times before finding the New Trench. No one knows where the front line is. It is 2 a.m., and by 6:00 they must pull out. Individuals line up to dig holes five feet long, 2.5 wide, and 2.75 deep, 15 feet per three-man team. Talk is forbidden and when men disobey, the Germans fire star shells followed by bullets. Survivors keep low as they continue digging. The ground gets softer as they hit water, creating a swamp. Men sleep while waiting for new...