Vivid View of France and the War

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Vivid View of France and the War

By Brigadier-General Richard W Young .

[This most striking view of the World War, and description of scenes and conditions in France, just before and after the armistice, was written by General Young to his home folks on his return from an official trip to the front for purposes of observation and instruction. He does not forget to mention the German situation, and among other declara- tions, expresses his fear that the German people will "derive nothing but pride from their exploits in this war. Though defeated, they are by no means humiliated." Their economic slavery will dawn upon them later. His conception of the situation and opinion of the existing combination of circumstances will both instruct and enlighten the reader. Editors.]

Camp de Souge (Gironde), November 21, 1918. Dear Ones at Home: —I returned last evening from a jour- ney, aggregating about 1600 miles, which, no matter how long I may live, must stand out as one of the most vitally absorbing experiences of my life. Believing that you will,be interested in a detailed relation of those experiences, I shall describe them with such particularity as time may permit and my memory and powers of description will render possible. The time occupied by the trip extended from Saturday, Nov. 9, 1918, to Wednesday, Nov. 20. My companion throughout the entire trip was Major Robert I. Bentley, Jr., of San Jose, Calif., the Brigade Adjutant; Private

Geo. B. Roth, Headquarters Detachment, 65th F. A. Brigade, of Stockton, Cal., my chauffeur. Captain Elmer E. Chase, 144th Field Artillery, accompanied us from Is-sur-Tille to, and along the front and back to Paris, whence he went by train to Cler- mont-Ferrand, the station of his regiment.

The People and Cities of France In order to permit you the more graphically to visualize our experiences, I will attempt a brief description of the people of France and a bird's eye view of the country. Ever since our arrival, our curiosity has been aroused as to the effects of the war upon the people of this devoted country. The villages and towns of the rural districts are oppressively — deserted I speak now of the southern and central portions of France which have not been ravaged by war. As we ran through a village extending for a half mile along the road, we would see not more than two or three women and children on the streets and many of the houses seemed to be unoccupied, their windows

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being tightly barred with shutters. We would travel for miles along the roadways without meeting a vehicle or individual. Automobiles have almost ceased to be operated in France for purposes of pleasure, and such riding as is possible is done in funny little carts drawn by ponies or donkeys infinitesimally small. We have seen no evidences of poverty in France, at least none comparable with the rags and distress of some of the larger English cities, and yet in view of the unprecedented prices of food and clothing it is a marvel how the people are able to live at all. On working days, all seem to be comfortably clad while on Sundays and holidays they appear in excellent clothing usually of stylish appearance. The children are particularly well dressed as a rule. One is struck with the healthy appear- — ance of the young people of France this is notably true of the girls, who are round and robust and not characterized by the appearance of frailness that marks so many of our American girls. There seemed to be no young men anywhere in France who are not wearing the uniform of a soldier. The civilian pop- — ulation is made up of women, children and older men it seems impossible that France could have called into service any sub- stantial number of men in addition to those already under arms. The reception accorded to Americans by the entire popu- lation is cordial to the utmost. Men, women and children seem desirous of rendering every possible service to Les Americaines. Should you stop for a moment at a road crossing to enquire the way, they spring to your assistance, and the children climb onto the running board of your auto to answer your inquiries. Speaking of the children of France, you could not fail to be impressed with their beauty, their brightness and their polite- ness. They seem to have none of that rudeness that character- izes so many of our own children. As we fly along the roads or through the streets, they universally greet us with a wave of the hand, a shout of welcome, or with the salutation of "Good- bye." It has been a matter of frequent comment among us, that the girls and women of France bear a much more strik- ing resemblance to our own women and girls than do those of — England you see very many faces throughout France that would not strike you as being foreign in any part of America. The men are considerably foreign in their appearance. All, men, women and children, are vivacious, happy and sociable. It is to be noted with great regret, however, that the morals of the people seem to be low. Their illustrated peridoicals contain pictures and stories that would not be permitted to pass through the mails in the United States. Their theatrical performances and their ordinary conversation, I understand, permit, all too frequently, suggestions of immorality that would

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be shocking to our sense of propriety. Prostitution prevails to an unbelievable extent. Young girls and women, many of them in mourning, almost kidnap you on the streets of their cities and even their smaller towns. A very large proportion of French girls and even women are flirtatious in their conduct and attitude toward men. France will never be rehabilitated unless she abandons licentiousness and develops the family spirit. French architecture lacks diversity. Every farm is a walled enclosure, around the four sides of which are the residence, sheds and stables and within which are the animals and fowls of the farm, and the great piles of manure without which the productiveness of the ancient soil of France could not be main- tained. In the villages and towns, as well as in the cities, the houses are built in continuous lines, wall to wall, along the narrow streets. Sidewalks have hardly room enough to allow two persons to walk side by side. There is scarcely a porch in France, nor a lawn, nor a bed of flowers. The windows have great shutters which for some inexplicable cause are usually closed and locked. All structures are of stone, roofs are tiled, and what their edifices lack in attractiveness they make up in solidity. I must not forget to mention the French bed. I have slept in hotels in cities, towns and villages and in private houses, and everywhere the French bed is a wonderful institution, com- posed of a box mattress with perhaps a wool mattress and al- ways a featherbed, with wonderful linen, and on top of all a down comforter, sometimes as thick as a featherbed and al- ways, seemingly, too small for the purpose for which it was de- signed. After sleeping on these most excellent beds, and in view of the fact that we spend such a large portion of our lives in bed, I have concluded that perhaps we are too careless in America as to the quality of our beds. As regards food, there has never been any restriction on meat since we have been in France; bread seems to be limited, and even American officers and soldiers, when traveling, are required to produce bread tickets in order to be served with that necessary article of food. Potatoes are scarce, while other vegetables seem to be plentiful, but all are extremely high in price. Butter is strictly forbidden to be served, and sugar cannot be obtained in the hotels, sacharine, in liquid form, being furnished in lieu thereof. We had a costly but an amus- ing experience in Paris on Sunday. Major Bentley ordered an apple and I called his attention to the fact that the price was 5 Francs (90c) per apple, and I, unthinkingly ordered some grapes, which are one of the prolific products of the country, believing that the price would not be prohibitive and ate two — small bunches at a cost of 7 francs, (about $1.26). We had

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ham, French fried potatoes, bread without butter, and coffee or chocolate, and the cost of the meal to each of us was approxi- mately $3. The interiors of the residences and hotels of the better class are, of course, very "Frenchy" in the large number of gilt framed mirrors, ornamental clocks, Louis XIV furniture, etc. They all lack in that hominess that characterizes our own homes and hotels. Baths exist, here and there, but not in the same fre- quency as in America. We found one hotel in Paris where baths could be obtained only on Thursdays and Fridays on ac- count of the scarcity of coal. The roads of France must have been wonderful before the American invasion and the war. They are usually about 20 feet wide and are macadamized, they are lined with a row, sometimes two rows, of trees on either side and are curbed with rock almost throughout. My splendid 8-cylinder Cadillac would run along on many of these roads almost without a tremor at 60 miles per hour. But the French and American army trucks and the absence of laborers have done much to diminish the condition of these roads. While, as I stated above, there is very little private traffic along these highways there is an enor- mous quantity of army transportation moving in all directions, and everywhere, as you contemplate our travels through France, you must picture to yourself interminable convoys of trucks and other automombile transportation of various kinds; we would meet lines of 5-ton trucks, French and American, loaded or empty; long lines of Ford touring cars and trucks; ambu- lances almost without number; long lines of artillery of var- ious sizes with their limbers and caissons; baggage wagons with huge loads of miscellaneous supplies drawn by American mules or French horses; rolling kitchens, either of the substantial French type or the lighter American style. In nearly every city we found American soldiers acting as military police directing traffic at the cross roads. Morning, noon and evening, American soldiers lined up for their meals. It is said that the custom that prevails in the American service, of soldiers falling in for "chow" was the cause of some of the heaviest casualties suffered by the American arms at the front; that instead of going occasionally one by one to the kitchen, as do the French and English, they could not depart from their custom of lin- ing up, a formation that was readily observable by the enemy, who would open fire at once upon them with their batteries. Some cities seemed to be reserved to the French soldiers and others to the American, while in still other places soldiers of both nationalities were quartered. The French have not adopted any neutral color for their uniforms. The French soldiers are

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always dressed in the light sky-blue, whether behind or on the line.

There are few mountains of any size in France, except along the eastern and northeastern boundary and, of course, along the Spanish boundary. The remainder of the country is made up usually of rolling hills with valleys along which run their numerous and beautiful streams. Every inch of land seems to be cultivated. Patches of forest exist, through government requirement I imagine. All over France here and there are chateaux of wondrous beauty surrounded by great estates in the highest state of cultivation. The French have a way of building cities and towns along the crests of ridges and on the summits of hills. I remember distinctly Langres, a city of considerable size and importance in the center of France, that crowns the point of a ridge that extends sev- eral hundred feet above the surrounding valleys. It is evi- dently a city of the middle ages and is surrounded with a very impressive, moss-grown wall that must be fifty feet high in places, capped, here and there, with towers and flanked with bastions. Viewed through the woods that occupied the lower slopes of the hill, this sky scraping city is wonderfully pictur- esque and attractive.

A Visit to the Battle Front It has been the policy of General Pershing to send the commanding Generals, the Adjutants and the operation officers of Brigades to the front for purposes of observation and instruc- tion. Under that policy, I received telegraphic orders from Adjutant General Davis, of the American E. F., to proceed with my Adjutant by automobile to the Headquarters of the Second Army, starting after November 9, the date of the completion of our six weeks course of artillery training at Camp De Souge. Inasmuch as, however, we finally completed our course by the firing of the barrage on Saturday morning, I made arrangements to leave immediately after luncheon on that day, November 9. We ran out of the sand and dismal country surrounding Souge, passed the cemetery wherein 14 members of the Utah Regiment lie buried as the victims of Spanish Flu, through the great city of Bordeaux, now nearly double its usual size, across the splendid bridge spanning the river Garonne, over the low hills northeasterly to the city of Libourne, where we crossed the river Dordogne. The country through which we were then passing is the most famous wine producing region of France, the home of many of the favorite vintages of the con- noisseur. Our journey Saturday and all day Sunday, generally

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speaking, was in a northeasterly direction. We passed through Perigeux and stopped for the night at Limoges. This is the city wherein the famous Haviland china is manufactured. At din- ner I saw Lieut. Col. Binford, who, as Captain, was Quarter- master of the 20th Infantry at Fort Douglas at the time that we were encamped there. We took breakfast at a "canteen" operated by the ladies of the American Red Cross. Here we had a substantal American breakfast including oatmeal and ham and eggs at a trifling cost. The cashier was an extremely good- looking and interesting girl from Denver, Colorado, who leaned over and informed me that she was very much impressed with the star on my shoulder. We made an early start and ran through a most delightful country along some of what must be the best roads in the world. We climbed around innumerable curves to the top of a high ridge upon which was situated the beautiful city of Chateauroux. But it was with this city as with all French centers of popu- lation. Distance lends enchantment to the view. Afar off, with the white walls and the red tile roofs of the buildings embowered amidst trees and surrounded by end- less green fields, a French town possesses infinite beauty and charm; but alas! when you enter its confines, the charm is largely dissipated, since, as before explained, there is an ab- sence of flowers and lawns and front yards and porches and such accessories as make so greatly for the attractiveness of a city; while, in addition, your nose is saluted with the rank smells that arise from the open sewerage of the streets. You are certain that you have escaped typhoid in France only be- cause you have been subjected to inoculations against it. Prob- ably the explanation of the fact that all Frenchmen are not dead with the typhoid lies in the fact that through generations of living under such conditions they have arrived at immunity from attack. We took luncheon at another Red Cross canteen "manned" by American girls, at the city of Bourges. Here is located the second greatest cathedral in France, first being the war scarred edifice at Reims. Continuing we passed through the insignificant little village of La Guerche, which, until a few days ago, was the Headquar- ters of General Strong and the 40th Divsion; and through Nevers, a substantial city situated on the beautiful river Loire, which we here crossed. We found a resting place for the night at Dijon, also a city of considerable size and beauty. We stopped at the Hotel Des Cloches, where I had a beautiful homelike — room, with bath for which, needless to say, I paid a very handsome price. The next morning we ran over to Is-sur-Tille, the Head-

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quarters of the Second Army as we had been incorrectly in- formed. The censorship in France, even among the military forces, has been so rigid that it has been impossible or difficult for us to obtain accurate information, or any information at all, respecting the location of troops or individuals. While mak- ing inquiries as to our further progress, we ran into Captain Elmer E. Chase, who, as Adjutant of the 144th Field Artillery, had been ordered to the front for observation. I invited him to accompany me on the trip which, of course, he was de- lighted to do. Captain Chase is a gentleman of the first water, whom it was a great pleasure to have with us. He is said to have one of the most attractive homes at Carmel, near Mont- erey. He and Major Bentley have been life long companions and are devoted friends. So, with a roll of bedding on both running boards and one in front of the rear seat and our hand baggage, gas masks and steel helmets on the seat with the chauffeur, we continued our journey, through Langres and Neuf-Chateau to Toul, the Head- quarters of Lieut. -Gen. Bullard, Commander in Chief of the Second Army. We arrived at Toul just as the armistice took effect. The front lines were only four or five miles away and, had we stopped our automobile for a moment we could have heard the last shots of the Great War. The "Place" of the city was filled with great cheering crowds of civilians and French and American soldiers; an American band came down a main street playing "Tipperary," followed by scores of American soldiers each with a kiddy on his shoulder. I called in to see General Bullard, who was a plebe at West Point when I was a cadet captain. He told his staff how high he considered my position then to be. I reminded him that those were the days when I ranked him. Now, however, he holds with General Liggett, a West Point contemporary of mine, the exalted rank of Lieuten- ant-General. That afternoon we ran out to the front lines at Saizerais, the headquarters of the Corps. It was at this town that a day or two later, I saw Dan Spencer, now a Corporal connected with the Intelligence Department of the Army. The boy is the picture of health and has gained greatly in weight. He has been in France for 14 months and no doubt has seen very much hard and hazardous service, but has not reached a commission because of the fact that he has been serving with a French Ambulance unit. A day or two later at Bar-le-Duc I saw Mr. O'Brien, the coal man of Salt Lake City, who likewise had served with the French Ambulance Corps but who had succeeded in landing a commission as 2nd Lieut, in the Sanitary Department of the U. S. Army. He has earned the Croix de Guerre. From Saizerais we ran through Manonville, Noviant, Berne-

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court, Ramboucourt, Bouconville and Apremont to Woinville. The last named town was the Headquarters of the 4th Corps, commanded by General Muir. Here I found Brigadier General Briant S. Wells, with whom I made an appointment for lunch- eon the following day. It was the great pleasure to "meet up" with him. One of his staff took a snap shot of us, of which I am promised a copy. There being no accommodations in the vicinity, we ran back, some 20 miles, to Commercy, where I was able to secure a small room in the roof, my companions sleep- ing in their bed rolls on the office floor of the hotel. We took time by the forelock, however, and reserved rooms for the follow- ing night, anticipating that our plans would permit us to return.

Among Actual War Scenes Our journey from Toul to Woinville, was our first introduc- tion to the actual scenes of war. We saw acres and acres, miles and miles of wire entanglements; also interminable infantry trenches, and innumerable gun emplacements, many of which were still occupied. Here we first found camouflaged roads, hun- dreds of miles of which we were destined to see throughout our journey. Traffic along these roads were hidden from the obser- vation of the enemy either by willows or small branches woven into a mat 10 or 12 feet high, or by a line of gunnysacking of equal height. Where Germans had had possession of the road the camouflage lay between them and the French, while the French, of course, constructed their screen between them and the enemy; in some places the roads had passed from the control of one side to the other and then both sides of the roads were found to be screened. In other places attempts were made to prevent aerial observation of the roads by suspending pieces of camouflage much like the flys of a theatrical stage. It was during this afternoon drive that we first found villages and towns that had suffered from bombardments. Nearly everyone of the towns that I have mentioned was completely ruined, not so much as one building remaining within which a family could find shel- ter. Yet, in nearly all of them we encountered groups of sol- diers, usually American, since our journey was confined largely to the American Sectors. These had cleared the debris from the streets in order to make them passable and were making them- selves as comfortable as possible amidst the scenes of desolation in which they were stationed. On the 12th we returned to Woinville, and under the guid- ance of a lieutenant placed at our disposal by General Cruick- shank, we proceeded northward through Buxerulles, Buxierres, Heudicourt, Nonsart, Pannes, Beney, St. Benoit-en-Woevre to Woel. All these towns were along the front of American occu- pation, and the Germans were only a mile or so away. Near the

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last named town we left our automobile and went into the Bois-de-Raudronville, where we examined a number of long 155mm guns, manned by Americans, that had had the privilege of playing a part during the final days of the great drama. We walked down through the woods toward the German lines, our automobile being unable to proceed on account of shell holes in the road, and at our outer picket lines discovered groups of German soldiers and officers, who had walked over from the Hindenburg Line only a half mile away. We were informed that numbers of our own men and some officers, even though inter- course was forbidden, had gone over to the German lines. These soldiers were well clothed and appeared to have been well fed. They were very military in their bearing, much more so than our own men who happened to be in the vicinity. I talked with one of the German soldiers who had spent some- time in England. He was aware of the fact that Wilhelm had abdicated and that a republic was in the process of forma- tion, but he was not an enthusiatic republican; said he did not know which he would prefer, Kaiser or a Republic. The Ger- man officers here and elsewhere, wherever we saw them, stood or strutted around with the insufferable air of superiority that made one wish, almost, that the war might have been pro- longed until they might be properly humbled. I fear that the German people will derive nothing but pride from their exploits in this war. Though defeated they are by no means humiliated. It has required substantially the entire world to defeat them— such will be the flattering unction that they will take to their souls. They will attribute defeat to economic causes, the lack of food and materials, and to in- ternal disorders. They will claim that if the German people had remained true to themselves and united they might have won the war even though, Bulgaria, Turkey and Austria had — fallen away in other words, that defeat came to them not ex- ternally but internally, but in making this contention, they will overlook the fact that their economic distress and other internal dissensions were the results of the successful war waged against them by their enemies. Though their territory remains practically uninvaded, their defeat is none the less certain and complete. Their surrender of materials of warfare has made treachery and the renewal of the war impossible. It may be set down as certain that the final treaty of peace will impose pen- alties upon the German people that will render them the eco- nomic slaves of the Allied governments for many years yet to come. We — ran over to St. Mihiel a city of considerable size, largely destroyed, where we found General Richmond P. Davis, commanding the American Artillery that was serving with the

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17th French Division. General Davis with his Brigade had left Camp de Souge after we arrived there but through a deter- mination to get into the controversy, and by "butting in" as he expressed it, almost without orders, he succeeded in having his Brigade participate for about three weeks in the engagements around the St. Mihiel salient. In going from Woinville to St. Mihiel, we found innumera- ble lumber barracks constructed by the Germans. These were located on the northerly slopes of high hills and were thus pro- tected from the fire of the French. These buildings were very — comfortable in some cases they were ornamented with rustic porches and the interior of the rooms were plastered and tinted. In the rear were deep dugouts for protection from cannon fire. We spent the night again in Commercy. We were now on the Meuse. The next day we ran eastward to Toul where I had a pleas- ant call on Major General Lassiter, the Chief of Artillery for the Second Army. He impresses me as a man of superior ability and great activity, who must have come to the front had the war been prolonged. Here we met Captain Williams, of my staff, and CaptainW ard, Adjutant 145th Field Artillery, who had just arrived. These officers were assigned to the several Brig- ades of the Second Army and had excellent opportunities of observation. Lieut. Wolcott, of my staff, and several other officers who arrived a day later were sent back to their stations under orders fom G. H. Q. not to permit any further observers to visit the front. Just as we reached the outskirts of Toul an American aeroplane fell to the ground near the road. On arriving at the spot we saw the body of the aviator carried on a stretcher from his ship. We ran over to the Moselle and down through Mirpache to Pont-a-Mousson, a city that is partly on one side and partly on the other side of the river. One span of the connecting bridge had been destroyed, but replaced with a temporary structure of doubtful strength, which we drove over without knowing that its use was confined exclusively to foot passengers. Here Major Bentley found Captain Moveus, a Fort Sill classmate, now Adjutant of a colored artillery regiment that had seen considerable arduous service in the recent campaign. With him and a Lieutenant Benton we went to the top of Cote-de-Mous- — son a conical hill several hundred feet high. This hill is crowned with the ruins of a castle of the middle ages. Frag- ments of the walls of the citadel at the top of the hill still remain, while encircling the crown of the hill below are numer- ous other walls wherein, presumably, the baronial followers found a home and refuge. A statue of Joan of Arc, at the top

516 IMPROVEMENT .ERA # of a tall, white monument now caps the scene. The hill is honey- combed with tunnels ending in chambers from which through heavy concrete slots the entire surrounding country may be overlooked. This hill has never been in possession of the Germans and has proven to be an invaluable possession of the French and the Americans in their operations in the vicinity. Appreciating its military importance, the Germans have re- peatedly shelled the spot and the effects of their cannonading are visible on all hands. Fortunately the day of our visit was unusually clear and from the top of the hill we had a clear cut view of the city of Metz, only twelve miles away. The American troops had been in conflict with the Boche right at the foot of the hill for a number of weeks, and we saw the graves of American soldiers scattered here and there, 19 or 20 having received burial a half hour before our arrival. Descending the hill, we approached the German lines and as it happened the National Boundary, our progress being through several villages that had suffered so greatly that it was almost impossible to distinguish where the streets had once existed. Here we learned that some of our soldiers were in contact with the Germans just ahead of where we were compelled through shell holes to leave our automobile, and that they were securing automatic pistols, helmets and other souvenirs, by the exchange of slickers? and sweaters and cigarettes, talking down in the direction indicated we saw a colored soldier whom I asked: "Are there any Germans around here?" he replied, "No suh, no suh, dey is no Germans heah, we has permission to keep 'em out." This reminds me of an experience we had that even- ing on going into the city of Nancy. It was dark, and just as we were about to enter upon the bridge; a big negro soldier loomed up in front of the car and waved his hand for us to stop. "Has you a pass?" I told him that we had none, and he stated, "Well, no one but a general's allowed to go cross heah without a pass," whereupon I informed him that I was a General Officer and he thereupon exclaimed: "I begs youah pawdon, suh, am dese youah substitutes?" referring to Major Bentley and Captain Chase; I told him they were, and so he let us pass. Near the Cote-de-Mousson we went out on the main road along the river where we found our engineer troops filling up large holes that had been dug underneath the road without destroying the surface as traps for tanks and other military vehicles that might pass. It was here, at our extreme outpost, that I saw a group of German officers and among them one wearing a pair of glasses, who was smoking a cigar with such an air of contemptuous superiority as he gazed upon our sol- diers filling up a tank trap, that I sincerely regretted that the

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war had terminated without his having learned its lessons. I confess to an itching desire to "beat" him. Nancy is the old capital of Lorraine, which was formerly a duchy independent of France. The last Duke left his crown to his father-in-law Stanislaus, the deposed King of Poland, who very greatly beautified the city, notably in the design and construction of the public square, which is one of the architec- tural gems of Europe. On one side of the square is the Hotel de Ville. On two other sides are buildings of uniform appear- ance, while on the fourth side is a lower structure, all of great architectural beauty. Connecting the buildings all around the square are great iron gates and fences, the work of John La- mour, said to have been the world's greatest iron worker. His work also adorns the balustrades around the windows of the square. We had a modest dinner at "Les Oiseaux," which cost us over $6.00 each, so great is the cost of food at the hotels and — — restaurants of France a rum omelet cost $3.60 a fair indica- tion of prevailing prices. « In and About Verdun From Nancy, where we stayed all night, we ran through Toul back to St. Mihiel, where we had luncheon with General Davis, a gentleman whom it is always a pleasure to meet. From here we continued down the Meuse through Genicourt and — Haudainville to Verdun the city around which this Great War has staged its bloodiest tragedies. The city is not altogether, though very greatly, destroyed. It was at the time of our visit the scene of the greatest possible military activity. As we approached its walls we passed innumerable trains and troops, and within its borders thousands of Americans and French soldiers. The citadel is a great hill comprising many acres of ground through which, beneath 100 feet of dirt and the bar- racks and houses that crown the top, are innumerable cham- bers and passages, used as headquarters for the commandant, as canteens, kitchens, mess halls, hospitals and sleeping apart- ments; these we were shown through by an officer detailed for the purpose by the commanding officer. On the day of our ar- rival at Verdun and the next day we encountered thousands of soldiers belonging to the 26th American Division, formerly com- manded by Major General Clarence Edwards. This division had seen hard and bloody service at the front and was now re- turning to the rear. The men bore every evidence of the terri- ble strain which they had undergone. Our attention was directed, a few days earlier, to the fact that every soldier who had seen service in the battle lines told the story of his experiences chiefly

in the hollowness of his eyes. We found this to be true, and

every man that we passed in this battle-torn division plainly told in his eyes and on his face the tragic story.

—

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There being no accommodations near by, we returned to Bar-le-Duc for meals and accommodations for the night. On our way we stopped at Souilly, where we found Lieutenant General Liggett, the Commander of the First Army, and next to General Pershing himself the most conspicuous figure of the war, who was three years ahead of me at West Point. The soldiers had made a spotless town of Souilly. The General handed me his '

own private map showing the location of the several corps and divisions of his command. We found rooms and had meals at a large hotel maintained by the Y. M. C. A. in Bar-le-Duc. A Jap- anese Major-General with his son were guests at the hotel. The next morning we returned to Verdun. Here, the com- mandant of the citadel was kind enough to detail an Adjutant to accompany us out to the forts along the north of the city. This officer, whose name I do not recall, has been in and around Ver- dun throughout the war. He was stationed for two years in Fort de Souville, to which he first conducted us. This is one of a series of forts crowning hills at a distance of from three to six or eight miles from the city. This fort now resembles a heap of rubbish. Every wall or building that formerly entered into its composition has been battered down. It may be said that neither within this fort nor, indeed, at any place for miles around, is there a square foot of ground that is not included within a shell hole. The greater majority of these holes were made by the German 77mm. guns, and are usually five or six feet in diameter and two or three feet in depth, but interspersed with these little fellows are the great holes made by heavy — guns some of these are fully twenty feet across and eight to ten feet in depth. In Fort de Souville there remained only two disappearing steel turrets with their 155mm. guns still in good working order. The turret within which this gun is located rises four or five feet when the gun is discharged, the turret then re- turning to its resting place while the gun is reloaded. The mas- sive steel plates crowning these turrets showed numerous glanc- ing hits by massive projectiles. From here, we drove over to Fort Douaumont, the scene of the greatest and bloodiest struggles of the war. On our way over, we discovered that the intervening country is a continuous cemetery. The crosses of dead French and German soldiers ap- pear on every hand. It is a tragic circumstance that many men were buried in the banks of the trenches right where they fell it would have been impossible under the stream of shot and shell

then flying to have buried them elsewhere. It is said that tens of thousands of men are buried with no mark to indicate their final resting places. Our guide informed us that during the course of the war the French had suffered over 400,000 casualties

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around Verdun and the Germans 600,000—nearly half of these figures represent men actually killed. Douaumont, like its sister forts, is torn beyond recognition. Here and there, in and around Verdun, are cemeteries within which may be seen in long, impressive lines the crosses of thou- sands of dead French soldiers, each patriotically adorned with the tri-color of France. Leaving Verdun we proceeded down the Meuse through Bras and Charnay to a desolate and absolutely forsaken spot where was nailed the sign, "This was Forges." From here through Bethincourt, Malancourt, Montfaucon, Mantillois, Cunel and Bantheville to Dun-sur-Meuse, we passed through absolutely the most war-stricken region that we have seen in France, ex- cepting only the country surrounding the forts at Verdun. Every town is a heap of ruins and rubbish. Every tree has been cut down by cannon fire. Nearly every square rod of ground shows the effect of cannon fire. An American aeroplane with its nose sunk into the ground marked the spot where some American aviator and possibly his accompanying observer met their final fates. A number of French tanks, with their 75mm. and ma- chine guns still in place were the obvious victims of German cannon fire. Rows of graves near which, marked merely with the bayonet of the soldier, indicated where these brave tank men had found a final resting place. This ground was not only the scene of terrific conflicts between the Germans and the French, but was the axis of advance of the American troops during the past few weeks. American graves, single or in groups, were encountered everywhere, marked frequently with a cross, but often merely with a stick or a bayonet. On this cross or stick was the dead man's steel helmet and his identification tag. In a little clump of bushes near a German machine gun emplacement was a piece of board upon which was written: "Here lie seven unidentified German soldiers." German and American steel helmets were scattered here and there for miles and miles,several of which were brought back as souvenirs. Accompanying these sights were wrecked guns and caissons and limbers and trucks, while all over France, wherever war has raged, may be found cannon amunition in the greatest profusion; down on the Marne, where the first battle was fought, German ammunition still may be found in enormous quantities. The extent toward which the Americans have contributed to the desolation of the region, that of the Argonne Forest, which I am describing may be understood when I state that General Allen told us that his brigade of artillery shot 69,000 rounds in 24 hours; this would co3t, I imagine, not less than $2,000,000. We found Major General H. T. Allen, a West Point class mate of mine, at Mouzay. He is in command of the Ninetieth

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Division and informs me that his division suffered substantially 7,500 casualties. He was located in a house formerly occupied by German soldiers as a club, as appears by a German sign on the building. In passing I may mention, that all of that part of France that has been occupied by the Germans throughout the war contains signs in German giving road directions, names of streets, etc. General Allen's chief signal officer has been Lieutenant Colonel Nolan, who served with us at Camp Kearny. Major Andrews, a grandson of General Schofield, is on his staff; his chief of staff being Colonel Kingman, son of General King- man, now deceased, a classmate of Colonel Willard Young. We remained all night in Mouzay, having been billeted in the homes of some of the French people who had remained there through- out the war. The good people with whom I stayed described how the Crown Prince rode, by hores or automobile, nearly every day down through the village from Stenay, his place of residence, to the battle front at Verdun. They had seen the Kaiser, the King of Bavaria, and nearly all of the great German soldiers pass their home during the war. They did not picture the Germans as being excessively cruel, but complained that they compelled all the inhabitants to work at the miserable pittance of about two cents per hour. For some unaccountable reason, the returning Germans shelled the town with ordinary and gas shells after evacuating it and before the arrival of any Amer- ican troops. General Allen carries a little electric plant, run by gasoline, with his headquarters, with which he provides a small circuit of electric lights.

On to Sedan The next morning we visited Stenay and saw the chateau in which the Crown Prince lived for a period of more than six months while he was directing the operations of his army at Verdun. We attempted to go northward on the right bank of the river to Sedan, but were stopped by an American sentry who informed us that his orders were to prevent anyone from cross- ing over to the German lines just beyond. In view of this we returned to Sassey, crossed the Meuse and proceeded northward to Sedan through Beaumont, Rancourt, Angecourt and Remilly, but at the last named place learned from the officers of the Al- gerian French troops that we could not proceed along the river, but would be compelled to take back into the interior, certain bridges having been destroyed. Our interview with these offi- cers was very amusing, inasmuch as we attempted to explain our object in French, to which they listened with great patience, and replied in impeccable English. Through this country we saw a great many German gardens, principally of cabbage, some of it red cabbage. We also saw thousands of German prisoners on

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their way to Sedan to form a part of the grand triumphal entry into that city which was scheduled for the following day. We were not permitted to enter the city of Sedan, but ob- tained a view of it from the opposite bank. Wewere particu- larly interested in the city of Sedan, not merely because of the part which it has played in this war but chiefly of the fact that it is the place where Napoleon III and his army surrendered to the Germans nearly fifty years ago. It was at this point that we came in contact with a great number of returning French prisoners. They were oddly clad and smiling their contentment on returning to France. With- out exception, however, they were all thin and pale, and showed indications of lack of proper nourishment and the strain under- gone in the German prison camps. Scenes About Reims, the Cathedral City From Sedan we proceeded southeasterly through Le Chesne, Vouzieres, Jouniville to the city of Reims, which we reached just at Sunset. For four years Germans have been within shelling distance of this city. The fields are scarred with trenches and encumbered with endless meshes of barbed wire. The roads are all camouflaged. Here and there we saw Ger- man and French trenches in the closest touch with each other. From the hill over which we approached the city, it appeared to be a most attractive spot, but as we rode into its streets, we found nothing but desolation; not a person moved within those ruined precincts. From the distance the city appeared to be almost intact, but we discovered that there is not a house within its limits that is not completely ruined — except as to thirteen buildings which in some degree are susceptible of habitation. Block after block as we proceeded along the street car tracks from which cars have long since disappeared, and on either hand as far as we could see up and down the cross streets, there — was nothing but ruin and desolation every roof was shattered and every wall was pierced. The inhabitants had flown to other parts of France, and that which five years ago must have been one of France's most populous, beautiful and attractive cities, is now, it seems certain, destroyed beyond the possibility of re- pair. One speculates as to the future of this city. For my part, I cannot see that it can ever be restored. Has it, in fact, ended its career as a city, or will those who have called it home and love its memories return to restore and rebuild it with infinite cost and labor? Near the cathedral we found a few soldiers and civilians there, as we were, to gaze at the beauties of this wonderful struc- ture and to mourn over its profanation. I have seen many of the most sublime and beautiful buildings of the world, but with-

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out hesitation I declare the Reims Cathedral, even in its partly ruined condition, to be the most sublime of them all. Fortu- nately the front of the building is opposite the German lines, and so far as I was able to see, has not suffered a single shot. The rear and sides received many hits and the two towers are considerably injured. I am happy in the belief that the build- — ing can be restored I trust that under the treaty of peace this will be required of Germany. I must add, however, that in view of the great destruction that the rest of the city has suffered it appears to me that the Germans have not deliberately shot to — destroy the Cathedral that they have made it their target from time to time is no doubt certain, but I feel assured that if they had deliberately set out to demolish the building they could have done so during the four years that it has been within easy range of their guns. The Cathedral is impressive in its great proportions; its grace and symmetry are harmonious beyond description, while itscarvings and finer work are exquisitely beautiful. The soft- ened light of the setting sun added an indescribable charm to the scene. There can never be erased from my memory the spec- tacle of this noble building to which cling so many of the his- toric memories of France. How superbly this building must have dominated the scene throughout its long history of peace! How still more sublimely do its shattered walls and pinnacles overlook the melancholy ruins and desolate fields that now sur- round it. Down the Marne to Paris We spent the night at Epernay, taking dinner at a charming littlehotel where a meal costs six and one-half francs, that cost precisely double the price in Paris the next day. The following day we ran down the Marne into Paris, pass- ing on the way through the battlefield of Chateau Thierry, where the American troops first distinguished themselves, and where we found innumerable evidences of recent warfare, in- cluding the melancholy sight of numerous American graves. We arrived in Paris on a historic day, that of the removal from the monuments erected in the Place de la Concorde of the crepe that has adorned these monuments ever since the Franco- Prussian War. All Paris was on the streets throughout the day, and the greater portion of the night, aeroplanes swept the sky and even skimmed along the Seine. The procession containing 150,000 people marched from the Arc de Triumph to the Place de la Concorde wearing wreaths. Many veterans of the former war were in the procession, gray-haired and gray-bearded like the veterans of our Civil War. The joy of the people was in- tense and unbounded. The Americans and the English joined

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with the French in enthusiasm. The Americans were particu- larly the objects of French admiration. Our little party was surrounded on several occasions by groups of young men and young women, dancing a sort of ring-around-the-roses, much to the delight of the spectators and somewhat to our own confusion. — We learned afterwards and not before, much to our regret that the customary way of breaking the circle is to kiss the girls. We were each covered with confetti. The hundreds, perhaps thousands: of German cannon had been parked here and there throughout the city, but the people helped themselves to them, and the next day they were scattered all over Paris.

End of the Conflict

Our return trip was made in two days, Tours being our in- termediate resting place. We left Captain Chase at Paris, where he was able to take a train for his station at Clermont-Ferrand. Thu& was concluded a journey that will forever remain one of the most vivid and impressive experiences of my life. It was our privilege to go from one end to the other of the entire front line, occupied by the American troops. We beheld these troops and their German enemies in precisely the same positions that they occupied when the great war sounded its last harsh note. The troops were in their bivouac and trenches, and machine guns and cannon remained where they had fired their final shots. The command posts of company, battery, battalion, regimental and general headquarters remained unmoved. There was, in- deed, complete preparation and readiness on all hands to meet any treachery that might manifest itself. Supply and ammuni- tion trains were still functioning. Indeed, it was as if the bat- tle had just ceased for a moment, and all were pausing for its renewal. These conditions existed only for a few hours longer. Even now, after the lapse of two weeks, these lines have com- pletely disappeared. The armies of occupation are marching to their positions along the Rhine, while all of the troops are retiring to permanent quarters in the rear. It will never again be possible to see this scene clothed in the full panoply of war. Countless thousands will visit the scenes of this great struggle, and they will be impressive in their desolation; but the ruins will be mossgrown, and grass will be found in the shell craters. The life of the scene, as we had the privilege of beholding it, will have departed, and only the imagination can call back, and that feebly, the grim and heroic figures that we saw, or ani- mate the scene with the myriad movements and bustle that mark the presence of a great army.