Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-11-21
ALSACE And LORRAINE.
visit to the Provinces Reft From
France by Her Victorious
NeighbOr.
The People Are Still French to the
COre-The Formidable Frontier
FortifieatiOns.

PARIs.-The great majority of travellers
come directly through from the Rhine to
Paris without stopping, and so miss some
very interesting country and several cities
well worth seeing. The Vosges Mountains,
lying between the Rhine and the eastern
boundary of France. are nearly as pictur-
esque as those Of the Black Forest-reach-
ing an altitude of 1000 to 5000 feet, and
stretching across the Palatinate, territory
whose name occurs so often in the roman
tic history of the middle ages. and whose
soil has been fought over time after time
IN the fierce struggles of the adjoining
Cings. Not far from the little town of
Annweiler is the ruin of the accent fortress
Of Trifels, where Richard the LiOnhearted
was confined for more than year by Hen
VI, and each hamlet is the scene of some
historical incident to give added interest
to its natural charms.
Alsace and Lorraine are two names that
have occupied a large place In the papers
since 1870, and are destined, | fear, to
head the columns very often again in the
near future. Two of the largest and rich
est provinces of fair France, reaching
along almost the whole length of the
Rhine, and containing about one and q
half million of people, their loss was a sore
blow to France, and she will not rest until
she has regained them or at least made a
desperate attempt 1t is not strange that
she should feel thus, but the bitterness of
this feeling after eighteen years is rather
surprising to an American who is accus-
toned to the amical relations between the
two sections Of our country, that only few
years before were engaged in war far
longer and bloodier One can have but
little idea of the intensity of the hatred Of
the great part of the people of these two
provinces for Germany unless he stops
there and goes among them, as | did for
several days. In Asace the Germsn ele-
ment predominates more and In the neigh
borhood of Strassburgi is strong enough to
have given little show of cordiality to the
Kaiser at his visit there last month, but
Lorraine is almost solid for France, and
Germany undertook a tremendous task in
trying to make German citizens of peo-
pie who for over 300 years have been under
French rule and whose cOstoms, tastes and
language are thoroughly French.
most curious anomaly is found among
some elderly people that met who are Of
German descent, speak the German langu-
age, and yet hate Kaiser William and Bis
marck as cordially as any Frenchman. The
situation in these border provinces is of
the most strained and irritable kind, and
every person | talked with said that it is
impossible for matters to continue this
way much longer; in fact, they grow worse
every day The Government is determined
to make German citizens of them
and they are equally determined that they
won't become German. All official bust
ness, such as railway, lost, telegraph, and
courts, must be conducted in German, the
papers printed only in German, and the
language used in the schools. The most
of the people speak both languages, but
French is much better known and almost
universally preferred. The officials are
nearly all imported from beyond the Rhine
and they make very strict application of
every regulation while the natives reta-
late by making matters as awkward and
embarrassing as possible for the officials.
The regulations for customs tariff and
passports have been made certainly most
annOyingly stringent and almost shut off
commerce and intercourse between the
two countries. ! saw one woman who had
neglected to get passport for a child a
year old, and went around by Switzerland
into Germany rather than go to the trouble
of procuring
Germany has all she wants, is perfectly
satisfied, and have yet to see a German
who desired war or was In favor of it.
On the other hand, France Is burning for
revenge and re-possession of her lost
provinces. and every Frenchman says that
war Is bound to come as soon as France Is
ready Germany knows this and is MAX
ing enormous defensive preparations. 1t
seems impossible that there can be in
Europe any such Notifications as one NAV
see at Strasburg, Fort Bitsch, Metz and
other strategic points along the extreme
frontier. And still work goes on. A moat
clear around the city Is dug, large enough
to float a war ship, a river is turned into
it, an immense series of breastwOrks Is
built, requiring the labor of thousands of
men, then another large moat, more ram
parts, forts ON every commanding point
adjacent. until the Notifications seem
everything and the city mere dot in the
center. Metz looks like city under siege.
Thirty thousand soldiers are stationed
there, barracks cover square after square,
and the blue coats with scarlet facings, are
omnlpresent.
When war comes next it will be a
bloody one. and the powers that be of the
French Government would do well before
beginning it TO make visit of inspection
to the forts along the frontier. and take a
long and thorough view of the German
soldiers and then compare them with the
condition, discipline and morals of their
own.
From Metz went out to see the battle
fields living so thick about there ST. Her
bert, st. Privot and Gravelotte, | was
young when those battles were fought
and had forgotten how deadly the strug-
giles there. For miles the mountains arise
on every hand over the piles of the slain,
here thousand there two In another place
three thousand. In the battle of the 18th
Of August, 1870. alone, there fell more
than $4,000 men, and in the cemetery of
Metz are buried in one mound 800 French
soldiers who died in the hospital a few
days after these battles. The political
leaders who are anxious for war should
look at those figures often and think what
they mean to the homes of their land
ARTHUR WooDCoCK.