Evening star., 1898-07-16

duty his officer may consider 1t expecient
to lick him into shape by endless school
mastering. 1t is true that he regularly has
no vocation for arms, and does not want
to be a soldier He is only civilian going
through soldiers training; and as such
he may need harsher treatment than he
British volunteer, who has given the best
proof he really wants to be soldier. But
off duty the French conscript cannot help
getting all the social consideration due 10
his Disgusting uniform. 1 have seen such
a enc, in uniform, accompanying his moth
er to church-and shs duchess. 1 have
seen another, just behind him, enter the
same church-and he the son of a poor
peasant woman, who assists her husband
in a suburban truck patch Each had the
military bearing. At first sight you could
scarcely have told them apart.
1t results from all this that the French
private soldier might go anywhere in uni
form where he might go as a civilian, were
1t not for the emba rrassing presence of his
superior officers. In the ordinary garrison
towns there is an understanding that GER
tain cafes and restaurants must be left
sacred to this hierarchy. 1t is not as if the
citizens objected to the presence of the
rank and file in uniform. Nor would any
officer, if questioned, admit any personal
repugnance to sitting in the same room
with one of his privates. He would simply
say that the thing is embarra ssing all
around" and that 1T is not done" In
these garrison towns the military element
outweighs all others. Often there are not
enough civilians to dilute the military Glen
tele Of cafe to anything like the proper
tions of a mixed assembly. 1t is not fitting
that officers and men should mingle social
ly. And they could not help mingling un-
comfortably should both classes frequent
the same brasseries, cafes and restaurants.
Two-thirds of the rank and file, indead,
would never need to be restricted so. Sons
of poor or moderately well off parents, 1t
would not occur to them to disport in
places of expensive entertainment on their
holidays. But the other third might feel
considerable hardship but for the sustain
ing thought that, after all, the thing is
only temporary, and that in a couple of
years they are to put off The uniform and
be themselves again. When Max Lebaudy
was at Belfort 1t was amusing to observe
him lodging his superiors, and the incon-
gruity of his position and his tendencies
furnished the inhabitants of the little town
with continual entertainment.
Lebaudy Solved n Difficulty.
Although an insignificant little place, Bel
fort is one of the most important strategic
points on the Alsatian frontier 1t is over
run by infantry, artillery and hussars, and
you will see twice as many soldiers as CIV
illians on It's streets. 1t has only two cafes
and three restaurants of any pretension to
the first class, while its one theater Is re-
spectacle but intermittent, and its two
music halls are ordinary. Lebaudy had his
own rooms in the town, where he might
have entertained his friends to his hearts
content whenever he could get leave of
absence; but open jollfty and display were
dear to the rich young spendthrift, and he
yearned for the officers cafes and restau-