The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-08-06
Paul Calame, Cannoneer in FrancO-Prussian War, Dis
 cusses Present Strife
STRAINING TO BE AT
 GERMANY.'S THROAT
French People Have Never Forgotten Nor Forgiven Atrocities of Victori- ous Prussian Troops--Will Re
 cover Alsace and Lorraine

The time has come when France
 Will recover her territorial possessions Of Alsace and Lorraine from the Ger mans" declared M. Paul Calame yes
 terday. M. Calame is veteran of the Franco Prussian war of the '70s. He has been resident of Birmingham con tiiiuously since 1887. and previous to the Franco Prussian war resided in the United States, returning to his native land, France, a few months before the outbreak of the war
 Ut was in 1869 that I left the Uni ted States for France to serve my time in the army, which is necessary under the laws of my country if one is to retain his citizenship. l reached France early in January of 1871. was exam ined and passed into the fight forces of France for seven years service I was placed in the artillery and it was in July. six months later. that the war between Prussia and France broke out. I fought in every important engage ment of the war, with the possible ex- ception of the first three battles. A Sanguinary Reminiscence
 'The PrussaDs had carefully pre- pared for the war. and France had lit- tie chance to win, because of her un- preparedness. Our army was retreating most of the time. At the retreat from kalfour the artillery managed to do extensive damage to a large detach- ment of fhe Prussian army, which was pursuing our forces. We were but short distance from the Swiss border line and the country was very noun tainous. The only pass by which an army could come through was be- tween two high mountains, which ar- forded excellent opportunity for an am- buscade. Our commander was not slow to see the advantage to harass the pur- suing forces and the artillery was placed just over the brow of the noun tain tops on either side and prepared to send grape and shell down upon the Prussians when they arrived. The ad- vance guard was about 800 strong anu stopped when half way through the valley. The main body of the army soon joined the advance guard and we received the order to fire. It was es- tlmated that between 2000 and 2509 Trussians were killed in this battle
 while the French army loss was com paratively small.
 q have never seen blood flow more freely in my life. It was as if we'll of blood had been struck by the drill.
 "The French people have 8 feeling against the Prussians which can never be downed. The atrocities committed by detachments of the Prussian army during the war of the '70s can never be forgotten by our people, and I can only say for the Germans, God have mercy upon them when Frenchmen get on their soil. Every Frenchman re- members how our women were violated by the Prussians; how defense1ess old men and women and children were rurhlessly slaughtered by the onward march of the victorious army; how property was destroyed without req soh. and how the people of Alsace and Lorraine have been sugjected to con ditions little short of slavery since the acquisition of these provinces by the German Emperor.
 Free speech is forbidden in the two provinces and Frenchmen who have oc- cJpied their ancestral homesteads for seven generations have been despoile2 by the foreign rulers of French terri tory. The French residents of Alsace and Lorraine with the memory of hor- Tors committed half a century ago still fresh in their minds, will rise as one Etan againSr the enemy. And these are among the best fighters in France. Our greatest generals have come from AL s.tce and Lorraine. The best fighting men in the French army were recruited from those provinces. And every man of them has back of his patriotism a personal reason for desiring a chance tc fight the Germans.
 Is the Kaiser Insane?
 "The Prussian soldier and the Prus- sian man as . rule is an arrogant dom i,eering sort of a fellow-one who thinks he owns the earth. so to speak. The Emperor of Germany himself is generally accredited as insane, even his own subjects admitting it. He has taken more than the soldiers of Ger many can handle in declaring war against Russia and taking summary ac- tor in France.
 Tn 1870 France was unprepared. Now she is prepared for war and the army of France Is the best fighting force in the world today. The army of France Is more like the trained soldiers of the United States than any other amy in the world. The German sol dier Is machine XIII the officers of German regiment and the regiment is lost The Frenchman Is different. Like the American soldier. he will continue to press his way onward even though his officers be killed He has initiative anc will win. The German soldiers are like flock of sheep when their lead CT falls. They scatter in every direc-