The Washington herald., 1914-10-11
FRENCH RECRUIT
men over FORTY
Those Between that and Fifty
Being Drilled in Ancient
Versailles.
ARE WAITING TO MARCH
Lines May Be Ragged and Soldiers
Partly Unkempt. but Their Morale
Is Excellent.

Paris, Oct. 1o-Ancient Versailles which
has played such q big part in european
history, has again come into her own
in this great European war.
Thousands upon thousands Of men
have passed through Versailles on their
way to the front. and many have an
swered their last roll call. Others have
been sent home invalided. Recently the
men of over forty and under fifty were
mobilized and Versailles was full of peres
de famille awaiting to march away TO
that vague, mysterious, unknown land
called the frontier.
They were drilling In squads all down
the avenue leading to the wide Place des
Armes, dominated by the immense
chateau and the imposing statue Of Louis
XIV, the Roi SoleiL Some were in uni
form, some in mufti, some in quaint
combination of the two; military trousers
which never fitted, civilian coat, and a
waiscoat and kopi, worn with anything
but military smartness; a pair Of spot
less white trousers, neatly patched; red
scarf around the waist, workmen's blue
linen coat, fresh washed for the occa-
sion, and Just the KEPT to give the SOL
dierly note; knickerbockers and putties,
with a tunic and an English travelling
cap, and sometimes a perfectly neat
civilian turnout with collar, gloves, and
shining shoes
odd Men and CIothea.
The effect was a motley one, and the
men themselves were as oddly assorted
as their clothes. workmen, tradesmen.
professional men, artists and dillettanti
marched side by side in uneven lines 70
the sharp un-deux un-deuX Of the ser
geant. They stood at attention, they
Ieft-wheeled and right-wheeled and pre-
,l-ffh alaTfne99 that
as unexpected as II was admirable, for
many of them had done no drill at all
for several years
That their lines were ragged, their hg-
ures corpulent or clumsy, their heads
bald or grizzled, and their walk none too
supple, matters very little, for their
morale is of the very best.
Not a man among them but is GLAD TO
20 to strike a blow for Ia patrie. Little
soldiers of the line I'm red trousers and
long gray-blue overcoat: men Of the foot
artillery. in white breeches, putties.
khaki cotton tunic with gilt buttons. .
flaming shell on the left arm. and dark
blue fatigue cap. Hussar officers, In
cherry color breeches, high black boots,
and pale blue tunic: hundreds Of men In
fatigue dress of Holland brown and blue
cape were swarming all over town.
Oficers of all grades and OF many DIFF
ferent regiments. on foot, mounted. and
in motor cars, shot out curt orders right
and left; boy scouts ran messages or
drilled each other in little companies
with a soIemnity their fathers could
never hope to reach, and old men wearing
1910 medals looked on with watery eyes
and vague memories Of what happened
before.
Horses Are of All Ssrfs.
an ao,,- ,o,. sid. of the Place den
Armes and up a long avenue were the
stables. Hundreds Of horses were walt
ing for their orders like the men-omni-
bus horses, cart horses, race horses
ponies, useful cobs, well-groomed carriage
horses, and nearly all Of them in good
condition.
Here and there a bony. unhappy look
ing beast appeared extremely Ill at ease
among his plumper comrades and showed
an in-bred eagerness to poke his nose
into other horses mess bags; but, speak
ing generally, the class Of horse COM
mandeered was strong, useful, and nj
for heavy work.
The mules looked as obstinate as they
are supposed to look and the race horse
as delicately disdainful. The number OF
dapple and hea-bitten grays was notice
able. and almost invariably they were OF
the sturdy, weight-carrying build.
1t was strange to see these patient
unduestioning animals munching hay
where, as a rule one sees men and wom-
en- drinking sirups or slipping aperitifs
and to find that the blue painted stalls
bearing the inscription Afternoon Tea
were turned into forage stores. 1t wai
inspiring to see the activity in the bar
rack Yards Of the engineers and the ar
tiIlery once known as the Ecuries du Ro
and the Ecuries de Ia Refine.