The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1914-08-19
3. e. sutlive Of This City Witnessed
Departure Of French Liner Roehan'-
beau Last Saturday With the
Reservlsts.
HEART-BREAKING SCENE
All Seemed to Realize the Serious
ness Of Mission, Although
Some Tried to Make
Others Forget

!
messed the departure of the French
liner Rochambeau The scenes on
the dock there at New York are
graphically described by Mr.. Sutlive IN
the following letter to The Gate City:
An event, the narration Of which
may be OF interest to some Keokuk
people at this time was the sailing
Saturday at the noon hour of the bis
French liner, the Rochambeau, loaded
with reservists for the European
calamity.
There were partings such as crush
( the life from out young hearts," and
old hearts, too, bore equally the brunt
of this awful sorrow In their lives,
and while the tri-colors of France
were in the possession Of almost
every man, woman and child there as
sembleG, the emblem was outnumber,
ed by the common everyday pocket
handkerchiefs. for all had that and
used it.
Choose Who Shall Go.
A nineteen year old young man was
temporarily halted by the graphing
hands Of his mother, but the father
explained to her that one OF them, the
father or the SON, should go, and tho
pleading Of the young man as to his
better fitness and as to the inadvis-
ability OF his fathers leaving the
American home prevailed; and fine
looking young man, kissed dozen
times by his falter1ng mother and,
after the French fashion, as many
times by the father, stepped aboard
the ship to Join two brothers who It
seems had never seen this countT-
but who are now On the firing line "in
defense Of our country and homes" rs
these people put IT, The mother, walk
ing through the gate away from the
pier, said, @r wish no luncheon today
heart Is too heavy"
Dozens of bearded men embraced
and kissed each other as the time
drew near for raising the plank, and
after the ship had left the dock six
OF seven year old boy cried franticaliy
for father to come back, then begged
TO be hele by some one above the
crowd, after his mother could hold
him no longer-tnat he might con-
tfnue 10 wave goodbye" as the faith.
er vanished from his view.
Slaughter Of co-partners.
Wives and sisters telling husbands !
and brothers goodbye there were |
doubtless some, but II So they were
lost in the big class-the sweetheart
could not tell.
in fact, I could not see as clearly |
as 1 might have had not had in |
mind the awful fact that the success
OF this expedition, II success they |
meet with, should be through the
wholesale slaughter OF their and our
co-partners In civilization, the Ger
mans.
A number OF the young fellows at
tempted to assume the appearance OF |
being in merry mood for the obvi-
Gus purpose Of quieting the fears Of
those with whom they were parting, |
but none Of them made a very great
hit" in the role.
Appreciate Their Danger.
They seem to appreciate fully that
they are going to war with capital
'tW," and those who gave expression
to their views seemed to rely on the /
overthrow Of the German monarchy
Is the means OF peace, according to
my Interpreter.
1t was not given out how many Of
these men went aboard the Rocham-
beau, and my asking the question is
The only tongue I know caused the
ship and dock detectives to ask me a
lew questions A French-American
whose acquaintance had made, help
I'd me in and helped me to remain in.
An effort was made in one group to
sing Ia Marseillaise" but 1t fell fiat
literally, it was drowned out"
Yours very truly,