Grand Forks daily herald., 1914-12-16
FRANCE NEAR R0UT.
SAVED BY J0FFRE
French Officer Says Armies
Peril After Charleroi is
Unrealized.
(By Rene Arcos)


Especial Correspondence of the Chi
cago Daily News and st. Paul Dis
patch.) III
Paris, Nov. 21.-Traveling in q
train along the French line Of COM
munications toward the east, 1 made
the acquaintance of French captain
who is a great .admirer Of General
Jotfre. He said:>
THE worth Of this wonderful man
cannot be sufficiently praised. The
world will be. astonished when it
learns, after the war, what he has
done. He was face to face with sit
uation not only tragic, but almost
hopeless. The battle Of Charleroi
was a check the gravity of which was
known to very few. ~
Several army oqEps, having suffered
terrible lesses-yes, I viii even say
prodigious losses-were absolutely de-
moralized. Several chiefs already had
lost confidence.
Peace loving France was ill pre-
pared for such war and Germany
had hurled against it 100000 men,
among whom We're many troops Of ex-
traordinary merit as regards both
courage and training. In contrast to
ment, Germany brought forward an
organization whose excellence has
been recognized by y;the-whole world.
+ Yet General Joffre succeeded in
his formidable task. With troops a
good part of whom already considered
themselves beaten beyond hope, with
insufficient equipment, this cool, de-
terlnined man was able to win the de-
cisive victory of the Marine. He re-
stored every ones confidence, he re-
awakened every ones energy, he held
all the forces Of the nation in his
hand and hurled them VIGOROUSLY
against the invader. Believe me, Ma
poleon in all his career never did any
thing SO great"
There were several other persons in
the same compartment. each Of whom
had his bit Of information to con-
tribute. The trains Just now are ex-
cellent news centers. There was, for
instance, an English officer who talked
at great length about the portentous
preparations which England is max.
ing.
We already know something about
it, said I, for your country has sent
! over large numbers Of troops"
That is nothing. he answered
Those who have arrived are only the
feeble advance guard. Not until July
l915, will England be ready to begin
it's serious effort We have lots oil
time. The offices we have rented al
llavre for our administration have
been taken for three years. We are
at the disposition of our friends. the
Germans, at any time it. suits them.
Bridge Gone; AutOists Die.
Just then the train passed through
Trilport. village on the Marine.
noticed the bridge. which had beer
destroyed and repaired. A fellow trav.
eler, who lived near here, told me OF
the tragic accident which took place
on this bridge some weeks ago.
1t was the French army which blew
UP the bridge in the course OF the re.
treat from Charleroi. Not long after.
ward q German automobile carryins
four officers sped on to the bridge ir
the darkness Of night and. made a ter.
rifle leap into space. The four officers
were killed and the machine smashed
to bits. The debris still lay there or
the river bank.
The train went forward: slowly ovel
| the bridge, which had been temporar.
lly repaired by French sapperS. These
Ing us gayly and begging for news
papers. =.
The man on the seat next to me
plucked my sleeve and said:
| Look! It's overs-there that the ter
riblesacctdent happened. A whole trair
or wounded was going over a dam.
aged bridge and fell into the Marne.
The.French press has not mentioned
this incident, or several others Of the
same kind Some of these were due
to the recklessness Of the soldiers
many Of whom hid climbed to the
roofs Of cars and were decapitated II
passing through tunnels.
Several soldiers rode all the way
from Paris to Dijon astride the coup.
lings of the cars. They were deter.
mined to 60 at any cost on the same
train as their comrades, and 1t wal
impossible to make them listen t.
reason. Their obstiaacy was 20 touch.
ing that nobody had the heart to op.
pose 1t.
On another trainli few days ago ]
met one Of the new varieties Of mar
created by the war. There already art
cattle drovers and horse drovers. Thil
man was b ''drovesr Of aeroplanss HI
Travelled back ana forth all the time
between Lyons and Paris. .. .s,ras
L. IT have two. In. ttiis trains" he told
me. I'm taking them to the aviation
fieid at Issy-les- -Monlineaux. One, ii. g
Rep.s and tho other Gordon. Al
other makes have been discarded, and
only these two .ase being snanufac-
tuyed for the army"