The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1914-10-09
HONOLULU MAN
AND HIS FAMILY
VICTIMS OF WAR.
Clarence H. Smith, Wife and Chill
dren.Have Narrowing Expert
ence Escaping From France
HORRORS BESET THEIR
TRIP TO ETERNAL CITY
- yes $3.50
Suffering Of Wounded Soldiers
and Civilians, Hunger and An
noyanoes Sioken Them

The experiences Of a Honolulu man
and his family in traversing France df-
Ter the war broke out are related in
the following letter, received by W. b.
Smith from his daughter.in!law, Mrs.
Clarence II. Smith, from Rome, where
the writer, her husband and children
have taken up their residence for the
time being.
Mr.. smith's French home is in Wi
fncrcanx, near Boulogne, and tho war
was on in full fury before he was able
to escape with his family to Rome,
where he resides h part Of the time.
Horrible Journey
His wife, under date Of September
Q, writes, in part:
s'Dearest Mother and Father We
reached Rome on Friday, the fourth
after a horrible Journey of eight days,
when the usual time is two days and
nights The French papers give no
news, so were all deceived until the
last, when we had to flee with only the
clothes we had on / had packed one
trunk with all our clothes; this n
quickly efhptied and filled with sheets
and bedding, as we want furnished
rooms here and bedding is not inelud-
cd. We were allowed sixty kilos and
gust measured Il.
AT Wimereaux station we waited
two hours for the train but were thank
full to get started. 1t took us thirty
two hours to reach Paris; the usual
time is three hours. At Amiens we had
70 take tho train with thousands of
fugitives. We had twelve in our com
partment (they accommodate six) with
baggage, babies and children whose
feet were stuck out of the windows. !,
Cramp and smells
!, After night Of cramp and smells
we fought a terrible crowd, rich and
poor, lying about sleeping on their
handbags, or crouehing face flat on the
station pavements, Wounded English
and Belgian soldiers were being car
ried on the back of others to ambu.
lances and on stretchers. Streams of
fugitives were pouring in from every
direction and Red Gross nurses, men
4 and women, we're everywhere. The con.
fusion was terrible, but people were
too worried and wretehed to be excited.
"After sitting on our valises from
three until seven am, and asking ev-
cry little while for the train TO Paris,
we were finally directed to ono already
crowded. The crushing, the pulling
and pushing was fearful. People OF
first, second and third classes were any
and everywhere, and we were nearly
listed out Of compartments already
filled. ... 3D.. nasl,.
NO Food Or water ..alGg
''After about half an hour Of this
when we at last got standing room, we
were all Informed that that train was
not for Paris, but no one knew which
ono was for Paris. got hold of an
officer (for everything is military and
promising him a big fee, we followed
him. Everyone was running on the
tracks, as well as ourselves, and he
opened compartment and turned the
crowd out which had tbird!class tick OTIS
leaving in a gentleman, his wife, nurse
and four children, aud locked us all in
| gave him his fee and settled dowl
- from sheer exhaustion. ",
"For that day and night we travelet
this way without food or even water.
Carried Out For Air y
"At the station another terribl
crowd, and for more than two hour
we were damned and Knocked witt
baggage, elbows and umbrellas. Final
~ women berame i'll and storming y
get onto the platform began, but tn
soldiers could not open the gates, q
we found ont afterwards, because tw
trains of wounded had arrived; so W
passed over the children 10 the soldier
and some of us women were also cal
ried out, / among the number. But Thu
gentleman and family kept near us an
whispered that he had a compartment
he hoped, as soon as we could get on
rms proved 70 :ne true ai 10 GnSe nhol
,.Tba hal had mSnagod 10 yet
Iosf ~ broad and sho gayo MS som,
int W. md nothino else. and no waite
~ trsin vent ynrv slowly an
49, - sto,no apd We ali yot IN
o 49, ,tonaI ANA Sross F,rtber II
i"Jy and scntioSan servant mi
sh,ab ohilaron l,brcw into our windo
y. Green annlcs wSich we 'deyouTed wit