The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1915-12-09
MEETS A WORRIED
DIPLOMAT AT ROME
Page Fears for Son-in-Law in British
Army; Genus Tourist is No
Longer Seen in "Eter-
nal City"
By WILLIAM G. SHEPHERD,
U. p. staff correspondent

SALONIKA. Oct 31.-(By mail.)-
The four jumps from Paris to the Sal
onika front take three weeks: they
are full of waits, interest and excite
ment, of submarine lodging, sightsee-
ing. Perhaps you'd like to take the
trip. John McCutcheon, the American
cartoonist, and James H. Hare, vet
eran war photographer, are in the
party.
Very Welt It's 10 o'clock at night
in the p l.. NJ. station in Paris and
you're climbing into the sleeping car.
You've been worrying. Four days ago
you reserved berths and paid bonus
to your hotel for securing them. AS
the train pulls out you discover that
the car is practically our private car.
Few folks are travelling toward Italy
in wartime.
You ask the porter for detachable
lamp for your berth.
Haven't got any extra ones"
"Why?"
"This is wartime"
That's silly you say angrily.
Say / used to run on the Oriental
express from Vienna to Constantine
ople," says the French porter, who is
also conductor. Didn't | use to see
you hanging around Vienna?"
''Never been in Vienna" you lie But
what he has said cools you down; he's
practically telling you that if you don't
shut up about the berth lamp he'll
charge you with being an Austrian spy.
He's got the drop on you; you're
nothing but poor helpless foreigner
in France in wartime. So you go to
bed without the lamp; no chance of
reading yourself to sleep this night.
There's dining car hitched on for
breakfast. But there's nothing but
coffee and bread; no eggs, no bacon
tits the warl"
There's no diner for lunch. Same
reason. For supper you jump off at
station, buy cold chicken, pickles
and bottled water and get the crumbs
all over the carpet Of your compart-
ment
The second morning you're in Rome.
Your trunk doesn't show up. It's back
in Paris. Same reason as no eggs.
At the American embassy you find
Ambassador Thomas Nelson Page
greatly worried as to the welfare Of
his son-in-law, a major in the British
army. A British transport has been
sunk near Salonika; the chances are
his son-in-law was on it, but there is
no way to learn. VIII you carry let
ters to Salonika for the major and try
TO learn something as to his welfare?
| It's an errand you gladly assume.
You're going right into the fog of war
and you may meet the major there if
the ambassadors fears are not well
founded.
There's a day lay over in Rome and
you go to see the ruins or the forum.
les a sadder sight than it has ever
been in all its 1000 years. 1t is de-
serted, except for two old guides. pro-
fessor looking persons; the paths
which have been pounded by the feet
of scores of thousands of American
school teachers, Of girls from Ameri-
can finishing schools. and of a Few
other tourists, are empty.
The two guides quarrel for you, in
professorlike and dignified manner
and you take the one whose frock coat
is the shabbiest.
You're the first American tourists
that have been here for five months"
he says.
"were war writer's" you explain.
mot tourists"
The two Americans | took through
five months ago we're war correspond
ents. too" he says. The only tourists
in Italy are war correspondents. and
lihey don't want 70 see anything but
war %