South Bend news-times., 1915-06-09
HAS NARROW ESCAPE
IN AIR RAID ON PARIS
Braves Channel Trip Twice
Where There's Always a
Sporting Chance" to Be
TOrpedOed by Submarine.
BY Iii sibley.


Just returned from "A week in France.
Getting into that country and out
again is about as hard as 10 is for the
proverbial camel 10 wrlggle through
the eye OF the proverbial needle, and
then do nc all over again, tail first.
after "a THANKSGIVING dinner NO one
is supposed TO enter France unless
he has business Of the utmost import
ance: newspaper business Is not re-
garded as such. ON the contrary. a
newspaper person in Paris has about
the same status as a pOle-Cat In a
summer resort He is eyed with sus-
picion. ne is pursued cat a safe dis
tance} he is made as uncomfortable
as 10 is possible to make him, vet no
one seems To have the temerity to
openly chase him away
In fact had my objective in France
been newspaper business solely, /
doubht If I should have been able
To edge i'm at an. Skeptical persons
should remember that regulations tC
day are 10 times as eXacting as they
were six months ago, and the news
paper slan is the goat. As for the
camera man. they are out of 1t en-
tirely I met q Chicago movie Oper-
ator here in London. He had spent
six weeks of ceaseless effort trying TO
get permission 20 take a picture of
the troops reviewing ubt it was no
use. He wasn't allowed to unlim ber
his lens. even. He had tackled every
man of influence from Sir Thomas
seal Helps Hi Through.
So he spent the six weeks cussing
the British war Office. the British
mind. and everything else British; he
ran out of cuss words and has gone
over Co France 20 learn some new
ones. For American persistence he
of: his experiences would make a
story all by themselves. But TO re-
turn. The only thing that got me
through 10 Paris was a letter from
GOV. Ralston. II mentions red cross
work. and in addition 10 the political
weight OF this handy document. II
bears large impressive red gold
seal which no foreign official is able
10 resist. That seal is wonderfully
effiCaciOus where the official cannot
ready English: that seal has helped
me over many a rocky ridge. It
proved an open sesame" to Paris
Before leaving London one must
get a special passport from the
French consulate. at the railway sta
tion he must fill out a slip giving de-
tails OF business age. name. nationality
and the like: at Folkestone he must
wait in line two hours 20 have pass
ports vised; this is repeated before
i he leaves the channel steamer at
tHoufogne. and at Paris no hotel will
allow him TO register unless his pass
ports are satisfactorily vised. Return
ing to England a more rigid inspec-
ton is made. including a medical ex-
,amination. all OF which consumes
hours and makes the long day s
Journey exceedingly tedious-partic-
tularly in the sort OF trains they put
up with over here. But l am going
back TO Paris again, and In few
DAYS. London seemed exciting when
I first came. but 1t IL nothing COM
pared 10 Paris and northern France.
There one is at the very back door OF
the war
\ sporting Chance"
But I am getting ahead of the story.
We must first cross the channel. This.
as an EngHshman observed. is always
a sporting chance Of getting torped-
oed. ONLY two routes are now open;
from Folkestone 10 Boulogne running
once day. and from FOlkestone to
Heppe three times week me
channel steamers are comparatively
fast. about 20 knots. and every pre-
caution is taken against the possible
torpedo IL is indeed a sporting
chance LifebOats are swung out in
readiness and 10 the back of every
deck chair is laShed "a life preServer
In addition there are great piles or
them in convenient places above and
below deck. Two lOokouts In the bow
with glasses scan the waters ahead
constantly. and -FOUR on the bridge ana
two amidships are always alert for
The sight OF a hostile periscOpe- Woe
unto the submarine that shows its
Cyclopean eve above the waves within
few hundred yards. for the channel
steam ers are pledged 20 make chase.
and being much speedier than the
submarine. which cannot dive quickly,
the chances are that the latter would
come TO grief when I crossed the
nrst time destroyer escorted MS: a
long. lean smoky craft with white
wave crests painted on its bows 20
mlslead the submarine as 10 its real
speed. Then iu the ofing could be
seen several w8rships. and part OF
the route was protected with buovs
carryinh mine and torpedo nets /
"as told the war office intended TO
StrlnE thls entirely across the channel
aernaps two miles was already done
CONTINUED On PAGE IL